Worth Reading

I got paid a visit from friend yesterday at work, and it reminded me of an article she had posted on facebook a while back.  This is well worth reading for any couple, but married couples in particular.  Granted it didn't work for me, that's OK, but I think it is quite valuable,  in today's society where it seems people throw their marriages away all too frequently.

Photo fun

Trying to have some lazy and fun last few days of summer.

Pool Fun with Friends

Stuart got loved on by Cal

More love.....

Look at this big guy, Ben's 1 and on the move

OK we REALLY LOVE Stuart

Slummber parties will do this to you

Giving Thanks

Kinda snatched a list of ten from another friends blog, but I am feeling all kinds of gratitude lately, thought I'd list 10 things I am thankful for this week.

1.  First and foremost, the opportunity to be Luke and Lo's mom
2.  My parents, sister (her whole family) and my Bff's
3.  The opportunity to have a business in the hospital (puts life in perspective daily)
4.  That because of Lars I learned to cycle, run (my first run EVER was in 2008) and skate ski
5.  That I met someone I can take all things I've learned from the last relationship and apply to this new one
6.  Thankful I've been able to keep my house....and take care of it
7.  Finding myself again
8.  I am extremely thankful it doesn't hurt to see Lars anymore, and thankful I don't miss him
9.  An amazing open relationship with my kids
10.  That I can stand on my own two feet

Kale chips and hummus

Ok, so for the hummus I wing it by taste.  I use my mini Cuisinart, 1 can of garbanzo beans(drained), a decent scoop of tahini( a jar last forever),  squeeze of lemon, olive oil (I like my hummus thick so I don't use a lot), a clove or two of garlic, cumin, salt and pepper to taste.  Takes maybe 5 minutes.  The fun comes when you start adding what you like.  Slice up a jalapeno, throw in basil, last week I carmelized onions.
 
Kale chips, a friend just shared this with me and its brilliant!  She uses a salad spinner (I don't own one) wash and dry Kale, cut off the leaves mix with olive oil, and what ever seasoning you'd like (I use one that I use on my grilled veggies) put on a baking pan in the oven at 350 until crispy (7-10) minutes...ish!

Happy eating all!

Fresh Goodness

My body, soul and mind feel nurtured!  I have a lot of balance going on in my life.  I feel as though I am living the way I was always meant to live, just couldn't quite get it all balanced properly before!  One of the things I had been missing was to slow down in my day to day life and take time to cook delicious, quality foods that make me feel good (and I know what is put in them).
This is one (of the many) qualities I can appreciate in the "male friend" I have been spending time with.  We love getting fresh veggies, slicing them up, talking, preparing, cooking, then eating them.  I love slowing down, and in the process feel better!
Tonight my sis and a friend of mine spent the evening at the Leavenworth Farmers Market, hands down the best one in the area.  Lots of variety in produce, and I believe most if not all are organic.
I bought Jalapenos and basil for hummus I have been a mad hummus making machine lately!  Forgot  how easy it is!

Cal at the farmers market

From the backside, maybe a fourth of the vendors

My goods

Couldn't resist when I got home, had to cook up some Kale chips!

A serious love for something raw

This is something I just have to share with you all.  It should be noted I often take pictures but they don't do it justice so take my word for it and go in and try it.  My favorite place to eat in town is Iwa, yes it is sushi, but they really have something for everyone!  It is a bit of a habit (twice a week usually).
Their menu is online, they are great for take out too, but the ambiance in there is awesome plus they have a pretty extensive Saki list (Snow Beauty is my new favorite).
The best way to do it is with at least 1 other person, get several rolls or sashimi and share!
For starters the edamame is great while you decide, but a couple of my favorite Signature rolls are the Tiger, Red Dragon, Mountain and Mango rolls.  Lukes favorite is Godzilla, Logan sticks to the straight up California roll, off the premium roll list, another one that's great off that one is the Spicy yellowtail!
Trust me on this and give it a try, we are pretty lucky to have such a great place in Wenatchee!

Randomness

I am busy and happily living my life, and it's a very good feeling!   Summer is winding down, the kids are getting ready to go back to school.  I have mixed feelings about this, I love summers, and LOVE when they are home.  This summer was a little different, in the years past I have worked 3 weekdays and a weekend, and was able to be home so much more with them.  This summer, as a single parent I needed to work full time, Monday-Friday it was.  While I feel very fortunate to have that opportunity I sure missed the lazy summer living we usually have.

Luke enters High School this year and he is super excited, which I will say eases the anxiety I feel about it.  Everyday he is physically more and more  "man like".  While we were in Chicago, he was standing in front of me and his legs looked so manly...I burst into tears, it was a mix of tears and laughter (over the fact that I was actually crying over my son's man legs)!

