Two Seattle Mathletes

Let's go Outside

2011-12-09T21:58:00.000-08:00

I can't say that the backyard was the reason we bought this home, but it was a big factor.

YEAH!!! An apple tree (a canner's dream).

And grass, but not so much grass that it's overwhelming.

The massive porch which is also covered so we can enjoy being outside even when it is raining

Halloween

2011-12-09T21:50:00.000-08:00

In between posts on the new house, I thought I would throw in some of Miles. Here is Halloween with a 2 year old

Wow. Wrangling 20 kids on Halloween is a lot of work. Thank you preschool teachers

Here we are trick or treating at Tully's. Miles is in there somewhere. He is the Engineer Driver

Okay here is the sitting still picture before we explore our new neighborhood. When I was asking Miles what he wanted to be for Halloween, I told him that engineers drive trains and did he want to be an engineer. He interpreted that to mean that the front of the train was an engineer so he decided he wanted to be an engineer driver.

Here we are in the new neighborhood.

New Home Part 2

2011-12-04T20:41:00.000-08:00

Okay so now that I've blogged once, I remember that it's kind of fun. This highlights some of the fun quirks of the house.

I love love love built-ins. Here is one in the hallway.

Okay, I know that I will probably get tired of it one day, but for now, walking into my pink bathroom makes me smile.

Here is a close up of one of the towel racks in the bathroom. I love that it is hexaganol.

This is the light fixture in the hallway. Most of the light fixtures in the house are hideous and need to go (ornate crystal chandeliers) but these I like.

Our New Home

2011-12-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

Wow. I didn't realize how long it had been since I wrote on the blog. Anyway, we bought a house and it is fabulous. I thought I would do a series of posts showing the new place. Here is the first post showing the entry and living room.

Here you see the front door. I know, super exciting right?

For some reason, Scooter wanted to be in every photo. Here is the living room decorated for Christmas. The tree that dominated our townhouse looks really tiny in here (and this is just one room).

From the entry way looking into the living room. I love this blue wall and the book case

What you see from the outside. I love the windows and the blue from the street looks so happy

Getting my Craft on

2011-04-04T11:29:00.000-07:00

A few days ago my friend sent me this link:
http://thecraftsdept.marthastewart.com/2011/03/infinite-variety-three-centuries-of-red-and-white-quilts.html
Seeing all those quilts ranging from simple to extremely intricate made me want to work on Miles' quilt. I already had the fabric for it and it was already cut out. Here is the quilt top.

So I didn't sew it correctly and there are no points in the zigzag but I still like it and, remember, I am making this for a toddler.

Mom and Miles Dance

2011-03-01T21:05:00.000-08:00

Miles and mommy love to dance together

Miles turns 2

2011-03-01T20:34:00.000-08:00

Whew! It's been a whirlwind. Miles' birthday was a few weeks ago and I am only now getting it posted. Here are some highlights for a little boy's second birthday.

Grandma Jones came to visit for Miles' birthday. Here they are enjoying the aquarium

Miles with a few of his presents. For a few days after opening presents all he wanted to do was "play presents".

Here he is with his art studio. Thank you Ikea.

What's birthday without a cake? Here, Mom and Dad try to teach Miles how to blow out candles.

Digging In!!

Traveling with a Toddler

2011-01-23T19:54:00.000-08:00

This weekend we went away for a night. Steve had a work thing to go to so the hotel room was free. I volunteered to spend the evening with Miles. The pictures above was Miles and I relaxing early in the evening before everything unraveled into chaos. "What a deal for me" I thought. Miles and I took a train in to town, walked around for a while until we found a place to eat and then came back to the hotel room. It was close to 8:00 pm so that was a great time to put Miles to bed. I was so excited to put him down and then lay in bed and read. I wouldn't have a cat jumping on me and I could spend the time completely alone.

What I got was a screaming toddler. I knew he would not like being put to bed in unfamiliar surroundings, but I was sure he would settle down after about an hour. That did not happen. He cried for an hour. I then picked him up and turned on the TV (Miles never gets to watch TV so it is very exciting for him when he does). Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out how to get to the TV so all I had was the free videos. I first picked a review of a childrens' movie. That lasted 5 minutes. I needed something that lasted longer. Next I chose a workout video (I didn't have many choices). The workout video was targeting abs and since I plan to get into a swim suit this summer I thought it would be a great learning opportunity. Well it turned out to be a pretty interesting 20 minute work out video so I thought I would give it a try. I put Miles back in his crib and watched it again, this time while participating. While I was working out, Miles was in his crib throwing everything out saying, "Kitty out. Giraffe out. Blankie out. Other blankie out. Miles out?" followed by him banging on the wall and opening and closing closet doors very loudly.

After finishing my workout, which was pretty intense, I moved the crib so Miles could not touch any walls. I then turned out all the lights so it was pitch black in the room. At this point, it was around 10:00 pm. Miles started screaming as loud as he could. I was tired and grumpy and did not last very long. I picked Miles up and again turned on the TV. This time, I found a free video called "Sleep" that showed calming images while playing calming music. We watched it three times before Miles finally fell asleep in my arms. At that point, it was 11:00 pm. I was exhausted, and Steve was on his way back to the hotel. I didn't get any quiet time to myself, I was all wound up and my muscles were aching so I didn't sleep well, then Miles wakes up promptly at 7:30 am.

Lessons learned, don't expect relaxation when traveling with toddlers and keep your expectations low when it comes to "me" time.

Jammie Dance

2011-01-11T21:32:00.000-08:00

Don't you just love pajamas? They are so cozy, there's no buttons or zippers or anything constricting. If you have a good pair it's like wearing your favorite blanket. Growing up, my mom called them "jam jams" which, to me, made them so much more special. I have tried to instill that feeling in to my child.

At the request of a friend who stalks my blog, but never leaves comments I have posted a video of Miles getting excited for his jammies. It's the favorite time of day for everyone in the family.

Horchata!!!!

2011-01-09T20:33:00.000-08:00

I often find myself becoming obsessed with something. It can be a project, a food, a piece of fabric or people or stories...whatever. This week I was obsessed with horchata so I decided to make my own. The recipe I got from allrecipes.com. I didn't follow the recipe exactly and I think next time I make it, I will make more changes, but it was still really good and a fun drink to try.

For those of you who don't know what horchata is, it is a refreshing cinnamon flavored rice milk drink that is often served with mexican food. Apparently, it is often served at breakfast because it is considered to be great for a hangover, but I just read that online. I don't think I will ever need a cure for a hangover.

And now, for the recipe...

Lola's Horchata
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
5 cups water
1/2 cup milk
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Put rice and water in a blender and blend until the rice starts to break up (about one minute). Let sit for 3 hours (Because I did this step before going to church, mine sat for more like 5 hours and it was still tasty, also my blender was leaking with 5 cups of water so I scooped some of it out to blend the rice and then added it back in for the sitting time).

2. Strain rice and water into a pitcher, add other ingredients, stir, and refrigerate. Serve over ice.

Easy peasy and it was delicious. I made some chicken enchiladas to go with the drink and we all had a fun time (not really, Miles drank the horchata and decided he didn't want to eat any of the meal but just have more drink which made for a high strung, stressed out mother. Eventually, I got him to eat a few pieces of broccoli (he loves broccoli) and two bites of enchilada).

The one complaint I had a bout the drink was it left a huge amount of silt at the bottom of the glass (sugar and cinnamon) which bothers me terribly. I think next time I make it, I might take some of the strained rice water and heat it with the sugar to make a simple syrup, then add the milk and vanilla. I might also include a cinnamon stick in while making the simple syrup instead of using ground cinnamon.

Cooks...what are your thoughts? How would you remedy the problem of the silt?

Natural Cleaning Products

2011-01-04T19:54:00.000-08:00

For Christmas, my friend made me some all natural cleaning products and I was super excited to try them out. The cleanser is just baking soda and your favorite natural oils to make it smell nice. I don't know what oils my friend used (something citrusy I think), but I am loving this cleanser. First, I cleaned my kitchen sink and it was so nice to not cover my hands in a harsh smelling detergent. Then I went upstairs to clean the bathroom. I didn't realize how my system for cleaning the bathroom revolved around not mixing the cleanser with the glass cleaner and how my nose suffered with all the fumes. Two best parts, I didn't have to spend 20 minutes scrubbing down my arms from the elbow down to get all the toxic cleanser off my hands and, now, if I want to put Miles in the bathtub right after cleaning it, I don't have to worry about any cleanser being left behind.

The all-purpose spray was super great too. I don't know what is in it, but the other night Miles wanted to help clean up after dinner. Being under 2, there isn't a lot of deep cleaning he can handle other than clearing his dinner dishes. However, the table needed to be wiped down and I realized I had an all-natural all purpose spray. I set him up on a chair, gave him a rag and sprayed down the table. Together the three of us wiped down the dinner table and had a fun time doing it too. It was so nice to be able to include Miles in the house cleaning.

