Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest I feel most alive surrounded by trees and breathing in the fresh mountain air.
When I am not working you will most likely find me spending time outdoors, volunteering with my church and exploring this beautiful planet with my family.
This is my place to share my passion for life and to encourage you to take time to find the extraordinary in your life.
Even though Thanksgiving has passed I thought it would be fun to continue the "What I am Grateful for" series.
When I think of three words to best describe Cameron I often think of the word fun. Not only is he funny, but he is fun to be around. Cameron has a great sense of humor and is good at keeping the mood light and loves taking funny pictures. I am happy I married someone who people like to be around.
On Thanksgiving I was excited to try my hand at a new kind of pie. I saw this recipe for Chocolate Pecan Pie and thought I would give it a try. Everything is better with chocolate, right? I am embarrassed to admit this, but I had actually never made a pecan pie before. After the allotted cooking time when I took it out of the oven it seemed a bit wobbly. This did not phase me too much because I thought once it cooled it might set up. Once it cooled it did set up, but as I cut into it after Thanksgiving dinner I realized it was undercooked. My Mom suggested we put it back in the oven, but even after another twenty or thirty minutes it looked the same. Upon reviewing the recipe I realized I had put in too much karo syrup. Yikes! My Mom was quick to tell me it tasted good regardless and did not make a big deal about. Just when I thought all was lost, she slopped the mess called my pie into bowls and served it.
When I came across this alternative Christmas tree I completely fell in love and knew I had to make my own. With a little foraging in my front and backyard I was able to find quite the array of supplies. Within thirty minutes I had found a couple branches of the following:
As a trained Interior Designer, it might come as a surprise to hear my wall color of choice is typically white. However, when your walls are a blank canvas it allows the other color throughout your house to pop. Oftentimes, I like to set up happy little vignettes in our living room like the one pictured above.
This year I made a concerted effort to not buy any new Christmas decorations. I already owned two boxes full, so I wanted to either rework what I had or make something new with items I had around the house. Between Pinterest, Instagram and blogs there is no shortage of daily inspiration coming to my inbox.
Although our mountain passes have not received their typical amount of snow; there has been a lingering threat of snow in the forecast for Seattle. It reminds me of almost two years ago when four inches of snow was enough to shut down the city of Seattle completely. People basically freak out about snow around here when snow is in the forecast. With all the hills in Seattle it makes for some great city sledding if you have the time and the equipment.
As of late, the temperatures have stayed low and the sun has continued to shine. Cold, sunny days have turned into cool, clear starry nights. Being able to see my breathe always makes it feel like Christmas is near.
Aside from the changing landscape of each season, comes a change in light. A few weeks ago I had a couple hours to myself, so I grabbed my camera and set out to capture the landscape before it became stark.
The quality I love most about photography is its ability to capture a single moment in time forever. Whether it be the last of the autumn leaves or the first of the winter berries; looking through photos evokes so many memories, emotions and senses.
So, come with me on my late afternoon walk through the Arboretum.
Many people might not know this, but Asher's due date was December 25th. When I was pregnant people gave us a lot of flack about what poor timing we had etc. but looking back we were ecstatic to receive the ultimate gift (an addition to our family) on Christmas. Now that we are without our sweet boy, it has really changed this time of year for us. Instead of being consumed with hours of decorating or trimming the Christmas tree we have chosen to keep things simple as a way of honoring our son this time of year.
Sleeping high among the tree tops might sound like something straight out of a fairy tale, but with a forty minute drive from Seattle this dream can turn into a reality at TreeHouse Point. Six unique tree houses dot the mossy and fern laden property in Fall City, WA. There are tree houses which are accessed by ladder, suspension bridge and winding staircase. Each treehouse has an individual character, which would provide six unique experiences.
For a fun little hostess gift I like to make homemade hot chocolate stir sticks. They are really easy to make and are excellent last minute gifts.
