Our 24th Anniversary

To celebrate our 24th wedding anniversary Tyler and I went on a three day getaway to Seattle. We had such a blast!! We left early on a Friday morning.  Ailey and Bryn were picked up by Jordin and Ramon for a big cousin weekend at their house and Kam and Reilly were doing their own thing. We were so excited to getaway for a few days.

We also wanted to do some shopping for Sisters Creed so we made a few stops on our way...in Moses Lake, Thorp, and Ellensburg. We ate BBQ in Ellensburg, checked out the college and campus of CWU, and then headed on into Seattle. The sun was shining and the weather was absolutely GLORIOUS!! We also explored the Lake Sammamish area. Pretty!

Tyler booked us a super nice room at a luxury boutique hotel in Redmond; which is such a cool area. Our room was so pretty and modern. I loved it! We ended up having a repair issue in our room so they upgraded us to a full on suite with a separate bedroom, kitchen, and balcony. It was amazing!! That area is so cool with Microsoft located there. So many great restaurants, parks, walking trails, waterways, and all kinds neat places and fun things to check out. We loved it!

We decided to do our Sisters Creed stuff the first day so that we would have the other two days just for playing and having fun. Many of my fellow vendors and Sisters Creed customers had recommended places for me to check out that had great vintage items and furniture. We could've filled up our vehicle and a trailer about 10 x over!! I found so many great things for Farm Chicks!! We had the back of our vehicle open with the seats taken out...this picture was after stop #2. By our last stop Tyler had to purchase a measuring tape and was jenga-ing everything in like a master!!

We drove all over and went to all of the recommended places and then decided to grab some dinner at Thai Toms in the University District. Thai Toms had a line a mile long outside the door and an hour and a half wait so we walked around and found another great Thai food place... Somtam Thai...and ate dinner there. It was fantastic!! I love Thai food so much.

It was really fun to be in the University District on a Friday night! So many people and so many things to do and see. We had a really great time! We got back to our hotel late that night.

The next morning we were up bright and early and had breakfast. We weren't able to go to one of the vintage places that we wanted to go to for Sisters Creed the day before so we went super early in the morning and found a vintage bonanza! It was awesome!! After that we drove downtown and headed to Pike Place Market.

My favorite thing in Pike Place Market are the flower vendors!! Huge gorgeous bouquets for so cheap!! It was stunningly beautiful!! This time of year they had huge spring bouquets and enormous bouquets of lilacs!! My lilacs aren't even blooming yet here in Spokane!

My favorite flowers of ALL-TIME!

This bouquet was very reminiscent of my bridal bouquet. I wanted spring flowers...tulips, lilacs, and roses.

It was so beautiful downtown! We went to Beechers which we love! We also tried a bakery and an Asian food place that had been recommended to us. We were NOT fans of the bakery nor the Asian food place. That was a bummer. But we ARE a fan of Beechers and enjoyed cheese and cheese curds. We also wandered around and bought t-shirts, chocolate covered cherries, and had a great time people watching and basking in that rare Seattle sun!

This big cruise ship was docked and it was fun to see!

We didn't take a bunch of pictures but rather took a bunch of videos because our kids were following along with our trip via Instagram stories. That is a fun side of social media. After that we lined up for the ferry to go to Bainbridge Island. Tyler had the whole day planned out. He wanted to go to Bainbridge and then drive up to Poulsbo, WA which is called "Little Norway" and check it out since he is Norwegian and a huge fan of all things Norwegian. LOL.

The ferry was fun! It was beautiful to see Puget Sound from the water and all of the gorgeous islands and to see downtown Seattle behind us. We were up on the deck outside for awhile but the wind was blowing the heck out of us so we went inside to enjoy the view via the window seats.

We checked out Bainbridge Island. It was pretty but neither one of us could see what all of the hoopla was about. So after some exploring we drove on to Poulsbo.

