Happy Birthday Memee!

It was at Memee's that we imagined "house-house". It was here that we pretended we were waiters and waitresses. We played capture the flag for hours. We soared on the broken-in springy horse. We exercised to Richard Simmons until we fell over in exhaustion from laughter. We climbed the mature rhododendron tree. We ate chili and cornbread on Halloween before going out to collect candy. Memee's was my favorite place to go.

I have countless memories, wonderful memories, that words probably can't express. Us kids would patiently wait with excitement when we heard mom on the phone with Memee, talking of some special outing we might go on. Let's see, there was Enchanted Village, a ferry ride, breakfast at Duffy's, a trip to Oregon and many other places. A picnic at a park, Seattle, the zoo, the Nutcracker, the beach, the fair, even a simple trip to Olympia was fun if Memee was going. Memee would take us to see the newest Disney movie or to the 7th Street Theater to see the latest production.

Sometimes Memee would even have us over for a slumber party. Slumber parties were the greatest! It was then that Memee would turn on the old record player or let us exercise (or rather laugh) to Richard Simmons. Any time we got to get together with our cousins at Memee's was a time of fun. Memee always had pop and ice-cream bars or a bowl on the counter filled with candy.

Halloween was a holiday that we waited all year for. Not just because we got to dress-up and knock on doors for candy, because we got to go to Memee's with all of the family. Rain or shine we would go and eat the best chili and cornbread, venture out in the cold in a big group and then come back and dump our candy on Memee's living room floor to see who got the most. What fun! Memee didn't and still doesn't miss a beat. Happy Birthday songs (sung by Memee) are often heard over the phone and Valentine's or St. Patrick's Day cards filled with confetti are received in the mail.

Each of Memee's grandchildren received a Cabbage Patch Kid and now her great-grandchildren are receiving their Cabbage Patch Kids! Mine is tucked away, nicely worn and it is so much fun to get to see my little ones napping with, rocking and wearing their Cabbage Patch Kids out.

Memee has invested so much into her grandchildren. I don't know how she does it, keeping up with all us! Things as little as going upstairs to check out the pig room or as big as the trip to New York, these are the things that I will remember forever. I can only hope that some day I will be a grandma and have as much fun and create as many memories as my Memee.

One of many grandchildren photo shoots

Me and Memee in her green chair (she still has this chair)

On Memee's back porch with cousins

Girls sleepover at Memee's

Grandchildren at Memee's for fun

In a limousine on our way to The Nutcracker

Another of many grandchildren photo shoots

In Ocean Shores for the Sandcastle festival

Central Park, New York 5 years ago

Happy Fathers Day!

“The greatest gift a father can give his children is to love and respect their mother” ~author unknown

I am greatly blessed with a dad that loves my mother. Never once have I doubted that. I have always felt secure in the fact that my family will never be broken. That no matter what, my parents love each other and will always be together and therefore us children (me and my siblings) can rest assured that we too will always be together. I completely agree with this quote. I feel it is pivotal for a family to have a good marriage as a base.

Now my husband loves me dearly and has blessed our children by this. I am so happy Stephen is my husband and Pear and Jovie's daddy. It is so wonderful to watch the role of "daddy". It is so important. Pear, at two years old, needs special snuggles and words of affirmation from daddy. The first thing she says when she accomplishes something, makes a work of art or puts on a new dress is "I want to show daddy."

Thank you, dad, for being such a wonderful dad and for loving mom.

Thank you, Stephen, for being such a wonderful husband and daddy to our little girls. I am daily reminded of how blessed I am.

Tumwater Falls Park

This evening, we decided to go for a little walk around Tumwater Falls Park. It was so pleasant; perfect temperature, perfect company and a lovely walk. I decided to bring along our new camera and these are the shots I came back with:

My new wheels...

Aren't we stylin' with our new set of wheels? After braving the zoo, the mall, the sidewalks, Seattle and more with a single stroller and two little girls that don't want to walk, I decided I needed a stroller that both girls could sit in. After researching, I found the Joovy Caboose Ultralight was my best option. It weighs in at 21lb, folds relatively compact, has a tray for the child, cup holder/organizer for me, a bench for the toddler to sit on or they can stand and hold onto the handles, a nice sunshade and to top it off, I think it's rather fashionable! I waited patiently until I found one on Craigslist for 1/3 of the retail price and viola! I love it!

Colors

What a wonderful maker!

White Chocolate Raspberry Scones

This recipe has the perfect mix of texture and flavor. The tartness of the raspberry is paired perfectly with the sweetness of the white chocolate.

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter , chilled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 cup raspberries
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Place flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in large bowl or workbowl of food processor fitted with steel blade. Whisk together or pulse six times.

3. If making by hand, use two knives, a pastry blender, or your fingertips and quickly cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few slightly larger butter lumps. If using food processor, remove cover and distribute butter evenly over dry ingredients. Cover and pulse 12 times, each pulse lasting 1 second. Transfer dough to large bowl.

4. Gently toss raspberries and white chocolate chips into mixture.

5. Stir in heavy cream with rubber spatula until dough begins to form, about 30 seconds.

6. Transfer dough and all dry, floury bits to countertop and gently knead dough by hand just until it comes together into a rough, slightly sticky ball, 5 to 10 seconds. Slightly flatten dough and cut scones into 8 wedges. Place wedges on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (Baking sheet can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 2 hours.)

7. Bake until scone tops are light brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I have also found that you can freeze these scones for several weeks and pull them out and bake the morning you wish to enjoy it. Simply follow the recipe through step 6 and freeze the scones. Once frozen store in a zip-lock freezer bag. They take a few more minutes to bake when frozen but taste just as good!

just one of those days.

I seem to be having a lot of these lately; days that I wonder, "could this get any harder?" Days that I feel like I'm not cutting it and I don't have enough patience to do the job I've been blessed with. Yet I persevere. I'm not miserable. I am so happy! I love being a wife and mother and I love my girls but here's a snapshot of a day in my life:

Jovie's tired, it's almost time for a nap. Pear is getting restless; we've been home all day and it's just about time for Stephen to get home from work. I'm tired, worn out and restless due to the previous reasons. We go into Pears bedroom. Pear begins jumping on the bed. She asks, "mommy, Jovie bounce too?" I put Jovie on the bed and start bouncing her gently. Pear decides to let go of the railing and bounce onto her bottom. She then lands right on the edge of the bed, rolls back and lands smack on her head. I lay Jovie down to go and comfort Pear who is now screaming. Jovie manages to roll off of the bed and is now screaming too. I lay Pear on the bed to go comfort Jovie. At this point I can't help but laugh as I think of how clearly this demonstrates the chaos of my everyday life.

Basically, repeat this scenario about 20 times maybe change it up a little but that about sums up what I go through in a day.