Christmas

2010-12-26T19:36:00.000-08:00

We were really looking forward to celebrating Christmas at home this year. It's nice to have your child sleep in his own bed, wake up in familiar surroundings and then see that something is different at the Christmas tree. Here is Miles' experience.

Everything is set up for optimum viewing when Miles wakes up.

Here, he is seeing things for the first time. Let me explain the picture a little. In the morning, it is cold in our house so we bought Miles some slippers to wear in the mornings. Everything was going great until Miles needed a new pair of school shoes and we bought him some new sneakers. Now, every morning he insists on putting his shoes on. On Christmas morning, I asked Miles if he wanted his house shoes on. He agreed until he saw I was talking about the slippers. As a compromise, Miles offered his chicken wear the house shoes and he would wear his sneakers.

Don't worry, Scooter got presents too. He got a catnip pillow with big eyes on it. Miles took one look at it and deemed it an owl.

Here we are going through his stocking. The first thing he pulled out was raisins and he wasn't really interested in it after that. Taking everything else out of the stocking was a bit of a chore to be done in between bites of raisins.

The family in our new pajamas.

Miles got balls from the grandparents. He likes to try to carry all of them. Here, he is carrying three, but at one point, he had all four in his hands/arms.

By far, his two favorite presents were the legos and...

A race car track. Thanks again grandparents!

Miles meets Santa

2010-12-19T19:52:00.001-08:00

I forgot to post this earlier. This is Miles' first time meeting Santa. We were waiting in line and Miles kept calling him Satan. Miles also calls the Christmas Tree the "Gimme Tee". His stocking is "tockin".

So, we are thinking of not really talking about Santa to Miles. I don't really want that to be the focus of the holiday and want to instead emphasize the celebration of the birth of Christ. Any thoughts?

Decorating for Christmas

2010-12-12T21:50:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of us decorating for Christmas this year. I was expecting the worst with a toddler, but things have been okay...so far.

It's important to us that Miles learn about the story of the birth of Jesus and that being the reason we celebrate Christmas so we got him a nativity scene made by lego. Miles loves playing with it.

He also loves wearing his monkey hat. The hat has nothing to do with Christmas, but it's cute.

When we pulled out the Christmas tree, it poked Miles so he was afraid of it from the beginning. Here he is playing with a garland while Steve and I decorate the tree.

Miles finally got familiar enough with the tree to touch the ornaments, but not the tree (it still pokes). This has actually made Christmas really nice because I don't have to worry about Miles playing with the tree and having it fall on him. I think next year I will give him the job of keeping the cat away from the tree.

The magic of Christmas as seen from little eyes.

Thanksgiving and handmade fun

2010-12-12T21:28:00.000-08:00

So I am really behind in my blogging so I am combining different things (not the snow thing though because it was just too precious). Anyway, I decided to combine Thanksgiving and other crafts. The best part of Thanksgiving this year was that Steve did all the cooking and preparation. I just did some cleaning and set the table. It was awesome.

Here is my awesome table. Everyone had a chocolate bar favor on their plate. Even Miles got a peppermint kiss on his plate.

Here's a close up of the favors. Steve designed and put them together.

Here is Steve posing with the food. We had friends over and split up the food so Steve made the turkey and israeli couscous salad. Other delights gracing our table were mashed potatoes, sauerkraut mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, dressing, rolls, spicy cranberry compote, a couple different appetizers, and pumpkin roulade and gingerbread cupcakes for dessert. It was so tasty

Here is a close up of some birds I made for a garland that I strung around the stockings. I got the pattern from a book called FaLaLaLa Felt. It's a great book.

I made Miles an apron too so he could help me make christmas cookies. If you look at it closely, it's not very christmasy (there are pigs with webs on them). Oh well. Miles is at the age where he makes everything look cute

snow

2010-12-12T21:19:00.000-08:00

Right before Thanksgiving, Seattle got a snow storm (unheard of). This may not seem to bad to friends in family in Utah, but this much snow shuts down the city and turns my commute from 20 minutes to 3 hours. At least Steve stayed home with Miles so I didn't have a toddler on the bus. Here are some pictures of Miles enjoying snow.

Miles likes things orderly. Here he is cleaning the tree.

Steve taught Miles how to catch snow on his tongue

Carmel Apple Butter

2010-11-08T21:15:00.000-08:00

I mentioned on facebook that I was making carmel apple butter and several of you asked for the recipe so here it is.

Carmel Apple Butter by Linda J. Amendt
Makes about 7 half pints

Apple Pulp
3 1/2 lbs tart apples, cored, peeled and chopped
2 cups unsweetened apple juice
1 cup water
1/4 cup strained fresh lemon juice

Butter Indredients
4 cups apple pulp
3 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 tsp unsalted butter
1 (3-ounce) pouch liquid pectin

To make the pulp: In a 4-quart pan (I had to use an 8-quart pan but that is because I weighed the apples after coring and peeling them), combine the apples, apple juice, water, and lemon juice.

Over medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the apples are soft, about 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

Press the apples and juice through a food mill or fine meshed sieve. Return the apple pulp to the pan.

Over medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 30 minutes. As the apple pulp thickens, stir th mixture frequently to prevent sticking or scorching. Remove the pan from the heat. Measure 4 cups of apple pulp.

To make the butter: In an 8-quart pan, combine the apple pulp, brown sugar, granulated sugar and butter.

Over medium-low heat, heat the mixture, stirring constantly, until the sugar is completely dissolved. Increase the heat to medium-high, and bring the mixture to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Stir in the entire contents of the pectin pouch. Return to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. Skim off any foam.

Ladle the hot butter into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims and threads with a clean, damp cloth. Cover with hot lids and apply screw rings. Process half-pint jars in a 200F water bath for 10 minutes, pint jars for 15 minutes.

Halloween

2010-11-04T21:06:00.000-07:00

Miles gets to go trick or treating with his classmates to some of the local businesses. Miles was dressed as angry elephant this year.

A few members of the class getting ready to go out. They have a rope with rings that they hold on to.

Fran's Chocolates was our favorite place to trick or treat. They gave the kids boring candy, but gave the adults a chocolate ganache. Yummm!!

Pumpkin Patch!!

2010-10-31T20:56:00.000-07:00

We started going to a pumpkin patch every year to support local farms and get back to nature (because we love nature). This year we went to Craven Farm.

Miles tries so hard to help with the farm chores.

Steve is so strong

Determination...I will not let this pumpkin that is bigger than me beat me.

STRIPES!!!

I'm checking for seeds.

Childrens' Museum

2010-10-31T20:16:00.000-07:00

I was downloading pictures off the camera to post pictures of Miles trick-or-treating and I realized I haven't posted anything on the blog in awhile. Here we are at the Children's Museum on the advice of a friend. I think Miles had a good time, but I think we will wait a few years before we take him again. We didn't get to spend any time in half the museum because Miles (meaning Steve and I) got tired.

They had a special Clifford the Big Red Dog exhibit. Miles liked the purple poodle.

He was a little afraid of Clifford though.

I was glad we went in October. This pumpkin is HUUUGGGEEE!!

We found one of those bikes that teach little kids how to balance without pedaling before they get to an actual bike so Miles took it for a spin. Later, I wondered if it was part of the museum or privately owned since it was parked near stroller parking. Oh well.

Since Miles rides the bus every day we thought he might enjoy driving one.

He seems to be a friendly bus driver as he mingles with his clients.

Here he is grocery shopping.

Here he is checking out the fish he chose to buy.

Leavenworth

2010-10-04T21:10:00.000-07:00

After a super crazy week, we met up with friends and their family for a weekend in Leavenworth. What an awesome time we had.

Steve and Miles took a cow ride. If you look close, you will see that Steve's knees are poking out. He had a great time.

Did you ever see Muppets from Space when the evil guy says to his bear helper "Hand me the remote" and the bear says, "The goat?" That's what this reminds me of.

If you look in the back of this picture, you will see a freakishly small cow. It was insane.

Miles didn't even like the pretend animals in the petting zoo

Steve is showing Miles that it's okay to feed a sheep. What you don't hear is Steve asking the sheep to please not use his tongue when eating out of his hand.

Finally, Miles found something he loved at the farm. A small shopping cart.

Downtown Leavenworth. It was about 80 degrees and Steve didn't pack shorts. Therefore, he fashioned some manprees.

This picture made me laugh out loud. Miles is clearly hot and tired.

After a full day, Miles finally warmed up to the dog Rocky. It was so fun watching him interact with a dog. Here he is trying to feed Rocky.

On Sunday, we went to the beach. Once again, Steve sports manprees. More than once on this trip we had role reversal where I said, "You are not wearing that" and Steve said "but its comfortable".

Food Storage is fun

2010-09-18T18:36:00.000-07:00

This summer started with a craft night with my friend where I canned yellow beets and she cut out her quilt. However, my friend wha so fascinated with canning, that she went out the next day and bought 20 lbs of peaches. After that, we bought pickling cucumbers and tried to make cucumbers. Well, by now my canning genes werr in full gear so we went to Yakima to get some cheap produce for canning. Here are the results.

