From Start To Finish

Homemade black bean quinoa burgers and roasted potatoes from our farm share.  In the end, they didn't look pretty but they sure were tasty.  And Elliot is, by far, the best kitchen helper ever.  

Finally...

After months and months of talking about it,  I finally made grilled pizzas.  And they were awesome! Here's the menu:And here's the deliciousness:One trick I found was to grill one side of the plain dough first, take it off and build the pizza toppings on that grilled side, then put it back on the grill to cook the ungrilled dough side (now on the bottom) and get the top all melty soft and warm (the other option is to grill both sides of the plain dough first, build your toppings on, and then put it back on the grill to cook the toppings... I thought this overcooked the dough and like the one-side-at-a-time method).  The bits of bubbled, charred dough were absolutely delicious.  It was as closed to wood fired as we can get making it at home.  Crunchy crust on the outside and chewy dough on the inside. Oh my.  Seriously, so good.  

Then and Now

Just 6 months between Elliot's first visit to the dentist (top picture) and this week's visit (bottom picture).  In just those few months he's gone from a little baby faced squishy to a long and lean boy.  It truly blows my mind.

A Summer Bunting

Envelopes filled with location, hours, and admission for a variety of fun summer adventures hung for Kelly and Elliot to enjoy the summer months together.  Fun, fun, fun!

Water Can Baby

Our oh-so-beautiful best friend, Meguire, and her lovely Mr. Walsh came for a very special visit.  See... Meguire and  Ryan are expecting their fist baby this coming November AND it was Meguire's birthday while they were here!  A besty, a baby belly and a birthday, all rolled into one.  Oh heaven!  There was lots of playing (both adults and child), some guy bonding time over one of Elliot's favorite movies, and lots of wonderful cake.  It was a perfect and very special weekend.  We can't wait to meet this special little babe, whom Elliot has lovingly named Water Can Baby.  Little Water Can Baby, you have wonderful parents and are surrounded by many who love you dearly.  Safe journey.  We'll see you soon.    

Crafty Mamas

When the Stroller Strides group that I used to go to offered a crafty mom's-night-out at a very cool little fabric store, I jumped at the chance!  It was a great night.  Eleven Mamas of varying craft and sewing abilities, some basic applique instruction, a great setting, wonderful tools (I got to sew on a Bernina!), and beautiful materials to work with made for some really awesome Mama-made napkins by the end of the night.  Oh, and someone brought an amazing cake and when the sewing was over we walked across the street to a pub for drinks.  Yes, I will definitely be stopping in at Twig and Twist again, and will most certainly be enjoying more of the great mom's-night-outs. 

From Backyard To Belly

Make A Wish

Say CHEESE

We've never been ones to make Elliot "look at the camera," "smile," or "say cheese."  But somehow he's developed his own fake, camera smile and even says, thought clenched teeth, "CHEESE!"  Proof that some things, both big and small, are so ingrained in our cultural fabric that we can't get around them.  

Summer

Ahhh, yeah.  Bring on the sprinkler and the post-sprinkler snuggles.  We're ready!

Before and After

More fun with my power tools.  This garden plot had been dug by a previous tenant, but I decided to take it to the next level.  All it took was two more of the same 2x6s I used for Elliot's sandbox, the scrap piece of 4x4 left over from the sandbox, and the 5 pavers that I put down the middle.  All together it only cost about $15 (plus soil and plants).  Since we joined a CSA and get a weekly farm share for the summer, I decided we only needed to plant the fun stuff: cherry tomatoes, pumpkins, cantaloupe, watermelon, and herbs.  Mmmmm, I can't wait! 

Look What I Made

I built Elliot his very own sandbox!  With many thanks going to the two, best little helpers in town, and Elliot's Nan for granting his birthday wish.  It came together over the last week or so.  I used the raised garden beds we made at our last house as inspiration for the design, but added the 2x6s across each end as a little ledge for us to perch on when we're playing with him.  I used a staple gun to line the inside with a tarp, then used a second tarp and sewed a fitted sheet-style cover to keep the cats out.  650 pounds of sand later and Elliot is one happy little two-year old.  

Sun Valley

A weekend hanging out with aunties, uncles and cousins in beautiful Sun Valley, Idaho.  The little ones played music, Elliot got to "climb a mountain," and he did plenty of hanging out with the guys (we never did get him his own white robe--next time!).  Another not-so-great car ride for Ellie, but he did a real good job rocking the sunglasses and the headphones for a bit on the way there.  The Sawtooth Mountains are really, really beautiful.  These iPhone pics don't do them justice, but this weekend--and the snow that came with it!--was more about just hanging out with family.  But I'd definitely love to spend more time here in the future.  After all, I never did get to spot a celebrity, though I'm pretty sure it was Ashton flying off in that private jet as we drove out of town :). 

Lucky Elliot, Lucky Us

A while back, Kelly started taking pictures during her days here with Elliot.  It started becoming a really special part of my and Andrea's evening when we'd settle in, find the camera, and get little surprise snapshots of Elliot's day with Kelly.  It's one thing to hear from her what she and Elliot did each day.  And another thing to hear it from him (which is a new and incredible part of his development).  But to see little moments captured and hidden away in the camera... it's like a treasure hunt!  And it only reinforces what we already know: Kelly is a-w-e-s-o-m-e! 

Sometimes she's captured moments of Elliot at the park or in the yard or doing activities.  And sometimes it's just that the two of them are hanging out and she gets a great picture of him.  Like this one from awhile back.  Isn't it amazing!?  And it inspired a whole series after it.

On this day I came home and she said to me, "we did colors today!"  All on her own, that's just what she decided to do with Elliot on this day.  Which is awesome, right?!  I mean, I don't think I'd put a bunch of glasses of water in front of him, but she's willing.  Which means he totally lucks out 

And today I came home and found this project she had made (a background drawn on a piece of cardboard from the recycling with cutouts from Elliot's little National Geographic kid's magazine).  She didn't take this picture, I did.  But I couldn't resist another opportunity to capture some of their day together.  It is just such a gift to know this is how Elliot gets to spend his days while we're at work.  Lucky, lucky, lucky us.