Poulsbo is a lot like Leavenworth, Washington but Norwegian influenced rather than German. We actually really enjoyed Poulsbo and hung out for quite a while, walking the streets, shopping, snacking, and enjoying the gorgeous view. We had a great time!!

The first place that Tyler wanted to go was Sluy's Bakery. They are famous for having all kinds of Norwegian breads and pastries.

That's a happy man placing his order! We brought home multiple loaves of bread and some of the best lefse!! Wow! Tyler makes an amazing lefse and this bakery makes one just as good! We should have bought a lot more!! The kids have loved trying all of the different breads and having a "toast-test". LOL.

Absolutely delicious Lefse!!

We also stopped for *lunch* at Mora! So good! Tyler had the fresh raspberry sorbet and the mojito sorbet. Delish. I had a scoop of coconut ice cream and a scoop of the pistachio ice cream. Heavenly. Then we attempted to walk it off! One of my favorite stores was Sugar Flower Market which is owned by one of my Farm Chicks vendor friends. It was beautiful! She also has another gorgeous store on Bainbridge Island.

After a fun day in Bainbridge and Poulsbo we decided not to take the ferry back to downtown Seattle but to instead drive in a huge loop via bridges to check out the Kitsap Peninsula and see a bunch of different areas that we have never been to before. We went to Bremerton, Port Orchard, Gig Harbor etc. and then drove across the Tacoma Narrows. It was a lot of fun and we saw some beautiful areas and quaint harbor towns.

Mount Rainier was visible in all of its majestic glory the entire three days that we were in the Seattle area. "The Mountain was Out!"

We got back to our hotel that night and were totally exhausted. We ordered Chinese delivery and kicked back and relaxed! It was great!

So good!

The next morning...the day of our actual anniversary... we slept in. Tyler got up first and slipped out and found a fantastic French Bakery and brought me back breakfast in bed. It was definitely my kind of breakfast!! Ha ha!!

We spent a leisurely morning at the hotel and then checked out at noon. We drove around and checked out the Microsoft campus which looks like a big University. Very cool! Then we had plans to drive to Snoqualmie Falls. I don't know why we have never stopped there before on our trips to and from Seattle in the past but I am so glad that we made plans to see it this trip!!

Lakes and waterfalls are my jam. I cannot believe that we have never stopped with the kids to look at this beauty. It is magnificent!!

Being there was extra special because waterfalls are special to us. We met at a waterfall and so it was fitting that we were at one on our 24th wedding anniversary! We walked around on the trails and went to the lodge. The weather was almost 80 degrees! I loved it! Tyler found and purchased his anniversary gift. LOL.

He has been wearing it proudly ever since!!

We also stopped and grabbed some lunch and did a little shopping in North Bend before we headed back home.

I found my anniversary gift! ;)

Then in was time to get back to our sweet kiddos!! I love that this road trip is a short one. We had such a great time and it was a much needed getaway before all of the craziness of the end of the school year, graduation (already?!), and Farm Chicks kicks in!

Happy 24th Anniversary to us!!

April: Things I am Loving

Things I am Loving:

1.) Miss Beverly Beatrice Beauchamp the Pug

No further explanation needed. We bring her home next week!!

2.) Open Water at the Lake

The ice is gone! Summer is on its way!

(Seems like the dock is gone too. LOL. Time to drag it back into place.)

3.) Triscuits

It has been a REALLY long time since I've eaten a Triscuit. I am not a cracker person so I think it has literally been years since I've had a Triscuit. Well... that is unfortunate because they are delicious! We had an assortment of crackers and toppings while we watched GC and at Easter and Triscuits were the hit of the assortments! I'm not saying that suddenly I will be eating a bunch of crackers now but...if and when I do...they will be Triscuits.

