Living in a world gone mad.....

Merlin checking out his room. Anyone interested in a really cute Senegal parrot?

2012-02-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

And I thought I was uncomfortable

2012-02-08T12:22:00.000-08:00

This is a stock image of what he looks like at 32 weeks. It explains a lot about all the movements I can feel, particularly on the right side.

Our next ultrasound is in a few weeks, can't wait to see him then.

31 weeks 4 days...just over 8 weeks to go!

2012-02-06T20:57:00.000-08:00

13 months old

2012-01-16T14:00:00.000-08:00

Yes, if you are wondering why my mother took a picture of my sister choking me rather than stopping her from choking me, I did too.

About 27 weeks

2012-01-12T10:00:00.000-08:00

26 Weeks

2011-12-31T10:55:00.000-08:00

So I am feeling kinda big these days. "Fabio" has been really active these past few weeks. No, that is not his name - just a nickname since he could be born with long lucious locks after all this heartburn :)

Chocolate Orange Coffee Stout Cake with Brown Butter Frosting

2011-12-31T10:46:00.000-08:00

Yes, there are a lot of names in the title but baked together it really works. I modified the recipe I originally found through Pinterest from this blog

I used this stout beer - Southern Tier Imperial Ja-va coffee flavored beer. I picked it up at a brand new beer market near our home (Matt's new favorite shop). You can really use any stout beer for this but I wanted to make it unique.

After freezing it over night, I decided to brush it with a simple syrup to maintain the moistness even though the original receipe did not take this step. I have had great success doing this with other cakes in the past.

Although time consuming, the frosting was well worth it. The brown butter provided a subtle nuttiness that just melted in your mouth.

This is definately a keeper!

For the cake:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, melted and cooled completely
1 cup stout beer, at room temperature
4 eggs
1 tablespoon orange zest
1/3 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla

For simple syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar

For the frosting:
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 – 1/3 cup whole milk

1. Heat the oven to 350 F.
2. Spray two 8″ cake pans with non-stick cooking spray.
3. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
4. In a medium bowl combine the melted butter, beer, eggs, orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until well combined. Do not over-mix.
6. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cake starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and toothpick comes out clean.
7. Let the cakes cool in the pan for ten minutes before turning out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
8. Double wrap in plastic and place in freezer overnight or up to a week. (Optional)

Frosting
1. In a small pan over medium heat brown the butter until it is nut brown. Be sure to stir the butter constantly and then allow the butter to cool to room temperature.
2. Beat the butter, powdered sugar and vanilla until combined. Add the milk, a little at a time, until you reach your preferred spreading consistency.
3. Make simple syrup by adding water and sugar in saucepan until sugar dissolved. Let cool.
4. Remove cakes from freezer, trim to flatten with bread knife and brush with simple syrup.
5. Place one of the cakes on your serving plate, or board and spread 1/3 of the frosting evenly over the cake starting with the sides.
6. Top with the second cake and spread 1/3 of the remaining frosting along the sides and evenly on the top.
7. Place cake in fridge for 20-30 min to harden the frosting crumb layer.
8. Spread remainder of frosting over the entire cake and decorate. I shaved some dark chocolate over the top to help make it look pretty.
9. Keep in fridge until about 1 hour before serving and enjoy!

100 days to go!!

2011-12-28T11:31:00.000-08:00

That is right - I am almost in double digits! It seems like just yesterday I was barely keeping water and toast down. Let's just hope the baby doesn't come out looking like Peter!

Updated 12:44pm: After much thought, I don't think I would be interested in pushing out Stewie's head either :)

Three sleeping babies.

2011-12-25T11:41:00.001-08:00

I imagine next Xmas morning will look a whole lot different. But for now, warm, cozy and quiet works just fine.

Happy Holidays!!

Cozy!

