A Birthday Weekend

We spent a long weekend at Mount Rainier National park camping and celebrating Micah’s birthday.  We had a pretty good weather (Saturday night was freezing), a great time hiking (despite the snow) and spending nights by the fire.   Here are some of the highlights from our weekend.

We tried to go on a 6 mile (uphill) hike on Sunday but we got about 5 miles through and had to stop because the snow was 4 feet deep and we couldn’t find the trail. Very lame.  But I digress, the start of the hike is here.  We sat on the rocks and soaked up the view (and sun) for a long time before starting.

I saw this log on the hike and had to take a picture because it looked so much like a turtle’s head.

On the way back to our campsite we saw this fox who managed to grab what we think is a deer’s leg.  We’re sure he didn’t take down the deer himself so we hurried along just incase his hunting buddies (bears) came by.

On Monday we took a different scenic road out of the park and stopped a couple times to check out the views.  It’s a amazing to live in a fairly big city, drive for a little less than 2 hours and find yourself here. 

Why did the marmot cross the road?  Beats me.  We were driving along and saw this guy just chillin’.  We aren’t sure what he (or she) was up to but it didn’t appear to be hurt – just hanging out trying to get a tan.

We stopped right before we left the park for one last hike.  It was short but took to a bridge over this canyon.  Look at how smooth the rocks are – amazing. 

Since we’re doing a joint fancy birthday dinner (our birthdays are a weeks apart) on Saturday, we decided to buy some nice steaks from Whole Foods and have a mini BBQ to celebrate Micah’s actual birthday.

I bought him a few small presents and something I wasn’t 100% sure he’d like.

Yes, LEGOS!  It wasn’t just any set of legos, it was Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater set from the Architectural collection.  It normally retails for $124 but I got a steal of a deal a month ago.  It wasn’t cheap but it wasn’t ridiculous.  He loved it and spent the rest of the night putting it together.

Success!  Now we just have to decide where to put it.

I hate to end on a not so positive note but I am officially a pie crust failure.  This blackberry custard pie tasted good but looked like a hot mess.  I’ve had to call in the Pie Professional (our friend Jen) who will be schooling me on the fine art of pie making next week.

We hope everyone had a great weekend and again, Happy Birthday Micah! (and Claire!)

A Different Western Road Trip

When we take a road trip, it’s usually down the coast of Washington, Oregon and California.  We’ve both down that trip a 100 times and we’re planning to do it again in a few weeks.  My sister and her husband are moving back to Seattle for a few years and will be driving both their cars back.  A few months back they asked if we were interested in driving up with them and making an adventure of it.  Sounded good to us.

A few days ago my sister called and asked if we were interested in changing it up a little.  Instead of going up the coast she wanted to go up though Arizona, Utah, Idaho and back through Washington.  Micah and I talked it over and decided we were up for the change. 

Map via Maps Etc

We don’t have any solid plans yet except that we’ll be taking a day or two in Flagstaff, visiting the Grand Canyon, hopefully stopping (very briefly due to the heat) at Zion National Park, a few days in Park City with a visit to Salt Lake City and the Great Salt Lake and  a night in Boise. 

Nothing is really set in stone right now so we’re looking for any and all suggestions on where to go, see, eat and stay.  We’ve got a week to do the trip, it will be late July (and hot) and we have a tiny dog.  Basically we’re saying that we have a few limitations/restrictions but are up for almost anything but camping.  We’d love to camp but there won’t be room in the cars for camping gear.  So, what do you suggest?

The Ultimate Plasti Dip DIY

I think everyone has seen all the cool things you can do with Plasti Dip.  Take these for example:

via Constitutionally Modern DIY

via Vintage Glamorous

But have you seen or tried this?

That’s right folks, it’s a Plasti Dip car.  My friend Nicole decided her SUV needed a paint job but also decided she didn’t have the money to get it done so instead for about $100 bought some spray can Plasti Dip (did you know it comes in spray cans?!?) and made over her SUV.  I’m told it’s easy to peel the Plasti Dip off if you make a mistake or just get tired of it.  I wasn’t sure about a matte finish but I like it.  I’m hoping to get an look at her handiwork in person this week. 