30 lbs of pears.

60 lbs canning tomatoes

green beans, beets, heirloom tomatoes, peaches, apples, and purple peppers. I froze the peaches for later, ate the heirloom tomatoes, apples, and purple peppers, and canned the beets and green beans.

My first night, I canned 12 pints of tomato wedges.

Steve wanted to do the dilled green beans, we got 4 pints.

Steve also made pear halves when I needed a night off.

Other food not pictured include 1 pint pear butter, 6 pints smooth basil marinary sauce, 6 pints chunky marinara sauce, 9 pints of salsa, and 3 pints of baby beets. I am so tired of canning, but it didn't stop me from experimenting with different flavors of gnocchi last night. A friend of mine came over and we made sweet potato sage gnocchi, sun-dried tomato basil garlic gnocchi, and rosemary black pepper gnocchi. All gnocchi is sitting in my freezer waiting for a night when I don't feel like cooking.

New York, I love you

2010-09-01T20:51:00.001-07:00

Right now, my brother and sister-in-law are enjoying New York. It makes me long for the wonderful city. Steve and I were able to go in June on an adult only vacation while Steve's sister watched Miles (thanks Jennifer). Here are a sampling of some of our adventures.

The first night, we went to Bouchon Bakery to get sandwiches and cookies and then we took them to Central Park to eat and people watch. We each got a macaron even though I didn't have high hopes because nothing compares to the ones in Paris. Holy cow! These were just like Paris, so delicious.
As the sun set in Central Park, fireflies came out. I never see fireflies where I live so I found it absolutely magical as if I were a princess in wonderland.

Here is a drinking fountain in Hi Line park. It is a park built on an old elevated train line. It was so cool. I now recommend it to everyone who goes to New York because you just don't expect an elevated park.

More Hi Line. Don't you love how they incorporated the old rail lines?

I thought these chairs were really cool. They are actually on wheels on the old rail line so you can move them.

Okay. To beat the heat (it was really hot), we went to the Museum of Natural History. Amazingly, we got there an hour before the museum closed so we got in for free (I'm all about the deal). Anyway, dinosaurs are pretty awesome.

Starbucks Passion Iced Tea. The drink that made the heat bearable. It was the official sponsor of this vacation.

So we went to Brooklyn to go to the botanical garden and I think we walked about 10 miles along the perimeter of the park before we found an entrance. It got to the point that we started taking pictures from the outside in case we never made it. Did I mention it was hot? We get a little dramatic when we are hot.

We made it!!! Here we are inside the Brooklyn Botanical Garden

Some of you may know that I am kind of obsessed with the little walking guys that show up in intersections to tell you its okay to cross. This obsession began when we went to Vancouver, Canada and I realized they had different walking guy symbols. When we found this construction fencing showing all the different types of walking guys, I felt like I was in heaven. Of course we had to take a few pictures. Here, Steve is posing with Hamburg as that is where he went on his mission.

I chose to hold hands with the walking man from Nice. Even though I have bad memories of visiting Nice, France (horrible food poisoning while pregnant that came on Saturday night after everything had closed, oh and by the way, nothing is open on Sunday), I loved that the walking man is wearing a hat and is walking in a cross walk.

Go-To Meals

2010-08-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

You know those meals that you know the recipe by heart and its the meal you make when you don't know what to have for dinner. Everyone in your family likes it and it takes no time at all to make this meal. This is my current go-to dinner. I got it from a Real Simple magazine.

Cheese Ravioli Deliciousness (can you tell I don't know the title)

-Feeds 4 but it is so good, it will probably only feed 2-3

Some cheese ravioli (fresh or frozen)

2 T olive oil

1 crisp apple like braeburn or fuji (not red delicious, there is nothing delicious about this apple)cut into matchsticks

1/4 c walnut pieces

1/2-1 c. flat leaf parsley

Parmesan cheese for garnish

Cook the ravioli according to package directions. Drain and put into a bowl. Meanwhile heat the olive oil in a pan and throw in the walnuts, cook them until fragrant and add the apple matchsticks. Cook until the apple softens a little and add the parsley for about a minute. Pour mixture over the ravioli, garnish with parmesan cheese, and some cracked pepper and eat. It is so delicious.

Worst Fitness Week Ever

2010-08-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

In our normal lives, Steve and I have a very regimented life with work, parenting, and exercise. However, that all was thrown off balance this week. Steve needed to go in to work Monday night and I wanted to get started on making pickles so we skipped our workouts on Monday and went about our lives. Little did we know, life was about to get a little crazy.

Having not slept Sunday night (my mind was to excited about the peaches we had just canned), I was exhausted and fell to sleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. Steve had been complaining about his upset stomach before I went to bed, but I pointed him to the tums and went to bed. At 1:00 am, Steve taps me and says "Kelly, I think I need to go to the hospital, my stomach really hurts and its getting worse." Now of course, my first thought was that he was being silly, but it isn't like Steve to do this so I followed him downstairs where he was on the internet trying to figure out what hospital he needed to go to. Luckily, facebook also let's us know who is up and on facebook so we called one of our facebook friends to hang out with a sleeping baby as we went to the emergency room.

Surprisingly, the emergency room was not crowded at all and Steve was called back within a few minutes. I fell asleep in the waiting room and was then called to come back to Steve. While we waiting for tests on his blood, we watched a fascinating PBS documentary on apples, followed by tulips, and then marijuana. It was late.

Finally, the doctor came in to tell us his blood was normal and they needed to run more tests which included a cat scan. The doctor said it would take several hours to get that and the tests from that so I went home to catch a few hours of sleep and relieve our dear, sweet night baby sitter.

At 7:45 am (Miles blissfully slept in), the phone rang. It was Steve. He has called to tell me he is being admitted to the hospital. The cat scan shows a gall stone and the doctors believe his gall bladder is infected. They are going to operate. "Don't worry", he tells me. "Go back to sleep". I can tell you right now that you cannot sleep after hearing news like that.

As is usually the case, I had a big presentation I needed to give at work that I had to prepare so I got up and got Miles up and we went to work/school. I had been at school for one hour when my phone rang again. It was Steve. He tells me his surgery is at 3:00 pm. Please come to the hospital. Again, another dear friend was there to help me. I dropped off Miles car seat to her and called the daycare to let them know who was picking Miles up. My friend picked Miles up and took him to our house and made sure he was fed and cared for while Steve and I were at the hospital. Meanwhile, two more friends of ours headed over to the hospital to give Steve a blessing of health.

I stayed with Steve until it came time for his surgery. Then another friend came to my aid and sat with me while Steve was in surgery so that I didn't have to be alone. Well, long story short, Steve's surgery went fine. They found a shone 1/2" in diameter and took out his gall bladder. I stayed at the hospital until Steve came back to his room and then went home to relieve my friends from their babysitting and to put my little boy to bed. I then called another friend to come sit with a sleeping Miles because Steve wanted me at the hospital. When I got there, he was tired and I was tired and we both spoke incoherent sentences. I left Steve at the hospital and went home for a good night's rest. I knew there would be recovery time but everything was going to be okay and I was going to start exercising again the next day.

Unfortunately, due to all the stress and lack of sleep, I got a terrible head cold. Now here it is on Friday night. Steve is doing more every day, but he is still in pain and can't go out for very long. My cold is on the mend (thanks to another friend who came by after work on Thursday and picked Miles up so I could go to bed), and I know that even though I don't have family nearby, I have dear friends willing to drop their lives and come pick me up when I fall down and I have a Heavenly Father who cares about me and my family enough to put these people in my life when I need them most.

Peaches in Hibiscus Syrup

2010-08-09T21:08:00.001-07:00

I recently purchased a book called Urban Pantry. My friend Christa and I decided to make one of the recipes in the book called peaches in Hibiscus Syrup. Below are our adventures.

Here we are in the process. Peaches in the foreground are being peeled and put into a lemon water bath so as not to discolor. I am at the stove filling jars with peaches that I have just cooked in a hibiscus simple syrup.

Here is Christa showing the fruits of our labor. In the right hand is a bottle of peaches. In the left, we also canned the hibiscus syrup. Yummers!

Here is a close up of the peaches. The hibiscus syrup was pink which adds a beautiful hue to the peaches in the jars.

Christa and I with the finished product.

Oh, and Steve helped out by making labels for our beautiful jars

Kids are cuter covered in food

2010-08-09T20:57:00.000-07:00

As the title says, kids are so funny learning how to feed themselves. Here, Miles is figuring out spagetti and pudding.

Miles found the spagetti noodles as fun to play with as they were to eat

There's always room for play time

Chocolate is serioius business

Summer Sewing

2010-07-19T20:15:00.001-07:00

Some of you may remember my sewing escapade from last summer. Like last year, I got really hot and decided I had no summer clothes so I needed to make myself a summer something to wear. Last year, I made myself a shift dress. However, upon finishing the dress, I put it on only to discover I had created a beautiful muu muu. Yes, I still have the dress because the fabric is still pretty, but I haven't worn the dress.