4.) Early Bedtime

When everyone was sick we got into the habit of going to bed early and guess what? It was amazing! Clearly we were not getting near enough sleep before! A true 8 hours really does make you feel great in the morning! We instituted something recently..."Quiet House by 9" on school nights. Obviously our high schoolers aren't going to go to bed at 9pm...BUT...we do want the house to be quiet by then. Bryn's bedtime is 8:30pm and she is allowed to read for a half hour but she must be in bed. She very rarely lasts that long and is usually sound asleep before 9pm. It is also the cue for Kam and Ailey to begin preparing for seminary and school the next morning and that it is time to head to their rooms to finish homework or time to shower. Me, I HAPPILY go to bed!! If I can get to bed between 9-9:30 pm I am truly giddy with joy! Tyler is able to have some down time of his own then. He usually watches a show that only he is interested in; but even he is getting to bed now by around 10-10:30pm. This is HUGE for him! He is a total night owl and would go to bed most nights between midnight or 12:30 and then get up at 5am. That is not nearly enough sleep for anyone. Even he is seeing the benefits of getting more rest. We aren't great at it yet...maybe we hit a quiet house by 9 three out of five nights but it is definitely an improvement over what we were doing before!

5.) GOT is back!

I have been reading these books for about 18 years. I NEED to know how this story ends!

April 2019

In April our health was much improved!! We were still sick for the first week which also happened to be spring break which was a bummer but those antibiotics kicked in and we all began to feel better. Hallelujah!

Kam was in Hawaii over spring break on a school trip and he had the time of his life!! I am so glad that he got to go on this trip. It was a great way to wind up his senior year and his high school years. The entire music department (band, orchestra, and choir) were invited on this trip so Kam got to be with all of his best friends and his girlfriend. Not bad! Ailey was not thrilled that she didn't get to go but when she is a senior they will go either to New York City or to Florida so she will get her special trip then.

Here's a pic Kam took from the plane flying into Honolulu.

Jonathan and Kam texting that they had arrived and were alive.

Kam and Jonathan...best friends since first grade.

Kam and Caleb...another one of his good friends that he has had since middle school.

Kam, Abbey, and more friends.

Abbey and Kam on the beach.

I was begging that kid to get a hair cut in Hawaii! He looks like one of the Brady Bunch's blonde cousins. He refused. He thought his hair was amazing. To each his own. LOL. Kam had the greatest of times and came home and announced that he was done with cold climates and that we can visit him in the future in tropical lands. Sounds good to me.

Then it was General Conference and I LOVED it! It is like its own little holiday weekend around here and I liked that it didn't fall on Easter this year. I like GC to be its own thing.

This year the kids requested fruit parfaits as one of our special breakfasts. The other day was donuts and chocolate milk. I did request that they pick something easy. Neither Tyler nor I were feeling spectacular and had zero energy to whip up crepes or a waffle bar extravaganza. We went easy this year and also had some simple snacks and it was GREAT!

There were so many amazing talks and so much wisdom and inspiration shared. I definitely felt inspired to do more to make our home a sanctuary and to be more diligent in teaching our children the gospel. The talk that has stuck with me the most was the one by Elder Jefferey R. Holland about respecting the sacredness of the sacrament. So much wisdom and wise counsel was shared. I love being inspired and motivated. I also appreciate the reminder of the things that I need to work on and do better.

In between conference sessions Kam got the mop chopped!! My prayers were answered!!

Then it was Bryn's Birthday and I already posted about that and about Beverly.

Bryn finally started Track and Bloomsday Training. It started nearly a month late due to all of the snow. Bryn runs track for a city team and also has Bloomsday Training through her school. Bloomsday is a big race that our city hosts and all of the elementary schools have Bloomsday Training after school which is essentially a *running club*. Bryn loves it and does it every year even though she never runs in the actual Bloomsday race because it is on a Sunday. BUT...this year they brought back the JUNIOR Bloomsday Race and had it a few weeks earlier so Bryn got to train for it and participate in it. Bloomsday training has been a great help to her with track because it keeps her running five days a week rather than just three.