I’m not sure I’m ready to cover our car in Plasti Dip but I am hoping to experiment around with it a little more. 

A Plasti Dip car isn’t for everyone but what are you dying to dip?

Sunday Suppers : Ga Xao Za Ot (Lemongrass Chicken)

We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and a belated Happy Father’s Day to all the Dad’s out there.  Before we share our Ga xao xa ot recipe (aka Lemongrass Chicken), we wanted to let you see the Sri-Lankan feast Momager laid out for Father’s day.

Springhoppers (noodle pancake) with coconut curry gravy, fresh coconut sambal, stuffed peppers, beef curry, goat curry, a fried rice (not Sri-Lankan), fishcakes, 2 kinds of dhal, spicy potatoes and ribs.  Momager went all out.  We usually host my parents on Father’s Day but Momager insisted with the whole ear thing.  Everything was delicious including the goat.  I’m not usually a goat-eater mostly because I’ve had some bad experiences with goat that wasn’t cleaned properly but hers had me going back for seconds.  It’s hard to believe Momager didn’t know how to cook when she got married.

OK, now for our own culinary attempt – Vietnamese Lemongrass Chicken.  This might be Micah’s favorite Vietnamese dish hands down.  A few months back, Micah asked me if I’d attempt to make Ga xao xa ot which I agreed to mostly because we had everything in the pantry.

My first attempt was OK.  The flavors were fine but the big problem was the size of my lemongrass.  I couldn’t chop it fine enough.  The pieces were to big and made for a lot of chewing.  Last weekend I found the answer to my lemongrass problem when I finally found minced frozen lemongrass (I knew it existed, I just couldn’t find it).  I got a 6 oz container for $0.89.  Sorry, I thought I had a picture of it but apparently not.

The minced lemongrass and a new recipe made all the difference (of course).  It was perfect. 

Ga xao xa ot (Lemongrass Chicken) adapted from the Ravenous Couple

• 1 lbs dark chicken meat cut in sections 1.5-2 inch pieces
• 1/2 cup low sodium chicken stock or water
• 2 green onions, cut about 1 inch segments
• cooking oil
• 2 minced shallots
• 4 cloves of minced garlic
• 2 stalks lemongrass, mince the tender white end
• 3 tbs of red chili pepper flakes (use more or less according to taste)
• 1.5 tbs of sugar
• 2 tbs of fish sauce
• 1 tbs of sesame oil
• 1/2 ts of turmeric powder
• 1/2 tbs of fresh ground pepper

In a large wok or frying pan on medium high heat, add about 1-2 tbs of cooking oil and fry garlic, shallots and lemongrass until they are fragrant but not yet browned. Then add chili pepper flakes, sugar, fish sauce, sesame oil and turmeric.  Cook until it becomes a caramel like sauce.  Turn on high heat and add the chicken and sear until outside is browned, and stir occasionally. Add stock/water, cover and cook until juice is reduced by about half. Make final seasoning adjustments and add the green onions just before turning off heat.

For the record, I want to say the the only reason I adapted the recipe was because I decided to change recipes 10 minutes before cooking and didn’t have time to marinate the chicken for 2 hours.  I turned the marinade into the sauce.  I also used palm sugar instead of regular sugar because, well, I had it and wanted to use it.  You can make yours as spicy as you like.  We like this dish with a bit of a kick so we went with a little more chili pepper flake.  I really like this recipe and think maybe the turmeric made the difference.  The last recipe was missing something and I have the feeling that was it.  This is definitely going into our regular dinner rotation.

Also, I’m so excited that I stumbled upon the Ravenous Couple.  There are so many recipes we want to try including the Caramelized Shrimp and Pork Belly.

Anyone else recently discover how to recreate a favorite meal at home?

What I’m Liking (in pictures)

I’m dealing with a weird ear thing right now that feels like my ears are plugged (like when your on an airplane) and sounds like people are talking to me through a plastic pipe.  It’s not fun and I’ve had it for almost two weeks.  I haven’t been doing ton around the house (which is boring) but I have been taking note of some things I’m seeing that I really like.  Think of this as a visual brain dump.

