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.
All tagged Summer
Last week, we spent some time visiting Cameron's parents in Arizona. It had been several years since we last visited Arizona and we were excited for a change of scenery, warm weather, amazing Mexican food, and lots of swimming. We took an evening flight from Seattle and knew we would be arriving late, so we booked one night at The Saguaro Scottsdale to start our trip off. Aside from the sometimes stifling mid day heat, it was the perfect time of year to visit Arizona. The thermometer easily hovered a little over one hundred degrees each day and we found if we were outside, we pretty much had the place to ourselves.
It never quite feels like Summer until we spend a day at the beach. We met our friends on the first day of Summer for an epic day of surf, sand and togetherness. I am grateful for my friends who were brave and ventured into motherhood at a young age. For us it means we have a whole slew of potential babysitters at our disposal and so many sweet children eager to teach Jasper all sorts of cool things.
Jasper is just as crazy about eating berries as I am, so we have made an agreement to pick as many berries as humanly possible this Summer. So far we went strawberry picking twice, raspberry picking once and now blueberry picking twice. Jasper and I both love to be outside and it would not feel like Summer without spending ample time in the sunshine popping warm berries into our mouths. Picking berries will always be something I remember fondly from my own childhood and being able to carry on that tradition with my own child is pretty special.
One of my favorite things to do when I am visiting a place is to attend the local Farmer's market. Not only is it a good way to get a sense of the local cuisine, and interact with locals, but also gives you an opportunity to sample some local food you might not be able to try any other way. On our visit to Friday Harbor's Farmer's Market we were able to try our very first barbecued oyster which resulted in a subsequent trip to Wescott Bay Oyster Farm, sampled some of the first raspberries of the season and picked up some beet and radish seeds to fill the space in our garden once we pulled out the peas. In reality, I wanted to try almost everything and all the color and variety of the market made me very excited for the bounty which we call Summer.
This time of year I always look forward to going strawberry picking at Harvold's Berry Farm. This year, I was especially looking forward to taking Jasper on his first trip berry picking. Even though Jasper was too little to pick any berries he made an evasive maneuver while we were getting our photo taken and snagged his very own berry to eat. Picking strawberries can be back breaking work, but those delicious berries are well worth the effort. It also makes you realize just how subpar those grocery store strawberries can be. I appreciate knowing where my food came from and I hope that one day Jasper likes picking berries as much as I did as a child.
Note: Due to the unseasonably warm weather we have been experiencing all of the berries are 2-3 weeks early this year.
As Fall has officially arrived I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the highlights of this past Summer. With weekly doctor appointments and counting down to our baby's arrival it is easy to ask where did Summer go? It was a good one.
At the start of the Summer season, I had a long to do list of things I wanted to accomplish. As the weather has consistently stayed warmer than normal I have found my energy waning and my excitement for Summer to come to an end ever increasing. Shorter days equals being more productive inside and just another sign we will be able to meet our little man soon.
These glorious sunshine filled Summer days oftentimes turn into the most brilliant Summer sunsets. Sometimes I am caught off guard, but this time I was prepared with my camera. What I love most about these kind of sunsets are the interplay between the clouds and the ever changing light. I could have stood there for hours capturing the last little streak of cloud.
There are some hikes which are so breathtakingly beautiful they beg to be done over and over again. Even though Snow Lake has been called a "hiker's highway", I still love everything about this trail. From the wildflowers which dot the landscape to the snow covered peaks. I still get a thrill every time I reach the overlook and look down toward the lake. I love being able to witness the lake's beauty through all four seasons.
Weekends are just made for exploring. In an ideal world, every Friday we would pack up the car and be amongst the trees, rivers, streams, lakes, or mountains for a couple days. More often than not, life, work or other responsibilities get in the way of these kind of plans.
Every Summer for the past several years we have hosted an ice cream social. Usually it coincides with my nieces visiting from Tennessee, which inevitably means our guests will be privileged to witness their ever increasing magic skills. I like to think the ice cream is the hit of the party, but I would be lying if I said it wasn't in fact the magic.
In the past, we have taken an Argosy Lakes Cruise and a Harbor Cruise, so this time we thought it would be fun to take anArgosy Locks Cruise. The Locks Cruise is a unique tour in the fact that you take off from one place and end up in another, rather than going roundtrip from one point. With the Locks Cruise you start off at Pier 56 and then eventually dock Lake Union to be shuttled back to Pier 56 by bus. In between you cruise along the Puget Sound while you pass Magnolia and Discovery Park. Then you enter Shilshole Bay, pass through the Hiram Chittenden Locks, go up the Lake Washington Ship Canal, pass by Gasworks Park and then arrive at your final destination, Lake Union.