This year, I decided to make Amy Butler's Barcelona A-line skirt. It turned out much better this year and I will wear this dress. Below are a few highlights.

Here is the fabric I finally decided on. It's fun, fresh and makes me think happy summer memories.

I don't think I have ever put in a zipper without help. Here is a picture of my hidden zipper. I bet you can't see it.

Amy Butler is not about quick and easy. Hence the lining.

Ta Da! The finished product. Don't I look so cute and fresh in my new skirt?

Awesome Hotel in Portland

2010-07-11T21:51:00.000-07:00

Over the 4th of July weekend, we went to Portland, Oregon. We stayed at a place called The Inn at Northrup Station. When I first walked in to the room, I thought it seemed a little ridiculous with all the crazy colors, but it really grew on me and I ended up loving the bright happy colors. I highly recommend this place. By the way, they had huge jars of salt water taffy in the lobby.

The bed has an orange coverlet, purple pillows, and is sitting against a green wall.

The kitchen wasn't kitchy, but the lights above the stove were, and of course, that wall is purple.

Here is a fun foot rest

The bright pink sofa, with green buttons for tufting. Notice also the coffee table

This is a terrible picture. It's hard to take pictures of carpet, but I just loved it.

Here's a close-up picture in the bathroom. That's right, a phone in the bathroom and a nightlight with the logo of the Inn

Here are the toiletries. I was enamoured that everything had the logo.

I'm not kidding, even the toilet paper was wrapped.

Here is the entire bathroom, with bright pink walls.

Marathon Madness

2010-05-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

Ever since Steve ran his first marathon, he has had marathon madness. In April, he ran the Salt Lake City Marathon and then, less than a month later, he ran the Windermere Marathon in Spokane, Washington. Here are the family's adventures in Spokane.

Our friend suggested these mini donuts. They were delicious.

Since Steve was off running, Miles and I found a park to play in. Miles is wearing a romper made by Grandma Phyllis

Riding the elephant

As it turns out, the best part about the park for a boy is the dirt.

And finally, Steve comes running in to the finish line feeling the best he has ever felt in a marathon and improving his time by about 7 minutes.

HE WALKS!!!

2010-04-12T20:32:00.000-07:00

Today, Miles' turns 14 months. Don't worry, we didn't celebrate, but I thought I would post a video of Miles trying to walk. The incessant squeeking you hear in the background are Miles' shoes. The shoes are designed to squeek whenever he steps so parents can keep tabs on where their kids are. The funny thing is, I put them on him about a week ago to encourage him to walk and and he kept looking for what was making the fun squeeking noise. I guess we all have to get used to new developments.

Learning to Walk

2010-03-30T20:27:00.000-07:00

So Miles is 13 1/2 months old now and he still isn't walking with consistency. Wanting to have the most wonderful child ever who excels at everything, this is very perplexing. Anyway, we took this video about a week ago where I am trying to encourage Miles to start walking. Since this video was shot, he has made leaps and bounds in the walking department. It makes me realize that Miles has a little bit of my personality in him. When I saw him learning to crawl he attacked that task in the same way he is learning to walk. He studied it, watched others, learned all the steps individually, thought about it, and then feeling confident that he would succeed, he tries it. How do I know he does this, he has been pacing furniture since October, he has been practicing standing on his own for awhile, and he stood up with out the help of any furniture or people on Sunday. Next up will be a video of him walking on his own.

Miles' birthday continued

2010-02-13T22:08:00.000-08:00

Miles is an easy going kid and loves people and other kids, but this video is pretty funny. I guess he doesn't know his own strength.

Miles' Birthday

2010-02-13T21:44:00.000-08:00

Miles' first birthday was on Friday February 12th so we had a party for him on Saturday.

Miles plays with his friend Emilia

Miles opens presents. Among others, he got a tie for church and I made him a book of activities

Here is the cake. It was a simple yellow cake with chocolate frosting. A dinosaur candle topped it off. Miles loved all the attention he was getting.

We put a piece of cake in front of him, but he is always skeptical of new food so I needed to feed him a little bit before he decided to go for it.

The cake has been destroyed, but he is still going.

Climbing Stairs

2010-01-24T18:31:00.000-08:00

Miles has not started walking yet, but he can climb stairs.

Miles learns to feed himself

2010-01-07T20:14:00.000-08:00

Miles will be moving to the next class at daycare soon (he turns 1 in a little over one month) so I have been working all week on getting him to feed himself. Tonight he ate risotto. Then I thought I would give him a break and feed him his dessert which is always yogurt with fruit. Tonight I cut up banana and put it in the yogurt. I guess he has grasped the "feeding himself" thing because he did not like to be fed the bananas. Instead he did this.

YEAH Christmas is over, here are family photos

2010-01-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

We got our pictures taken professionally by Jeramie Shoda in November so that we could create some awesome Christmas presents for our parents. Here are just of few pictures from the shoot. I have to say, I have a good looking family.

Christmas..A whirlwind of activity

2010-01-07T19:47:00.000-08:00

On Christmas Eve, the cousins re-enacted the nativity to remind us all why we celebrate Christmas. Miles got to play the part of the baby Jesus

Looks like the elves delivered pajamas right before bed

Miles had a crazy Christmas morning

Here we are at my sister's house celebrating Christmas with my family

All I can say is it was a busy day and Miles didn't know what to think of it all, but it was fun to spend his first Christmas with family.

Catching up...Bellevue Botanical Gardens

2010-01-07T19:32:00.000-08:00

We went with friends to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens on the Sunday before Christmas. Here, they turn lights into flowers, trees, and animals. It was awesome.

Scary...An Alligator!!

Steve and Miles bask in the glow of a very well lit tree

A landscape of flowers with a fountain

Look...a peacock, just like Miles at Halloween

Celebrating Christmas

2009-12-09T20:27:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of Miles celebrating his first Christmas season.

On December 5th everyone puts one shoe out in hopes that St. Nicolas will come and fill their shoe with treats and/or prizes. This year, St. Nicolas left Miles some pear yogurt. He was thrilled.

Miles posing in front of the Christmas tree. It took putting the camera on action shots and bribing Miles with an ornament to get this photo.

I think Miles wants a laptop for Christmas. We opened up our old laptop for him to play with.

Catching up on Thanksgiving

2009-12-09T20:00:00.000-08:00

I never caught everyone up on my Turkey Trot run. It was a drizzly cold morning, but we went out anyway. I decided to listen to Bon Jovi for my run. I told myself I needed to run for 9 songs to finish. I paced myself well and things were going great until song number 7. I thought, "there is no way I can keep running for three more songs", so I stopped to walk, but then I heard cheering and figured I must be close to the finish line so I started to run again. I finished the race in just over 7 Bon Jovi songs. Even though I didn't run the entire race, I still consider it a victory because I signed up, trained, and ran most of it.

The rest of the Thanksgiving day was very nice. Steve's sister Jennifer came to visit and we had Thanksgiving Dinner with our friends. As it was Miles' first Thanksgiving, I gave him bits of dinner to try. He had turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, and stuffing and he loved all of it. Here are some pictures.

Another thing Miles and Scooter can bond over. Turkey

Miles had to wear his pig bib for the big day

Everything was beautiful and delicious.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-30T18:55:00.000-07:00

Since it is Miles' first halloween, we thought we would make a big deal out of it. Actually, his school goes trick-or-treating every year to the local businesses and since we are first time parents, we took billions of pictures. Here are a few of the good ones.

One of Miles favorite teachers Nikki

Miles and Adriana (bat girl) check each other out.

Trick or treating at the four seasons

We loved the Elmo costume

Class photo

And here are some pumpkins we carved with friends one night after Miles went to bed.

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-25T10:08:00.000-07:00

We took Miles to a local farm to pick out pumpkins. Here are some of our adventures.

We ran in to some friends of ours.

Dad and Miles checking out the animals

Even at something as innocuous as a pumpkin farm, you can still find some scary.

On another note, Miles started crawling last night.

Bubbles bring brothers together

2009-10-24T11:05:00.000-07:00

Steve bought Miles some bubbles yesterday to play with and Scooter joined in on the fun. Watch the video of Miles and Scooter enjoying the bubbles together.

Inspired to Run

2009-10-13T17:56:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Steve ran his first marathon in Victoria, British Columbia.

As I was waiting for Steve to reach the finish line, I was watching a bunch of people come in and I started to get a little emotional (only on the inside). These people had been running for hours and were still going. I was so inspired, I decided to sign up for my own race. I won't be running a marathon, I'm just going to run a 5k, but it's a start.

For those of you in the Seattle area who would like to join me, I'm running the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. For information, the website is: www.seattleturkeytrot.org

We've almost got it

2009-09-24T19:10:00.000-07:00

Miles is learning every day, but learning to crawl is proving to be very difficult. At least he has a good attitude about it.

