Time keeps on ticking

I want to begin by sincerely thanking all of you for your prayers and support for Yaya and our family.  She is doing well and is resilient in light of the news we shared with her a few weeks ago.  Thank you.  Thank you. Thank you for your prayers.

As for life, it continues to tick by quickly these days.  I honestly don't know where March and April have gone.  We enjoyed some time away during spring break.  My mom joined us for a road trip to meet Bird's sister and her family at Disneyland for 4 days and we had a blast.  It was all a complete surprise for Yaya.  We didn't want to tell her we were going to Disney in case we were matched with a baby at the last minute so we told her we were just going to the beach.  When she finally realized where we were the expression on her face was priceless.

Our visit to Disney this year was much different than last year.  Yaya was fearful of the rides even the ones she loved last year.  The thing that really got to her though were the villain's voices and laughter.  She's 5 so we know it's normal to be more fearful of things once in awhile.  We were shocked but we had fun anyway and enjoyed all the other activities the park had to offer.  Besides, Yaya was in hog heaven just being with her cousins.  She could have cared less about the rides and such.

Priceless memories were made between these three.  I love the relationship they share and Yaya absolutely longs for them when they're apart.  We're already busy planning our trip to meet up with them again in July. 

A weekend with friends

What a wonderful weekend!  Friday after school, Yaya and I met some friends at the park for a playdate.  I'm so happy I brought my camera so I could snap pics of the girls in the daffodils. It was a hard week for Yaya as she had a horrible fever and double ear infection.  We kept her home two days to recover from her nasty fever and allow the antibiotics to work their magic.  Thankfully, we were able to end the week on a high note with lots of friends.

Sunday afternoon, I was able to throw together a reunion of sorts.  These girls attended preschool together and haven't been together since last summer.  Bailey and Yaya share the same birthday and Aisha's is two days later.  They were so happy to be together again.

I heard happy voices and giggles throughout the afternoon. 

Nobody wanted the fun to end, including me. 

Rise and Shine Day 2

We were up at the crack of dawn to watch the sunrise over the ocean.  Once again, it was a little foggy and cool but we were having so much fun playing it didn't matter.  There is something spectacular about being the only ones on the beach.  It was like we had a private showing of nature.   A flock of sea gull's loud cries was the only noise you could hear above the roar of the surf as they flew through the air on the morning breeze.  A family of sandpipers danced at the water's edge scavenging the sand for their morning breakfast. Back and forth they waltzed perfectly synchronized around the waves.  As the sun rose into the sky it sent bursts of light just off shore highlighting only small portions of the surf at a time. 

Soon it was time to pack our bags and head into Monterey for our morning whale watching excursion.  Yaya was all systems go until she saw the boat wasn't quite the cruise ship she'd imagined in her head.

Once we set out I wasn't too sure I'd made the right decision in bringing her on this portion of the trip.  She was panicked when the swells grew bigger and bigger appearing as if they might engulf our tiny little boat.  "I want to go back!  I want to go back!" she cried.  Easier said than done when you are only 3 of 25 customers.  She and I headed to the back of the boat where the waves couldn't be felt as strongly.  She sat in my lap and we sang songs, prayed and counted together in order to help her calm down.  It didn't take long before Bird rushed back to take my place so I could photograph the first pod of Gray whales.   Shockingly enough, my first shot of the day appears to have been my best shot.  I quickly learned it's not easy to snap a picture of a whale or dolphin while you're on a ship that's bobbing up, down and side to side faster than they are.  I have a new appreciation for wildlife photographers. 

Anyway, I love how the water washes off the end of the whale's tale in the first shot as he prepares to dive.  The next photo is of a Risso dolphin.  I think I heard the marine biologist on board say the scratches on its skin are from the giant squid they eat and possibly from other dolphins in the pod too.  The bottom shot is my biggest disappointment.  Oh how I wish I could have captured all three of these whales with their flukes raised in a final salute before diving.  What a shot it would have been. 

In case you're worried about our little Yaya, I turned around 5 minutes after leaving her with Bird and she was laying across his lap sound asleep.  She says his slow counting put her to sleep but have a feeling it might have had something to do with the gentle rocking of the boat and the tiny dose of Dramamine we gave her before boarding to prevent her from getting sea sick.  She got to see plenty of whales and dolphins.  She even swears she heard the whales talking to her saying, "Awoogah!"  (Thank you Dora the Explorer and Diego.)  The only "awoogah" sound coming from the back of the boat was from fellow whale watchers who were tossing their cookies over and over again.  We like her version of the story better anyway. 