Ailey had dance team tryouts. The girls have to tryout every year. Their positions on the team aren't guaranteed. Ailey had a pretty stressful couple of weeks...lots of morning practices and evening practices. She made the team again and was happy about it! This last year of her being on the dance team has been such a great experience for her. Reilly's time on the high school dance team was not the greatest. She did great and her team was very talented but her coach was a nightmare. Good coaches make such a big difference and make it a positive experience for the girls.

Kam got fitted for a tux for Prom. He wanted a gray tux and picked this one out himself. I think he did a great job! I thought his tux was pretty cool. Tyler went with him and I made him snap a few pics. Kam was thrilled about that! Hey, we have but one boy and it has to be documented. LOL.

Abbey's dress was navy so Kam went with a navy tie and vest. Love it!

We got to go visit Beverly again. This time we went with Kelley and Elle. These two girls were so excited to see their puppies again and to play with them.

They were a little bit bigger and so cute and cuddly!!

How cute is this pile of pug puppies! We made sure that they all got a lot of love!!

We gave my dad one of those Ancestry DNA kits for Christmas and he finally got his results back. Nothing too shocking...darn it! Ha ha! I am excited that now both of my parents have taken the test and are linked to me. It was interesting to see how much of my DNA I got from each of them. I got more of my mom's DNA than my Dad's but I am still a pretty good mix of both of them.

Bryn ran in the Junior Bloomsday Race and loved it! It was her first *official* race that wasn't with a team. She had a great time despite the fact that it was raining and super cold.

We were freezing our butts off waiting for her to cross the finish line! We had to get hot chocolate asap after the race!!

A couple of hours later Bryn had her first track meet! She really got her running in that day!

We froze at that too!!

She did great! Especially for her first meet of the year and having just run another race earlier that day.

This kid amazes me! You COULD NOT PAY ME enough money to RUN on a regular basis!!

After all of that running Bryn needed to refuel at Krispy Kreme!

Then Tyler and I had to hustle it to finish up all of the Easter prep and shopping and then get home ASAP because it was also PROM! How many things can be on the same darn weekend?! Prom post is forthcoming... but for now:

Abbey and Kam are the CUTEST!! AND...they had such a great time!!

EASTER was bright and early the next morning...which I already posted about:

My mom had cataract surgery on one eye the day after Easter. She needs to have it on the other eye too but she has a bunch of things coming up and so is delaying the other side for a bit. I have some photo gems from this experience which she demanded that I not post on social media and as I respect her wishes I will only post this:

The waiting room! 

But I will say that the unseen photos had a pirate vibe that was extremely enjoyable. LOL. My mom did well with the whole process and can see great! At least in one eye! ;)

Bryn ran in her 2nd track meet and shocking to no one...it was 40 below! I had to actually grab a blanket for Tyler to use!! That is some serious cold people!! Before this I ran over to one of my favorite nearby vintage/antiques stores that was having an early morning sidewalk sale and saw a bunch of my friends and hung out chatting for awhile. Needless to say by the time I got there with that blanket Tyler was basically an icicle!! Come on warmer temps!!

Do we look like we were having fun? We weren't. I think we need to join Kameron in his future tropical location. But Bryn did kick butt for her team during the relay so we slightly rebounded after that and when she was done we headed straight for some more hot chocolate!!

After the meet we had to hustle it up to the high school where Ailey's dance team was having an auction and recital. Luckily Reilly and Hunter were able to be there early for the auction. We got there just in the nick of time as the recital portion was beginning. Kam was working all day.

Ailey did a great job! We had fun cheering her on. At the recital the dance team performed all of their routines from this year and then each grade level had to choreograph and perform a dance. There are only two freshman on the team...Ailey and Emily...but they had the very best dance routine of them all. Normally these are meant to be kind of funny especially the seniors routine but Ailey and Emily went hardcore hip hop and it was awesome! I'll have to post a video later. Her coaches loved it! Ailey's auction items also went for a good amount of money so Ailey was thrilled about that!

