Peck Life

Food Lately

We’ve been enjoying some yummy grub over the past week! Thanks to a few new recipes I discovered, Valentine’s Day, a friendly neighbor, and an impromptu dinner with family, the noshing has been in full force! Let’s begin!

On Valentine’s Day, we made Cinnamon & Brown Sugar Apple Grilled Cheese based off a recipe I found at Jen Loves Kev. It was so yummy and hearty! A welcome change from plain ol’ grilled cheese for sure. We topped it off with fancy strawberry pop in honor of the holiday {Sky had milk}. Overall, a SWEET dinner, but gooooood.

The very next day we heard a knock at the front door and it was our neighbor {probably the nicest most “normal” neighbor in our cul-de-sac}, giving us freshly homemade tamales to sample and asking if we’d like to buy more as a way to raise money to send her son to New York. They were so good that we ordered a dozen and have been stuffing our bellies with them all week. There are 2 kinds; chicken and pepper/cheese. I can’t get enough!!

Another scrumptious recipe, also found at Jen Loves Kev: African Sweet Potato Stew with Red Beans. Sometimes these things look intimidating but it was actually very easy and quick to make! It was loaded with vegetables and was so warm and delicious. Add a little cornbread and you have the perfect dinner! You can see Sky’s “mini-version” above along with his assortment of fruit, which seems to be a staple for him. He also requested slivered almonds.

Lastly, we had a special dinner with our special cousins, Heidi and Ben who are visiting from out of town. Ben has magic hands and can create anything on a whim…he’s just a natural. They brought over some fish and also “whipped up” a simple salad of radicchio, tomato, beans, onion, and garlic topped with avocado. It may have been the best thing I ate all week, simple, dynamic, and amazinnnnnggggg. We paired the fish with couscous, more green salad and of course, wine. It was the best dinner among even better company. I love them. Seeing them multiple times within the last few months has been such a treat!

{Linking up with mini-meals at with two cats!}

Eat, drink, and be merry

It’s fair to say the entire weekend has been centered around food and gathering. It’s the perfect thing really….eating, talking, visiting, eating more, drinking, dessert. I’m a happy camper.

Saturday night, I met up with a few of my favorite bloggin’ girls for dinner at Z’Tejas in Bellevue, followed by frozen yogurt, which led to mall standing {it could probably be a pastime} and roaming through Forever 21. Part of me felt like I was in high school all over again. Oh, and PS….the mall was so crowded! Bellevue, hello?! Remember when you were tiny? I LOVED seeing these ladies and we had such an awesome time commiserating about life, blogging, raising young kiddos, working, target, colored pants…all of the important things.

Left to right: amanda, jill, chelsey, fiona, chelsea, melissa, mandy, amy, ashley, mandy, me, stephanie, and kiara.

This is Chelsea. She makes me laugh hard! She has a cute daughter named Lily {just like our doggie} and another little bun on the way. You should check out her blog because she’s adorable. <3 {Linking up with Mandy at Harper’s Happenings! On me: pants/kohls {again}, shirt/marshall’s, shoes/ruche}

Aren’t these hats the best? You can get your very own at Forever 21! We got shoosh’d for taking pictures, ooops!

The merriment continued on Sunday for a brunch spectacular at Salty’s on Alki. I’ve always wanted to try it so as a final 30th birthday party celebration with all our family and a couple close friends, it finally happened!

The amount of food is out of control. Anything your heart desires…it’s there. Crepes, omelets, pasta, tons of meat, oysters, crab, shrimp, pancakes, bacon, eggs benedict, 50 million desserts….enough to keep you full forever. Sometimes I get a little weary of buffets…because there are a lot of hands on the same pair of tongs..but really, this was completely fine and the food was soo soo soo good! They even bought us warm towels to wipe the germs with!

We reserved a private room downstairs and I’m SO GLAD WE DID. The main dining room was packed, like standing room only! It was so wonderful, we had tons of space, a gorgeous view of Seattle, our own private deck, and the kiddos could run all over without disturbing the peace. Such a perfect way to lounge while you stuff your face.

This is my best friend, Fallon. I love her a lot…that’s why we make hearts, yo!