By the end of our three hour trip the tally of whale and dolphin sightings came to 11 Gray whales and about 75 Risso dolphins.  If you are interested in which company we used their name is Monterey Bay Whale Watching.  They were wonderful and a wealth of knowledge!

Here are a few shots I took as we returned to shore.  The last photo has another pod of Rizzo dolphins in front of the sail boat.  There were several mothers and babies in this pod.

Once we were back at the wharf we met up with some old friends of ours from the military.  We hadn't seen them in 9 years.  Both of our families have grown a bit since then.  It was wonderful seeing them again and meeting their youngest boy.  What a wonderful family!  I love how we picked up right where we left off.  We were blessed with wonderful friends who became our family in the military.  I wrote about how we met Eric and Arian HERE if you would like check out an old post.  They shared their season passes to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with us and we had a blast together.  Yaya instantly fell in love with their boys and wanted to hold their hands and hug them non-stop.  She needs a sibling SO BAD!

It was another wonderful day we won't soon forget.  We can't wait to get together with our friends again very soon.

Taking it all in

Last weekend, Bird completed the first semester of his on-line Executive MBA courses. The coursework has been extremely demanding leaving him little time for relaxing.  In addition, December was an emotional month for our family with the passing of his grandmother and the overwhelming reminder from the calendar telling us another year of waiting to be chosen for a baby has come and gone. It was time to break away from our normal routines to relax, refresh and ready ourselves for what lies ahead.  We loaded up the car and drove to the ocean to wash away the emotional gunk and refresh our spirits like only a day at the beach can do.

  

Have you ever considered what makes the beach such a spiritual and healing place?  I think it has something to do with how completely God allows it to infiltrate our senses. 

We hear the deep rumbling surf as it climbs the beach ultimately reaching a soft bubbly pitch.  We hear seabirds calling to one another as they bounce and soar on the breeze above our heads.  Squeals and laughter can be heard from children and adults alike as they play in or at the water's edge.  A dog barks excitedly and the soft drumming of his feet in the sand can be heard as he races past finally leaping and splashing into the cold wet surf rescuing his favorite toy. Joyful noises reverberate from all corners of the beach. 

We see an endless sky and ocean that somehow meet and become one on the horizon.  We see smiling sun kissed faces.  We see couples walking slowly hand in hand or softly kissing in the sand.  Families and friends play games like volleyball, Frisbee or bad mitten.  They build sandcastles and moats together.  One family takes turns burying a loved one up to their ears in the sand.  

Carefully, they scoop the sand up and over legs, arms and stomachs until finally only a face can be seen.  Before emerging from the sand a photo is taken to remember and cherish the moment.  Giggles trickle through the family as one by one they look at the silly photo of their loved one laying buried beneath the sand.  In the distance a ship silently sails by and a dolphin or maybe a seal plays in the waves just out of reach while they curiously watch us on the beach.  People scan the sand searching for the perfect shell or polished glass treasure the ocean has given up.  Ahead there is a well worn path.  Eventually people wander over to find where it leads and explore the tall reed like grasses that surround it.  People climb on rough rocks, jumping from one to the next hoping to avoid the wet surf below.  At the top of a enormous hill tiny silhouettes can be seen waving to loved ones on the beach below.

We taste and smell the salty sweet air and water.  Somewhere, someone has built a fire or lit a BBQ to prepare their burgers.  Occasionally a grain of sand falls into our mouths and crunches irritatingly between our teeth as we bite into burger, sandwich or piece of fruit.  Picnic baskets, blankets and coolers are littered across the sand while people enjoy the refreshing treats they've lovingly prepared and brought from home.

