Cade meets Santa

Cade loved Santa

Merry First Christmas Baby Cade!

The first weekend in December we took Cade to the annual Tacoma Lawn and Tennis Club Santa Pictures & Pancake Breakfast at the tennis club. It was the perfect setting for this first Santa meeting - there was no line, so upon arrival we got right in to get our pictures done. They had a ton of fun projects for the kids - tennis ball ornaments, cookie decorating, popsicle stick ornaments and many more. I made Cade a tennis ball ornament - I am using this as his "First Christmas" ornament. I was the only adult at this table making these with the kids - I was laughing at myself but had fun doing it.

{Love} Three Months!

Happy 3 Months Baby Cade!
Your giggles, smiles & snuggles make us so happy.
We love you to the moon and back.

Thankful for Firsts

First Family Trip to Snoshoe Christmas Tree Farm 

Cade's first Thanksgiving - loving that Cade and Adam have story time together   

First Apple Cup Day - A big day for your Dad 

We are so thankful to experience all of your 'Firsts' with you sweet baby Cade 

Celebrate Today

Celebrating our First Anniversary today 

Celebrating our healthy 9 week old baby boy Cade today 

Celebrating our family & friends today 

Celebrating our life together

Grandma and Great Grandma

 Today Cade and I spent the day with my mom and grandma at her home in Woodinville.  It is so fun to see my Grandma getting to be a Great Grandma. Cade is the first great grand baby in the family and I love seeing her reactions to him growing each time she sees him. We enjoyed looking at family pictures (one of her favorite things), a walk in the beautiful fall sunshine and delicious lunch at Bear Creek. I am so grateful for my family. I look forward to many more days like today with both of them. 

{Love} Two Months!

Happy 2 months Baby Cade
We love you SO much! 

Labor Day

Our Labor Day Baby 

we love you Cade

love your mama & dad 

Whidbey Island {Fall}

Family. Fall. Beach. Cozy. Love. 

Some images from our first family vacation to the beach house on Whidbey Island

Fabulous Friends & Comfort Food

I have a fabulous group of girlfriends that started a birthday dinner tradition a few years ago. I LOVE these nights and so look forward to these nights with the ladies. They always consist of great food, wine, lots of laughter, more wine, and stories of happenings in our crazy busy lives.  Last night we celebrated belated birthdays for the amazing Rebecca and Jen. Heather and I hosted at my house this month.

{A Comfort Food Inspired Menu} 

Fig and Blue Cheese Crostini topped with walnuts and drizzled with honey

Cranberry-Orange-Pecan Salad 

Turkey Lasagna

Rustic Olive Bread 

Pumpkin Cheesecake 

{The Ladies Birthday Gift} 

Fun & easy read - great love story. I love all things Pioneer Woman! 

Perfect Fall Day

Today was a truly a perfect Fall day. My sister and I took advantage of the sunny, crisp Fall morning by walking the downtown Gig Harbor waterfront. We made a few favorite stops and new discoveries along the way today. First stop was at Suzanne's Bakery - we picked up some delicious pumpkin spice muffins for breakfast. This is a must visit for yummy pastries, pies cakes (the layered strawberry and whip cream cake is a slice of heaven) sandwiches & soups. We also stumbled upon a new spot that we cannot wait to try - Red Rooster Cafe. We only picked up coffee here today but cannot wait to head back for breakfast or lunch. The Cafe is so cute and the menu looks delicious - the Creme Brulee French Toast is what caught our attention this morning. Below are some images from our fabulous morning.

The trees are starting to turn

Inspiration : Lovely Succulent Wall 

Red Rooster Cafe 

Jerisich Park 

Pumpkin Spice Muffin from Suzanne's Bakery


The afternoon was spent shopping with some of my best friends and baby Cade at Dame Lola's Fall and Holiday Show, a late lunch (my favorite salad - the Buffalo Chicken Salad) at the restaurant I worked at for the last 3 years - Varsity Grill and a fabulous dinner & evening with dear friends that are going to be married in just 16 days!
Baby Cade is now asleep (my husband too) so now it is time for this mama to get some rest. 

