Lately.

Just a few pictures from Thanksgiving, our home, and a few things we've been eating. Enjoy!

The final product of our bathroom renovation. Even though this project has been complete for several months now, I don't think I ever posted a final picture for you all! 

A re-store find. Not sure what to do with these cute little things, but I thought they were pretty and they were only $5 each. Open to suggestions! Right now they're just on display in our living room.

Oma (that's Grandma in dutch) and two of her Grandbabies at Thanksgiving. She's the most fun to play with. Too cute.

Uncle Jacob and baby Ian taking a little snooze.

Dakota and her new baby brother. 

Blue mason jars! These guys aren't the "real" blue mason jars, but they're close enough for me! I love them. We're keeping some grains in them for now but will probably use them for flower vases in the summer time.

Granola day!

Roasted asparagus with parmesan a couple nights ago.

Tilapia tacos with pineapple salsa along side asparagus pictured above. Recipe coming soon!

Happy Wednesday!

Weekend Happenings.

This past weekend was packed with family, food, and fun. Jacob's family was up here moving his little sister into the dorms at App, and my family was here to cheer on me and my Dad at the Watauga Lake Triathlon. We woke up bright and early Saturday AM to get to the race site before our 1000 meter swim, 35k bike ride, and 8k run. I don't know how this happened, but the weather was absolutely perfect.

The scenery wasn't too bad either...

Here I am starting the last leg of the race - the 4.5 mile run.

Cutie Dakota having fun waiting at the finish line.

Dad on the finish stretch!

And, we're done! A little puffy-eyed and tired, but happy.

Dad won 2nd in his age group, and I won 3rd in mine.  It's amazing how racing motivates you to want to work harder and get faster for the next time around. Already planning for our next few races!

And of course there was food. Unfortunately we were all too tired and hungry to take sufficient pictures of the food, but I did manage to snap a couple pictures with the phone.

Pasta and meatballs for dinner one night. Family style!

Bacon, egg, and cheese croissants + fresh fruit and lots of good coffee for Sunday breakfast. Someone was ready to eat before everyone else...

Happy Monday! I hope your Monday isn't as rainy and gloomy as ours is here in Boone. 

Tacoma and Vancouver

After finishing up my work responsibilities last week, my parents flew in to do a little touring of the area with me. We saw all the highlights in Tacoma, then drove up to Vancouver for some more sight seeing. Sadly, Jacob was not on this trip with us - he will be coming up to Washington during my last week of the three week series in September. We will hit Seattle for the majority of that trip. Below are a few snapshots of the Tacoma and Vancouver highlights. Back to regular recipes and updates very soon!

Disclaimer: these are all iPhone pictures, I took a few with the big camera but the iPhone was most convenient for snapshots.

Glass museum in Tacoma.

A picnic on the pier.

Point Defiance zoo and aquarium.

Happy hour! Pictured are fried rice balls. We also ordered grilled romaine, and fried calamari. Oh, and a pitcher of sangria to share - the best I've ever had! Yum.

Beauty in downtown Tacoma. Blue skies are a rare sight in this part of the country. We felt very lucky to have such amazing weather.

Vancouver!

Stanley park totem poles. My Dad has a picture as a young kid in front of these historic totem poles.

Granville Island public market. Ah-mazing. Let the pictures tell you just how cool this place was.

Coffee break on the dock.

More public market. Fresh sushi and giant spring rolls. Yum!

Canada knows how to grow a pretty garden, that's for sure.

Headed back east! That's Mount Hood rising above the clouds.

It was a great trip, but I was so excited to get home to the hubby and puppy. Thanks for tuning in!

Travel.

As previously mentioned in my last post, I was in Tacoma, Washington last week for work. Washington state is such a beautiful place, and we've even seen the sun quite a bit! I traveled with my colleague and friend, Hollie, and we explored all the local restaurants and trails in our little suburb. Here are a few iphone snapshots from the beginning of the trip.

A salad from our favorite lunch spot, Marlene's.

This stuff was delicious!

A little hike right down the road from our hotel.

Wild berries!

Anthonie's at Point Defiance Park.

Garlic shrimp and potatoes. Yum!

And of course I had to include one of my many hotel breakfasts... 

Having a great time so far, more to come later on including pictures from our weekend trip to Vancouver!

Summer Snapshots

Ok, it's not officially summer yet - but it's quickly approaching. Here are some snapshots from the last week or so around the yard and the weekend celebrating Libby's graduation and a weekend at the farm (aka Jacob's parent's house)!

Jacob's parents have a huge garden that feeds their family (and many more lucky people) throughout the year. Saturday night's dinner was made using almost all farm-fresh ingredients. These iPhone photos don't even begin to capture the beauty of these ingredients!

And last but not least, Libby! Done with high school and coming to ASU on track scholarship for school! So glad to have her in the western part next year :).

I'm currently in Tacoma, Washington for a work related training. I'll try to post some pictures and food reviews while I'm here!