He's almost 6 months old!!

2009-08-05T21:01:00.000-07:00

My baby boy is turning six months soon so I thought I would pull a picture from each month of his life to show his progress. Since you can't view him in action (unless I were to figure out the video on our camera) I will say that recently, he has started rolling over, public speaking (he usually gives a sermon on the bus), he thinks about sitting up, and he just started rice cereal today.

Just born

Feb 2009

March 2009

April 2009

May 2009

June 2009

July 2009

Combatting the Heat

2009-07-29T07:38:00.000-07:00

This week in Seattle has brought nothing but hot weather. It has been in the 90's all week and it is supposed to hit 100 degrees today. This weather trend is predicted to last through next Monday. The nights are not cooling off at all either. So I want to know. What is everyone doing to beat the heat? Here are a few things Steve and I are doing.

Go to work, it's air conditioned
Drinking a lot of ice water and cold beverages
Running fans (though it doesn't work very well since the air outside is hot too)
Driving the air conditioned car to a park and ride with covered parking and an air conditioned bus
Last night I sewed up some rice pouches and froze them. I thought if rice can hold heat, can they hold cold? It worked all right.
In the past, Steve and I have purchased a block of ice and set it in front of a fan as a makeshift airconditioning unit.
Sleep in Miles room. He has a window airconditioner

A bad day that turned out allright

2009-07-22T14:19:00.000-07:00

This morning I was enjoying my sleep when I thought to look at the time. To my surprise, the time was 6:25 am. Twenty five minutes later than I usually get up for work. I bolt out of bed to get ready. Thankfully, I packed my lunch the night before, Scooter didn't get to snuggle this morning, no time for that. I had to iron a shirt though and Miles woke up before I was ready.

Miraculously, I made it out of the door with baby in his carrier, being fed, in 20 minutes. I was feeling pretty good about myself. I made it to the bus stop in time to catch the early bus. I guess I wasn't going to be late to work afterall. Then I discovered I didn't have my bus pass. I had to run back home, get my bus pass and run back to the bus stop. I missed my early bus, but another one was on its way and Miles was nearly done eating.

After getting downtown, dropping Miles off, and getting in to work late, I was immediately bombarded with several MUST DO NOW tasks and was finding it very difficult to keep everything straight, everyone happy, and get everything done. It was a pretty rough morning.

Amazingly, by lunch time, nearly everything was resolved. I walked over to visit Miles and he was playing with one of his teachers and very happy. I played with him for a few minutes and then took him back to daycare so I could go back to work. On my walk back I passed a vendor passing out free vitamin water. I got back to my desk and the rest of the "must do" tasks had resolved themselves and even a few that weren't "must do" were coming together. Today was looking not so bad afterall.

Finally, the best news I've heard all day, Steve is on his way back from Portland. I won't have to be a single mom anymore. I don't know how my bad day turned good could get any better.

Canlis, in Review

2009-07-19T08:45:00.000-07:00

Steve and I went to Canlis, a fancy restaurant in Seattle, for dinner last night. We probably would have never gone except that we had a gift certificate. Upon arriving, I immediately felt out of place. There were two identical Lexus vehicles in front of us and we pull up in our Subaru. However, the types of cars people were driving was not going to ruin my evening of what I hoped was going to be some of the best food I had ever had.

When we sat down at our table, we had an amazing view of Lake Union and the Ship Canal Bridge. It was breathtaking. I wanted to go back on the 4th of July just to see the fireworks. Another time, perhaps.

We were given a menu of cocktails and a dictionary of wines. Since neither Steve or I drink, these menus meant nothing to us. I did order a non-alcoholic beverage that was very delicious. When they brought it out they made sure to tell us that even though it looks alcoholic, it isn't and parents always have a look of apprehension in their eyes when they see their 12-year old daughters drinking something like this. I always love being compared to a 12-year old girl.

After ordering water, we were given our dinner menus. I ordered the crab cake, arugula salad, and King Salmon. Steve got the crab cake, Canlis salad, and lamb chops. I cannot vouch for Steve's food as I did not try it, but I found that my favorite part of each dish was not the center piece of the dish. For the crabcake, my favorite was the cooked carrots shaped into little balls around the crabcake. I felt like Ivar's does a much better crabcake. As for Steve's crabcake, he found a hair in his and sent it back immediately. They brought him another one that was piping hot and he said it was much better than the first. My salad was delicious. Probably the best part of the entire meal. I thoroughly enjoyed the grilled melon and I loved that the goat cheese was melted on to the plate so that you sort of slid your salad through it to enjoy it. Then the salmon came. Again, it was delicious and I did eat the entire thing, but was it spectacular? I don't think so. I did, however, love the presentation which included pickeled lemon strings and fried garlic slices. Those parts were fantastically delicious.

When it came time for dessert, Steve and I chose to share the doughnuts. They came with molten chocolate for dipping and a peanut butter icecream. It was good, but agian, I've had better doughnuts and I have definitely had much better desserts. My all time favorite dessert would probably have to be a rosemary chocolate cake and black pepper icecream that we ate in New York City.

Other odds and ends that were weird was that it seemed like there were a lot of trophy wives dining that night, the servers were dressed in an asianesque outfit that was disconcerting considering the food was not asian, they iron the linens on the tables with an iron that has been painted black, the music was pop songs done in piano (Silent Lucidity as an example), and after we paid our bill we left which apparently was not the thing to do because the valets were scrambling to get our car out to us.

Good things about the evening, we really liked our server. We listened to other servers near us and they seemed very pompous but ours seemed very likeable and cared about our experience. Also, they brought out several amouse bouches that were deeply satisfying.

In summation, I'd have to say that I felt the restaurant was playing it to safe. I wanted to see and try something new that I have never seen paired together before and I did not get that opportunity.

Thirty, Flirty, and Fun

2009-07-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I hit a big milestone and celebrated my 30th birthday. So far, I really enjoy being 30. I think I was ready to be an adult and put away childish things.

Steve threw me a small party complete with a pinata (I guess it symbolizes me getting rid of childish things by hitting a princess crown). Here are a few pics.

Shamless Bragging

2009-06-28T21:03:00.000-07:00

I know everyone says they won't be "those people" who brag about their kids and all that fun stuff. But, we have become "those people". Here's a video of Miles being cute.

Craptacular Construction

2009-06-25T12:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was yet another shining example of how awesome our townhome is built. Since we moved in, the face plate for the door knob has bent whenever someone's shirt, bag or anything else got caught on it. Up until recently, it wasn't a big deal. We just bent it back and went on our way. Starting this week, the door started getting stuck on the face plate and it was extremely difficult to open. This is background leading up to the events of yesterday.

I left work early to take Miles in for his 4 month check up and immunizations. I waited for an hour before getting in for his shots. We were both tired and ornery. Anyway, he got his shots, screamed horrifically, and then fell asleep. I took him home, carried him inside and then went to get the mail. As I went to open the door, however, it would not open. I started to get nervous because my baby was inside all alone and I couldn't get to him. Remembering various action movies of yesteryear, I flung my body into the door several times before I was finally able to get inside. Unfortunately, I ended up breaking the door frame and the door knob. Yipee, another home improvement project. At least the baby and Scooter slept through the entire incident.

What is he thinking??

2009-06-22T21:27:00.001-07:00

I can't get over how cute this boy is, but I often wonder what does he think about his predicament? I'm pretty sure when he was born he was thinking, "What are you doing? I did not say I was ready to come out! That's it, I'm pulling out all my defenses. Not only will I cry but I will also peep and poop and I don't cre who I hit!" The first few weeks of his life I'm pretty sure he thought he wouldn't make it with the parents he was stuck with. During bath time, he thinks "WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME!! IF I WANTED TO BE CLEAN I WOULD NOT SPIT UP SO MUCH! DO YOU NOT REALIZE HOW LONG IT TAKES ME TO GET THIS ROTTEN MILK SMELL EMBEDDED INTO MY SKIN!" And last of all, every time he gets dropped off at daycare he thinks, "Thank goodness, someone who KNOWS what they are doing."

At the Zoo

2009-06-20T21:15:00.001-07:00

The monkeys stand for honesty, giraffes are insecure, and the elephants are kindly but they're dumb. Orangutans are skeptical of changes in their cages and the zookeeper is very fond of rum. Zebras are reactionary, antelope are missionaries, pigeons flock to secrecy, and hamsters turn off frequently. Cats! You've got to come and see at the zoo (taken from a Simon and Garfunkel song)

Anyway, we took Miles to the zoo today and had a great time. Here are a few of the pictures.

Back at Work

2009-06-17T15:42:00.000-07:00

I suppose I should let all my faithful readers know that I am now back at work and am having a wonderful time. I had no idea motherhood would be this hard and now I find that going to work is a joy in my life. It's not that I don't love Miles, because he means the world to me and I do love to see his smile and now hear his laugh. He is growing so fast and I look forward to the day he discovers a slide or learns how to tie his own shoe. Nevertheless, I digress. One really hard part about being a stay-at-home mom is the lack of social interaction. Suddenly I was faced with a little person who couldn't communicate with me nor I with him. All I knew was that he wanted something and sometimes I, apparently, didn't have what he wanted. Now I come to work, I speak to people, I solve problems, and I pick up a boy at the end of the day who has been surrounded by toys and other babies all day long and is generally happy and tired.

