Hallelujah!

I can't believe it! It's finally sunny! It's finally warm! I feel like a new woman. Seriously, I was going a little crazy. I'm a lifelong Seattelite and I can make it through the dullest, wettest, grayest late fall, winter, AND early spring, but when it's still cold, gray and wet, every single day though the whole month of May and most of June... whew... I start to feel like my patience is being taken advantage of and since I wasn't born with a whole lot of patience, it's not a very healthy place for me to remain for too long... but now I'm cured! We have had 2 days without rain and here we are with sun and warmth. Yay! Thank you Seattle. I feel SO much better.

I know it's a little extreme, but I was so excited about the sun that I put Abby in her bathing suit to go out and play in the yard. There aren't any pictures but we had a lot of water in bowls to play with too.



She's been trying to climb up this slide for months...



...and look! She did it!

Bad Hair Day

Abby's hair is growing like crazy. Every time she wakes up I have to spray it down with water mixed with conditioner and comb out all the crazy knots that somehow form every time her head hits the mattress. Oh well, I wouldn't trade those little curls for anything, but you have to see how crazy she looks when she gets up.

Happy Father's Day, Part 1

This morning we celebrated Father's Day with my Dad and tonight we're celebrating with Charlie's Dad. It's a full day of Dad Fun! I was hoping for sunny weather, but instead we're just eating food inspired by sunny weather and gritting are teeth in hopes that if I just stop complaining about the weather, maybe that will make it change to dry. That's right, I'm no longer pining for sun, I will now be satisfied with no more rain. Okay, I'm getting dangerously close to complaining, so here's some pictures of this morning's fun...

Summer Food

I love a pasta salad in the "summer" (it seems ridiculous to use the word summer, seeing as we're stuck in a seemingly endless winter) but still, I am in the mood for summer food. Last year I was really into bulgur and this year I can't get enough Israeli couscous. Give this salad a try. It helped me feel like summer as long as I didn't look out the window.


Melissa's Summer Couscous - Serves 6 (all the ingredients are approximate so you might tweak them a bit if it seems wrong)

2 cups Israeli couscous

Dressing -
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup chopped dried apricots (cover these in boiling water for 5 min or so to reconstitute them)
2 Tablespoons of apricot preserves
1/2 Teaspoon dried mustard
lemon juice
1-2 green onions
1 small shallot, finely chopped
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon of cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Boil 2 1/2 cups of water or broth and add couscous, simmer covered for 8-10 minutes. Mix up the dressing. When the couscous is done, cool it down and toss in the dressing. Chill and serve.

Abby's Belly

Next time you see Abby, ask her where her belly is. As you can see, finding her belly is one of her favorite games.

Kitchen Helper

Sometimes, after I've tripped on a bowl, some tupperware, and a plastic spoon or two, I have to remember that not everyone is lucky enough to have an adorable kitchen helper! :)

Thanks sunny weekend...

...without you the dog park would not have been so fun and my pots would have remained full of weeds indefinitely. Thanks also to Peter for supplying the missing dog park pictures! As you can see it was a heavenly day at the dog park...

I love a picnic

I don't know why, but I love picnics. So today, Kelsey, Eli, Abby and I planned a picnic. We didn't actually picnic that much, but we had fun. The park at St. Edwards State Park is way better than your average park. It was also way more crowded than your average park, but still very fun. I recommend it. I also strongly recommend the dog park in Edmonds. We went this morning and the tide was out so far. Sammy, Abby, Peter and I had an amazing time. I wish I'd had my camera, it was a picture perfect day and Abby and Sammy both had such a great time I wish I had pictures to share. Abby+Sammy+beach+mountains+sky+sunshine=PERFECT. But you'll have to take my word for it because, like I said, I didn't bring a camera...

The sandbox at maximum capacity:


I'm still hoping Abby catches some more of my enthusiasm for picnics:


Abby loves Auntie Kelsey:


Look at these cool, colorful things:

Welcome to my fort!

Just so you know, shirts are optional in Abby's fort/life.


Abby loves using the phone, so expect an invite to the fort any day.

Sunshine!

Finally a sunny day! We went to the zoo, took a walk around the block, another to the store and we got to finish off the day with some playtime outside. Abby loves playing with Sammy's water bowl. I try to discourage it, but it's nearly impossible to keep her away from a full bowl of water. Well today with the warmer weather we both got to have it our way, Sammy's water bowl stayed full in the kitchen and Abby got to play with all the water she wanted!

Birthday Mania!

My mom hosted a great party for both the birthday boys last night. Thanks Mom! We had fun and we sure do love our family!

Happy Birthday Uncle Pete!

We love you Peter! Happy Birthday from 2 of your biggest fans!




We love you Peter! Happy Birthday from 2 of your biggest fans!