Last Friday Micah and I went with our friend Darik to celebrate the end of the school year.  Micah and Darik used to teach together (Darik’s moving on to my alma mater) and it’s been a rough year.  Darik is a real foodie (we’re fake ones) so when I saw a Rue La La deal to our favorite Oyster place, Frank’s Oyster House, I knew it would be perfect for our celebration. 

Have I mentioned my great love of oysters?  No?  Well, I could eat m body weight in them.  I love them on their own but this place makes all sorts of granatas that are amazing like the bloody mary one we tried.  YUM!  If you are in town, you have to try Frank’s.

Speaking of Frank’s, check out the wallpaper from their restroom.  It’s awesome and hilarious.  Looks like French Country but it’s really more like American Chinatown.  I’m not sure it would work in our house but I like it. 

Last weekend Micah and I bought a few tomato plants.  I tried my best to start ours from seed but the transplanting process didn’t go as planned and the starts died.  I’ve learned my lesson and will not be starting tomatoes by seed next year.  While we were out, I also bought these little Romeo carrot seeds.  I’ve been obsessed with finding them since I heard about them.  I can’t wait to try them.  I also decided I’m only going to grow varieties of veg that I can’t buy cheaply in stores (except herbs and arugula).  We have some spotted lettuce coming in which I’m excited to try and this year we hope to have white pumpkins at Halloween.

Izzy has always been cat like.  Yes, she’s excited to see you when you get home but she’s also fairly independent and likes to spend time alone.  Lately she’s been into snuggling with us.  It’s very cute.  Sometimes she likes to sit with Micah when we’re watching TV.  She used to just find a corner away from us to snuggle in.

When we were talking about house colors, I wanted to go dark.  I was thinking navy or granite.  Micah was anti-dark colors.  He said Seattle was gloomy for 8 months of the year and he wanted the house to look bright.  I saw his point and we went with the very light grey and red.  I noticed a few houses in our neighborhood have gone dark and they look great.  The house on the left is my favorite in the neighborhood.  I love the mix of old and new.  It should be in a magazine.  Look at the hooks and hunter boots lined up outside.  The inside (from looking through their windows)  is perfect.  Lots of light and great art.  I want.

OK, this isn’t the best picture but I had to share.  Have you had deep fried garbanzo beans (chickpeas)?  I made some for this recipe (which is super yummy) and was pleasantly surprised.  Fried garbanzo beans – who knew?  I think freshly fried garbanzo beans with a little sea salt would be a lovely snack at a bbq or small get together. 

Lastly, I went to see my doctor this week (the ear thing) and wandering around the grounds of the clinic reminded me how much I love the building.  We used to live 3 blocks away from it and it was always a treat to walk past it on sunny days on my way to work.  They don’t make building like this anymore.  I might have to go out and take some proper pictures of this building for our house. 

What things have you seen lately are you loving?  Anybody going to try deep fried garbanzo beans? 

Mantel Redo?

So last weeks I showed you our mantel challenge.  I couldn’t get it together enough to like it and leave it alone.  I tinkered with it this weekend and think I came up with something I like.

Before

It’s wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t right.  To dark on the right and not enough height.

After

I didn’t keep anything from the original set-up but the poster.  We had everything in the house apart from the flowers which I pinched from Momager’s garden.  Do I like the new set-up better though I miss the Buddha.  Maybe it’s just the color of the picture.  We love the house numbers and wanted them displayed somewhere in the house.  I’ve mentioned how we got them before.  The candle was from our wedding (and moved from the bedroom), the vase was a housewarming gift, I made a second plant thing (which isn’t slanted – just the angle) when I was working on our throwdown submission and the guy on a bike is from my first trip to Zambia.  It was a gift for our nephew but after I bought it I realized it had sharp bits all over it. 

I know what you’re thinking; what’s in the frame?  Not thinking that? Well, I’m going to show you anyway.

Yes, something usual.  Micah got this in a fortune cookie 4 years ago and it’s been in this frame ever since.  I may change up the fabric behind it but I think the fortune on the mantel is a keeper.

What do we think?  Bring Buddha back?  Keep working on it or leave it alone?

