Family Heirloom

Let me introduce you to the newest member of our family: our new dining room table and bench! They. are. AMAZING. I cannot even begin to tell you how absolutely perfect they are. When my dad and uncle said they would make us a table and bench, I expected something beautiful, but maybe a bit more rustic. This isn't rustic in the least bit - it's a true work of art.

If I saw this on any furniture store floor, I would be mesmerized. But since it was handcrafted with love by my Dad and Uncle Brad - it's even more special. It's hard to tell how many man hours went into this table, but I don't think it would be a stretch to say in the hundreds. Needless to say, we owe them BIG TIME. Thank you both for the love and time you poured into this project - we are quite fortunate, to say the least!

P.S. Here's an in-progress shot and our first table.

 Beautifully polished.

Just perfect.

Goose approved.

Did you notice my cute little Owl Salt and Pepper shakers? They were a gift from my Mom :)

Our Easter

Easter + sun + + Samish Island + relaxing on the deck + Joe + Dad + Mom + Uncle Brad + the dogs + a good meal + pineapple upsidedown cake =  Heaven. I tell ya, there's something special about Samish Island. It's like time slows down and let's you savor the moment. 

Hope you're also feeling blessed on Easter Sunday! 

 

Pure Craftsmanship

As I've mentioned before, my dad and uncle are making us a dining room table and bench out of some maple lumber from my grandpa's house. And we're planning to buy a few chairs to match the style and stain. They keep sending periodic updates on the process and boy oh boy, I'm impressed to the max. It's absolutely perfect. I guess they have a few more tweaks, then they'll be staining it a dark honey brown. I'm thinking I owe them both quite a few homemade meals on this table, don't you think?

Samish Santa

Once again on Christmas Eve, we made the rounds on Samish Island with Santa (my dad!) to give all of the little kiddos a candy cane and add a little magic to their evening. The looks in their eyes was priceless. While the ride is cold (we stand right behind cab so we can wave at everyone as we slowly drive past), it's well worth it. I love the traditions of my home.

Stay tuned - I'll be playing blogging catch-up the next few weeks!

Thankful

It was our second year hosting Thanksgiving with our parents (here's the first year!), and let me tell you, it only got better. The turkey was more moist, the stuffing blew my mind, my grandma's china sparkled and we all had some good quality time to catch up.

By looking at this post, one would think that I'm most thankful for food. In reality, I do love food, but the people in my life top the charts. They are as important as food, water and oxygen combined. But alas, I didn't take any people photos, so I'll share with you what I have :)

These are the pretty flowers I picked up at a cute little Greenwood flower shop. 

Here's our table, all set up and ready to go... minus a few chairs we brought in later.

I made miniature apple pies with a crumble top (the picture doesn't do them justice!). Served warm and topped with vanilla ice cream? Wow, just wow. I know it's weird to pat yourself on the back, but for these, I did. The leftovers of these little suckers alone make me want to buy a few extra pairs of elastic-waist pants. I wish I was kidding.

We also made some turkey noodle soup with the leftovers - we boiled some of the carcass, adding some reduced-sodium broth, egg noodles, turkey chunks, carrots, onions, celery, black pepper and parsley. Then we topped with some parmesan cheese, just for good measure.

As of last night, we were still eating leftovers from Thanksgiving dinner and the turkey noodle soup. As much as I love Thanksgiving food, I think I might just be ready for a change...

But overall, I'm thankful for a fabulous Thanksgiving with my Mom, Dad, Joe, Lilian and Joe (Joe's dad; it can get confusing).

P.S. The recipes not included above: for the cornbread in the stuffing, I used this recipe; for the potatoes, I used this recipe; for the cranberries, I used the recipe on the package; for the gravy, package again; for the turkey, we kept it simple by putting several tablespoons of melted butter, fresh rosemary (from our yard!) and garlic between the skin and actual meat (ahem, Joe, did this part) and cooked for nearly 5 hours, basting only once with chicken broth.

Happy Birthday, Kam!

Is there anything better than pretending to be a kid again? A chance to forget about work deadlines or household chores, and just play and eat pizza. That's exactly what we did for Kam's birthday this weekend. We all brought out our inner 10-year-old and played game after game after game. (Shoot, I'd consider this for my 30th birthday.) After we played all we could at Gameworks, we headed to our house for pizza and the Game of Life. All in all, a quality birthday party. Happy Birthday, Kam! I love you.

Mom and Richelle...

... took on the undefeated Kam and Erika :)

Kam adores Joe. In fact, apparently when Richelle asked if he wanted to bring a friend, he said, "No, it's ok, I'll just play with Joe and Grandpa." 

This boy is amazing at basketball. 

The whole crew for a beer/rootbeer break.

 A snippet of a conversation while playing Life at home:

Mom: "Geez, this game is confusing."

Kam: "That's because life is confusing, Grandma."

So wise at such a young age.

P.S. I still have about a centimeter on him. I wouldn't be surprised if the next time, he's finally taller.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Our record is almost perfect: A Mariner's Father/Daughter date just about every year since I was about 8 years old. Peanuts, hot dogs and beers (though it used to be sodas) - enjoying nine innings of each other's company. The last few years, it's been his birthday gift because I love me some "experience gifts".

