I'm dreaming of a white kitchen....

Things are moving forward in hopes of a full kitchen re-model this spring. This photo is pretty spot on for what I have envisioned in my head. What I like about the photo is that it is almost the exact layout of what you would see looking into the kitchen from our dining room table. The wall will be gone. I'm almost positive those are the exact Ikea cabinets we have chosen. The back wall is definitely smaller and the stove will not be there, it will be in the island. We hope to have dark grey counter tops and the same butcher block island. I haven't decided on back-splash tile as of course this will probably be one of the last things we do, so I have time to decide. As everybody knows I love white and I think white looks even better with majority white (like the subway tile black-splash) and then small hints of color or non-color in this case like greys and browns. I don't think we will have any glass cabinets and our kitchen window is larger and the farmer's sink will be larger. Keep in mind this is still "all a dream" but becoming closer and closer to being reality. 

These kitchen pictures are from. Cape 27 Blog, Kitchen progress. It is crazy how similar the layout of their previous kitchen is.  This is a great blog and it's crazy how similar their house is to ours. Of course she is an interior decorator so everything looks amazing. But I for sure will be drawing future inspiration from her! Check it out: Cape 27

boys will be boys

life as we know it, being one

Our little boy is getting so big. Both Peter and I feel like Isaac never really wanted to be a baby and has found his true happiness being a toddler. He has arrived! Although he needs constant supervision, he's almost always getting into things with a smile on his face and I feel like I can finally just take a moment and "breathe". Parenting is so much easier with your first when you know the routine, you know that "yes' believe it or not they will eventually go to sleep, they will sleep throughout most the night, we can go on vacations (despite a total disruption in all things routine like), we don't have to medicate for teething anymore,  and we can break the bedtime and nap schedule without hours of screaming as a result. Different challenges, Isaac needs an activity out of the house everyday and preferable with other children. He is a super social baby and people kind of stare at us when we say that. We have figured out he wants little to do with adults, but you put another baby his age or slightly older and he will hug them and play for hours!! Food needs to always be on hand and there is no such thing as going more than 2 hours without a bottle or full meal, no snacking for this boy. 

Things that are new: he likes to brush his teeth himself. We got him a cheap-o electric so we feel better about what is getting accomplished in there. He insists on feeding himself with a spoon or fork even though he doesn't really have the skills to do so. He likes to follow behind me when I sweep or vacuum and copy what I'm doing with his push toy. He started signing, more, all done, and bath. He is starting to talk but really can only get the first sound out of each word. First one was "birds" as he points to the bird mobile above his bed. He says, hot, more, mama, dada, mine, and ball. He continues to crave being outside and so both of us can't wait for spring to come. 


The pictures are becoming fewer and less of the posed nature. He is either a blur on camera (due to constant movement) or the shot is over as once he sees the iphone or camera its a mad dash straight for it. 

We are so grateful for the joy he brings to our lives and he makes everyday so special! Words can't describe the love we both share for him and the love he gives us back through big squeezes and wet kisses.

veganaise

I've never really cared for mayo. I would always cut it with half mayo and half sour cream to hide the tang. So I decided to give veganaise a try. The price almost scared me off but I probably go through one jar of mayo a year so I thought it may not be so bad after all. I was absolutely shocked by how much better it tastes. It has such a milder flavor and you don't need much. I decided to try it out on two of my old-fashioned recipes, Apple Waldorf Salad and Horseradish Carrot Casserole. This is one of my favorite things my Grandma O. makes. I decided to change some things and drop the casserole part. In the salad I also decided to add coconut, huge improvement.

Apple Waldorf Salad

2 apples chopped

3 celery sticks chopped

1 cup of Walnuts

1 cup shredded coconut

dollop of Veganaise

Mix in a bowl

Horseradish Carrots

The old recipe calls for saltines and butter and boiling the carrots first. I slice up just as many carrots as I can cover the bottom of my casserole dish. I just mixed the carrots with a dollop of veganaise (enough of each to coat) and an equal size dollop of horseradish and mixed them all together in a casserole dish. I put them in the oven on 400 for about 45 minutes which gives them time to caramelize and develop their sweetness. The veganaise keeps the carrots really moist and horseradish believe or not just adds a really small kick. Isaac chowed down on the carrots so they couldn't have been too spicy!  

My new cooking Friend 

One thing to note, I will probably buy the Veganaise made with grape seed oil next time. I think it is slightly healthier and this original kind contains Soy and I'm not a huge fan of Soy. I found both at Fred Meyer in the Natural Foods section. 

nine favorites list of 2012

I always seem to hear about the best things by word of mouth from family and friends. I always think to myself "I'm so glad I heard about that." Well here is my word of mouth top nine favorite things I discovered this past year ( in no particular order ). I was planning on doing 10 but really only felt good about 9. I thought I would spare a lame 10th.

1. Mom's Spaghetti Sauce 

This sauce is actually what inspired me to write this list. I want to shout it from the rooftops don't buy any other sauce. It tastes completely home made from Italy (not that I would actually know) and has chunks of roasted garlic in it. And even better they sell it at Costco!

