memorial day weekend 2008

Over Memorial Day weekend, we went with our friends (Justin+Jess) to Sunriver for a few days...it was much needed time to de-stress, get outside, laugh, and catch up on sleep. None of us wanted to go home at the end of our time...we found ourselves saying, "why can't every day be vacation?!?!" The house we stayed at had a beautiful view of the meadow, and was so comfortable. The boys played golf a couple of the days and the weather stayed decent for them. Jess and I treated ourselves...first to the Sage Springs Spa for massages and then to Zante in Bend for facials. Amazing! Saturday night was the Deathcab for Cutie/Decemberists concert at the ampitheater in Bend...we all had tickets but the boys only ended up going because the weather was getting chilly. The sun came off and on throughout the weekend, so we did get out to ride bikes and take walks, which is always something you have to do while in Sunriver! When can we go back?!

one tank at a time

Recently we added a more environmentally-friendly car to our garage...the Honda Civic Hybrid. It is also quite a bit more economically-friendly, costing $35-40 to fill up the tank which can go for 500+ miles! Gas prices are increasing every day (Civic Hybrid gets 40-50+ mpg), but we are so excited about the new technologies in vehicles that are in the near future. Check out these interesting articles:

http://www.hybridcars.com/gas-saving-tips/maximizing-mileage-honda-civic-hybrid.html

http://www.hybridcars.com/news/electric-carmaker-think-comes-us.html

relax

On Saturday we took off to Cannon Beach for the day. The weather was about 70 degrees with no wind at all...you can't ask for a better day at the beach! We took a long walk, visited our favorite brewery restaurant (it's a tradition now!), played frisbee with Chloe, took a nap...ahh it was so wonderful! Can't wait for summer.

warm weekend in Seattle

This past weekend was sooo fabulous! We spent a long weekend in Seattle with my parents and couldn't have asked for better weather. It peaked at about 82 degrees and all of us came away with sunburns. On Saturday my Dad and Jeff took Chloe on a run down on Alki beach and had coffee; later that morning the four of us visited the Ballard Locks and watched the boats and yachts passing between the Puget Sound and Lake Union. We had a yummy dinner that evening downtown in Belltown at an open-air restaurant and enjoyed the last bits of sunshine. I think the day was enough of a tease that we're ready for summer!!

before and after

We are finally finished with our kitchen remodel (although the drywall still needs to be patched up with finishing touches at the opening above the sink). It was a long month of late nights and a very dusty, dirty house! Lots of BBQ-ing, microwave meals and eating out too! We are so happy to have our kitchen back and are enjoying it so much.

Lake Tahoe

On March 15, my wonderful friend Chelsea got married in Lake Tahoe! We have known each other since the beginning of high school so it was fun to be a part of the wedding. Whitney, Kristen, and I all traveled together and had such a fun girls weekend. It was snowing off and on the entire time, which was so beautiful. I added the first picture because it is a hilarious shot of all of us getting pictures taken in frigid temperatures down by the lake...which didn't last very long as soon as the photographer made us take off our coats and Ugg boots! ;-) Brrrr! The weekend was definitely full of good laughs and catching up.

kitchen remodel...more to come!

This is actually a picture from two weekends ago--everything seems chaotic! We cut the hole above the bar, making the opening bigger and bringing in more light. The cabinets were painted, and at this point the granite countertops are on also (not in picture though)! All we have left to finish is building up and tiling the bar, adding handles to the cabinets, painting the walls, CLEANING EVERYTHING (wow, does it need it...there is dust and filth everywhere!), adding the backsplash...wow that does seem like a lot now that I've written it all out. We'll keep posting updated pictures as we finish. Fun fun!

Black Butte

We spent the three day weekend over Presidents Day with Jeff's family in Black Butte, a resort about two hours away from Portland. There was about a foot of old snow on the ground, which made for a beautiful view with the gorgeous sunny weather we had all three days. The house we stay at is on the golf course so the dogs LOVE running around freely in the snow (Chloe gets cold pretty fast, thus the sweater :-) The best things about being in Black Butte have to be sitting by a cozy fire, taking walks in the snow, eating, reading, and relaxing. Can't wait to go back!

a visit to Bumble and Bumble in NYC

This past week, I had the opportunity to go to NYC (very last-minute might I add...) with a co-worker for a few days, to attend a three day color class at the Bumble & Bumble salon headquarters. I came back feeling totally inspired and excited about the new techniques we learned. It was so great to be in that high-fashion, fast-paced atmosphere, surrounded by colorists and stylists who are involved in doing Vogue cover shoots and other editorial work, fashion week, and constantly changing styles. We soaked it all up! The hotel (2nd pic) we stayed at was this crazy and modern place...just a block from Central Park and with a view of the Hudson River, the Hudson Hotel is visited by people who just want to see its design. We were only there four days, but still managed to fit in the three day class, a day of shopping, lots of yummy food at great NYC restaurants, and we also saw the show "Chicago" on Broadway. Let's just say I was exhausted when I came home!

a snowy day in Leavenworth

We spent five days in Seattle for Christmas, and even had a white Christmas! On the 23rd, Jeff, Kelly, and her parents took a day trip to Leavenworth, a Bavarian-style village two hours east of Seattle. What a snowy wonderland it was! We walked around the village, window shopped, ate lunch, tasted beer (as shown in picture :-), cozied up at Starbucks, watched Chloe in the snow, and enjoyed the Christmas festivities. It was SUCH an unforgettable and fun memory with many laughs, and we really had a blast together.