Wall Love

We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  We had a great weekend that ended on a high note.  We left Sunday morning just as Miguel was unpacking pavers and came home with to find this:

We are so excited and really surprised he was able to do SO much in one day.  This would have taken us days, maybe even a week.  Seriously, we a are so impressed.  Miguel did such a great job.  We aren’t quite done with the project.  We’re going to need about 2 yards of dirt to fill in the area behind the wall.  We’re deciding whether to plant some roses or peonies or other pretty things or to plant grass and extend our lawn.  We hope to come up with some sort of plan by the end of the week.  Miguel will be back to fill in the dirt and do some other things.

We are SO excited to have the wall up and almost done. It’s a HUGE task off our summer to do list that is long and full of big tasks. Now we need to get the tree trimmed, the plants on the slope growing and eventually the decks painted.  I would also love it if we could get rid of the ivy hanging off the main retaining wall.

What big project do you have on your summer to do list?

Saving and Spending Green

Happy Friday Everyone!  We’ve got an action packed weekend planned full of oysters, fancy dress, celebrations and good friends.  We can’t wait!

As usual, money has been on our mind this week.  After WEEKS of weeding, planting and planning, we’ve finally decided we need semi-professional help.  We’ve know for over a year that we’ll need a retaining wall for our slope.  There is no way to get around it.  We thought about having it poured but that would cost us at least $5,000 plus we’d have to get numerous permits.  Instead we’re going with something like this:

via Building an Interlocking Retaining Wall

The guy who’s building it, Miguel, used to work for a professional landscaping company.  He was laid-off recently and needed some work.  We agreed that we’d buy the materials and he’d build the wall for $300.  Normally we’d do it ourselves but those suckers are heavy and the wall requires a little know-how since it’s loadbearing.

Miguel is an old friend.  OK, not a friend but an acquaintance.  He was part of the original crew who built our house.  He left before we finished because he got a job with a landscaping company and that’s where his true passion lies.  Because he knows us and knows we aren’t loaded, Miguel gave us a great deal, $300 and we pay for materials.  I know, is that it?  A steal, right? Well, yes and no.  A steal for the labor.  I feel bad paying so little but he won’t take more and even offered us a money back guarantee.  If we don’t like it, we don’t pay. 

Oh, right, why is it not a steal?  Well because each stone/paver thing is $3 each.  We need 192 of them.  Add tax, a $20 delivery fee and 1/2 a yard of compact stone for the base and well, you do the math.  Not cheap anymore but still a deal compared the alternative.  We just keep telling ourselves this is an investment and it will last a long time.  Say that three times fast.

On the brighter side, I got our gas bill for this month and it was a pleasant surprise.  I’m one of those nerds that likes to look at their usage stats.  Check it out:

We spent $38 on gas this month and the average home of our size spends $94.  Holla!  You know what that is?  That’s AWESOME windows.  I seriously can’t stress how much we love our windows.  We spent A LOT of money on windows (we have 25 or something).  We could have gone cheaper but energy efficient was important to us.  The initial cost was a little hard to swallow but according to this we save $56 a month which is $672 a year.  I expect our heating costs to go down as the weather gets warmer.  Also, for the record, I use our range at least once a day.  It’s interesting that it only costs $2 to cook.

We are on a monthly budget plan.  The gas company sets a budget amount based on houses our size and we pay the flat fee every month to make budgeting easier.  We were paying $91 a month but we’ve just been informed it has lowered to $55 (because of winter heating costs) and we’re getting a refund of over $150 because of our energy efficiency.  Seriously, this has made my week.  I know $35 isn’t much but it’s still $35 extra we have every month.  We also plan to use part of the refund to pay for the retaining wall.  Very exciting.

I know, I’m a dork, but what can I say?  It’s nice seeing an investment in quality really pay off. 

Anyone else have an good news to share from this week? 

p.s. We won the lamp re-do design throwdown!  Thanks to everyone who voted and special thanks to Kelsey and Morgana!

What We’re Reading

OK, this more what I’m reading but Micah reads them too.  Anyway, I thought I’d share 5 blogs that we recently discovered and love.

