No, really... ten years already ? !

Tomorrow will be my 10 year wedding anniversary.  I'm not sure where the time went.  It has been a very eventful decade.  Jay and I met in the University District in Seattle.  He was still in college (actually just finishing his last year) and I was full throttle 10 years into my career as an apparel designer. Ours is not a conventional union - I am almost 12 years his senior but Jay is definitely my equal, actually he most likely surpasses me in in soul years.  We have been through so much - things that cause some couples to divorce.   In the past 10 years we each lost a sibling, remodeled a 100 year old house, and had two incredible kids.  I can honestly say I've never been happier and know that the leap I made was the right one.

Happy Anniversary, Jay. 

  Love you....

Farmer's Wife Quilt Along and We *almost* had a farm

I'm thrilled that I am caught up with the Farmer's Wife Quilt Along. I have my 4 blocks done ( we are doing 2 per week) and I only have 107 to go!! This is so much fun. Picking fabrics for each block is a treat!

When signing up for this quilt along, I was reminded of some farm related happenings in our past.

We almost had a farm. About two years ago, my husband Jay and I were looking for a vacation property on Vashon Island. We love the island because it is so close to Seattle (a 30 min ferry ride ). 

We found this lovely house with an acre of land.

It is the McNair house and was built in 1884.
This is the historical info from History.org:

"In 1884, Thomas and Etta McNair began living on and improving their land claim near Burton on Vashon Island. Every Monday, Thomas McNair commuted to Tacoma by rowboat. He would spend the week in the city while Etta worked on their farm. Like many other early settlers, the McNairs lived in a log house while starting out. In about 1890, Thomas built a substantial two-story wood-frame house that reflects the influence of the Queen Anne style in its asymmetrical elevations, ornate gable-end ornamentation and elegant porch. Thomas McNair also constructed a number of other Burton structures, including the Quartermaster School."

The house needed a lot of work and we were in the midst of finishing our 1908 house in the Madrona neighborhood of Seattle.   You can read about it here.

We thought long and hard but knew it would be an amazing house and sanctuary from the city. 

I had so many wonderful dreams of the boys spending summers in the beautiful grounds, climbing trees, building forts and doing what boys do.

So......we made an offer on the house and then......my husband Jay lost his job.

We obviously didn't buy the house.

While writing this blog post I have a pit in my stomach. I really loved this house and more than that the possibilities. I knew we could bring it back to its original glory and create many more happy memories there.

This is original wallpaper in the linen closet.


All the windows have the original Victorian style moulding.

This is the view of Quartermaster Harbour.

The upstairs bedroom has a view of the harbour.

I know that home is where the heart is but I'm still heartbroken that this one got away.

Summer in Seattle

Summer finally arrived a few days ago. I'll have to say Seattle is an amazing place when the sun shines.

It was low tide at Alki Beach in West Seattle. The boys loved it. We found crabs, shrimp, and a starfish.




We are feverishly working on the house - Yep pretty much every surface was ruined when we bought it. Jay is scraping the glue off the cement on the front porch that was left after removing the wall to wall carpet!

I hope you are finding time to enjoy your summer!

My baby is Three

I can't believe my baby is Three. Luc, you are the most wonderful little boy. I am so incredibly blessed to by your mommy.

You are talented and passionate...

Sly......

A warrior.....

You are incredibly silly, crazy and fun....

You are my little angel. I love you.

Things that are making me smile right now.....

Using my son's monkey sharpener and fish pencil. Shhh, don't tell him Please....

Sweet satsumas and a hot cup of tea.

Reading the post it "love notes" from my son Liam:

" I love you mom"

"I love your her" (my favorite)

"Chres I love you From Liam"

And best of all - listening to my six year old play with his childhood friend in his room next door.

Holiday Traditions Old and New

I love Christmas. I haven't always felt this way but since having kids I seriously get into the holiday spirit. It is exciting making the boys dreams come true and to experience the wonder of Christmas through their eyes.

We have established a few family traditions in the past few years. The first is going to Snohomish the day after Thanksgiving and watching Santa enter the town in his horse drawn sleigh. Snohomish is a lovely little town and has lots of great antique shops. (I'll do a separate blog post on Snohomish in the near future!)

Another tradition is putting the Santa photos in frames and hanging them on the tree.

We always ride the carousel downtown and enjoy the "snow" at Pacific Place.

This year we started a new tradition - cutting our own tree. It wasn't purely motivated by the romance of trekking through the snow to find the perfect tree. We were tired of spending lots of $$ on the "perfect" tree. I happened to see coverage on the local new that with a $10 permit, you can go into national forest and cut your own. There are designated areas, but that being said, I was surprised at how many areas allow it.So this is the tree. At first we were a bit worried since it is much barer than the perfectly dense and shirred Xmas trees we usually get. It has grown on me and I'll have to say I rather love it. It is how nature intended. You can actually see the ornaments on the tree!

The romance of the boys having a wonderful time in the snow diminished rather fast. Luc was pretty miserable after dropping his gloves in the snow.

Liam was a good sport and wants to go back and make a snowman.

We were up on a ridge and the views were breathtaking.

We must have seen dozens of trees and after hiking about a mile......

We decided on this one. The day was not quite as I imagined but I'll cherish it always and look forward to doing it again next year.

Link for cutting your own here!

Heaven on Earth

Eden Ranch
An old house Jay and I made an offer on. We can't wait to start the renovation.
Ha ha - just kidding. Though.....you know we are obsessed with old houses!

Yes, you all know what this is. Only a city girl would love a pic of a hay bale!


Cutie Primo.

Cutie Segundo with my mom.

It has been about a month ago that I, along with the boys and my parents made the pilgrimage to Chesaw. We went to visit my brother Paul and his family and meet my new nephew Cayden. We also went to spread my brother Miles' ashes. The last time I visited was about 10 years ago with Jay. I didn't remember how incredibly beautiful the area is. Chesaw is in North Eastern Washington about 30 minutes from the Canadian border. Rolling hills, farm land, big open spaces. It is truly heaven on earth. We stayed at the Eden Ranch an incredibly beautiful place with the sweetest little cabins. Many of the cabins and the main lodge (which is pictured) are sided with the boards from historic buildings that were beyond repair.

Robin, the owner, is a warm and wonderful host.

I was hoping to get back for another visit before the mountain passes close, but we will have to see! I have more pics of my brothers cabin, which he built himself, as well as pictures of my adorable little nephew. Heaven on Earth part deux coming soon! Ta ta for now!

Liam's First Day of School

Walking into the classroom.Words of reassurance from mom.

Custom labels for his jackets. Oh he liked that!

My little boy is growing up! Seems like just yesterday we were going for stroller rides in the neighorhood. My emotions about Kindergarten are a bit silly since Liam went to a full day preschool last year but honestly, public school is soooo different.

I could tell he was nervous - I think due to the size of the school and number of students. Bryant has 500 compared to about 40 at his preschool.

He is doing really well and has made a few new friends. He brought home his first assignments yesterday and each and every day reports about the new things he has learned.

I'm so proud of my big boy!

Happy Anniversary

Jay, Thanks for the last eight years.
Thanks for our lovely boys
for working so hard for us
Thanks for the lovely dinner tonight.

Lets have a make over dinner without the boys!

I Love You.