We feel the sun warming our skin and slowly it's warmth reaches into our core, our spirit.  Suddenly, we can't hold back any longer, we stand and step off the blanket into the warm sand.  It spreads and tickles our toes while it gently massages our feet with each and every hurried step we take. Finally, we test the water. BRRRRR it's FREEZING maybe even a little painful.  Goosebumps form across our skin and suddenly we tingle from head to toe.  Still, we can't stop ourselves from running and splashing with abandon.  We wonder how far we dare wander into the ocean before it chases us safely ashore or completely engulfs our bodies lifting us off the ground for only a moment before softly setting us back down?  It doesn't take long for our bodies to feel numb from the cold.  We grab a towel to dry ourselves and the sand feels sharp as it scratches our soft skin. Ahhhh!

As the sun fell toward the sea, the sky darkened and changed from a solid light blue to varied shades of pink, purple, blue and gold.  The darkness pushed us to pack our bags and leave.  Walking toward the car our hearts were at peace and our spirits felt light and free.  One by one I watched my family look back over their shoulders hoping to capture one last glimpse of what was a perfect day at the beach.

A New Year and a New Motto

In 2012, I plan to live life to the fullest and face whatever God has in store for me head on. I pray this year holds blessings and joy for our family and yours.

Bird and Yaya kicked the year off with a bang by making one of my lifelong dreams come true. Their Christmas gift to me was a chance to swim with the dolphins. I still can't believe I did it. It felt like I was floating in a dream. 

I received another memorable gift from my parents.  The stainless steel necklace below says,

"Morning Prayer"

"Now I wake me up to live. I'll give life all I have to give. If today I face a test, I'll cope and pray and do my best. With each breath and step I take, be with me Lord for Heaven's sake."

 Needless to say, I cried like a baby when I read it.  Like my day with the dolphins, this too was a perfect gift.  I plan to say this prayer each morning and do just what it says.  In 2012 I plan to live life to its fullest and I'll be thanking God each step along the way.

Monday Moments III

 My grandparents arrived on Wednesday and my 2nd cousin, Debbie came in Saturday.  As a result, we're being spoiled rotten.  My grandma loves to entertain while she's in town so her holiday cooking and baking is in full swing.  This means I didn't have to cook all weekend!  It was pure heaven I tell you. Oh how I love the holidays!  If only my waistline did too.  

We had a wonderful time catching up.  Yaya fell in love with Debbie as I knew she would.  Debbie is an artist and she's worked for Disney and Universal Studios.  SHE'S AMAZING!  If I recall correctly, early in her career she worked on some of the costumes in the first Star Wars movie.  How cool is that?!  ANYWAY...She and Yaya had fun coloring and playing together letting their imaginations run wild.  I loved watching them.  Seeing them together reminded me a lot of the fun I had creating things with my aunt, Elaine.  I loved spending time with her and watching her create beautiful crafts.  Tender moments! 

Here's the some of the crew.  My grandparents are on the left.  Debbie (my grandmother's niece) and her boyfriend, Bill are on the right.

After they left Sunday, I took a little walk around my mom's garden.  It was so peaceful and serene.  While I was walking a funny thing happened, I heard the familiar buzz from a hummingbird just above my head.  Just as I looked up in search of him he perched directly above my head.   A second later I felt something wet drop onto my face and in my right eye.  I am pretty sure this little fella peed on me.  Now there's a fine how do you do!  Since he had my FULL attention, I decided to try and snap some pictures of him from a safer distance. There was something magical about the way he fluffed his chest feathers.  I know he was just trying to keep himself warm but in doing so he made me feel warm too. 

Once again, I've joined Suzanne, author of Privet and Holly for her Monday Moments post.  I hope you'll check out her blog and link up to share some of your favorite weekend memories with us.  The photos and sentiments she shares are always so beautiful and inspiring!

Taking Flight

Have you ever watched a bird take flight?  It's an amazing sight to see and it's one I've paid close attention to lately.  Some birds like the eagle raise their wings and flap them two or three times before gliding majestically into the air.  Others flap their wings rapidly over and over while their little bodies bob and weave just to get off the ground.  It's strange to consider but I think humans are like this too.  Some people appear to struggle every day of their life while others make life and living seem effortless.  I'm not saying they don't struggle it's just somehow they are able to do it with a little more grace.  Do you know what I mean?

