Food, Glorious Food!

Are you like me and have tons of recipes on your Pinterest board that are yet to be tried?

Well I am trying to go through them, slowly but surely. Every week I'm trying at least one new recipe.

Oh, and I also did something else new! I made a page dedicated just to recipes I've tried that I know for sure are good. Its right on the blog header next to my About Me page. So check it out if you're looking for something new to make for dinner. Or you can just click here.

Now to the Pinterest goodies:

Oven Tacos = Awesome! I made these bad boys twice in 2 weeks. Total score.

But, next time I'm going to make them with those flat bottom shells so there is more room for the toppings.

This pin caption said it was "the BEST crockpot meal ever."  Umm, not so fast there, that is a big statement!

Granted it was very good and super easy...a definite pleaser for kids, and my husband liked it. But best ever? I think not.

Prosciutto, Asparagus and Parmesan Angel Hair...I really loved this, it was easy and it looked pretty on the plate. Make sure you use good prosciutto!

I just pinned this green smoothie from Yummy Mummy.
Its just almond milk, spinach, frozen pineapple and mango....the best green smoothie I've tried!



linking up...

Over the Threshold

I'm sure if you are reading this blog or are a blogger than you are familiar with Threshold at Target. Blogs and Target go together like mac and cheese, we are one, let no man separate us! 

But I am kind of obsessed with the new style of the Threshold items. In my opinion it features some of the best, cleanest design yet from Target. Often I feel like Target stuff will have just a bit too much going on. Or is that just me? I'm weird. You know what else is weird? The word "threshold"....anyway...this stuff looks a lot more expensive than it really is...

Diamond throw pillow, $35

Ikat window panel, $30, comes in 6 different colors...the same look as a certain
West Elm Ikat curtain for much more $!

Red Lattice mirror, $30....hello fun entry way!

Honeycomb vase, $13-20...Again, West Elm has similar for twice the moola

Floral Pitcher, $20...would make a great vase too!

Lovin' Portland

Wow, its only been a month since we went to Portland and I am finally posting about it. We flew from Long Beach (where we live) directly there. (Confession: I love airports. For some reason they just make me feel cool when I am walking through the terminal with my bag slung over my shoulder and coffee in hand. I don't know what it is, the excitement of going somewhere...the hustle and bustle...the free pretzels?...who knows). On this particular occasion, my friend Andi who is an amazing photographer just happened to be on the same flight as us, so she took a bunch of awesome pics with her giant camera. I love her...she shares the same affinity for airports. Check out her blog post about it here.

Carys & Nathan

People probably thought we were celebrities, haha

Love this shot...

We actually first went to the Sandy/Estacada area which is about 45 minutes outside of the city to visit family. We stayed with Nathan's cousin's family...they have 5 kids, homeschool, and if they drink milk, its directly after being milked out of a cow...or a maybe a goat. So, anyway they are pretty much awesome! They have 2 girls who Carys had never even met before and she immediately disappeared with them, even sleeping in their room the night we got there!

Caroline, Nora, & Carys

Not too shabby of a view for a bath....

Then we stayed in the city for 2 nights. I just love the vibe of this place, and it didn't hurt that all the food we tried was amazing. Their motto should just be Portland: Come hungry. I also love how they had easy mass transit so that renting a car wasn't needed at all.

Food truck heaven

Here's Nathan and Charlie walking. We walked everywhere.

We stayed at the Hotel Vintage Plaza, that red building up ahead. It was a good central location and was really nice...plus they had these moose heads below in their lobby....

They have a pretty awesome Nike store where I wish I could've bought out the whole womens section. 

It featured this interactive wall that was kind of rad.

We had one breakfast at Le Petit Provence (above)  where they serve freshly made croissants instead of toast, and on top of that everything else was divine. They serve butternut squash mixed in where their home fries...genius!

The other breakfast we had was at Mother's Bistro, which everyone said was the spot to eat breakfast, aaand yes it didn't disappoint. They had fresh squeezed apple juice that was wonderful.

Then we had our anniversary dinner at Noble Rot, a restaurant/wine bar that has an amazing view of the city from across the river. Again, the food was fresh and delicious.

Oh, and here's a travel with kids tip......bring glow sticks for the hotel room and they will be entertained for quite a while!

Portland is famous for Powell's Books, the biggest bookstore pretty much anywhere I think. We escaped from the cold to read some books.

 One lunch we ate at a joint called Lardo, described as a modern sandwich shop, where we had an amazing burger (below) of grass fed beef with pork belly on top, and some perfect fries topped with parmesan and thyme.