After the recital the dance team had their own awards ceremony, ate pizza, and went bowling. They had a great time!

Ailey lettered in dance and won the Hot Tamale award!

Bryn had school spirit day and it was "Tourist":

We got to visit Beverly for a 3rd time this month and we were so excited to see her:

Beverly is now 5 weeks old and starting to get chubbier and more active. She is so cute!

Elle and Henry and Bryn and Beverly.

Reilly and Hunter also got two pets this month...GUINEA PIGS. Reilly is an animal lover and has been wanting some kind of pet for a long time. So guinea pigs it was. Rodents are revolting and guinea pigs are rodents although Reilly, Hunter, and Bryn assure me that they are adorable and cuddly. I'll take their word for it. Reilly took Bryn out on a sister outing as her birthday gift...pedicures and dinner anywhere Bryn wanted. Bryn chose Taco Bell. Ha ha! The highlight was going over to Reilly's to see those darn guinea pigs!!

Kameron got a new job. His old job had hired so many people that Kam was not getting the hours that he needed to save for his mission which is coming up so FAST! He got hired at one of my favorite little local restaurants here and it sounds like they will give him all of the hours that he needs including full time once he graduates. Yay! He starts next week.

Kameron also did something that I would have never expected in a million years...HE SANG IN CHURCH!! What?!?! Kam is not someone I would call a singer. In fact, when he was three Tyler once heard "tuneless chanting" going on in Kameron's room and asked me what the heck Kam was doing in there. I said "singing". So...it weirdly turns out that Kameron sings bass. It's not tuneless chanting but a very deep resonant bass. Who knew?! This hidden talent was discovered this year by some of his friends that are in choir. Anyway, the bishop wanted a musical number from the graduating seniors last Sunday in Sacrament Meeting. The two other kids (one boy and one girl) are amazing singers who are in elite choirs and ensembles. I was a bit concerned about this singing trio. But...Kameron did a really great job! I would've snapped a clandestine picture or video but Tyler and I were sweating bullets for him. No need. He did great! We were also a bit concerned that he was slightly swaying and we kept thinking that he was about to pass out. (He was SUPER NERVOUS!) Tyler was ready to sprint up to the stand to catch him! Of course the song had about five million verses and Kam swayed through them all but stayed upright. I guess he was just feeling the music! LOL. We were so proud of him for doing something new and outside the box. Not only that but he totally nailed it. He had a huge grin on his face when he sat down in our pew and even let me hug and kiss him in CHURCH! Ha ha! We were super proud of him!!

No picture of singing Kam but a Sunday selfie of us to document the momentous day!

The Japanese Garden at Manito opened up for spring and we were super happy about that. We love it!

Bryn was excited to see that her favorite koi had survived another winter. :)

I've been busy getting ready for Farm Chicks which is less than a month away. I am swamped with painting and projects and generally freaking out! I have also been super busy with church stuff. Our ward council did a big visiting blitz and went to visit a bunch of families. My secretary had a premature baby and thankfully that baby is home and doing well. I also got fresh hair extensions put in. Hooray! This was the first time in a year that I bought new extensions. I took the best care possible of those suckers and was able to have them moved up three times as they grew out. I went slightly longer and I am still getting used to it. Not much longer only about an inch and a half longer but it FEELS a lot longer.

I had book club at my friend Rebecca's house last week and it was a lot fun! We read the classic book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. That is such a great book! The last time that I read it was in high school and it was fun to compare and contrast what I thought about it then versus now. Ailey is currently reading it in high school and it has been fun to talk to her about it and even Tyler decided to give it a reread since I had been raving about it. It's been fun to discuss it as a family and we also had a great discussion at book club.

Now we are onto May. Our 24th wedding anniversary is just three days away. Tyler and I are headed out of town for a weekend getaway in Seattle. We can't wait!