I just want to say good job to all those people out there who dedicate their lives to raising and teaching children.

Star Trek is awesome

2009-05-23T22:39:00.000-07:00

Steve and I just went to see the latest Star Trek movie and all I have to say is AMAZING. I was never a big fan of the original Star Trek series because I have never liked Captain Kirk and his need to conquer women, but I have to say, the young Kirk is a much more loveable character and Spock was great. I also enjoyed Sulu, Scotty, and McCoy. I can't figure out who the young russian guy is on the series. If any of you know, let me know.

One thing I do have to say is why did I ever stop watching Star Trek The Next Generation.

The pooping chair

2009-05-19T22:16:00.000-07:00

So I've noticed every time I put Miles in this chair, he is able to facilitate. I talked to a friend who's kids also did the same thing in their bouncy chair. I don't know if it is the mesmerizing elephants or the way the chair holds Miles, but I wonder if there is one in adult size.

I'm so handy

2009-04-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

Late last night our garbage disposal burned out. I woke up this morning feeling awful because there was a counter full of dishes and red velvet cake sitting in the sink that was not draining. Thankfully, my visiting teachers were scheduled to come this morning. They watched Miles while I went to the store, purchased a new garbage disposal, and installed it. I had to work with plumbing and electrical and deal with pink water and chunks of red velvet cake. However, the garbage disposal is now installed and it works with no leaks. I am eternally grateful to my visiting teachers, who without them, I could not have accomplished this task today. I don't want to see red velvet cake, though, for a long time.

Shots are the pits

2009-04-14T15:28:00.000-07:00

Miles just got his first set of vaccines. I got the lucky job of holding him while they poked him with three needles. After the first one, he started to cry hard. Then the second one came and his whole head turned bright red. That's when the person administering the shots said "This last one is the worst." It was probably the most pain Miles has ever experienced. At least he is sleeping now.

Miles Smiles

2009-03-26T18:14:00.000-07:00

Here is Miles' first photo smiling. I still can't get him to smile when he sees me, but he is always pretty happy after eating.
The other picture is of Scooter getting tired of always having to wait his turn.

Spring is springing

2009-03-25T23:21:00.000-07:00

Ahh...Springtime in Seattle.

Spring has always been my favorite season of the year. There's so much hope in the air, things are coming back to life, the days are getting longer, and supposedly the air gets warmer. Plus, my birthday is in April...which may have a lot to do with it.

Our tulips are popping up and the poppies are blooming - all good signs that this long, cold, dark, and wet winter is finally coming to an end. I can't wait for the tulips to bloom and the mornings to be warm enough that I can comfortably wait for the bus on Lake City Way without freezing to death. Mostly, I hope that all the anxiety and worry about our economy starts to thaw away with the warmer days. Maybe some nice warm, sunny weather will help put things back into perspective for everyone.

Update on our lives

2009-03-23T15:54:00.000-07:00

I guess it has been awhile since one of us last posted. Since then, family has come and gone and I am on my third week of caring for an infant on my own during the day. I'm pleased to say that he is still alive. Since birth, he has grown two inches and gained nearly three pounds. Here are some pictures.

Miles is learning to hold his head up

This picture looks like he is caught in a psychadelic prison

Here are the shoes I made for Miles. They finally fit.

This is right after a bath. Notice the formula drool. Miles loves to be messy

Look who finally decided to grace us with his presence...

2009-02-17T18:03:00.000-08:00

It took some coaxing, but Lil' Mathlete was born Thursday, February 12 at 10:52 pm. He weighed 7 lb 9 oz and was 22-inches long. Though, i'm not sure about the whole length thing because at his appointment today he was 19.75-inches. I don't think babies shrink, but what do i know.

Kelly and I absolutely love him and are glad to finally see him. He's definitely an independent child and likes to do things on his own schedule. (We're working to change that).

We're now in that wierd world of 'are we really parents?'. It is so strange to be in the new stage of our lives. So far, it's a lot of late night feedings and sleeping in 3-hour intervals between feedings

The child is never coming

2009-02-07T12:44:00.000-08:00

Well I'm a few days past my due date and there is still no progress on the child entering the world. Last night we even tried walking quickly (for me, for any normal person it would be walking slowly) and eating spicy mexican food. Nothing happened except a little heartburn.

My next hope for something happening is the full moon coming up on the 9th. Hopefully, he will respond to that.

Fun with an iron

2009-02-06T00:16:00.000-08:00

Kelly and I picked up a Sukie iron-on book a few months ago and we finally decided to use it. We couldn't sleep tonight, so we thought we would take the oppurtunity to decorate some onesies for the little Mathlete. This is what our lives have turned into: baby crafts at midnight.

Lil Mathlete is now officially late since his due date was Wednesday, the 4th. We've decided that he must have inherited my lack of punctuality. I guess we have waited 9 months already, so a few more days shouldn't be a big deal.

I have crafty friends and family

2009-01-27T22:07:00.000-08:00

With one week left until our little mathlete's due date, I have been given a couple baby showers and I am amazed at the talent that surrounds me. Here are some pictures of the beautiful handmade gifts that await baby boy.

Beautiful quilt from Steve's mother

Another quilt from Steve's mother. This one shows off her amazing embroidery work.

Sarah knitted this blanket for our little boy

These were made by my friend's daughter. She was so excited about the shower she wore her outfit to bed the night before to make sure she got it right.

Annie knitted me a stuffed penguin and included books about penguins.

Gwen knitted some warm and fuzzy hats for baby's little head.

Holly designed invitations for the shower she gave me and then embroidered the bum of a

couple onesies with the same bird. So cute!

Motivating

2009-01-20T19:41:00.000-08:00

My office took time out this morning to watch/listen to President Obama's inauguration. It was amazing. The inauguration was so inspiring and motivating to me that I am left speechless. I was motivated by Obama's speech to work hard and do my part to make the world a better place. I am glad that he challenged us as Americans to do our part to rebuild our economy. It's about time that we had a President who askes more us than to go shopping.

It was inspiring to see the millions of people gathered in Washington, DC waving American flags, peacefully standing together. It was a great day for our country.

Nursery/Office is nearly finished

2009-01-04T20:24:00.000-08:00

This weekend, Steve and I spent the majority of our time fixing up the second bedroom for the baby and for Steve's sister who will be staying with us (it might make it more difficult to fix up the nursery once she is here). Here are a few pictures of our progress. Keep in mind, the rocking chair has not come yet, but we did clear a space for it.

Here is the crib integrated with the office

Steve made this bench and cover.

We love this sheep mobile

This is the rocking chair that will be placed in the nursery/office.

Bloody Stumps

2008-12-30T08:10:00.000-08:00

I reached a new milestone in my pregnancy. My foot was so swollen, I couldn't get my shoe on. I had to settle for wearing sneakers with my dress pants today. I am mortified.

Another thing no one tells you. Swollen feet and cankles (ankles the size of calves) are not comfortable. They don't bend as well and I can't feel them as well either. I guess this is why pregnant women waddle.

I'm lucky when it comes to Jury Duty

2008-12-23T15:03:00.000-08:00

So Steve mentioned briefly that my jury duty which was supposed to happen December 22, was cancelled on Monday due to snow. I called to find out about Tuesday, December 23rd and found out that everyone who had been called to jury duty had been excused. That saved me a 1.5 hour commute (on a good day). Yippee!!

The only other time I have been called to jury duty, I was told on my summons that the case was expected to last 10 weeks. I had broken out in hives the day before and really did not want to go (I think I'm allergic to dyes and perfumes in laundry detergent). Anyway, like a good citizen, I went to serve my time only to be told the case has been settled and to go home.

Seattle is NOT supposed to look like this.

2008-12-21T23:06:00.000-08:00

The pictures somehow were placed in reverse chronological order. So far, we have recieved 9.5-inches of snow at our house this weekend and add that to the 3-inches left over from Thursday and we have over a foot of snow on the ground at our house. Pluse, it's snowing again. Usually, that would be fine. But, Seattle had NO snow plows, de-icer, or salt for the roads. Basically, the city has shut down. Our offices are closed tomorrow and Kelly's jury duty has been cancelled. (She was summoned for jury duty starting tomorrow).

It's crazy! We're getting tired of sitting in our house. I am finding out that I am not a home body. We attempted to go on a walk, but we don't have the proper snow gear so it quickly became miserable.

Christmas Cookies

2008-12-15T22:38:00.000-08:00

Kelly and I were talking over the weekend how it didn't really feel like Christmastime (yes, it's one word...look it up ). I have been working all kinds of crazy hours at the office for the past few weeks and we felt like Christmas was going to pass us by. Well, I finally finished my project at work and had some free time again to spend at home.