Across the street is ice cream shop Ruby Jewel, where they serve fresh, hand crafted ice cream, waffle cones and ice cream sandwiches. By the way, Charlie was fighting a pretty bad cold the whole time, but she was such a good sport being lugged around everywhere.

Ice cream fixes everything.

The only bummer is that it was such a short trip, we only scratched the surface. 

So we are happy to be going back in September for a friends wedding. Until we meet again PDX!

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Faux Fun

Anyone who has been to my house cannot miss the rather large African animal head on my living room wall, so I do have a special place in my heart for taxidermy...

A very stylish friend of mind just got a faux deer head from this Etsy shop called Mahzer and Vee. You guys, this shop is insane, I can barely decide what my favorite item is! Their things are quirky and colorful and modern, awesome for your living room or a cool kids room. 

You know, if you're into that sort of thing....

It's a pistachio green David bust, I have a thing for mint, what can I say.......$54

This might be my favorite, moose antlers are pretty rad, and they are gold.....Moose head, $105

This would be fab in my daughters room, she is an Idaho girl at heart after all......Deer head, $109

Then again, her favorite color is purple, so this one is even better!....Deer head, $109

 They have lots of animal statues too, this would be great on a book shelf or the mantle....Horse head, $49

They have about 200 items to look through, have fun!

Work Hard, Look Good

Motherhood is hard work. It is repetitive and often times menial. Accept it. Rejoice in it. This is your toil. Right here. Those are their faces. Enjoy them. The days of your life are supposed to be full of things like this. But joy is not giddy. It is not an emotional rush—it is what happens when you accept your lot and rejoice in your toil. So rejoice in your children. Look them in the eyes and give thanks. You will not even remember the work of all this planting when the harvest of joy overwhelms you." 

- Rachel Jankovic

I saw this quote today and just love it. Especially that last line. I promise it did not almost make me cry. Almost...

By the way Rachel Jankovic is an amazing writer who contributes at Femina, a wonderful and inspiring blog for Christian women. I highly recommend it.

Usually I find time to blog at night, after everyone goes to bed. But lately those times have been filled with things like finishing my bible study or looking for the right homeschool curriculum for next year, or looking at Pinterest, or just watching TV because I am so drained I just don't feel like doing anything at all! So alas, my little blog hobby that I love has fallen to the side. I've been working on posting pictures from our Oregon trip for the last 2 weeks! Maybe this week I will finish doing that (crossing fingers)...

Speaking of motherhood...over at one of my favorite blogs Danielle Oakey, she is featuring some casual, every day jersey dresses from start-up designer Sonnet James that are casual but still super cute, and to make them even better, they are not sheer. For some reason I have issues with my casual dresses being sheer...but anyway, sorry just to steal part of Danielle's post but I am loving these! 

Stella

Alexa

Remi

OK, I gotta go get dressed now and be productive...have a great day!

Linking up @:

Friday Favorites

Tell my husband if he gets any of the below items for our 6th wedding anniversary this weekend, then I will be perfectly happy...

 1. Sabine stackable rings, Piperlime, $28

 2. Metal leaf necklace, Modcloth, $15

3. Metal bib necklace, Modcloth, $25

4. Trina Turk Ring, $65

5. Mini Brompton bag, J. Crew, $258

6. Oran Top, All Saints, $68

7. Tinley Road sleeveless dress, Piperlime, $79

8. Charlie fatigue jacket, J. Crew, $188

No Rush

Conversation with my 4 year old while riding in the car yesterday:

Carys: Mommy, when I grow up, will I move out of the house?

Me: Yes, you will.

Carys: But, I'm going to miss you! (starting to sound sad)

Me: Well it's not going to happen for a long time.

Carys: But what if I don't want to go (even sadder, tears are starting)

Me: You don't have to move out, its up to you, you can stay if you want

Carys: Really??

Me: Yes

Carys: OK, good because I want to stay with you. (happy again)

It was so sweet! Of course I might not feel this way in 15 years, but I am in no rush at all. 

And how about this segue...here are some awesome kids rooms!

What's better than antlers, but gold antlers! I love this whole thing, the fox picture, the wallpaper....

Dream room idea for my girls, white bunk beds, gray stripes...but of course we would need to add some pink and purple up in here

Check out Guiliana and Bill's modern nautical nursery for their boy, I adore that octopus picture and the white mirror especially

How about this play room? I love the chalkboard with those little hanging pails

Yes please!

(*All images via pinterest, please click on photo for the original link)