Latte Art

My husband, the barista, is quite the artist! Did you know that making lattes is actually an art? I have to confess that my wonderful hubby makes me a latte every single morning (my waste line is evidence of this). I think he actually enjoys it (one of his hobbies). He learned how to do it mainly from online resources, and he has several friends that are baristas that have given him tips. I have been taking pictures of some of the art over the last few weeks...here are a few. Come on over some morning and sample it yourself!

Dance Performances

This year both of our girls were involved in dance classes. Asha was in an Irish Dance Class and Lana took a Dance Moves Class. They each had a special end of the year performance where they shared a dance they had been working on throughout the year. It just so happened that Matt's parents were here visiting, so they got to see the performance too (we had a wonderful five days with them)!

Mt. Baker

We have some friends that have a condo near Mt. Baker, and several times now they have offered to let us stay at their place (we have never turned them down). Recently, we went up there for a two day get away. No phones, computers or any other distractions....just the beauty of the mountains and time together as a family. What a blessing!! Here are a few pictures.

Mt. Baker up close!

Lana showing us how deep the snow is!

Jeffrey digging in the snow.

All of us!!!

My Special Quilt....

For Mother's Day my dearest friend, Jenny, sent me the quilt she had been working on for several months. This is not just any quilt!!! This quilt is made out of my Mother's clothes. After my Mom pasted away my Sister and I had this dream of doing something more with my Mom's clothes (rather than them ending up at Goodwill). Jenny quickly told us that she would love to make each of us a quilt! It means so much that Jenny did this for us, as she also grew up knowing and being loved by my Mom. My Mom always told me that she thought I had good friends .....Jenny being one of the dearest! Also, make notice of the crosses on the quilt. Jenny told me that she felt like God gave her this idea as she was pondering what pattern to do. This does reflect my Mom's life of loving Jesus...even to the end.

Thanks, Jenny! I love you my friend!!

Mother's Day Beach Trip

This year for Mother's Day my Sister and I were blessed by our Dad! He paid for us, and a few of our girls, to have a get-away to the Oregon Coast. We spent two nights/three days walking and talking on the beach, flying a kite, making meals together, sipping coffee, window shopping, watching fun girly movies, and even playing Pictionary. It was such a special treat for us!!

Mother's Day is never the same now that my Mom is not with us, and we spent some time remembering her and what a great Mom we had! We can only hope and pray that we can follow in her foot steps. Both my Sister and I agreed that we have a lot to be grateful for!!

Here are some pictures to share from the beach.

All of us girls after a walk and kite flying on the windy beach. (Sadly, two of Kristol's girls couldn't come due to illnesses.)

My favorite Sis!

The girls out playing in the sand and waves.

There's Annalise flying her kite! What a feeling to fly a kite! I need to get one of those!

Chicken Pox

Last weekend we discovered that Jeffrey had gotten the Chicken Pox. In some ways I was happy to have it over with (our other three older kids had gotten immunized for it). He didn't get it as bad as I had thought he would (given how bad both Matt and I had it way back when), and he handled it very well. When he felt itchy we gave him baths with baking soda and vinegar, and then put on Aveeno anti-itch cream. I tried to get some pictures of Jeffrey with his pox, but it was hard to capture (especially when a lot of them were right on top of his head). We called him our "Chicky Pox Boy".

Luke and Lana turn 7.....

March is a busy month of celebrating birthdays at our house. Yesterday Luke and Lana turned 7 years old! We asked them what they wanted to do for their birthday. Lana said she wanted to go swimming, and Luke wanted to go to Chuck e Cheese. So....we ended up doing both (we also had a picnic at the park). It was a fun full day! Luke and Lana love sharing their birthday with each other, of course, they don't know any different. Lana often brags that she is two minutes older than Luke, but then Luke quickly chimes in that he is still bigger (he is now several inches taller than Lana).

We are so thankful for our sweet, quiet, gentle, and peaceful Lana. We are also thankful for our funny, loud, passionate, and active Luke!

Here are some pictures of our fun day.

Good old Chuck e Cheese. Can't leave without taking a picture with him.

Each with "their" special cake.

Luke and Lana love playing in the water!

Happy Birthday Luke and Lana!!