{Love} One Month!

October 5th was a big day in our house - Cade was 1 month old! Being a mama is the BEST job ever  and we are so in love with our baby boy. Happy 1 month baby Cade. 

{Pumpkins: Welcome Fall}

Mama and Baby Cade

Cade's first trip to Spooner Farms Pumpkin  Patch 

Love this pumpkin display! 

Yummy Caramel Corn 

My favorite time of the year has arrived - Fall! Well really Fall through Christmas is my favorite time of  year, so the best time of the year has begun! This year might be the best as I get to create all new memories and firsts with Cade.

Last Sunday we took Cade to his first pumpkin patch. We started our morning with pumpkin spice lattes (my favorite seasonal drink) and breakfast sandwiches at Starbucks and headed to Spooner Farms in Orting. We met our friends out there who have a baby boy 5 days younger than Cade, our sisters (both visiting from out of state) and my in-laws.

Spooner Farms has it all - pumpkin sling shot (none of us hit the target - we could have won a free pumpkin if we did), corn maize, face painting, great gift shop, and seasonal treats to eat and drink while you wander through the pumpkin patch. We loved the caramel corn. After a great morning at the patch we headed home with our pumpkins, hay bails and small gourds.

Happy Fall! 

Welcome to The World Cade!

We welcomed our little baby boy on September 5th - Labor Day. He was 1 week late but perfect and so worth the wait! This is the picture that I used on our birth announcements - my sister took some great photos in the labor and delivery room and this was one of them.

Things have been busy with our new baby and life has gone by so quickly over the last 27 days. Now that I feel like I have a semi grasp on what life is like with a little one (as much as you can) - I am going to try and blog again, consistently. It has been awhile and while I still read all my favorite blogs everyday - I miss working on this one. I am not quite sure of the direction for my blog now, but I am sure once I get back into blogging it will come to me.

Looking forward to our new life adventures with the new love of our life, baby Cade!

Before and After...Guest Bathroom

Before

After 

We live in a house that was built 22 years ago and has not had any updates. We have spent this summer remodeling our master bedroom, master bathroom, guest bedroom - transforming this into our baby's nursery,  guest bathroom, living room, lighting, carpet, appliances and patio. It has been fun and we have had a lot of company aka contractors at our house for a majority of the last couple months. It is so worth it as the projects are nearly complete. 

Waiting for our Arrival

With 5 days left until our due date, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our baby boy

Salsa Verde

~Salsa Verde~

4 Large Tomatillos 

2 Bunches of Cilantro 

5 Garlic Cloves 

1 Large Yellow Onion 

4 Ounces Vinegar 

4 Large Jalapeno 

Salt & Pepper to Taste 

-Place tomatillos in a saucepan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the tomatillos.

-Put tomatillos in a blender or food processor and add remaining ingredients.

-Puree until smooth or until desired consistency is reached. Add salt and pepper to taste.

-Enjoy with tortilla chips

Recipe by Jason Harrell, Varsity Grill 

Design: Tile Detail

Pebble Tile - Shower Floor 

Glass Tile  - Shower Detail 

 All the Master Bath Tile & Kohler Shower Detail 

Tile for Main Bathroom 

Our tile delivery came today - yay! Looking forward to master bath and main bath to be completed. 

Loving a Busy Life

It has been over a month since my last post - wow. Things have been super busy around our house and life has been mile a minute as well. We are in the process of remodeling our house - master bedroom, master bathroom, baby room, main bathroom, living room, new windows throughout house, patio and all new lighting. We are in phase 1 of out 3 phase process right now - it has been so fun selecting all the new materials (tile, carpet, paint, fixtures, and much more) and am loving seeing it all come together. We are spending this Friday shopping for nursery furniture - yay! At 6 months pregnant now - I am getting anxious to get our baby's nursery designed and built.

