My babies are FOUR! And I can't believe it.

They have been asking when their birthday was for the past 6-months - every day I think it felt so far away for them.  Every day went WAY too fast for me!  I can't believe they're already 4. 

Matt and I made it to school for cupcakes with our boyos yesterday (the actual day) and then beelined up to swim class for a sugar loaded session.  When we got home, Cole stripped off all his clothes and insisted on eating his pizza dinner naked ... fitting (birthday suit, get it?)

Today our neighbors surprised the boys by decorating the house with streamers.  Our boys bring me such happiness and clearly they bring it to others as family, friends, and neighbors (who are also friends) celebrated these two laughing, joking, sweet, smart, handsome, loving boys. 

4th of July and the 4-year old countdown

This past weekend my mom was in town and it was awesome.  I think it was one of the first weekends when it didn't rain while she was here.  The boys did come down with a little summer cold, though, but not horrible.

My mom got in Wednesday just after the boys' swim class.  Thursday Matt worked in the yard while my mom walked around downtown.  That afternoon my mom and I took the boys on the bus to the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) downtown.  We lucked out and not only was the museum free as it was the first Thursday of the month, but a special Japanese fashion and future exhibit was on and that was also made free because of the 4th.  This was the boys' first time to a "grown up" museum ... all they really liked though were some cool cars hanging in the lobby and a little playroom we found.  Of course.

Friday Matt had to work.  My mom and I took the boys to the beach in Ballard and played for hours toggling between the playground and the beach. 



Saturday the boys had a dentist appointment first thing in the morning (no cavities - the dentist even complimented them on flossing so much).  Later in the morning we made our way to Fox Hollow Family Farm in Issaqua for Grace's (their friend from school) birthday.  I didn't get enough pix of the party but I think her mom belongs on Martha Stewart - the decorations, food, party prize bags, and every other little detail were amazing.  Big virtual high five.  The boys LOVED the farm - they went on a little train there at least 8 times, drove around in mini battery powered farm mobiles (which made my heart stop but they were totally into it), enjoyed the petting zoos (yes, multiple), and successfully exhausted themselves in giant jumpy houses.  Rad. 

Sunday was fairly mellow.  I snuck in a 9mi run in the morning (I need to get my mileage back up!)  Then my mom and I walked around Queen Anne looking at all the mansions.

All in, a great weekend.

HOT!

I never thought I'd say this in Seattle ... it's roasting!  This morning when I left for a run at 5:30am (bad enough being so early) it was already close to 75 degrees.  This afternoon the temperature hovered in the mid-80s - crazy.

This past weekend we spent most of the time dodging the heat.  Saturday we worked in the garden a bit.  Then we made our way to Madison Park to feed ducks and walk along the water.  We found a few great trees for climbing too.  After a failed attempt at a nap, we up with a buddy from work and his dog at the dog park.  Our boys love two dogs (Colt and Tucker) and we tend to "borrow them" as often as possible - this way we don't have to buy a dog yet :).

Sunday was a definite water play day.  We met Sasha, Laura, and Max in Ballard for awesome pastries at Cafe Besalu.  After croissant, the boys and Sasha played in a water park in Ballard dodging sprinklers while Laura and I got our nails done.  This time the boys crashed for a nap.  After naptime we made our way to Nicole, Salil, and RJ's for blow-up pool time where we hung out for over 3 hours.

Simply perfect.

Rocking the early morning (before work) runs

For the past three weeks I have been rocking the "5K at 5am" run routine and loving it.  I have to say, I am not and have never been a morning person.  A couple weeks ago I got in my head that I needed to shake up my running and workout routine so I decided to try early morning runs (instead of squeezing in a quick workout at lunch). 

Here are 5 things that have been helping me with the 5am wakup call and run:
1) Get in the mindset the night before.  I still unfortunately work late most nights after the boys are in bed and therefore don't get to sleep until a bit after 11 - working on changing this.  Every night, prior to going to bed I remind myself "tomorrow I'm going to get up and run."
2) Set my clothes out outside of our room the night before.  Even though I'm enduring the early wakeup call, Matt doesn't want it, so I try to be quiet and get out of the room as quickly as possible.
3) Set an alarm or two.  I use two.  Oddly, I haven't been woken up by the alarm a single time before my runs in the past couple weeks.  I think my body "knows" when it's time to go.
4) Get my shoes on as quickly as possible when I do wake up.  If I wake up and dilly, I know it'll be harder to rally.
5) Stretch, enjoy a tea, and enjoy the only 30min of quiet I get of the day as soon as my run is finished. If I'm able to enjoy the post-run solace and cooldown, I know I'll be more likely to go again.

The view on my run has definitely been helping every day.  I have been running along a nice stretch in Queen Anne with a view of the Space Needle and the water along almost the entire path.  Rad.

A week behind! Weekend roundup.

Overdue, but here are highlights of an amazing weekend from last weekend ... the full Taylor clan was in town with Don, Kathleen, Gabe, and Amanda.  Our little casa was filled to the brim, and it was awesome.   Friday Kathleen and Amanda stayed home with the boys while the big boys (Don, Matt, Gabe) went golfing.  Saturday the entire house was up early so we made our way out for a hike in Discovery Park.  We wove down to the beach - on the way we found a tiny keebler elf ... aka Coley in a tree jumping out at every walker who came by and asking if they wanted a cookie.

At the bottom of the hill we hit the beach for some rock throwing.  Ambling around the beach (and trying desperately to find a potty ... only to let the boys go outside and then learning that they went just under surveillance cameras) we found a group of firefighters practicing in a parking lot.  One of the firemen was a twin himself - he helped Cole and Wilson start their firefighting training.

 

Sunday we made our way to Farmer's Market in Ballard to get some fresh goodies for a Father's Day BBQ.  After Farmers we spent more time gardening.  Our neighbors came over and John had won an Emmy!  So the boys got to play with his trophy a bit - which I'm sure filled him with a little bit of dread.

Monday it was time for the Taylors to go home - but  not without a LOT of story time!

 All in, good times.



 

Weekend roundup: Grandpa Sam time

My dad was in town this weekend and we had a blast.

Saturday morning was the boys' last day of soccer - Wilson acted like a soccer diva (divo?) with his shirt pulled up hooting and hollering at the crowd (aka all the parents) while he ran around the field flapping his arms.  One of the moms on the field kept saying "I love Wilson.  Honestly, that kid is amazing.  Love him." Super sweet.  Cole was scoring goals left and right and was quite proud of himself - all morning after the game he kept repeating "I goaled.  I'm good."

Saturday afternoon we stuck around the house working on the garden.  My dad went to town pruning and weeding and our garden now looks like something out of a magazine.  Our neighbors stopped by to say how nice the garden area looks - let's just hope we can keep it up!

Sunday morning we geared up and went kayaking with Sasha and Max.  The morning was perfect for getting out on Lake Union.  Even the boys got in on the paddling fun doing some work on the lake.  We kayaked out to Gas Works park and then around house boats.

Sunday evening brought more gardening and a big dance party.  Then my dad read to the boys for what seemed like 2-hours and they were in heaven.

All in, a great weekend!

Running fuel

I've been loving kale recently and have been trying it in all new recipes and ways to make it.  Here's my latest:

• 1 head kale (I used two different kinds of kale and mixed them together) 
• Homemade croutons (we make ours with garlic, ginger, and local bread from the bakery up the hill) 
• Artichoke hearts quartered 
• Summer dressing

Here's the dressing recipe:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp lemon vinegar 
• 1 tsp truffle mustard 
• Black pepper to taste 

Here's the result!