Summer Stuff.

Well, we all know how I like for everything to have it's place and to be in it, so though I am dying to blog about our trip, I just can't bring myself to post things unchronologically (not actually a word, but I just made it one), and there are summer photos that simply must be posted first. So here they are, real quick like. I'll keep the descriptions to a minimum.

At the beginning of the summer, Scott and Kristen came up for a weekend to help us with a couple of home improvement projects.

We really wanted a granite bar out on our balcony. I was sure this was going to be a ridiculously expensive project but with Scott's expertise and trunk full of tools, it really wasn't bad at all. They found this 7 foot slap of granite for only $100 and the color matches our house perfectly!

The boys also installed a sink and cabinet in our laundry room, which looks great.

It looks AWESOME!! Now if only we could afford the barstools to sit at it...

I learned how to make baklava this summer thanks to my sister Amanda.

She requested it for a fundraising event before her trip to the Middle East this summer. She's been working on a documentary for a while now. See more here: http://withinbrokenborders.com/theyshallbecalled

I didn't even know that I liked baklava until I made it. It was incredible!! Steven asks for it on a weekly basis though I haven't made it since then.

Steven and I started doing a little picnicking this summer. We found that Lake Wilderness is a lovely, quiet spot to spend the sunny afternoons and enjoyed driving over there with snacks, our cribbage board, and a huge jar of homemade iced tea.

I hosted/taught a cooking class this summer. It was a growth group for our church and also kind of an experiment for me since I do want to actually start teaching cooking classes. It was a great experience. I learned a lot and, fortunately, so did my students! It was a very rewarding growth group. The only problem was that we had such a fabulous summer here in Seattle. I had to host my group in 90+ degree weather on more than one occasion, which is what sparked dishes like this one -- Sesame peanut noodles: no oven necessary, can be prepped ahead and served cold. Yum. We make these noodles frequently.

 We went swing dancing with Tim and Annika one night and had such an amazing time!

My goodness are we out of shape though. We were sweaty and exhausted less than halfway through the evening.

My mom got a puppy for her birthday. His name is Jameson and he is stinking adorable. And crazy. I don't ever want a puppy! Way too much work. He's awesome though.

Steven loves him. It's the cutest thing.

We also hosted a movies-in-the-park group with church this summer. We ended up skipping most of the movies and just having potlucks instead.

Paige stopped by for a quick visit over her cousin's wedding weekend at the end of July -- always a treat to see her!

And I learned how to make sweet potato gnocchi. With a sage butter sauce. I could eat this every day.

We celebrated Heather's 30th birthday with a Woodinville tasting tour that included Project V (Chai Vodka), Mac & Jack's, Woodinville Whiskey Company (the best bourbon, and vanilla vodka), Redhook, Sky River (mead -- we love honey!), and Silver Lake Winery. It was such a fun day!!

I learned how to char peppers -- not nearly as scary as I thought it would be. Just remember to wear gloves when you actually skin the peppers.

Lena and Aaron moved to Iowa for med school and it was the saddest but we're super excited for them. Lena and I did take advantage of the nice weather just before she left and walked around Greenlake together. We even stopped at Chocolati for a treat.

I discovered a recipe for browned butter sugar cookies. Speechless. I can't even describe to you how life changing this was. They're the best.

I also made crab cakes for the first time -- awesome! A little chipotle lime aioli, cheddar biscuits and some steamed green beans. Yum.

I also spent many MANY hours helping my mom move out of her condo and back into my childhood home.

This would have been much easier without the puppy, but he did make everything more entertaining.

Here's Jameson with his daddy, Guinness. They both love to ride in the car. In fact, Guinness was so freaked out about the move that we often could not get him out of the car.

I spent my 26th birthday being pampered by my amazing husband. Out to breakfast, new backpack at REI, a walk downtown, lunch at Red Robin, See's chocolates on the way home and P.F. Chang's for dinner. Um, we like food. A lot.

Steven worked at the Creation Festival one day this summer and got to hangout backstage while Audio Adrenaline performed -- pretty awesome!

Hilde came to visit! We just love having her around!! She and I picked blackberries and made ice cream with them.

Packing, oiy. This took DAYS and I was actually really stressed about it. I wanted to be able to pack everything I needed without overpacking. It was very tricky and I'm not entirely sure that I succeeded but it all worked out okay.

And then the quilt. I decided months ago that I was going to make a quilt as a wedding gift for our friends Laura and Alex. We couldn't attend their wedding this summer because it was about a month before our big trip and we simply couldn't justify the extra trip to England. Anyhow, in my usual procrastination fashion, I waited to start this quilt until about two weeks before we needed to leave. It was a mad dash to the end but it all got done. This quilt was much larger and more complicated than I had originally anticipated but turned out beautifully.

Pink with just a bit of green -- Laura and Alex's wedding colors.

Three different pink fabrics. This chevron quilt is made out of triangles, which are beyond obnoxious to work with. It has a green border and green binding and green flannel on the back.

And the day before our big trip, we celebrated our third anniversary a few days early with Mom and Tara at Purple.

Phew! I can't believe what an incredible summer we had and that I still have a month-long vacation to blog about!! It is going to be so ridiculously hard for me to choose which photos to post so this may take a few days but I'm excited to start working on it!