Thursday, Bird's grandmother, Edith died at the age of 93.  She may have been one of the most amazing and inspiring women I've ever known.  She survived the death of her husband 43 years ago.  She had and beat cancer.  She lived daily with diabetes.  She overcame falls and breaks in her Golden years and never let any of it slow or get her down.  She found beauty in EVERYTHING and EVERYONE.  Each time we were together I laughed.  Often, she would scare me to death by gasping in awe over something.  Most of the time it was something the rest of us would pass by or take for granted.  She however, would look at it as if it were her first time.  She watched in amazement like it was a firework exploding across the night sky.  It could be the shape of a cloud.  A bird taking flight.  A leaf laying in the gutter.  She noticed the tiniest details and beauty in everything and sometimes we were blessed to have her capture it in a painting.

She painted dozens of ornaments with the Texas Bluebonnets on them both. Bird and I were blessed to receive two sets of them; the first when we were married and another when Yaya joined our family.  In recent years, we've been afraid to put them on our Christmas tree for fear Yaya might accidentally break one.  We couldn't imagine decorating our tree without them this year just as we can't imagine our life without her in it.   

Last Thursday, as I sat at a busy intersection waiting for the light to turn green I watched a white dove take flight.  It was magical to watch it leap off the telephone pole, gliding effortlessly in the air above the passing cars.  Moments later I watched it turn mid flight and disappear into the sun.  In that moment I thought about Edith and how she would have loved to witness that little bird as much as I just had.  Little did I know within an hour or two we would be receiving a call telling us she had passed away at around that same time.    

To say her life was full would be an understatement.

You only have to hear how large her family is to get a teeny tiny glimpse of how many people's lives she touched in her 93 years.  She leaves behind 4 children, 11 grandchildren, 19 great grandchildren and 6 great great grandchildren.  Each and every one of them meant the world to her.  She was a philanthropist and a pillar in her community, church and our family.  She was the last of a generation in Bird's family.  She is and will always be dearly missed by all who knew her.

Please join me in praying for Bird and his entire family as they come together to honor and celebrate her life this Tuesday morning. 

Dearest Edith, I'll always cherish our moments together sharing a tender moment, a laugh or experiencing one of God's creatures through your eyes. I know the photos I take and try to capture are because of you and your influence on how I see the world.  I will especially remember what I believe was my last glimpse of you and your spirit as you took flight into heaven on that sunny winter afternoon.  Until we meet again grandma.

Diving into October

It's hard for me to believe it's already October.  Last weekend, Yaya's school held their annual Harvest carnival while I was attending my social work conference.  I'm told it felt nothing close to fall as the temperature that evening was 100 degrees.  One person overheated and had to be rushed to the ER.  Never the less, the floodgates of fall activities have officially opened. 

Friday afternoon we took in a movie together as family.  We finally saw the Cars sequel and Yaya literally danced down the isles afterward she enjoyed it so much.  Later that night, I attended a Blossoms and Bows party with my mom and purchased this adorable hair clip.  Yaya's class has been reading stories about owls and studying them so I thought it was perfect for her and this time of year.

I managed to blanch, peel, seed and freeze 5 bags of our tomatoes Friday morning before helping in Yaya's class.  I also made homemade cream of roasted pepper and tomato soup for the first time. 

It might be the tastiest soup I've ever made.  Bird devoured it and encouraged me to make it as often as I would like.  Yaya on the other hand was funny about it.  She said how much she LOVED it while she was eating and dipping her bread into it.  However, after dinner when we told her it was tomato soup (she says she doesn't like tomatoes) she exclaimed, "I thought it tasted kinda funny!"  Crazy funny kid. 

We did some fall organizing and cleaning Saturday while Yaya had a friend over to play.  I am constantly amazed how much paper we accumulate from her school and etc.  We removed & recycled 5 bags filled with paper from our drawers!  Saturday night I made 50 more of my photo cards to sell and give as gifts in the next few weeks and months.  (If you are interested in buying some of them as gifts please let me know.) 

Sunday, we spent the morning at church and headed off to a Pumpkin patch up the road.  I'm so thankful my mom told us about this place and joined us for the fun.  

We didn't attempt the maze but we did enjoy all the other activities the farm had to offer.  Pumpkin shooting, corn swimming, hay climbing, etc.  As usual, Yaya was hesitant to try something new.  She just really doesn't like jumping into things where the bottom is unknown.  Seeing this enormous box the size of half a public swimming pool filled with 4 feet of corn was no different.  Once I told her I was getting in too she agreed to try it.  You would never believe she was fearful of it the way we had to practically drag her out of it to do other things she was having so much fun. It was hands down her favorite activity at the farm.  I think we could have all spent the entire afternoon playing in it.