I am VERY excited for our patio to get done so we can host a summer bbq on the patio next month -  I love outdoor entertaining - my menu is already planned!

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to take a photography workshop from Me Ra Koh Photography. This 2 day workshop was very inspiring and helped me learn a great deal about my camera, lenses, light metering and I now am able to shoot in manual mode 100% of the time. This Saturday I am doing a fashion shoot for jewelry designer Jessica Alexander  & stylist Rebecca Dashow - vintage fashion is the inspiration - this should be so much fun. 

We are booking our next Mexico trip tomorrow - a two week vacation with our little one and also booking Thanksgiving travel this week. My sister and her husband are commercial fisherman who live in Petersberg, Alaska which is where we will spend our holiday.

So that is what has been going on. More fun images and recipes to come soon! 

love this book by Me Ra Koh - a great resource 

The inspiration for my bbq- image from Pottery Barn 

bathroom inspiration 

 new bathroom lighting from Pottery Barn 

Flank Steak with Lime Marinade: The Recipe

~ Flank Steak with Lime Marinade ~ 
I have had some people ask for the marinade recipe from the Dinner with Friends post. It is from Martha Stewart's Cookbook, Great Food Fast: 250 Recipes For Easy, Delicious Meals All Year Long. This entire cookbook is amazing. Happy Grilling! 

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup (about 4 limes) freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 scallions (about 1/3 cup), thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons minced, peeled fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak
• Vegetable oil, for grates
• Coarse salt and ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a resealable plastic bag, combine lime juice, soy sauce, scallions, ginger, and red-pepper flakes. Add steak, and seal bag (place in a dish to catch any leaks); marinate in the refrigerator, turning occasionally, up to 1 hour.
2. Heat grill to high; lightly oil grates. Remove steak from marinade, letting excess drip off (discard marinade); season with salt and black pepper. Place on grill; cover. Cook, turning once, until meat reaches desired doneness, 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing thinly.
   recipe from Martha Stewart 

Banana Bread

I love banana bread and have loved it even more since I have been pregnant. I having been buying a slice every day with my hot cocoa from Forza and realized last week that I should just be making my own. I used a new recipe that my mom shared with me (I cannot find my favorite recipe) and thought this one was just as delicious! I loved this recipe because no mixer is needed -  it is quick and easy.

{Banana Bread}

Aunt Holly's Banana Bread from Epicurious

3 to 4 ripe bananas 

1/4 c. melted butter 

1 c. sugar 

1 1/2 c. flour 

1/4 tsp. salt 

1 egg beaten 

1 tsp. baking soda 

1. Mash bananas in bowl 

2. Add remaining ingredients - mix with wooden spoon 

3. Bake at 350 in buttered loaf pan for 55 minutes

Dinner with Friends

On Monday night we hosted a dinner at our house for friends - Nate, Sheryl, their twin 4 month old baby girls, McKenzi, Anthony and Amiya. It was the first adventure for our grill this year (something I have been wanting to get out for weeks now). The dinner, a collaboration of cooking/grilling by me, a salad by  Sheryl and dessert made by McKenzi turned out delicious and we had a fabulous time with friends! I love doing dinner this way, after a full day of work at the restaurant, having everyone help out took some of the pressure off and I always love trying new recipes by friends. 

{The Menu}

Appetizer:

 Alaska Smoked Salmon Caught by Sister & Her Husband

Rosemary and Sea Salt Flatbread Crackers & Sesame Rice Crackers 

Red & Green Organic Grapes 

Brie and Boursin Cheese  

Main Course:

Flank Steak with Lime Marinade 

Twice Baked Potatoes 

Greek Salad ~ made by Sheryl 

Dessert:

Raspberry & Lemon Curd Trifle ~ made by McKenzi 

the marinade 

my new FAVORITE beverage!  Dry Soda. I love the Vanilla Bean Soda - only 60 calories and sweetened with sugar cane. 

I did not get photos of the twice baked potatoes or the dessert - which was SO beautiful!