Winter Weekend

I love snow! In my opinion it is one of the best things about winter. If the weather is going to be cold, it might as well be pretty and sparkly too! Snow transforms all the dull grays and browns into a winter wonderland, its magic. It started snowing here on Thursday evening, snowed through the night and stuck around for most of the weekend. Then it snowed again last night! I love waking up and seeing a fresh coating of snow everywhere, so untouched and quiet. I love being outside early, before all the boot prints and tire tracks muck things up, just a few cute kitty footprints around. I love not having to scrape your windshield - brushing snow off is so much easier! 

We had a lovely wintery weekend. Pete & Hannah came to visit from Seattle. We hung out, drank awesome coffee, visited a bookstore, I cleaned the house (which felt great!), had more friends over for dinner, drank lots of warm beverages, made a fire and kept the house toasty, baked some pecan pies, wore thick sweaters and I busted out my down slippers, read books, played quirkle and listened to oldies on Pandora. Such a nice, relaxing weekend!  (until the part where an uninsured drunk driver smashed into Pete's parked car, which then smashed into our car... just another chance to remember to turn to the Lord!)

Hope everyone else had a wonderful weekend too!

Local Spots: Mexican Food

Mexican food is the best! If I had to pick my favorite type of food, I'm pretty sure this would be it. Today, I thought I would share some of my favorite spots here in town with you locals! Or if you are ever passing through Spokane, stop and check one out. However, if you are craving fish tacos, you will have to come over to our place, cause Joe makes the best in town ;)

El Que is a fun little hole-in-the-wall in Brown's Addition (behind the Elk). This is a fun place to go if you are looking for something unique with a cool atmosphere  I love their outdoor seating in the summer! They have terrific sangria (pictured below) and margarita's. My cousin says it reminds her of Mexico! They have the best tamales in town and their tacos are pretty great too! Probably not the most kid friendly though (half of the seating is in the bar).

Atilanos is my favorite place for fast food and/or drive through. They are downtown on 3rd, and I've heard they are also opening a new place up north. Quick service, cheap food, but man is it delicious!! Their carne asada tacos (pictured below) and carne asada tortas are my favorite! They also serve horchata and have a salsa bar inside. We love this place, don't be surprised if you see our car at the drive through window...

Pueblo Amigo is our favorite family style restaurant. They are located on West Francis, in between Wall and Monroe. The staff is always friendly and welcoming and are able to accommodate larger parties than El Que. The steak fajitas here are to die for - they are absolutely incredible! I have trouble ordering anything else when we go here. The tacos al carbon are another favorite though (pictured below). And if you're in the mood for a drink, the margaritas are tasty and very reasonably priced.

These Days

It's been nice having some extra days off this week. Got a chance to catch up on some sleep and now actually getting some stuff done around the house, hanging out with friends, relaxing and enjoying the now nice weather that has finally decided to show up. This is going to be a little picture heavy... 

Starting inside...My curtain material turned into a body pillow cover.

Kitty being interested in everything, per usual.

Hemming the curtains finally, 2 down, 4 to go.

On the fridge :)

Sleepy kitty

Getting back on the chapter a day thing, figure I have til the end of summer to finish.

Moving outside...Alliums, such cool flowers!

Neighbor's yellow roses growing all over our fence.

Cilantro growing.

Dill plant, took the flowers off to see if it will grow better.

Mint doesn't even have a dent in it, after a good trimming/harvest. Hooked on the T shirt skirts, they are awesome!

Hostas leaves are gigantic!

So many buds on the hydrangea this year! Yay!

Window box with pink geraniums and bacopa starting to fill out.

Lovely pastry celebrating the start of summer!

Out and About ... Finally getting some SUNSHINE around here!!

Joe hitting some sweet jumps at Beacon Hill. I hiked in and took pictures :)

Perfect "northwest" smell here! Warm dirt and pine needles. Ummm... makes me smile.

Days Off in Photos

Pulled my real camera out the last couple days. I went to my first physical therapy appointment today and I am supposed to avoid sitting as much as possible. Turns out its easy to while away hours on the computer while laying on your stomach. So I guess that means.... I'm back :) It used to be that on a two day off stretch I might get a little laundry done and that was about all. When grama was in the hospital and in hospice, I started getting up earlier getting stuff done quicker, so I could go spend time with her. And for the most part, I wasn't really getting that much more exhausted, but it felt good being productive. That has stuck I guess.

Treat'd ourselves to D'Lish after all the yard work.

Roadside freebies on my porch

Mint plant from last year growing

Weeds that were attacked (that's right, past tense!), planting veggies up next.

Ivy covered fence

Backyard beds that were finished up last week

Lilacs are in bloom! Wish I could bottle that smell! Love, love, love them!

African daisies planted up front.

Hawthorne tree finally got with the program. It's like neon pink!

New bedroom curtains? Joe's says too "old lady"...

Pizza and movie night. "D" street from the Flying Goat - my new fav!

Little journal to chronicle my "back" stuff. Had to try out my new ink :)

Inversion table - 20 minutes every day.

Going through my stacks of magazines

Thrift Store Finds

Went to visit grandma today. Seems to be recognizing people a little more and her memory seems to be improving a little bit. Physically she seems to be doing well, using her left hand well and walking again, albeit a little wobbly.  Also went to Northwest Christian Thrift to find stuff for my "store". Hopefully, I will get my act together soon and get it up and running!



A couple old books, Alice in Wonderland and a mystery novel by Carolyn Keene.



 Little pitcher for half and half with mushrooms on it.



 Bag of fabric scraps for a few bucks.



 Owl plate that reminds me of my Grandma Casto.



 Some vintage little place cards with pink tulips.

Get 'er Done

I'm on a "stay-cation" this week and don't just want to sit around like last time so I made a to do list, inspired by my friend Amy. Joe and I have also been like having lots of fun together! Last night we had a random date involving, froyo + walmart + value village.

- Do the Dishes. Done
- Get caught up with reading schedule. Done
- Cook/Bake for home meeting Friday. Done
- XC Ski Tuesday with Joe. Done
- Write weekly menu plan. Done
- Cover Clipboards. Done
- Finish cleaning/purging/organizing studio. Done.
- Go for a walk
- Write a couple blog posts. Done
- Hem curtains
- Make a double batch of laundry soap. Done
- Download CDs onto computer, then to Ipod.
- Check out livingtohim website. Done
*** Dog sweater found at Walmart. He hated it. ***



*** Blackberries for breakfast ***

And here is my "studio", really messy, this is to inspire me to finish cleaning!




*** Selkirk lodge at Mt. Spokane ***