Whidbey Island

My trip to Whidbey Island was so charming! This is where my mom spent her summers as a child in Seattle. I wanted to share some special and unexpected finds. 

The Ferry Ride to the island only takes about 15 minutes and worth it! What a great way to get around. 

A local bed and breakfast on the way to town. It looks out to the water, and has a carriage house as well. I'm crazy for shingle style houses!

The rooster just sets the tone for the entire downtown area. So charming, and fun! Desi's pretty cute to!

Kate and the rooster. 

These charming garden obelisks made me want to plant another garden just for them. 

Chocolate plants! They sell the seeds for all varieties of chocolate flowers and plants at the shop below. They even sell cocoa mulch! Now that's a girls garden dream!

Check out the totem pole. I mean Kate, she is only 5. 

Collecting sea shells for art projects at home. 

 Ahhhhh, my favorite!

Entry to a garden at a spa in town. It backs up to the ocean. 

This is a cedar wall. Amazing! I didn't know you could trim it to be so compact and tall. It was striking in person!

Desi couldn't resist roaring with the hand carved lion in town. After all roar was her first word. 

Even the grocery store was charming. Why can't all grocers do this. Food is beautiful!

These 3 square stools were carved from a 200 year old tree that died on the island. I love them, and so did Kate!

This shop makes their own furniture, and this was so beautiful. I love the lines and of course the marble top!

Who doesn't love a dog topiary? Easiest pet to own!

Tinyopolis: Elf on the Shelf and Other Great Things to Start N...

Tinyopolis: Elf on the Shelf and Other Great Things to Start N...: "Guess who's reporting to Santa now? You guessed it, the elf on the shelf. He is my new favorite Christmas tradition. He was given to my f..."

Elf on the Shelf and Other Great Things to Start Now!

Guess who's reporting to Santa now? You guessed it, the elf on the shelf. He is my new favorite Christmas tradition. He was given to my family by my friend Stacey last year, and might just be the best gift ever! He magically appears before Christmas every year, and you never know where he will pop up. My girls just flip out when they look up at breakfast and he's sitting in the chandelier, or yesterday when they came home from school and he found a friend to sit with at our breakfast room buffet. The good behavior is just pouring out them. I love it!! They even use it to control each other. I must say their comments make me laugh so hard that I have to leave the room. I have even caught Kate talking to him when she thinks she's all alone. It is truly a sad day when he disappears on Christmas Eve. We were so glad to see that he joined us before Thanksgiving this year! 

I'm crazy about Rosemary, and came across these larger sized trees at Lowe's yesterday. They were only $22! They are so cute on an island or in the kitchen somewhere. I just buy a plastic liner to go on the bottom, and cover it in a favorite fabric. I like to set it out before Thanksgiving in a warm fall like fabric, and then for Christmas, switch it to Red Burlap. My girls and I also love baking gingerbread men and hanging them on the tree. It is so fun to do, and it smells amazing. 

The tree needs very little water, and in the Spring it is a great addition to the back patio or garden. I am really getting the holiday spirit. I hope you are too. I'd love to hear about your favorite things to start doing right now. 

From Trash to Treasure! A Whole New Meaning.

As moms we all experience the daily tornado that comes through the door after school, and I am always amazed at the damage that can occur in the playroom, bathroom and bedrooms in just 2 short hours until dinner. I have tried everything from denial to yelling, and nothing seems to click. Well, thanks to Carla, my dear friend in San Diego, I have been using her method of getting kids to clean. So far, so good!

First, you give fair warning, and an explanation of what is going to occur each night 30 minutes before bed time. You are going to quietly go through the above mentioned rooms with a trash bag and pick up every item that is on the floor. There is to be no discussion or crying about it. They have been given the opportunity to clean up after dinner, and if they choose not to, the items go away until they can earn them back by having clean rooms the next night. This might mean the occasional missing shoe, so they may have to wear shoes that don't match the outfit, etc.... It sounded kind of harsh to me at first, and I envisioned loads of trash bags stored in my garage, however, it is really working. They have actually taken me seriously. I'll let you know next week if this seems to be working. So far, their treasures are safe from the trash!

YUM!

If you are a parent, you know that children of any age are never full. They are always hungry, and once old enough, seem to fully enjoy standing in front of the open refrigerator and just check out the inventory. My new friend Piper gave me the best recipe for a healthy snack and my kids just love it. I thought I'd share it.

Granola Bars

2 cups peanut butter
1 1/3 cups of honey
1 cup milled flax seed
2 cups Quaker Oats
1 1/2 cups chocolate protein powder

Melt peanut butter and honey in microwave for a minute, and then add all other ingredients and mix together. Take a rectangular cookie sheet with sides and dump mixture onto it. Press dough with hands until it fills the sheet. Place in refrigerator overnight. In the morning, cut into squares, and stack them in a Tupperware container with wax paper sheets in between each layer. Store in refrigerator until ready to take on your daily adventures. I like to put them in wax paper to keep their shape.


Anytime anyone needs a little something something, I've got it!

Design Magazine addict at 5

Last night as I put my daughters to bed, my oldest (Desi 7) wanted to read a few chapters in her Junie B book, and my youngest (Kate 5) weighed all her options, and truly wanted to just look at the Pottery Barn Teen catalog and plan out her next bedroom design. My mind immediately raced back to our last visit to the library. Could I be teaching Kate bad habits? Mmmmm? I did go to the magazing section while they stayed in the children's side, and Kate did wander over to check out the beautiful European gardens and interior design of a British Country Living. I've created a monster. She is just like me. What will be next? Will her teacher ask her to list her sight words, and Kate will ask if she can pick out a new Farrow and Ball  paint color for the classroom walls? Or better yet, ask if they can learn to plant thyme topiaries for table centerpieces? I guess any reading is good reading, but tonight we will focus on Good Night Moon.