I think it finally felt like Christmas to me yesterday (Sunday) when we visited a member of our congregation at her house. We talked about our Christmas plans, the spirit of Christmas, and how serving others brings us joy. She told us about her family in Nigeria who have absolutely nothing and how she recently sent a little bit of money to them so they could buy some rice (rice is a staple food, but it has become too expensive for most Nigerians).

I began to see how much Kelly and I have, and how little we need. An overwhelming feeling of grattitude for my warm house, my food, my job, and my family grew inside of me and it felt like Christmas.

Wintery Weekend

2008-12-15T22:28:00.000-08:00

After a relatively mild November, winter showed up this weekend. It snowed this weekend and it has been pretty cold since. It doesn't snow that much in Seattle and when it does, it only snows a few inches. Oh, except in 2004 when we got 12-inches in the city. Anyway, Saturday night's snow shower was really pretty and we enjoyed watching the snow fall around our neighborhood.

Urban Craft Uprising

2008-12-09T14:57:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I went to the Urban Craft Uprising held at the Seattle Center (here is the website with links from the vendors http://www.urbancraftuprising.com/). It was amazing! I was so overwhelmed by so much neat stuff that I didn't end up purchasing anything. It is not often that you find a craft fair where you like or are drawn to pretty much everything (no tea cozies from grandmother). One day, I hope to have a booth there.

What's the 411 on diapers

2008-12-02T13:23:00.000-08:00

As Steve and I prepare for the arrival of our little mathlete, one thought keeps coming up that we should stock up on diapers and wipes. Unfortunately, having never been a mother before, I have no idea what are good brands and what brands I should stay away from.

I am asking all mothers (and fathers) what are good diapers? Are there preferences depending on if you are having a boy or a girl? Do types of wipes matter? What other household products did you find you used often but never thought to buy at the beginning?

Little Piggy

2008-11-13T21:50:00.000-08:00

Kelly sews again. This time she made a bib for the baby. Luckily, we have a willing model in the house to show off Kelly's creations.

When did my medical file become public knowledge?

2008-11-06T13:33:00.001-08:00

Why is it that when you are pregnant everyone feels like they are now your doctor? A guy at work told me to stop drinking water out of plastic containers because it will give me and my baby cancer. When I was at the temple, the sealer wouldn't let me kneel for long periods of time due to my situation. Today at the convenience store across the street, the clerk was shocked to find out I didn't know what brand of prenatal vitamins I was taking and told me to start drinking fish oil.
I realize that everyone is just trying to be nice and I do appreciate when I am offered a chair or someone helps carry something heavy, but I am tired of being looked at as a nothing more than a carrier. I am a person who has interests other than the child growing inside of me.
Anyway, I'm just venting.

An Historic Night

2008-11-04T23:02:00.000-08:00

What a night it has been. Anyone who knows Kelly and me, knows that we are HUGE Obama supporters. So, we are extremely pleased by tonight's election result. I think our country finally began to repair our standing with the rest of the world.

We just elected our first African-American president and I couldn't be prouder of it. Barrack Obama will be a great leader and I am excited to see where he takes our country.

Jury Duty

2008-10-27T08:06:00.000-07:00

I have been summoned to jury duty. I always think it sounds exciting and a great opportunity to participate in a part of the system that makes this country great, but every time I get a summons, I groan. This one begins December 22nd. Thank goodness I'm not leaving town for Christmas.

Diaper Bag is finished

2008-10-26T21:02:00.000-07:00

After some tears, screaming, getting mad at Scooter (he likes to help), and swearing, I finished my diaper bag. I realize I'm having a boy but I figure he is not the one who is carrying the bag so I made something for me. It's probably the most difficult sewing project I have done.

The view from the inside shows a lot of pockets. This was a large portion of the frustration. Don't ask me why every pocket needed two pleats.

I must say, I look good with this bag. It screams "hip mom, ready to take over the world"

Green means go

2008-10-21T17:39:00.000-07:00

I have a fascination with street signs. I really love crosswalk signs. I don't know why, but that's who I am. Here's a sample from France. This one is walking up stairs. Appropriate since you are probably going to be walking up stairs in France.

I love the perspective composition on this one. How crazy..
This one tells you to stay within the crosswalk lines. How clever.
Your typical Paris walking sign.

So far, the French have the most creative crosswalk signs I have seen. Although, Vancouver, BC, has some pretty good ones too. My favorite, though, are the old ones in the former East Germany.

She's so crafty

2008-10-21T17:34:00.000-07:00

Kelly finished Lil' Mathlete's booties this weekend. They're really cute.

A Typical Saturday Afternoon

2008-10-21T17:29:00.001-07:00

Bad pants in France

2008-10-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

So, one thing Steve and I did while in France is we documented all the bad pants we saw (if we could covertly get a picture) while in France. Here are our findings.

This guy doesn't have horrible pants (just short red shorts), but check out the mustache on the guy in the beret.

It's only fair that if I do a post on ugly pants, I include one of myself. Personally, I think these pants are great. They are roomy, long enough to be modest, and they have a bunch of pockets. Steve finds them completely unflattering.

I LOVE Sewing

2008-10-13T10:27:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I got into using my new sewing machine for the first time. Right now, I am making curtains for our bedroom, booties for the baby, and a diaper bag. Hopefully, I will have pictures of my creations soon.

Now let me just acknowledge my new sewing machine and how nice it is. Everything runs smoothly, I can see the bobbin so I know when it is getting low, the button to choose whether you want your needle to land in the up position or the down position is fantastic, and Steve and I both love how quiet the machine is. We can have conversations while I am sewing. Soon I will have to find a project where I can use other stitches besides straight and zigzag sitching.

Debate

2008-10-07T22:44:00.000-07:00

I know...I'm supposed to be posting pictures and stories from our recent France vacation, but I just had to write about tonight's debate.

The debate was intense at times, a little too negative for my taste, and relatively substance free. I wish both candidates would have answered the questions more directly (or at all in some cases). In the end, though, I think Obama came off looking cool, calm, and collected. John McCain seemed agitated and angry. Since the 2 said little of major substance I based my opinion of the debate on their behavior.

The extreme low point for the evening was when John McCain pointed to Obama and said with disdain, "that one". That was just uncalled for. I also loved the moment when McCain insulted the intelligence of the audience member who asked the question about how the bailout (i mean, rescue plan) will help ordinary people; I believe it was the 2nd question. McCain, said to the man, "you probably never heard of FannieMae or FreddieMac until recently." I hear the best way to win voters is to insult them.

I finished watching and wondered, how is John McCain planning to pay for a mortgage bailout (so much for government = bad), maintain a war in Iraq, conduct a surge in Afghanistan, and lower taxes? It just doesn't make sense.

Les Pics, part 2: the Sights, cont'd

2008-10-05T14:10:00.001-07:00

Les Pics, part 1: the sights

2008-10-05T13:56:00.000-07:00

The French Recap

2008-10-05T13:23:00.000-07:00

Where to begin....

It all began with the 9 hour flight from Seattle to Paris where we all decided that we should have taken our 9-week French class a little more seriusly.

We landed in Paris, got through customs, and all that fun stuff, and jumped in the taxi to get to our apartment. Little did we know that we would be risking our life and safety by riding in a car through Paris. I don't think French cars have rear-view mirrors on them, or at least they don't use them. And, motorcyclist don't have to drive in a lane. Plus, apparently, a pedestrian walking in a crosswalk does not have the right-of-way.

45-minutes later after driving all over Paris we arrived at our apartment in the 6th Arr. on the Rue des Baux Arts (adjacent to the famed Ecole des Beaux Arts). It wasn't until we got to the apartment that we realized the we were located on the 5th floor (6th floor "French" as the rental company put it) of a walk up building. We carried our luggage (I carried Kelly's and mine) up 6 floors of steep, winding stairs. I will admit, though, that the view was amazing from the apartment. We could see Notre Dame, the Pantheon, and Paris spreading out.

Renting an apartment in Paris was the best decision. We were able to save money by cooking at home and eating out only at lunch. At the end of our week in Paris, we took all that saved money and ate at a nice French resturant near the Jardin Luxemburg. The aparment also had a washer and dryer so we didn't have to wear the same dirty clothes day after day. Unfortunately, the appliances weren't grounded so you got a serious electrical shock everytime to tried to touch your clothes in the washer.

Here's a travel tip: water + ungrounded appliances = painful shock.

We visited all of the typical Parisian sights: the Louvre, the Eifel Tower, Arc de Triumph, the patisseries, and McDo (French for McDonald's).

After Paris we spent 4 days in Nice, which isn't as nice as you would think. Nice was good, but I wouldn't spend 4 days there. We rented another apartment in Nice on the Rue Giofreddo near Old Town Nice. From Nice we visited Monaco, Antibes, and explored Nice itself. There really isn't too much to see in Nice so you kind of have to make daytrips from there. The really sad thing about Nice, is all of the cruise ship tourists who flock there. Most of the big cruise ships dock at Nice or near it on the Mediterrean Sea so there was an influx of puffy white tennis shoe tourists to get in the way.