Aside from all this consuming and quality friend/family time, the last 2 days of festivities was topped off with a very VERY special birthday gift:

I am like, indescribable, over the moon excited. Not only is blogging one of my favorite things in the entire world and I’m super giddy to learn, hear great speakers, and be in the presence of people I’ve followed and loved for YEARS, BUT….New York City, man. It’s been a dream for as long as I can remember. The one thing I need to do before I die, the pinnacle, the PEAK! I can’t even think about it without getting butterflies. I am SO SO SO excited.

Burlesque me baby.

In honor of my upcoming 30th birthday, I gathered a group of friends for a Saturday night on the town that started with dinner at Wild Ginger, followed by J’Adore – A burlesque Valentine at the Triple Door, and ending {at least for Josh and I}, at Hotel Monaco in downtown Seattle. We decided to splurge and not make the hour drive home at midnight {it was TOTALLY worth it btw}! Dinner was kind of “eh” compared to previous visits to the same restaurant and the show was….comical….but still fun and entertaining. I’ve never been to a burlesque show before – the amount of PASTIES they must go through, eeeek! {Linking up with Mandy at Harper’s Happenings! On me: shirt and pants/kohls, tank/target, shoes/ruche}

{don’t mind my squinty eyes, not sure what’s going on with my face!}

A few highlights and low-lights for you {and so I can remember too}:

SWEEEEEET

• Valet parking included with our hotel stay!
• A peach bellini at dinner, delivered from afar by my best friend, Fallon, who couldn’t make it.
• All the wonderful friends/family that came with us to celebrate!
• Post show Purple Café drink with Clint and Malia!
• The BEST SUNDAY BRUNCH EVER at the Library Bistro. Let me just tell you….HOMEMADE HOT APPLE FRITTERS covered with CINNAMON AND SUGAR, served with CREAM CHEESE FROSTING. I DIED. Then, I had shredded CORNED BEEF covered with a layer of POTATOES, covered with 2 giant POACHED EGGS, covered with HOLLANDAISE SAUCE. And then I died again.

BLAH

• I don’t really have any good photos, nothing was in focus and I was scared to use the flash.
• I will always associate this hotel with “where I was” when I found out Whitney died.
• Watered down drinks at the Triple Door.
• Wanting just a simple chill night out with all my close girl friends but instead it turned into a bit of a planning nightmare and not everyone was able to make it. I learned my lesson and it will probably be a very long time before I attempt this again.
• I’m old – going to bed at 2 am and waking up at 7:30 is NOT A GOOD IDEA. No more for me.

Weekending

Ahhh, a low key weekend. Between the dreary rain and colds we are all trying to fight off, it was one of those weekends where the pillow seemed like the best spot. We did, however, manage to not be completely lazy! There was dinner with family, banana bread making, a bit of thrifting, and many challenging hours spent dealing with Sky’s tantrums and poor sleeping.

Do you think he’s teething? I can’t tell. Not only is he sick right now {oh my gosh the snot!}, but we have started to transition him to a big bed via a mattress that’s on the floor of his bedroom. The ratio of bad to good nights is about 50/50 so I’m still trying to figure out if it’s his cold or this new sleeping situation. When he’s not being cranky and totally hysterical, he is a very very sweet boy. In between the spurts of 2-year old ishness, were many snuggles and silly play times, book reading, and of course, throwing a handful of bouncy balls ALL OVER the house.

On Saturday morning, Sky slept until 9:15 am. A world record I think? All this morning free time allowed me to make banana bread with the rotting bananas that had been sitting on our counter all week! Whoo hoo! I used this recipe from our America’s Test Kitchen cookbook.

Saturday afternoon we stepped out to go visit grandma, grandpa, and GREAT grandma! We ended up at Chinese food for dinner where Sky was actually pretty well behaved, thanks to the toys and endless supply of cheese-its and craisins while we waited for the food to arrive.