My little Lilo will be in 4th, and she's just down right awesome!  Nothing much new with her.  She plans to do Broadway at one of the dance studios this fall, which will be so fun!

Me, I am in full marathon training mode.  I will say I have absolutely loved it this year.  For the last month I have been doing 18-20 mile long runs on the weekend.  I take my dog,  it's quite and we run.  I solve the worlds problems, it seems in those few hours! I am convinced I have remained injury free because of the lack of stress in my life.   Now I run because I know it's good for me and I enjoy a little peace and quite in my day.
My divorce was final March 1st, started dating AFTER it was final, some dates good, some not so good.  Some turned into great friendships, others I may never talk to again......
Nearly a year since my world was turned upside down, I would say I am in a relationship!  A healthy wonderful, supportive relationship. It feels good, life feels balanced, and hopeful!

A little Sunday morning brownie baking

Luke's insanely large burrito at SOUTH

Exhausted

We have had a blast, but the three of us are exhausted.  It's a good kind of exhaustion, we've had such a good time, seen everything and more that we came to see.  Now we are ready to return home, and be away from the crowds and the hustle and bustle of a city!

i keep calling this the egg, but the right name is the Cloud Gate

Millennium Park

We made a brief trip in here

No trip is ever complete without a stop at a cool coffee shop~ Intelligentsia

Ok we stopped in Millennium again after the Art Institute and had a snack and people watched for an hour

A beautiful summer day in Chicago, not to humid either today!

My beautiful girl!

Day 5

Took the bus today out to the Lincoln Park Zoo.  Such a nice little zoo, its free too, right in the city!  We had so much fun, we all agree the chimps are our favorite!
Speaking of chimps I have been wanting to see the IMAX film Born to be Wild, had to twist my kids arms,but we went this afternoon to Navy Pier after the zoo and saw it.  Oh man did I sob, loved it!

Waiting for the lightning storm

We loved the baby

Luke being a dork, me trying to give him love



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Budget travel

I have only one picture of yesterday (we opted to shop on Michigan Ave, not very photo worthy) so I thought I would do a quick blog on budget travel!
I've always been a budget person, but now supporting two kids on a small income, even more so now.  First I prioritize whats important to my family, a roof over their heads, and food on the table clearly come first.  But giving them the experience to travel and see all that's out there for them is invaluable to me.  And we do take trips often, I recently received quite a bit of criticism from a certain someone about it.  These are some tips on how I budget and can make this happen:
Planning for the air/ hotel combo takes me several days, I search out all options, such as different days, flight times and different hotels.  I take notes as I search and what website I am finding what on.  On this trip for example to keep costs down while traveling with 2 kids one of my requirements was a hotel with breakfast (I find the price does not vary much for this option), then I go back and book the best deal.  This trip I actually found staying one extra day was $140 per person less.
Someplace like Chicago I look over the City Pass, and if it looks like we will use at least 3 of the 5 attractions we go for it.  It should be noted too if you have a city pass you bypass the long lines and gets you into special attractions at each exhibit, well worth it when traveling with kids.
A typical budget savy day for us looks like this : Big breakfast in the hotel, plus we grab some fruit for later to take with us, we usually don't do lunch, instead I travel with my messenger bag fill up 2 reusable water bottles (refill at fountains throughout the day), I pack Z Bars, Lara bars, fruit, nuts, snacks that provide some type if nutritional value and keep us fueled, and then an early dinner!
This room also has a mini kitchen, so we made a stop at Trader Joe's and stocked up on some snacks and drinks for the room.  This place also has dinner, we've done a couple here when the kids are tired and not wanting to eat out.  I did want them to experience Chicago style pizza and some other local foods.  But being a fish eating vegan, limits most of my eating out meals to salads so eating dinner here seems just fine, one night it was a baked potato bar and last night was a sandwich bar.
Also public transportation.  The bus fare here is$2.25 for Luke and I and $1 for Lo.  It doesn't take all that much longer than a cab, they run pretty often and you get to meet so many other interesting people, again its all part of the experience!

The bag and it's goods...it does however get heavy after several hours!

Our legs are tired but we're still going!

Day 3 will be highlighted with the following pictures!

Budget traveling the Bus/CTA works so well.

This was just plain disturbing, this is the back part of the Anaconda at the Shedd Aquarium

Having a quick snack...next to the dolphin tank

The kids in front of Sue at the Field Museum

My barnacle children, at the Shedd

Hot and sweaty

3 busy days....and this is what happens at 6 o'clock

So proud of Lo, she's been saving her own money since I booked this trip back in February, just for this occasion.  A doll and 2 outfits later!