 

If you know me at all or have read my blog very long, you know I had to photograph and share at least one pumpkin shot.  I loved the texture on this pink pumpkin.  It's bumps reminded me of the little animals that attach themselves to whales and rocks in the ocean.

It was a productive and extremely fun family weekend. I can't wait to see what other fun activities October has in store.

Reliving My Youth

Last weekend, my friend and former boss, Anne flew in for the weekend.  We were celebrating her 38th birthday.  Lucky for me, her favorite band was playing in the area not once but twice.  She is one of Def Leppard's biggest fans and after last weekend she's seen them perform 48 times.  I like Def Leppard but wouldn't have seen them once let alone 5 times if it weren't for her.

I picked her up from the airport and we headed out to watch Def Leppard on their Mirror Ball Tour in the bay. We really enjoyed the concert but it's hard to decide who or what was more entertaining, the people around us, the bands or the weather.  

The next morning we were up with the sun.  Literally!  The sunrise was so pretty we couldn't resist a walk along the water before jumping in the car and heading back to the airport to pick up our friend Tish.  The water was so calm and peaceful.  I couldn't resist walking all the way to the docks to snap a few photos with the sail boats in the early morning light.  

This little fella wasn't too fond of having his picture taken so early in the morning and flew off only moments after I snapped this shot of him to prove his point. 

We spent the afternoon in Golden Gate park and at the Palace of Fine Arts snapping pictures.  Anne and Tish volunteered to be my guinea pigs for some portrait shots. 

I loved the tiles on these stairs and thought they would make a fun backdrop for a portrait. I only wish I had squatted down a bit further to get a better angle on the lower steps.

After a little primping at our hotel we went out to dinner at Annabelle's Bar and Bistro off of 4th and Mission in San Fran.  We were taking Anne out for a night on the town to celebrate her big day.  We pre-purchased a $25.00 gift certificate for only $2.00 on Restaurant.com and enjoyed a delectable meal in a fun new place.  Tish ordered the wedge, potato leek soup and saffron risotto.  Anne ordered the crab cakes.  I ordered a cup of potato leek soup and roasted Rosemary chicken with mashed potatoes and broccoli rabe.  We finished the meal by sharing a heavenly slice of blueberry mascarpone cheesecake.  I don't think I've had a meal that savory in a long long time.  IF you're in San Fran you MUST give this restaurant a try. 

The next morning, Tish's son was performing with a Balinese (is Balinese a word?) "band" at the Asian Art museum in the first ever Bali exhibit and ceremony. Unfortunately, I can't recall the details of the who and the why but this was a beautiful event and I'm thankful I was able to take part.

I do recall this man was dancing the "Mask dance."

We finished the weekend exactly the same way it began by watching

Evan Watson,  Heart  & Def Leppard performing. This time they were at Sleep Train Amphitheatre.

It's been a few years since I let my hair down and acted like a kid and it felt great.  If that weren't enough I've found a new song I can't get enough of.  Def Leppard's new song "Undefeated" speaks volumes to me.  I'm refusing to feel or be defeated in this lengthy adoption journey.  In addition, I've been told everyone's body has it's own rythm in which it beats or functions best.  I think I've finally found mine.  I could listen to the beginning percussion piece of this song for hours and dance and dance right along with it. Click on the link below if you want to hear it.  I'll warn you it's a loud one.

http://youtu.be/0e2W1C1XCTo

It's all about Heart

Two people we care about very deeply are having procedures done on their hearts today.  Will you please join me in praying for Karin's daughter and Bird's father this morning and throughout the week as they recover?   

Psalm 31:24

 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.

Frizzy's Fruitful Harvest and Then Some

I believe I've mentioned how I always longed to have a garden of my own.  It's something I've wanted to do so badly but worried I wouldn't be able to stick it out.  I love the idea of digging in the soil, planting seeds and bringing a garden to life.  However, I do not enjoy finding the little creatures which live in the soil or on my plants and decide to gorge themselves on my fruits and veggies.  To be honest, that's normally where my gardening romance ends. 