{Emily: scarf/marshalls, sweater/don’t remember, it’s old!, jeans/american rag, boots/ office via top shop. Sky: fleece/REI, jeans/osh kosh, shoes/etnies}

{linking up with Mandy at Harper’s Happenings}

Sunday was mostly a lazy day at home with the exception of an early evening goodwill drop off. I had 3 huge bags taking up space in the garage! We did a cruise through the store and while there were a few cute things {like the pyrex below}, we walked away mostly empty handed. The big score was a toy caterpillar excavator truck that was nearly brand new and working. It matches the backhoe we already have! Sky spotted it right away and carried it around the entire store, stopping to play with it whenever there was a little break. I get a little freaked about all the germs and grime but our local goodwill is fairly new so it’s not too bad. Definitely need to some wipes and soap when you’re done though.

And so, the weekend comes to close. As I type this, I’m eating giant peppermint patty hearts. They are pink inside….for Valentine’s day…oh such a good way to end a Sunday!

The Best of Times

Over the weekend, we took a magical trip to the land of snow and winter. One of the great things about Washington is that a two hour drive can put you into another world; there are so many types of landscapes. Our particular location happened to be Suncadia Resort in Cle Elum, a 6,400 acre luxury resort with so many amenities it will make your head explode.

This trip had been many months in the planning. My girls, all our kids, and husbands {plus one boyfriend} too, decided to rent an amazing house with the intent of chillin’, eating, and playing all weekend. And, that’s just what we did. Each family took a meal and between the 20 of us, there was probably enough food to last the entire week. Aside from constantly eating meatloaf, tacos, spaghetti, pancakes, eggs, and Jill’s amazing monkey bread, we had our fair share of drinks after the kiddos went to bed and fireside chats about nothing and everything. Even with the chaos of so many kids, it was so peaceful to be here – just spending our days watching the snow fall.

This is my friend Flannery’s sweet baby girl, Morgan. Isn’t she the most darling thing you’ve ever seen? She is such a happy baby!

We have the best group of friends! Maybe E! should make a reality show about our lives, we are pretty funny and our kids are hilarious. Oh the stories!

Although our trip was wonderful, Sky was clingy, whiny, and non-social with nearly every other kid and adult. The morning after we arrived home, he came down with a cold so maybe it was the pre-sick blahs, but it was exhausting and frustrating at times. I get that he’s a little young to play WITH other kids but sometimes you just wish your kid would act like he’s having fun. I’ve been feeling kind of annoyed with his behavior lately but then, on Monday, I read this post from Melissa, with good perspective and good insight. It was just what I needed to remind me. We are given the type of children we have for a reason. Where we, as mothers, need to grow and learn, that’s what we are provided. It will be fine and these ARE the best of times.

Day Trippin'

It was a rare occurrence on Sunday - Josh had the day off. We decided to take full advantage and ended up venturing to Edmonds for Sky’s first ferry ride to Kingston where we had lunch and played a nearby park. It was very low key and quiet everywhere we went, such a welcome, peaceful break from the normal crowds. It was also the perfect day to practice using our new Nikon camera. I’m completely in love with it. Like, IN LOVE. It takes amazing pictures.

We got so lucky. Of all the days we’ve had lately, it was not frigid (50!) and the sun was out for part of the day. I almost couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw BLUE SKY. Oh, it felt so good to just be outside……walking……in sun……in January. My bones needed some air. We actually ditched the car in Edmonds before getting on the ferry and walked our entire adventure.

Sky loved being on the boat! We spent most of the trip over outside in the blasting wind, running, watching seagulls, and doing “muscles!” with dad. Sweet boy fell down on the bumpy concrete ground and after kisses to fix his “boo boo” on his hands and crying for {what else?} – that dang binkie and blankie, we retreated to the inside of the boat for the rest of the trip.

For lunch, we walked over to J'aime Les Crêpes, a crêperie just up the street from the ferry terminal. Josh and I are both suckers for crepe restaurants so I knew we had to try it. There are so many sweet and savory options, it’s hard to pick just one. It’s kind of like the perfect food.

For the record, Sky had a strawberry jam crepe, Josh had “The Canadian” {canadian bacon and eggs drizzled with maple syrup} and I had the “Grilled Chicken Supreme” {white meat chicken, spinach, provolone, sliced almonds, and a lemon pestoish spread}. I usually ALWAYS go for sweet {the warm peach and apples with cinnamon crepes were taunting me} and the people ordering in front of us were getting NUTELLA AND BANANA CREPES. I mean……hellloooooooo?It almost changed my mind. But, I’m glad I tried something new. It was soooo yummy, filling, and warm. It’s one of those things you can eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner……or all 3!

