happy monday!

Hope your Monday is as easy as Sunday morning.

(actual Sunday morning)

things that make me happy

 My fig tree that has quadrupled in size this season.

A pretty sunset taken from a friend's boat.

Our very first apple on the tree we planted.

Snuggle time with my husband and pup.

Snagging the very last bunch of garlic scapes from the market. They won't come around until next year.

Fruit parfaits!

To make your own:

Dice up seasonal fruit. I used raspberries, peaches, plums, kiwi and cherries. Add a heaping dollop of greek yogurt. Drizzle with honey and top with almond slivers (chopped walnuts taste great too!)

I just realized that over half of these things are about food. I swear there are things that make me happy other than eating although eating is pretty awesome-town.

my brain is just a jellyfish in the ocean of my head

Back from Horning’s Hideout, and it was a great weekend indeed! I mean, it IS kinda hard to have a bad time when you’re camping in an amazing wooded property where peacocks roam around and you get to dance to a jam band while wearing costumes. String Cheese played great and they surprised everybody with a dragon they set on fire and an enormous jellyfish that floated around and lit up during the show on Saturday night. You don’t see that at just any concert! If you have a facebook account, you can see all my picture here, but otherwise here are a few of my favorites from the weekend.

tie dyed

Anders bought some DIY tie dye swim trunks from Vans awhile ago. Neither one of us are experienced with tie dying, so we had been putting this project off for awhile. We finally figured, what the heck, they are either going to be awesome or suck. Whatever. So, we finally just jumped into the project. Turns out, it wasn't so hard after all. The shorts came out great. And we figured since we already had the dye out, we might as well have a go at every other white shirt we could gather up in the house. For first timers I would say they turned out okay too (although does anyone know why I ended up with so much white? Please advise!). In a weird way it was kind of addicting. I liked the surprise untying at the end. Sorta made it seem like an extreme sport.

 The Vans before

 Dying in our cast iron. No judgement.

cheesy

I'm off to Oregon for four days to a place called Hornings Hideout to hear a band called The String Cheese Incident perform. I'm new to the SCI scene, but here is what I know:

1. Apparently the band broke up, but they still play some shows together. It's very confusing.

2. Their average live song length is roughly 22 minutes. I made that up, but it seems accurate. They are into long songs.

3. Costumes are always encouraged.

4. Shows sometimes include acrobats.

Here is what I don't know:

1. What was the actual incident involving a piece of string cheese that was so epic they had to name their band after it?

Anyway, I'll report back from Oregon next week. Meanwhile, here are some other cheesy things.

1. Pimento Cheese Sandwiches. Yum.

2. Famous Murray Cheese opened stands in Seattle! (read about it here) 

3. Make your own goat cheese.
4. Gnocchi Mac and Cheese!


Also, here is the band playing my favorite song Rollover from Red Rocks (and, hey, it's only 13 minutes long!)

we're three

Anders and I are celebrating our three (!) year anniversary today. Time flies when you're constantly traveling, eating, laughing, exploring and, oh yeah, having fun too.

Happy Anniversary, Love!

turning four

Maggie turned four this month, so we asked our friend Kim at The Nyima Bakery to make some all-natural pupcakes to help celebrate. We ended up with the cutest little cakes shaped like bones and decorated in fancy toppings that put most human birthday cakes to shame. Maggie invited her buddy, Perla, over and they munched on their treats together. To say they were a hit would be an understatement. Maggie ate hers so fast we had to give her a second one just so I could get a picture! 

You can find Nyima Bakery on Facebook here.

Also, check out this epic dog's birthday party. Sunny is one lucky pooch! 

hiked

It's summertime, the sun is shining and I'm inspired. Hiking inspired. After our hike to Rattlesnake Ridge, I realized that I haven't done a whole lot of hiking in the area. Seeing as how we are home to some of the best trails around, I felt I needed to remedy that. I packed up Maggie last Saturday and headed to Little Si. She and I completed the 5 miles to the top and back. It was comparable to Rattlesnake Ridge, a mile longer, but still had amazing views. Then, on Sunday, Anders and I met up with our friends again, and we went on a mission to find Scout Lake. We took a logging road and somehow ended up on the side of a mountain with no trail! I'm talking straight up back country. Since we had no bear mace and no compass, we figured we were a bad movie waiting to happen, and we quickly retreated before ever finding the lake. Still...it was a workout, we were outside and we didn't see any bears, so it all worked out (actually I did a google search and found nothing on Scout Lake, so I don't think it's really a place. Where were you taking us ANDERS!?)

Here are some pictures from the two hikes. These were all taken with my iPhone because trying to manage a dog, a day pack and keep a lookout for bears is easier when you don't have a heavy camera at your side. 

Yea, iPhone! 

art in the park

One of the best things about living in Seattle is that you can go run errands on your lunch hour and stumble across an art gallery in a park. These statues have been hanging out at Westlake Center minding their own business for a month now. I couldn't find any information about the artist or how long these statues will hang out here, but I was glad I got to witness them before they left (Full disclosure: I thought they were those humans that pretend to be statues for the longest time. I stared for at least 5 minutes before working up the courage to touch one. They aren't actually real people.) Also, I don't know if the blue trees are part of the exhibit, but they add a nice touch don't you think?

Should I tell him he has something on his face?

rattlesnake ridge

We met up with our good friends, Pat and Laura, and went for a hike at Rattlesnake Ridge. I'm not quite sure why it's called that since I'm pretty sure there aren't rattlesnakes in Seattle (are there? Should I be worried?). The hike is 1.9 miles up, and while it does get steep in some parts and you definitely work hard to make it to the top, you are rewarded with some very lovely views!

clambake

Anders and I spent the 4th of July at a clambake! I'm thinking clambakes need to be a new tradition. A weekly tradition that is. So delicious.

 No party is complete without festive sunglasses

 Ryan and his pretty family

 Dina borrows a baby and Anders checks the chicken!

 Oh boy! Oh boy!

 Yes, please!

 I need to stop taking pictures and eat!

Clambakes make Taho smile. 

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday too!