o happy day : momma & papa

Today marks the 37th Anniversary of my loving parents.

To celebrate they went out to Pho Van and enjoyed a delicious meal.

and fed each other Creme Brule for dessert.

Now aren't they cute?

Congratulations you two!

I'm so glad you're my folks.

a hiking we go:

This afternoon I got to go hiking with a few of my friends.

This time on the other side of the river up in Camas, WA.

It was another perfect day full of green & blue.

So calming. So peaceful.

We were trying to look tough. haha.

A lot of variety in the greenery:

woods, prairies, trails, and parkways.

As well as, in the flow of water:

a stream, a few waterfalls, and two lakes.

Here's to another day of enjoying the surprisingly good

weather in the gorgeous NW where we live. . .

a little further out than our 'backyard', but relatively still close in.

There's nothing like getting out ~ but not having to go so far.

an olina day

My hairdresser & I have a good deal going. . .

I get my hair done.
She gets a sitter for the day.
What a sweet trade.

Adventures with ms. {olina day}:
Fort building. Hide-&-Go-Seek. Hot-&-Cold. Role-playing.
Painting circles, sunflowers, and castles & princesses.
Trip to the childrens' Library. Starbucks date. Snuggles.

[photo from cellphone]

wildwood trail

A walk in the woods...part3 ~ More of Forest Park : Wildwood Trail.

This time we joined the path off Germantown Rd.

It's a pretty easy/even path that zigzags crossing little ravines along the way.

It's pretty cool that my {DearHubby} has to take these hikes into the woods in order to complete his assignments this term. It has forced-allowed us to take advantage of the lovely open space near our place on the hills of Portland. Once again, utilizing our beautiful 'backyard'... And it was another gorgeous day for a walk in the woods.

[photos from {erik}'s camera]

red-ish head

With a splash of the shades of summer.

the plant hospital

If I haven't mentioned lately

I love my 2nd story apartment.

So my place has these wonderful big windows,

that cause me to just LOVE my apartment all the more,

which seem to work wonders on my neighbor's dying house plants.

For someone who hasn't had much luck with plants in the past,

I'm stoked! to say the least.

The newest member of the plant hospital is: {zebedee}.

He checked in May 19th.

His tag reads:

Dr. Emily's

Newest Patient

Please, please keep

me away from Becky!

Don't worry little buddy, you're gonna be just fine.

*wink*

5 crowns, chocolate cake, & party on!

It's May 18th.

This day not only marks the anniversary of the blowing of the top of Mt. St. Helens, but it is also the day that two very important people were born:

Today is my daddy's 69th birthday.

He may have white hair, but he doesn't look almost 70!

Daddy, I love you!

x0x0

This photo was taken while we played 5 Crowns this evening.

He let me beat him by 3 points. *wink*

Momma made him a delicious Chocolate May-o cake!

Mmm Mmm Good!

~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~

Happy birthday, neighbor!

I'm so lucky to have a neighbor just like YOU. *grin*

What a beautiful friend you are inside & out!

[a video of {beck} right before we became neighbors...from the archives *wink*]

triple T.

Fun times with the {G}clan.

{fatima}, {hans}, {lg}, {persida}, {ben}, {brenda}, & {em}.

Cousins plus {hans}.

*heart* spot

Nothing hits the spot more than . . .

. . . a delicious cappuccino from Stumptown . . .

[photos from my phone]

. . . on an atypical blue-sky-kind of day.

[photo from my phone]

a weekend of food

Last night we went to

~ Salvador Molly's ~

with our friends who were visiting from Texas.

{DH} had jambala

I had Thai green curry.

Both were very spicy. . . there never seems to be enough rice. *grin*

{jess} & {spencer}.

my {DH} & I. *heart*

Then today for lunch we went to

~ Pok Pok ~

a place on Division that I've been meaning to try.

Again, spicy, but tasty.

And this evening we all met the Noland's and headed over to

~ Nostrana ~

because it's happy hour & we just can't stay away!

[photo from the Tang's reel]

the wood-land folk

A sunny Saturday = A walk in the woods (part 2) with my Dear Husband...

Our friend {isaiah} met up with us

in Balch Creek in Macleay Park.

This time we were hunting for more sightings of

invasive species, their removal, & native plant restoration.

Loved the greens today! I'm so glad it's Spring!

[slide photos from emily&erik's cameras]

{ww} memory

Something we found hidden away

in the trading card boxes in the closet at my folks.

My big brother collected these years ago.

Classic.

[photos from phone]

A fun little memory for all those who have reaped the precious benefit of the faithful labor & prayers of our brother {ww} over the years.

It reminds me of Matthew 26 (especially the footnote on verse 8).

"The disciples considered Mary's love offering to the Lord a waste. Throughout the past twenty centuries thousands of precious lives, heart treasures, high positions, and golden futures have been "wasted" upon the Lord Jesus. To those who love Him in such a way He is altogether lovely and worthy of their offering. What they have poured upon Him is not a waste but a fragrant testimony of His sweetness."

Thank You Lord for such a gift to the Body.

yerba mate, matey!

Our recent caffeine surge has been the Guayaki ~ Yerba Mate drink:

The Guayaki guy told us that...

Six Natural Sources of Caffeine: [ in no particular order ]

Cacao (baking chocolate 25 mg)

Tea (green tea 35 mg; black tea 75 mg)

Coffee (60 mg for 6oz cup instant coffee; 140 mg for 6oz cup auto-drip)

Kola nut

Yerba Mate (50 mg per 6oz cup)

Guanua (259 mg)

[facts credit]

Of the six, only Yerba Mate is the healthiest.

The antioxident capacity and total polyphenol concentration is up to 100-fold higher in yerba mate tea-based beverages compared to mainstream energy drinks.

[photo credit]

If you're interested in trying a Guaykai ~ Yerba Mate

head on down to the health food section of your local grocery store.

- OR -

click here and you can learn about how to receive 10% off your online order !

ode to coconut oil

A natural, plant-based saturated fat that chefs, athletes, and beautiful people alike have found to be a good thing.

Coconut oil makes for a tender, moist cake.

It cooks up a healthy Southeast Asian stir fry.

It supplies extra energy before a race.

As a treatment it makes your skin and hair soft & smooth.

Sometime last year my friend {lg} introduced me to a healthy tasty slab of coconut oil on toast.

But it wasn't until recently that I ventured out and purchased my first jar.

Unfortunately there was a difference in the oil that I had found at Fred Meyer's.

The difference...

• Her coconut oil actually had a coconut smell.
• The stuff I bought was pretty much scent/tasteless.

However they both had that wonderful melt-in-your-mouth texture.

With a little research today I found:

• Virgin Coconut Oil has the scent & taste I'm looking for;
• Refined Organic Coconut Oil works well for cooking --- (& because of its neutral flavor, especially for baking.)

In my defense, the grocery store that I went to only had that latter, so it's what I got. But next time I'm definitely going to Whole Paycheck, er I mean, Whole Foods (or even better, I'll go together with a friend on a bulk quantity) to get that tasty virgin coconut oil.

Either way there's just something so healthy feeling about it.

Mmm for coconut oil !

family time

It was so sweet to get the family together for Mother's day this year.

We took the opportunity to take a self-timed family photo.

My sister {Val} & her hubby {David}.

with the boys

Here are some fun clips of the day:

Monkey see * Monkey do !

{Grandma and her grandsons}

so many boys *grin*