After stuffing our bellies, we strolled up the street and found a nice park. Turns out, a ferry had JUST left as we were finishing our food so we had an entire hour to kill until the next one. There wasn’t a single person at the park so Sky had free roam. He had fun running, going up and down the stairs…over and over and over, and spinning with dad. That boy LOVES to spin.

The ferry ride back brought some gorgeous views of Mt. Rainier {can you see the Space Needle?} and a very tired and worn out little boy who sat inside the boat, pressed up against a sunny window, watching the world go by. All in all, a beautiful, wonderful, day.

Good Vibrations

Last night, me and my girls had one of our regularly scheduled Ixtapa dinners. It’s always a good way to get caught up on each other and enjoy a few margaritas and a TON of chips. I love them so much and feel so thankful we have each other – they make me happy! In 2 short weeks, we are headed on an adventure to snowy eastern Washington with all our respective hubbies and kids. It’s going to be one full house of people but we are going to have so much fun, I just know it. I can’t wait for a little relaxation – food, fire, playing in the snow, and plenty of antics I’m sure. Board games anyone?

Speaking of things I love that make me happy, I had an iTunes gift card burning a hole in my pocket, so I finally sat down and bought some cool music. I’m glad to finally have some fresh sounds in my iPod rotation! YES! It really brightens up my long commute.

First, 2 full albums I’d had on my wish list forever. The Head and the Heart and Torches by Foster the People. Love love love.

After that, I purchased some random single songs that I can’t seem to stop listening to:

1. Take a Back Road by Rodney Atkins – this song REALLY does make me want to take a back road. It also makes me want to buy a pickup truck.

2. 1234 by Feist – I discovered Feist on SESAME STREET of all places!!!!

3. Somebody that I used to know by Gotye – Kind of obsessed.

4. Creepin’ In by Norah Jones featuring Dolly Parton – Down home goodness.

5. Yeah 3X by Chris Brown [don’t hate] – I’m not a huge fan of Chris Brown as a person but I’ve always loved his songs. They are so damn catchy……I just can’t stop.

As you can see, my taste is completely all over the place. Oh well! I like what I like I guess. Have you discovered any new good music lately that I’m missing out on?

Weekending

It’s hard to believe we had date night #2 all within a two week span, but, it happened. Friday night, we joined our group of close friends for dinner at Earls and more drinks at Lucky Strike {where I realized I really am getting old - what loud music!}. We always have the best time! Almost all of my pictures were too dark/out of focus but we spent most the evening eating, drinking, and laughing. It's such a great group and I can't WAIT for our trip to Suncadia in January!

It's amazing to me how much downtown Bellevue has changed. I remember when the high rise buildings didn't exist. Bellevue Square was the only thing. When I was little, we used to drive all the way to JC Penny and "The Bon" to buy clothes. This was before Redmond had ANYTHING and was just giant fields and pastures for the hot air balloons. Crazy!!

For dinner, I had chicken tacos - which were yummy but SPICY!!! Coming from somoene who loves spice, I could barely taste anything since the hotness was so overpowering!

On Saturday, we hung out at home, had breakfast with Malia since she stayed over to help with Sky the night before, and then Sky and I had some together time while Josh went to work. We watched Charlie brown Christmas and listened to Christmas tunes while playing. Sky loves his play-doh now so we rolled balls over and over and then he would mash them with his trucks. He also played with a giant bag of buttons (they were big and he was supervised!) for over 20 minutes! He loves to put them in his back-hoe and then dump them out. Boy stuff I tell you! I also managed to finish up the favors for his party, some fabric Christmas bags, and get a load of laundry done, amazing!

I thought Sky might enjoy helping me wrap presents; my attempt at trying to be productive while home alone with him. But, after he ripped the roll of wrapping paper apart and wouldn’t stop running with the scissors, I gave up and put everything away. To make up for it, he says “ho ho ho” anytime you mention Santa now. It’s pretty adorable.

On Sunday afternoon, we went over to my grandma’s house to visit. Just before heading out the door, Josh put his scarf on Sky and we snapped a few pictures. GOSH my kid is cute.