The last few years, I've planted and successfully raised tomatoes with my mother's help and encouragement.   In fact, we've had such great success with them we decided to plant a variety this year including Early Girls, Grape tomatoes, Cherry tomatoes, Beef Steaks and Heirlooms. Surprisingly, the grape tomatoes pictured below may be our favorites!  While the squirrels and other critters have decided our Heirlooms, Early Girls and Beef Steak tomatoes are theirs.  Believe it or not, two of our four tomato plants have grown to be almost 10 feet tall and are only inches below the rain gutters on our roof.

  I would like to give Suzanne, author of the blog Privet and Holly a big THANK YOU for sharing this delicious Strawberry-Tomato salsa recipe this morning. 

Like Suzanne, I substituted peaches for the strawberries and OH MY WORD!  Each bite explodes with such amazing flavors!  A definite must try for everyone!  As soon as I saw it on her blog I had to go cut the peaches and tomatoes I had sitting on my counter and give it a whirl!

OK, Where was I?  Oh yes, my garden update! Thanks to the success of our previous tomato gardens we decided to take this year's garden a little further.  We planted potatoes, cucumbers, yellow squash, zucchini, pumpkins, pole beans, an avocado tree and herbs.  Each morning and evening I've ventured through my garden to see if anything has grown or needs a little TLC.  It's also been fun working on a project like this with my mom.  I've really enjoyed spending cool mornings in the garden with her pulling weeds and discussing how to improve a plant's health or a better layout for next year's garden.  Thanks Mom!

One thing I didn't plan on receiving this summer was an impromptu "sex education" lesson from my aunt, Karolyn on how to tell the difference between male and female squash, zucchini or pumpkin blossoms.   That's one conversation and morning I'll never forget.  Needless to say, upon returning home from our vacation I learned why my garden wasn't producing any squash, zucchini or pumpkins.  Each and every one of them were male plants!  GO FIGURE!  My husband and I are infertile why shouldn't our garden be as well?  HONESTLY!  It's the story of our life and if we don't laugh about it we will cry and trust me when I tell you we have had PLENTY laughs over this topic this summer. 

Anyway, as with our own infertility struggles I wasn't about to give up at the first sight of trouble.  I decided to take matters into my own hands and began cross pollinating all of their blossoms in hopes a miracle might still occur.  Yaya has since named me"The Pumpkin Fairy" because a week or so later as I wandered through my garden I found this lovely pumpkin blossom.  In case you aren't aware, IT'S A GIRL!   

You can imagine my excitement and glee!  I could have done cartwheels right then and there! FYI, The male blossoms only have one center stamen and the females have five in a circle.

If that weren't enough excitement for this old gal a few days later I noticed this little beauty. 

HELLO! MY SWEET!

In the photo below, you can see the teeny tiny zucchini and squash I've plucked from our garden.  I'm not talking about the big yellow squash and zucchini under all the other goodies.  I'm talking about the tiny ones in front of the basket or resting on top.  You'll also notice our first potato laying on top along with my very own Italian Parsley, beans and tomatoes too.

My mom and I planted about 20 or so bean plants and they started off doing really well.  They climbed all the way to the roof of our home and along the overhang.  One by one little white blossoms started popping up.  We couldn't wait to enjoy those beans in a salad or smothered in cheese sauce.  Unfortunately, they only seemed to be ready one at a time or if we were lucky in threes.  Not really enough to make a meal of.  If that weren't enough to make us sad, last week our beautiful bean plants came down with some sort of fungus.  They were covered in white dust and the leaves turned brown and crunchy.  My mom looked it up and we sprayed them according to what we believe it was.  Unfortunately, it only got worse.  Yesterday, Bird pulled them all out of the ground and put them out of their misery.  It was a sad afternoon for me to see them go.

Our cucumbers are producing but not well and they look more like lemon cucumbers than the ones we planted from seed.  It's been another disappointment but one I'm not going to let get to me.  We'll try for cucumbers again next summer and hopefully we'll have some to pickle.

Just before Yaya's birthday our plum tree was filled with gorgeous ripe plums. We couldn't eat them fast enough even with the help from the squirrels who had more than their fare share.  My mom and I made 19 jars of plum jelly.  We made 3 different batches and each one turned out a little different though we still can't figure out why.  Is there anything as pretty as a homemade jar of jelly?

