where did August go?

It seems that the best I can do lately is summary posts. The weeks have been flying by and I can't believe it's almost Labor Day Weekend. It's about this time of year that I try to console myself by saying that September is usually better weather than July...so really it's as if summer is only half over right? Shhh! Don't tell my otherwise! I have to cling to this hope!

On August 13 Philip and I celebrated our 6th anniversary. We had wanted to go on a romantic weekend away for our 5th but I was still breastfeeding at that time so we decided to put it off until this year. Liam went to Grandma & Grandpa's house (our first time away from him for more than 12 hours). He had a great time and so did we. We went to Lincoln CIty, OR and stayed in a great little place called the Starfish Manor Hotel and had a beachfront room right above the sand! The views were amazing!

The best part was that it was warm and sunny the entire time! On the Oregon Coast! Can you believe it? In fact in all of the traveling Phil and I have done together this is the first trip we have taken where it did not rain a single drop. We spent a lot of time walking on the beach and eating food that neither of us had to prepare or clean up off the floor afterward. It was exactly what we needed. 

The following weekend our little man turned 2 years old! We celebrated with some family and close friends by having a (kiddie) pool party. It was nice that the weather finally decided to warm up now that it's the end of August. Liam has been into fishes and boats lately so that was the theme. Those are banana cupcakes (basically banana bread) with blue cream cheese frosting and fish candy decorations. Just right for the kid who prefers fruits and veggies over sweets.

I know it's cliche but I seriously can't believe how fast he is growing! Just to compare, here is a photo of him and his second-cousing Isla at the family birthday party last summer and then them sitting in the exact same spot again this summer. They were born 4 days apart.

Summer 2010

Summer 2011

Finally, this past weekend we went out to my parents' house for a baby shower for my brother and his wife at my parents' church. It was especially exciting because a few weeks ago we weren't sure that we would even be able to have a shower or, if we did, it looked like AnneMarie would either be in the hospital on bed rest or taking care of two extreme preemies. Miraculously, prayer works and the twins are still in her belly and growing healthy and strong! So, the shower went on as scheduled. 

The shower was a brunch and the theme was "two peas in a pod". Since pea cupcakes didn't seem like a good idea I swayed within the vegetable realm came up with some yummy (if I do say so myself) Carrot Coconut Cupcakes with Almond Cream Cheese Frosting. Here is my recipe.

Carrot Coconut Cake

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted after measuring

1/3 cup coconut flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon ground Ceylon cinnamon

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1 cup light brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/4 cups coconut oil

4 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3 cups finely grated carrots

Put the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and cocoa in a mixing bowl, and whisk together to blend. Put the sugars in a large mixing bowl, and whisk in the coconut oil. Then whisk in the eggs, 1 at a time, followed by the vanilla. When fully blended, add the flour mixture all at once, and mix just until smooth. Stir in the grated carrots. Use an ice cream scoop to fill cupcake pans lined with cupcake papers. Drop each pan sharply onto the counter from a height of about 6 inches to remove any air pockets. Bake 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Almond Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz butter (softened)

4 oz cream cheese (softened)

1 tsp almond extract

2 cups powdered sugar

Blend first three ingredients until smooth and then add powdered sugar until smooth.

I topped them with pea pods I made out of almond flavored fondant and green M&Ms. I think they turned out pretty good for my first time working with fondant. 


Next I created this centerpiece out of cloth diapers she had registered for, receiving blankets, flower hair decorations, and ribbon.

Finally I came up with a fun matching game with photos of famous twins. See how well you do at it (click to enlarge)...

Here are the answers:

Congratulations Tim & AnneMarie! We can't wait to meet those little girls...actually we can, please stay in there a while longer girls until you are big and strong. We love you!

summer fun

Ever since Phil finished his MBA we have been enjoying our weekends very much! We try to plan as much family time as possible and take advantage of the summer days.

One of my favorite things about summer is the food! Farmer’s markets, garden veggies, eating outside…it couldn’t get better. Here is a picnic we had on our patio with my brother Tim and his wife AnneMarie.

fresh tomato basil bruschetta

Then last Friday I met up with some girlfriends for our monthly “Working Wives Roundtable” where we share business and finance advice, as well as great food. I made a hummus and veggie tray with fresh sugar snap peas from my own garden, and a raspberry pavlova with fresh organic raspberries I picked earlier that week.  Here is the recipe I like. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/chocolate-raspberry-pavlova-recipe/index.html

We have also been doing a lot of gardening. I love our big yard and our little veggie garden. It is so great to spend the day outside working on it. Liam is a really good helper.

helping daddy rake

com'ere mommy, I won't squirt you! 

annual laurel trimming

For Father’s Day Liam and I gave Phil a gift certificate for “Ride the Ducks”, those Seattle touristy aquatic vehicles. Since we live here we had never done it but we have always wanted to. So, a couple of weeks ago we decided to go. Afterwards we walked around Seattle Center and the Olympic Sculpture Park. Then we had dinner at the waterfront Old Spaghetti Factory, which is where Phil and I had our first date almost 10 years ago!

Yesterday we spent a couple of hours at the zoo. It seems like it gets more fun every time we go because Liam is getting older and talking more and enjoys naming all of the animals. After the zoo we went down to the UW boat docks where we rented a canoe and paddled under the freeway and around the arboretum. It was an awesome day to do this because it was Seafair so there were tons of boats out, which Liam really enjoyed seeing.

african village at the zoo

Liam paddling

Today was hot enough that Liam spent his afternoon playing in the sprinkler, eating a popsicle, and running around in his underwear. Sounds like a perfect summer day for a kid huh! And yes, I did say underwear. He has been doing great at potty training but he cannot take off his own diaper and get up on the toilet by himself so he needs a lot of help still. So, we are going to start trying “big kid” undies at home and see how it goes. Unfortunately they don’t seem to make any underpants smaller than size 2T, which are ridiculously baggy but at least that makes it easier for him to take off himself. Wish us luck!

first popsicle

so yummy!

and so messy!