At grandma’s Sky helped arrange all the little statues under her Christmas tree. He was a good helper! One of his other favorite activities at her house is to push around her walker…all over the house. His steering ability is actually pretty impressive! My dad made homemade hamburger soup and corn bread. Sky’s response? num num! That was followed up by almost an entire drumstick ice cream cone. It doesn’t happen that often so I let him indulge. When he was all done he decided to wipe his chocolate ice cream face all over my mom’s shirt, hahaha, so affectionate.

Before we left for the evening, my grandma and I were FINALLY able to play our long-awaited game of Scrabble. You see, we've been trying to get a game in for a few months now but between get togethers filled with other activities, trying to wrangle sky, and it just getting too late in the evening, it's been put on the backburner. I LOVE scrabble so i'm happy to have someone else to play with. It actually went faster than I remember so hopefully we can squeeze in a few more games over this holiday.

My Vacation Needs A Vacation

Ahh, well here we are. It’s Monday again and life as usual resumes. This thanksgiving break was particularly challenging and exhausting in every sense of the word; not really in all aspects, just in the “I have an almost 2 year old” department, which seemed to make everything else more difficult. To Sky’s credit, he must be teething, or growing, or learning, or I don’t know….but to say he’s been a handful is un understatement. Last Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday were the worst and it’s progressively gotten better each and every day. As of today, he’s been pretty peachy so I feel a little bad just writing this. But, do you ever feel like your kid is just not themselves?! It’s like someone else invaded his body for 3 days! My guilt was getting the best of me! I was thinking things like “I can’t wait to go back to work!” and “Only 7 hours until bed time…”. How do full time stay at home mama’s do it?

However, It hasn’t been all bad – a play date with Fallon and Gage and lots of time with Grandma and Grandpa helped tremendously. Plus, lots of yummy Thanksgiving food, shopping, and time spent snuggling in bed reading books. Oh yeah, and my coffee.

I ventured out with my mom and Sky on black Friday – it was so funny to watch people acting all crazy. Every store in the mall was just ripped to shreds – impossible to really shop or find anything. I think I’ll just do most of my shopping online, look out cyber Monday! We didn’t buy much but Sky had fun playing on the toys and having a meltdown when we tried to eat lunch. If anything, the trip was worth it just to behold the ugliest pink slippers in the entire world. Maybe for a Muppet Halloween costume?

Gorp

When I was little, my mom would refer to trail mix as gorp. I just thought that’s what it was called. She would pack my lunches with little baggies of peanuts, cheerios, chocolate chips, and raisins, and there you have it. I should divulge here that my mom made my lunch WELL into high school….<3 you mom.

Anyway, one day, I mentioned gorp and Josh looked at me like I was crazy pants. He didn’t know what that was…and I was all….you know, trail mix?! Needless to say, it dawned on me that maybe not everyone refers to trail mix at gorp. In fact, I might be in the minority. When I typed gorp into Wikipedia, it automatically re-directed to “trail mix” – gasp! But, as I scrolled through the article, I found this:

“The word gorp, a term for trail mix often used by hikers, may stand for "good old raisins and peanuts", "granola, oats, raisins, and peanuts", or "gobs of raw protein". These are all probably backronyms or folk etymology. The Oxford English Dictionary cites a 1913 reference to the verb gorp, meaning "to eat greedily". A gorp picker can be a term used for a person who will only eat certain things out of any mixed food.”

My first thought? OMG, is this a term used by backwoods hillbilly’s who don’t know normal vocabulary? But, once I looked up “bacronyms” and “folk etymology”, I quickly realized that wasn’t the case. Phew! Plus, it even says it’s a term used by hikers – like, real life, normal hikers. Turns out, it’s just a slightly less common way to explain a yummy mix of trail-friendly bites. Another quick search and I actually stumbled upon some gorp gold so I thought I would share….if not to entice you, at least as a way to justify writing this post.

{Gorp Energy Bars}

{Chocolate Gorp Rice Krispie Treats}

{Good Morning Gorp}

{Funky Gorp}

{Raw Salted Gorp}

{Coconut Gorp}

{Good ol’ Homemade Gorp}