Visit from the 'rents

My parents came up to visit for my brother Davey's graduation.
Stella was happy...and so were they!



Eating with Papi Dave.



Hanging out with Nana Linda.



Mom picked a TON of vegetables from her garden & also brought up about 35 pounds of peaches. YUM. She brought heirloom tomatoes, peppers, carrots, zucchinis, lemon cucumbers, basil, chives....so much I thought there is no way we can eat all this before we leave on Monday. SO, I was inspired & I made summer marinara sauce from SCRATCH. Almost everything I used in the sauce came from Mom's garden. Except for the spicy italian sausage & the garlic & the pasta itself.





What a bounty! Davey & Xtina came over to help us eat it all.



I haven't made a spaghetti sauce from scratch from fresh vegetables in a while. It took FOREVER but it was amazing. Definitely worth the extra time & love. The creative process involved in the cooking made me want to paint & make art again....layering in the flavors & colors of vegetables is like crafting the palimpsest in a painting. You can't readily tell what is in the sauce from the beginning stages, but it builds the body of it & resonates through the dish...much like the early layers of a painting.



I made a Caprese salad too with the heirloom tomatoes & got some fresh mozzarella from the market. My favorite summer salad. I love summer eating. Such a harvest can only mean one thing though...autumn is right around the corner...Autumn I greet with mixed feelings. But, as they say, to everything there is a season, and all in all, this has been a great Summer!

Nana Cathy's Visit

Topher's mom Cathy came out for the weekend after his birthday. It was her first visit with Stella, but Inigo missed her too. Pretty comfy on the couch, all three!



We celebrated Topher & Cathy's birthdays with Sushi dinner & then a chocolate treat @ Pix Patisserie. YUM!



Stella loves her Nana Cathy!

Stella's First Swimming Lesson

Yesterday we were at the pool & decided to try Stella at swimming a little. She loves the bath...but only when it is to 99 degrees...so the pool is definitely not that warm, but yesterday it was pretty nice. We had finished up our swimming & chaise lounging for the day & Stella took a monster crap just moments before, so we were in the clear. On with the baby swimming suit & Yippee!!!

She did really well at first.



Then she wasn't quite sure.



Then she really wasn't sure, so we gave her a little break.



Then we tried again with Success!



Can't wait to start her in swimming lessons when we get back from Tahoe! It will be so FUN!

Happy 3 Month Birthday Stella!

I find it funny how you track everything at the beginning of life by weeks. Then as you get some weeks under your belt, you start tracking life by months. Once some twenty something months roll by, people start tracking your existence in years. If you are a kid though, you use fractions of years as well, always making it sound like you are a little older than you really are. I.E: I'm six & three quarters! Once some twenty something years roll by, people stop really caring how old you are, except for the milestone 30, maybe 35, & then wham 40! 40 is a big one I think, no matter who you are or how much you never celebrated birthdays. After that, what, 60? 60 is the new 50 maybe.

Anyway, little baby cat is celebrating her 3rd month of life today by showing us all how she can roll over! Holy CRAP! Can you say T R O U B L E? We looked in the "what to expect the first year" book & it says she shouldn't be doing that until month 4, most times month 5. I think I'll just burn that book now. Any kid who skips the whole crowning part isn't sticking to the script right from the start.







So she rolled over & then she played for a while & then I think she wore herself out from all that action & passed out in the terror dome.



She's so awesome. Her little personality is really starting to come out, little funny sounds are becoming more refined vowels & consonants, she is cramming her hands into her mouth & doing the mr.smithers contemplating plotting & planning thing with her hands, she is awake & aware for long wonderful stretches & she is pulling on her favorite dangly toy & shaking her rattle. Her elbows are chubby, her knees are chubby, her fingers & toes are chubby & she is really starting to get LONG! She's already outgrown all her first round of baby clothes. With some certain nostalgia I packed them into a bag the other day. Some to give back to the original givers, some to put away for...another one? Don't know yet...we'll think on that on a bit. Still too early to go there.

I can see why people say, "Long days & short years" when they speak of their kids, that makes sense to me now. It seems like the blink of an eye ago I scooped her up out of the water of life & she took her first breath. Love you Baby Cat!

Washougal River Day

The other day when Gigi was here we decided to go to the river. We were given secret coordinants through a top secret interface method called "facebook". This incredible technology has allowed us to be downloaded with the most pristine & luxurious of swimming holes. Yay for us!

We made it to the secret spot unscathed & no one else was there. Fed the babe some lunch & were about to go for a dip when we hear some peeps creeping down the path....they come out of the brush & low & behold its our good friends Sarah King, Mira, Blest & Leighton(who I hadn't met yet). Family fun day turned up the fun just a little bit as games of frisbee, wobble weeble beach ball & river floaty mayhem ensued. What a gorgeous spot. The water was on the chilly side of refreshing, but once you were in for a while it was really nice.




It's pretty funny because I guess when they got there they were bummed that there was another car at the trailhead, but were super glad when they got down the trail to discover it was someone they knew. & Sarah King & I have been trying to get together for her to meet Stella, so it all worked out perfectly. They got to meet in such a beautiful place & stare into each others eyes & giggle & make faces & get acquainted really well. It was super fun.


At one point, Inigo did get into Mira's snack while she was swimming in the river. He feels really bad about it though & says he is sorry. He didn't mean to eat your snack Mira, he just has a very sensitive nose & a pension for trouble. He can't really help it. Look at those eyes...

When we were sufficiently cooled, relaxed & quieted by the serene surroundings of the always lovely washougal, we headed back to ptown for the evening. Somehow, all that relaxing makes you really tired. I never got that. But its one of my favorite things to do: to rest after relaxing all day.


Ahhhh summer....

A Flower for Stellita ~ from Abuela

My mom has the most amazing garden at her house in Southern Oregon & sent this picture to Stella as a present from her Abuela. It sure is perty! Thanks Mom!

So Much to Celebrate!

August is always a busy month! Yesterday was Papa's 40th Birthday. So the next day we got some much needed rest after staying out a little too late.

Today was Aug 15th, Davey & Xtina's 1st wedding anniversary. Party girl loves to Party! Stella is such a great baby. She mostly sleeps at parties when she's not being passed around looking cute.

Uncle Davey made a great bbq spread of kabobs & corn & yummy deserts. it was very fun to hang out with uncle davey & auntie xtina on their 1st anniversary! CONGRATS! I gave them their wedding present too. A handbound photo album I made & put out at their wedding. I spliced in pictures from the wedding & wellah, instant best present EVER! Davey said it really brought the whole year to a close nicely. I like that. Makes sense...






It was a fabulous night filled with friends & family & light & love!






I'm pretty sure everyone but ZOE was having a good time.