I hope you enjoyed a restful, long weekend filled with good food, family and friends. My two sisters were in town and it has been something like twelve years since we sisters have been together for Thanksgiving. As we sat down and I looked around the dinner table; I mentioned it felt a little like the movie "Little Women". With two sisters and six nieces we are a female dominate family. The abundance of women in our family makes me extra grateful for a husband and father who love spending time with the ladies; along with a son who has helped tip the scales.
This year I have teamed up with a few of my favorite Seattle merchants and bloggers to share with you some fantastic holiday gift ideas. Having grown up with our family's livelihood depending on the success of my father's small business; I firmly believe in doing my part to support local small businesses. I prefer to buy products from people who believe in what they are selling and love what they are is doing. Also, I am a big proponent of reducing my carbon footprint and this philosophy extends to my gift giving as well.
Today and everyday I am grateful for the abundance of love and beauty in my life. I am blessed beyond measure.
Happy Thanksgiving to all my lovely readers!
While browsing through a local art gallery in Banff I came across this amazing artist named Mitchell Fenton. It is uncommon for me to want every single painting by a particular artist, but Fenton is an exception. His large scale landscape paintings are breathtaking as he perfectly captures the Canadian landscape. Something incredibly unique about him is how he sells his plein air panels too.
As an avid hiker I love how he has captured his adventures on canvas. It certainly makes me want to consider not only bringing along my camera, but trying my hand at some paints too.
When tragedy, disappointment or heartache strikes it allows your friends the unique opportunity to show you how much you mean to them. I think of my friend who called me everyday for months after Asher passed away to see how I was doing, the friend who happily continued to help me work on my baby quilt (although I had no immediate use for it) or my friend who brought us over a delicious meal (even though we were fully capable of preparing one) when we had family visiting for the memorial. My thoughts turn toward my parents who demonstrated the full measure of their love for us, complete strangers who left kind words in my inbox or the people who rallied together to lighten my load in anyway they could.
The source of (almost) everything good in my life stems from the loving relationship I have with one tall, handsome, good natured man. Our hopes, wishes, fears and dreams are woven together to create our beautiful life. Oftentimes, we think the same thoughts or know what the other one is thinking without saying a word. Sometimes it feels as though we share the same heart or brain.
Thanks to several big box stores, peppermint bark has become a mainstay around the holidays. Instead of creating the tried and true mint/chocolate combination why not play around with different flavor combinations?
Here is what we came up (from top left to bottom right): Peppermint Bark, Pistachio and Peanut Bark, Pretzel Peanut Bark, White Chocolate Chip, Pretzel and Graham Cracker Bark, Pistachio and Cranberry Bark and lastly Marshmallow, Peanut and Graham Cracker Bark.
From the beginning of our marriage we decided to make traveling a priority. One of our first vacations was a long road trip from Seattle to Southern California stopping at both our grandparents homes on our way. Eight years later we have been able to criss cross the globe and visit many awe inspiring places. I have cherished memories of watching monkeys swinging through the trees in Costa Rica, witnessing the brilliance of Aurora Borealis off the side of a highway in Iceland, swimming with a school of fish in Moorea, eating dinner out on Valentine's Day in New York City or being pulled over by the police in Nicaragua and trying to cry my way out of ticket.
The first thing people say when they hear I like to run or hike is "I don't like running/hiking" This phrase always makes me think of my personal mantra "As long as I can, I will." I might not always feel like running, or hiking long distances but because my body is able to do so; I feel this ought to be celebrated through my actions.
In honor of Thanksgiving. This is my first post in a series entitled What I Am Grateful For.
Although I have done a lot of traveling over my lifetime, not many places I have visited can hold a candle to the Pacific Northwest. We are spoiled to have mountains, lakes, streams, trees and islands all within a couple hours drive. Although Seattle gets a bad wrap for having a constant drizzle outside, we experience not only a wide range of scenery, but color throughout the year. Our temperate climate makes for exploring outside possible all year long. I am grateful to live in place where the natural beauty is second to none.