Unfortunately, the M's couldn't pull off a win. I guess we'll have to wait until next year, Dad! Hope you had a wonderful day!

Dan the Man

My dad is finally back home from "Deadliest Catch" Alaska! Ok, not really Deadliest Catch - my mom made him promise that he'd stop fishing in the dangerous areas the moment he proposed, years and years ago. In order to keep his best catch yet (my mom, hehe), he happily obliged. 

So these days, he heads up to Southeast Alaska near Ketchikan every summer to bring in hundreds of thousands of pounds of salmon. I tell ya, fish should steer clear of this fisherman - he's a force to be reckoned with.

For the second year in a row, he made it home to celebrate his birthday! The birthday boy requested a home-cooked meal and family time, which is exactly what he got. It's always so nice to have him home :) Hope you had a wonderful birthday, Dad! Love you.

P.S. Check out the halibut he caught - not quite as big as a few years ago, but still GIANT!

Another fishing story.

Instead of waking up at the crack of dawn like last time, we opted for the evening bite on opening day. We were out on the lake by 4:30pm, ready for a fishing showdown. You see, my Dad has yet to out-fish me. We have years and years of opening days and fishing derbies under our belts, but my undefeated record still stands. (Knock on wood.) So he is committed to one day break that record. So what do you think? Do you think 2012 was the year for my Dad? Or has Joe been reading up on tips and tricks since his last time out in 2010? The fishing story below...

Cain Lake a small, quaint lake just south of Bellingham.

  

The fishing extraordinaire, my Dad. Even if he can't out-fish me. (Again, knock on wood.)

Joe got a bite... but no fish.

"Hey dad, let's get our pictures together... oh wait, FISH ON!"

They just kept coming and coming...

These faces are saying "you've got to be kidding me!"

"Seriously, let's just stop the embarrassment..."

Erika: 10, Boys: 1 - to protect the innocent, I won't share who got the one :)

So my record still stands. Phew! Better go start on my magic fish-attracting potion for 2013. Up next, how we cooked the trout, yum!

Purple Smiles

When we were home for my Mom's 60th a few weekends ago, we took a nice, leisurely stroll through downtown Fairhaven before dinner. It didn't take us long to make it to Purple Smiles, a cute local wine shop we have visited before. They were tasting Pinot Noirs from Washington and Oregon - and I have to say, the PNW knows how to make wine. They were all delicious!

P.S. Do you like the plaid twins?
P.P.S. I promise we don't spend every waking moment drinking wine.

Baby Interrogation

He tries and tries and tries, but to what avail?

We Love Koby

Over the weekend, we celebrated my Mom's 60th birthday with a little relaxation, wine tasting in Fairhaven, a nice dinner and then drinks and dancing at The Old Edison. Simply put, it was a blast!

But my favorite part, BY FAR, was the reveal of We Love Koby - a secret blog we created to share birthday wishes, funny stories and heartfelt messages from all the people who love my Mom. I couldn't have imagined a better reaction! Tears, laughs and just a general sense of feeling loved. Can it get much better than that? I think not.

Mom, I hope you had an amazing birthday! I love you more.

P.S. Aren't my parents adorable?

(Excuse the dark, fuzzy pictures - it's the best I could get with the lighting in there!)

Say cheese!

Just goofing around with my parents. Gotta love em!

P.S. Don't you love how you can gradually see my Dad understand what exactly is going on?

via/PopBooth iPad app

Cuter than a bug's ear.

During the holidays, I looked through hundreds of old family photos. I'm one of those people who can look at stranger's photo albums and become instantly enthralled (which I do regularly on Facebook, admit it, you do too). But when it's my own family, I become even more intrigued. When I came across this gem of my Dad with his brothers and sisters, I was in love. Such an adorable, happy family!

So, whaddya think? Do I look like my dad? :)

From left to right: Aunt Jeanie (baby), Uncle Doug, Aunt Nancy, Dad and Aunt Barb.

Mr. and Mrs. Claus

As you've noticed, I'm taking this week off of blogging. So much to get done, so little time. But I didn't want to leave you completely hanging, so I want to share some big news. Like HUGE news. I found out this Christmas that my Dad is SANTA! Which in turn makes my mom Mrs. Claus. Talk about mind-blowing. Hope your Christmas was equally as exciting!

Thanksgiving Feast

Friends, I'm checking something off my 30 Before Thirty list: Hosting a big holiday! This year for Thanksgiving, Joe and I mastered the traditional turkey feast for our parents. We started bright and early; I had the apple pie in the oven just after 9am and then moved onto the mashed potatoes shortly after (using PDubs delicious recipe).

We opted to keep they turkey simple with butter, rosemary and a tiny bit of garlic, then filled the turkey with Grandma Novak's famous stuffing. Add in the cranberry sauce I made the night before, plus a few more side dishes brought by our parents, and we were ready to give thanks. Good food. (No dry turkey!) Delicious desserts. Great company. I can definitely say that I have a lot to be thankful for. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving too!

P.S. Don't you love my place setting? It's my grandma's old china that will one day be mine. It would have been her 82nd birthday on Thanksgiving, so my mom brought it down for the occasion. I think she'd be happy it was put to good use :)