2. Ancient Harvest Quinoa Veggie Curls

Keeping with the theme this goes with our pasta sauce. We are about 75% Gluten Free in our home so I'm always trying out different Gluten Free pastas. This one is the best! They add different veggies, such as beets, to the pasta and it actually tastes great. They sell it at Fred Meyer and it is relatively inexpensive like a little over $2 a box. Isaac loves this pasta :)

3. Dr. Bronner's Face Soap 

I read about this in Whole Living magazine and it got voted one of the top natural facial cleansers. It is very mild, all natural, and only about $4.

4. Pinterest 

Ok so I discovered this in 2011 but Pinterest is like facebook once you get it changes your life and you think how did I ever function without it? I can credit Pinterest for helping me plan Isaac's birthday party, giving me countless recipes and inspiring to weekly meal plan with a cute printable meal planner PDF. It provides endless inspiration, brainless fun, and the motivation to DIY! I am fortunate enough to keep in in check. I check in every couple of days and for maybe 10 minutes. This is the only downside people say is it can consume all of your free time!

5. Trader Joe's Automatic Dishwasher Detergent

I have always used all natural dishwasher detergents and with each brand I bought they seemed to work less and less and I was spending more and more. Peter and I both thought that our dishwasher was horrible and we just needed to buy a new one. We were practically hand washing all of our dishes to then put them in the dishwasher. Well it isn't the best but I finally thought what if it is the detergent It is important to me that it is chemical free and all natural because it is going on all of your dishes, dishes that you eat off everyday and this food goes into your body. A friend told me to try the Trader Joe's brand. Turns out it works amazing and it is a great deal cheaper than all of the other "all natural" brands I believe it is a little over $2 a box! It's Phosphate-Free, Chlorine-Free, No dyes or fragrances and is Biodegradable. 

6. Epsom Salts

I've always been a big fan of baths. No matter how stressful of a day I've had a bath always makes it better. Well I recently discovered Epsom salts and they take a bath to a whole different relaxing level. Some of the health benefits include relaxing the nervous system, easing muscle strain, healing cuts, treating cold and congestion, and most importantly drawing toxins from the body. There are amazing scents and best of all Epsom Salts are inexpensive! Are you seeing a trend? 

7. Mom Groups

I could not of gotten through without my mom support groups. Evergreen Parent Baby gave me a wealth of information and allowed me to meet so many great friends. (I've since graduated) but from there spun a monthly "Book Group" with 10 other moms with very little reading involved and a Best Friend Emily. We are running partners and her husband and Peter and I hit off immediately. I also attend MOPS at Woodinville Alliance Church and that gives me 2 hours of uninterrupted conversations, great speakers, a spiritual boost, and great brunch. Isaac gets two hours of social time and gets to play with new toys. Woodinville Toddler Group is another weekly social event that both Isaac and I look forward to every week. I still learn a lot about development and love the family event nights and Isaac loves seeing his friends. Not to mention structured craft time (that I don't have to plan or clean up) and circle time what a bonus!

8. Amazon

Amazon has become my new best friend. It has everything under the sun for babies. I almost always get free shipping and has the lowest price without having to leave my home!

9. Aveeno Dry Shampoo

I have very oily hair and let's face it a shower is a privilege not to mention blow-drying your hair. This gives a few extra days without a wash and a blow dry, and it adds volume, which I desperately need with my flat straight hair. The Aveeno brand is sulfate-free which is why I chose this brand. 


Goal for 2013 discover a great "all natural" laundry detergent. The jury is still out on this one!

10 month photo shoot

As always great pictures taken by my friend Carmen. We did this shoot at Discovery Park in Magnolia and I love them all. With age the pictures of Isaac just get funnier and funnier. Of course he just started walking so he kept taking off from the shot! It was really cold and Isaac's face kept getting redder and redder and then he go more and more unhappy :) So great to have these memories, we are so lucky to have Carmen!

teepee

This was Isaac's birthday present from Peter and I. It was a joint effort along with the help of my mother the actual seamstress and I am not good at sewing and almost insures a mental meltdown. I design and she implements. The perfect combination in my book. It was quite the evolution since I cut it out wrong and now has scalloped edges. It adds character and my favorite part is that it was made out of our wedding aisle runner. I hope this teepee gets many years of use outside and in. 

Peter engineered the poles by drilling holes for the string. The genius part he figured out how to prevent the poles from slipping on our hardwoods by using balloons from Isaac's birthday party. Each leg is a different pop of color. An easy solution and it even looks cute that made me very happy!

 The best part, Isaac's doggies and bears have a home.

great take homes from a wedding

This past weekend we road tripped it to Chico, California for my cousin Augie's wedding. We had a great time and Isaac enjoyed the hustle and bustle. He ate lavish food, did a little dancing on the dance floor, and made a friend named Odin. We had a great time spending time with family and I enjoyed helping my Aunt Coleen put together the flowers for the centerpieces. Below is my aunt dancing with the groom. We also had to stop for a great photo opp. in the mountains of Northern California!

  

 The icing on top of the cake was being able to bring home candlesticks that my uncle made for the rehearsal dinner and a huge bag full of lemons from his lemon tree in his yard. Aaah lemons.... a great centerpiece and the base of all things yummy. I've made lemon lentil soup, blueberry lemon sweet rolls, and last I think I will squeeze the rest into lemon juice and freeze them into ice cube trays.

These sweet rolls are amazing, they are the Pioneer Woman's recipe. Well worth the work and the calories!