Kelly ended up getting so bad food poisoning in Nice late Saturday night and Sunday morning. In case you're wondering, nothing is open on Sunday in Nice and everything closes at 9:00pm on Saturday.

Another, travel tip: don't get sick on the weekend in Nice.

Besides a few train blunders, a few bad bus rides, getting stranded on the side of coastal highway between Monaco and Nice, the trip was amazing and I want to travel some more.

We're Home

2008-10-01T04:26:00.000-07:00

Steve and Kelly at Versailles
Bop, Beep, Kelly and Steve at Antibes on the Cote d'Azur

Kelly and I are home from our amazing 2 week vacation in France. I'll give more details later, but we had a great time with our friends, Beep and Bop. We rented an apartment in Paris' 6th Arrodissement (the Saint Germain des Pres area near the Ecole des Beaux Arts) for 8 days. Then we spent 3 days on the sunny Cote d'Azure, France's Mediterranean coast. There, we rented an apartment in Nice and made day trips to Monaco and Antibes.

We had a few hiccups along the way: I lost my cell phone on the flight to France, Kelly got sick in Nice, I forgot basically everything I needed, we got on wrong trains, Bop constantly fought MasterCard, and the 4 of us shared 1 small bathroom with poor ventilation (if you know what I mean).

It was a great trip and we'll post our pictures in the next few days.

For now, we're glad to be home where we can understand people and read the signs.

IT'S A BOY!!!!

2008-09-16T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here is the profile

Here is one of his feet. He doesn't have 18 toes, he is just wiggling.

Here is his face. I know, it looks creepy.

Steve and I went to our first ultrasound today to see a little boy wiggling and moving and punching and sucking. At least, that is what the radiologist was saying. I couldn't really see anything. I did count 5 fingers on each hand though and he does have a spine, two legs and two arms, and feet. Here is our first baby picture.

Sewing is Fun

2008-09-09T08:50:00.001-07:00

Last night I bought a new sewing machine at Costco. It is the most exciting thing ever. It's a Singer Model 4661. It comes with 10 different feet, it does 60 different stitches including 5 different button holes. You can set the speed to sew fast or slow (or something in between). It has a start/stop button on the machine so you don't have to hook up the presser foot if you don't want to. It has a contraption to thread the needle for you. You can set it so the needle stops in the down position or the up position. The best part is, it only cost $179.99. For all of you looking for a fun new sewing machine, I highly recommend this.

If anyone would like my old sewing machine, which is not nearly as exciting, let me know and I will give it to you free of charge.

Practice for Paris

2008-09-03T23:45:00.000-07:00

Jennfier & Kelly at Crepe Cafe
The Mathletes at Crepe Cafe

The funny crosswalk guy in Vancouver, BC.

My sister and her husband visited us for a quick Labor Day weekend. We love it when people come out to visit becuase it's a good excuse to finally do all those touristy things we rarely do. Of course we checked out the Olympic Sculpture Park-my new favorite thing about Seattle, ate a lot of food, and walked all over the place.

After dropping the Brother-in-Law off at the airport we drove up to Vancouver, BC. Kelly and I love Vancouver, and if a certain ultra-conservative candidate and his sidekick are elected in November we may be moving up there.

Anyway, I digress. Sure, you can argue that Canada is basically the U.S., but their signs are in French and English. Plus, you have to show a passport and go through customs to get there. We practiced our French by reading the signs and pretending to order our crepes in French. Well, when I say "we" practiced, I really mean that "I" practiced my French. Jennifer and Kelly didn't seem interested in playing my bi-lingual games.

We stopped and had lunch at our favorite crepe place on Robson Street. Kelly ordered the most amazing Nutella and coconut crepe, while Jennifer and I had the banana and Nutella version. Besides crepes, we did a lot of window shopping in Yaletown and Robson. Unfortunatley, the US dollar isn't what it used to be against the Canadian dollar, so it wasn't the usual bargain shopping extravaganza that we're used to in Vancouver.

Kelly and I had a great time with Jennifer and Brad. We love having family visit and showing them our beautiful corner of the world.

Greek Bulgur Salad with Chicken

2008-08-29T08:11:00.000-07:00

This recipe is one of my favorite go-to meals because it is quick, hearty, healthy, and delicious. Sometimes I don't add chicken to make it vegetarian and I never add the olives (I don't like olives), but try it out and experiment with what you like.
One other thing. The recipe I'm about to share makes 10 servings. I always half the recipe.

41/2 c. water
3 c. uncooked medium bulgur
3/4 c. fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons) divided
2 tsp. salt, divided
21/2 c. chopped skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast
2 c. halved grape tomatoes
1 c. chopped fresh parsley
1/2 c. thinly sliced fresh basil
1/2 c. finely chopped red onion
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. black pepper
10 kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

1. Combine water, bulgur, 1/2 cup juice, and 1 tsp. salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Uncover and cool to room temperature. (I don't cool to room temperature because I'm usually in a hurry. I also like that the warm bulgur melts the cheese a bit)

2. Combine remaining 1/4 c. juice, remaining 1 tsp. salt, and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss to combine. Add cooled bulgur mixture; toss well to combine. Cover and chill.

For documenting purposes, this recipe came from Cooking Light magazine, March 2006.

Live from Denver, it's Monday Night...

2008-08-26T11:21:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm not in Denver, but I did watch the beginning of the Democratic National Convention last night. I took 2 things away from last night's speeches.

1. Michelle Obama gave an amazing, emotional, and moving speech. You can watch it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=790hG6qBPx0&feature=PlayList&p=326408EAF22B2E31&index=4
I don't understand how the Republicans have managed to paint the Obamas as "elitist snobs". The Obamas come from very humble roots and worked their up to where they are now. Why is that a bad thing? I thought we are supposed to look up to people like that, not trash them for success.

2. I was impressed the the Dems didn't come out swinging and attacking John McCain. A stark contrast to how I am sure the GOP convention will be next week. The Dems could have started their convention by trashing and bashing, but they didn't. Instead, they focused on the commons values of all Americans. I am sure that as the week progresses the Dems will be more aggressive towards McCain, but it was a nice start to the Convention.

Seriously, if you haven't seen Michelle Obama's speech, you need to watch it. It was amazingly simple, well said, and inspirational.

Only 3 more nights of DNC fun. Tonight's main event: Hillary Clinton...should be "interesting".

Cheeeeese

2008-08-22T13:10:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday, I went to a class about cheese. I had no idea there was so much to learn about. Generally, cheese comes in soft, semi-soft, hard, and blue. The blue cheeses stand on their own because there is usually some penicillian or something like that added to it to help it bloom. The weirdest thing I learned...some cheeses are bathed in urine. Unfortunately, I don't know what ones those are. My favorite cheeses that I tried were the Israeli Brie cheese and the Pecorino Romano (spelling???). They were fantastic. I can't wait to go to France!!

The good side of pollution

2008-08-19T09:33:00.001-07:00

Last weekend was hot and miserable in Seattle. Plus, there was no breeze and it was relatively humid, which led to something unusual for Seattle: smog.

The days were unbearably hot. No one could sleep because it was too hot to get comfortable. But, on the bright side, the sunsets were amazing. The smog filtered sunsets had just the right shades of pink. I tried to capture Friday's sunset with my phone's camera. It was one of those moments when I remembered why I love living in Seattle.

Luckily, the heat wave is over and we're back to rainy and 60-degree weather...that's how summer should be.

The Cat Days of Summer

2008-08-07T23:02:00.000-07:00

Scooter and Milo (the neighbors' cat) enjoying each other and the heat.

Most of our non-Seattle readers will roll their eyes at this, but Seattlites are weather whimps, so just let me complain for a minute. It has been really hot and humid here lately. I don't think we have broken any local weather records, but it has been miserable. The worst part is riding the hot, sticky, stinky, sweaty, over-croweded bus at the end of a long day in a hot "air-conditioned" office.

We have had heat waves like this before, and it's days like today that make me appreciate our stereotypical Seattle weather so I know it won't last. It wouldn't be so bad, but it doesn't cool down at night and our house isn't air conditioned (no one in Seattle has a/c at home) so our house stays a pleasant 78-80 degrees.

Just think, soon we'll be complaining that we haven't seen the sun in 9 weeks.

Like I said, we're weather whimps.

Two cats fighting

2008-08-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

In this picture, you see two cats enjoying a nap together in a pile of laundry. However, they are not always this congenial to each other. Just to give you some background, the black/grey cat is my cat. His name is Scooter, he weighs about 12 pounds and is very muscular and active. Milo is the next door neighbor's cat. He weighs (on a good day) about 7 pounds and is slowing down as he ages. Whenever these two cats get together, Milo always play fights with Scooter and Scooter always runs away, even though he is significantly larger. My cat is a sissy.