My neighbor across the street has been such a blessing.  She has brought us tons of zucchini and yellow squash from her garden.  I've shredded and frozen 10 bags of zucchini for future zucchini  bread this fall.  In addition, she gave us a delicious zucchini relish recipe that is TO DIE FOR! My mom and I have made 3 batches of the relish and now have 19 jars of zucchini relish to share and devour over the winter season.  

As an added bonus, years ago my mom was given my great grandma, Alice's water bath for canning.  We've used it for each and every batch of jelly and relish and we've felt a special closeness to her all summer.  Once in a while it will sputter and make some funny noises and we've decided it's great grandma trying to let us know how happy she is someone's using her canner.  Then again, maybe she was trying to tell us what it was we were doing different with each batch of jelly or relish. 

This was our first batch of zucchini relish! 

You may wonder if I still have romantic ideas about gardening.  I do!  In fact, I probably feel even stronger about it now.  I can't imagine a better way to love and nourish my family from the inside out.  I love knowing where our food comes from and what has gone into it.  Plus, it has saved us money at the grocery store!  The biggest bonus I've received is the quiet mornings with Yaya and my mom in our garden.   

Do you have a garden?  If so, how has it done this year?  What has been your favorite treat from it?  Will you be planting anything in the fall?

Picking up my smoochy.

Finally, the end of our trip was in sight.  We were on the last leg of our trip and were headed to pick up Yaya from her week with Bird's parents.  As we drove down Snowqamy Pass just outside of Seattle, my mom's car started acting up.  Thankfully, we made it to our hotel without breaking down on the side of the mountain or in Seattle's rush hour traffic.  After checking into our hotel, we made arrangements to have her car looked at and set up a time and place to meet Bird's parents to pick up Yaya the next morning. First thing the next morning (Monday) we learned the transmission in my mom's car needed to be replaced.  Good news, it was under warranty.  Bad news it would take til Friday (maybe longer) to get all the parts in and replaced.  After making some quick changes in plans we arranged to stay with my uncle and we were finally off in our rental car to pick Yaya up.  I've never been so happy to see my "little smoochy!"  It felt so good to hug her and hold her in my arms again.  Sigh!   She had so much fun with Bird's family and couldn't stop talking about all the fun things they did together.  

 The entire trip God opened doors with perfect timing.  My uncle had the next several days off from work due to his schedule rotation which meant we had a cozy place to stay in Seattle and a wonderful tour guide.  The next morning we were off to spend some time at Pike Place Market.

We found a bracelet with Yaya's name on it which is a first and my uncle bought one for her. 

(When we first brought Yaya home I was at a craft fair and asked a man in one of the boothes if he had her name on one of his products.  His response was, "You parents that give your kids crazy names and expect us to have them available need to rethink a few things." I will never forget his rudeness or his hurtful comment.  I imagine he doesn't do much business with an attitude like that!) 

We had a blast watching the fishermen throw the catch of the day back and forth.  Yaya even saw a goat's tongue at one of the boothes and couldn't believe people would eat such a thing.  Can you see the flying crab I've pointed to in the picture?

After a delicious lunch we headed out to ride the Duck bus.  It is a tour bus that goes all over Seattle by land and water!  Yaya loved the little duck bill we bought her.  We however, grew quite tired of hearing it's loud QUACK pretty quickly!  Go figure!

We floated by the house from the movie Sleepless in Seattle with Tom Hanks. 

I LOVE THIS MOVIE don't you?

One of the next nights my uncle took Yaya and I to the highest point in Seattle to watch the sunset.  There were photographers lined up everywhere so I knew I must be in the right place.  It's easy to see why Seattle is called the "Emerald City" in the shot below.  I love it because both the Space Needle and Mount Rainier are in it.  Can you see Mt. Rainier peeking from behind the clouds on the right?

While I was snapping pictures Yaya and Kevin were playing down below at a local playground.  They had a blast together sliding, swinging and spinning each other on this little seat.  Little being the key word.  I enjoyed running up and down the hill capturing moments with them together and seeing the lighting change on the Seattle skyline as the sun set behind the hills.

We had a great time making lemonade from the lemons we were dealt in Seattle.  My uncle, Kevin and his partner Zeus treated us like ROYALTY and spoiled us rotten while we were with them.  We really appreciate them letting us drop in unexpectedly and for taking such good care of us.