February marks 5 years that my little book club has been together. I'm pretty proud of this. It started with just a couple people and now there's quite a few members. Only a few are regulars, but I love that they have stuck it out with me. They were even around when I moved to Seattle and had a virtual book club for a while. We've read a bunch of books (most of which I have mentioned somewhere on this... Read More Read More ...

My dear friend, Lauren, suggested that some friends try high tea at the St. Paul Hotel. It was such as fun experience. You get to drink tea served to you by cute men and women in their serving uniforms, sip champagne or wine if you choose, and snack on delicious food. It’s a fun experience that only costs a little over $40/person. They have vegetarian options as well as caffeine free tea. Those were all from our first tea visit.... Read More Read More ...

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah was such a wonderful book. I felt like I had been reading a lot of books during WWII and the holocaust, so I was weary to read another, but this was beautifully written and such a fabulous read. In love we find out who we want to be. In war we find out who we are. FRANCE, 1939 In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads... Read More Read More ...

I read Term Limits a while back for book club. I knew a number of people that had read it and loved it, so I really wanted to read it. I didn’t feel compelled to read the rest of Vince Flynn’s books, but I did enjoy this one. Taking America back…one politician at a time TERM LIMITS In one bloody night, three of Washington’s most powerful politicians are executed with surgical precision. Their assassins then deliver a shocking ultimatum to... Read More Read More ...

First, I know it’s supposed to be “caramelized”, but I spelled it wrong on my picture and I didn’t have the originals anymore. So this is what you are getting. 🙂 I came across the recipe HERE and knew I had to give it a try since it had so few ingredients and looked amazing. It was SOOOO good. We made it a couple times and now that I think about it, it’s been ages since we made it. I’m... Read More Read More ...

I haven’t done a post about each of the books I read in 2016 for the Goodreads yet, but I thought it would be fun to just post a picture of them all with links to purchase them. The books are not necessarily in the order that I read them. My goal was to read 15 books and I read 22 books. My 2017 goal is set to read 20 books. Now that I have discovered audio books, I don’t... Read More Read More ...

Since I’m working on catching up on posting about some books I have read, I figured I should maybe post more than one at a time. There are a lot to write about. Here are a few young adult books I have read in the past, um, well, while. The two-time Newbery Honor winner Gary D. Schmidt delivers the shattering story of Joseph, a father at thirteen, who has never seen his daughter, Jupiter. After spending time in a juvenile... Read More Read More ...

I recently discovered the joy of audio books. I know this sounds strange considering it’s 2017, but I am a little slow sometimes when it comes to new trends.  I started listening to them while I was painting and quickly discovered that I love listening to them in the car, too. The kids are plugged into their movie so I can have some time to “read” when I don’t really have the time to read otherwise. It’s wonderful. This was... Read More Read More ...

It’s December 21. I last wrote almost exactly 6 months ago on June 22nd. Not for lack of thinking about ye old blog here, but I just haven’t done it. Something else has come up or something else needed to be done. I’m going to have to make a serious list of all the things that need to be documented on here. Since I am so crappy about making baby books for my kids, the least I can do is... Read More Read More ...

Alex and Dannie had a Curious George birthday party again this year. I am not sure how I convinced Dannie to have another one, but it turned out great. It was so nice to be home for their birthday, although their birthday in Seattle will always be so special to me because I got to spend it with our friends there before we moved back. My amazing friend and neighbor who owns Ganser’s Goodies made the cupcakes for the party.... Read More Read More ...

  We read Speak for book club a couple months ago. First, here’s what it’s about: The first ten lies they tell you in high school. “Speak up for yourself–we want to know what you have to say.” From the first moment of her freshman year at Merryweather High, Melinda knows this is a big fat lie, part of the nonsense of high school. She is friendless, outcast, because she busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops, so now... Read More Read More ...

I’ve been trying to plan date nights for Chuck and myself before he leaves for Seattle. We have done puzzle rooms, out for sushi, a cooking class, dinner with friends, adult night at the zoo, and the other night we went wandering around Minnehaha Falls and then met some friends at the Stone Arch Bridge Festival. It was such a fun evening. It was a really hot day, but with our summer weekends being numbered here in Minnesota, it was... Read More Read More ...

Last month, for a date night, I signed us up for a sushi making class through Cooks of Crocus Hill. This class taught us all about sushi (which is the rice) and how to make it correctly. We also learned how to make nigiri and some rolls. There was a lot of great information and it was so much fun to try something new! Their kitchen was so pretty! We were given some recipes in our packet and the chef... Read More Read More ...

Our long-time friend, Kelly, and her daughter, Aria, came to visit us a couple weeks ago. I literally squealed when she told me she booked a flight here and was even more excited when she decided to stay with us! That meant loads of baby snuggles and Kelly-time! Chuck also made his best batch EVER of pretzels!!! We went to one of her favorite restaurants one night for dinner. It was fun to bring all the kids there. Thankfully, it’s... Read More Read More ...

A dear friend of mine asked me if I would help her make a website for a business she wants to start. I couldn’t be more excited that she asked me. I love web design even though I am quite an amateur at it. But this is something I would love to add to my resume as a skill I have for future jobs in the tech field one day. I have helped my dad build a website (of course... Read More Read More ...

It’s been almost a month since I posted something here. I am slacking! I’ve been trying to make some new meals here and there. The most recent one we tried (and I lovedeven the leftovers) was Spicy Grilled Tofu. I didn’t take any pictures, but trust me! It was so yummy! I made some brown/wild rice in the rice cooker to go with it and sautéed some peppers/onions/garlic to go with it. Yum! I used only 1/4 cup syrup instead... Read More Read More ...

This year Maddie knew exactly what kind of birthday party she wanted. “a Superhero party with ice cream cake!” So that’s exactly what she got! We invited family and a few friends over and it was so fun and simple. I got a bunch of capes for the kids (and a few extras for adults to play with), made a photo booth backdrop and cut out masks and such. We played Kids Bop music and ordered pizza and ate DQ... Read More Read More ...

Our baby girl turned 5 last week! 5!!!! I am not an overly sentimental person. I don’t keep every piece of art the kids make or many of the things most parents would keep. But there was something about putting Maddie to bed for the last time as a 4 year old that just turned me into a sobbing mess. I could barely hold it together when I was kissing her good night. It’s not like me at all. The... Read More Read More ...

I made this a month or so ago when Chuck was out of town last time and it was so yummy! I think I found this recipe through Pinterest, but it came from Cooking Light so I wanted to give it a try. I am definitely making it againmaybe this week! This was really flavorful. I was pleasantly surprised. I think it helped to use stock instead of broth. The only thing I would do differently next time is have... Read More Read More ...

Maddie got her first haircut. You read that right. She’s 5 and she just got her first haircut. I wasn’t ready to cut her hair. But then it’s been so hard to manage lately and it made her so upset to brush her hair, I knew it was time. So we took her in to get a haircut. Here are before and after pictures. When I first looked at the pictures it didn’t look like she had very much cut... Read More Read More ...