Some DIY, some advice and lots of pretty pictures – what’s not to love?  Also, check out Brittni’s house:

via papernstitch

 

I knew I’d love this blog when I read about the designer.  She’s right and I need to work on that.  There are also some great recipes on the blog.  I also now want to take and road trip and camp in a teepee because of the images below.

via the 10 cent designer

 

Our friend Ben took some time off before starting a new job and decided to bike across Turkey.  Yes, across the country.  His posts are very funny (see caption below) and have some great pictures.  Ben has some awesome adventures and meets some really great people during his trip.  You don’t have to be into riding bikes to enjoy his adventures.

via BenBikes Turkey

 

Once upon a time I wanted to be in the Foreign Service.  I spent time as an intern at the US Embassy in Moscow just to make sure it was the way I wanted to go in life.  I passed the written and oral exams (on the first try!!) and even got through the security clearance stuff.  I was smarter then.  I don’t think I could pass again.  Anyway, my name sat on a list for a year or two and then my eligibility expired.  Lame.  I moved on and things worked out but I still think it would have been an awesome career path.  Anywho, now I read this blog and live vicariously through this couple.

I am seriously in love with this blog.  Beautiful,beautiful home, a great eye and from Seattle – Yay!  I need to do a better job thrifting because she finds some stunning things.  Secretly I want her to invite me on a shopping trip.  I am not a stalker…I promise.  I mean check out this Danish mirror she scored for $10. 

via Modern Thrifter

You want to go shopping with her too right?  I knew it!

What new blogs are you reading?  We’d love to discover some new ones, so please comment below.  Also, don’t forget to vote in the Design Throwdown from Tuesday!

Mantel Problem

I’m having a mantel problem.  Yes, I meant mantel not mental.  I can’t style/dress/arrange the mantel in our living room at all.  I put things together and they look wrong.  I’ve changed it up ten or twelve times over the last few months and have liked none of the arrangements.

Right now it looks like this:

The only thing I’m committed to is the poster.  I really it there.  It was a gift from Micah.  I do like the Buddha statue on the mantel but I could make room for it elsewhere. 

I’d love it if I could come up with something like this:

via HGTV

I like that it’s a little masculine, a little feminine and filled with interesting pieces.  I also like this one too!

via HGTV

I think I need a few more design inspirations.   We like modern and clean with interesting details.  I’m also having problems putting together the entry table.  It was sort of put together before and now is just a mess.  Take a look.

So we are committed to nothing here.  OK, Micah wants his carting trophy on display but everything else is up for moving.  I may be able to find another place for the mirror to live.  I really like this:

via Your Decorating Hotline

It’s not all bad around here.  I do feel good about the mantel-type thing in our bedroom.

It’s not perfect but we like it. It’s the wedding mantel.  The wedding colors, the only wedding print in the house, the unity candle from the ceremony and Micah boutonnière.  I’ll probably play with the right side a little more.

I also really like the American West inspired display.  A few old John Steinbeck books we got from Micah’s Dad.  A few books of Micah’s, a little treat from our house warming and the book block with the brand from Micah’s Grandparents ranch.

We have potential but for some reason can’t pull it together when it comes to the mantel or the entry table.  Help!

Design Throwdown!

Are you ready for a throwdown?!  We participated with Kelsey and Morgana of Fellow Creatives in lamp redo throwdown. 

Here are the rules: 

1. Find a challenger that wants to participate in the Design Throwdown (in this case us). You can either compete one on one or in teams.
2. Agree on timeline, budget (if necessary) and home décor item to redo. Items must be similar in size, style and quality (examples: mirror, bookshelf, chair, etc).
3. Document the process, including before and after photos.
4. Get as creative as possible and, think outside the box. You want to win, right??
5. Start the throwdown! Have fun!! And good luck!

Team 1 : US

Budget Breakdown

Lamp – $7 from Craigslist including delivery to our front door
Paint – we had it already
Glass globe – we had it from an old chandelier
plants, dirt, rock – from our garden

Team 2: Kelsey and Morgana

Budget Breakdown

Lamp – $8 from Goodwill
Stencils – They already had
Paint: Gold-$2, White-they already had
Stencil sponge brushes-$1

Kelsey and Morgana went for the more traditional but very cool redo while we went for something a little unexpected.  I think both projects came out great.

Voting closes on Thursday at 8pm.  May the best project win!!