2011-12-12T15:37:00.001-08:00

Belly 22 weeks

2011-12-07T13:09:00.000-08:00

18 weeks 5 days

2011-11-09T12:21:00.000-08:00

The lil guy now weighs 10 oz. He was breech and snuggled in to me so we could not get a great profile of his face.

+/- 149 more days to go.....

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T17:05:00.000-07:00

The Headless Horseman and his steed!

Headless horseman should pick a new horse if he wants to get through the night.

Finally time to announce it....

2011-10-01T08:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday at 13 weeks, we found out everything is going great with our BABY BOY!!!

Here are some ultrasound images we got from the doctors. We saw the OB and the Perinatologist (who we don't need to see again because everything is fine).

His foot - measured at 1.1 cm. Soo small.

In all his glory.

Close up from NT scan.

The family jewels :)

I am still waiting for this miraculous relief from morning sickness I keep hearing about. Hopefully soon!!!

I plan to put up some belly pics as they become more interesting. I am just barely starting to show this week.

Lavi doing my job!!!

2011-09-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

Sunday pics - finally

2011-08-03T07:21:00.000-07:00

The last day. I did a lot of typical stuff - cook breakfast, go shopping, cook dinner.

Drinking avocado bubble tea with espresso at Best Baguette - very interesting.

Gandalf assisting me.

Straining the marionberry vinegar.

Finished vinegar.

Best corn we've had in ages.

Chicken thighs in Thai flavored marinade.

Lavi watching me grill.

Matt watching his shows - namely True Blood.

Now to put it all together. I'll probably make photo collages for each day in Photoshop and have them printed. I am still working on the layout design.

Making air muffins...

2011-07-31T17:23:00.000-07:00

Marionberry vinegar!

2011-07-31T15:52:00.001-07:00

Sunday morning - after chasing squirrels

2011-07-31T07:46:00.001-07:00

Saturday pics

2011-07-30T22:59:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for the day. Lavi letting me know I am not going without her.

Lavi loves her crate, especially when it is in the shade.

Brooklyn enjoying herself.

Laura motivating Brooklyn through the tunnel.

Resting in the shade after too much sun.

Boomerang and his ball.

Tabbouleh - my green fix.

Watched Black Swan.

One more day to go.

Looong day of agility. Lavi didn't even run the last course.

2011-07-30T17:08:00.001-07:00

Alex and Brandon win blue ribbons at the Monmouth County Fair. They won for their mint and Thai basil entries!

2011-07-30T16:45:00.000-07:00

Friday pics

2011-07-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

Working on computer in the morning.

Lavi's morning walk.

Lunch with Robin at Baker and Spice.

Blueberry cream tart.

Matt enjoying his beer.

Reading about all the beers.

Doug enjoying beerfest!

Thursday pics - over half way through the week.

2011-07-28T21:56:00.000-07:00

Walking Matt to catch 6:50 am bus.

Matt's bus.

Breakfast with Jen at Ken's Artisan Bakery before work.

Eating lunch in the parking lot.

Lavi waiting patiently for dinner to arrive.

Pizza.

Drunk Matt loving his dog who is more interested in the pizza.

Gandalf on new desk.

I'm very excited my week at work is over. Now I can document more fun stuff. Tomorrow - Beerfest, Saturday - Agility, Sunday - ????

Jambon! Great sandwich from Ken's.

2011-07-28T13:10:00.000-07:00

Wednesday pics

2011-07-27T21:04:00.000-07:00

Closing the damn slider...

Driving Matt's truck to work today.

Gandalf watching Lavi chasing squirrels.

Lavi in front of the house.

Our morning walk.

Prepping short ribs for the slow cooker.

Jemma and I walking during 1st break.

Water cup at work.

Cream. No sugar.

2011-07-27T11:16:00.000-07:00

Breakfast.

2011-07-27T09:43:00.000-07:00

Tuesday pics

2011-07-26T21:51:00.000-07:00

Lavi and I on our morning walk.

Gandalf and his extraordinarily long tongue.

Matt watching TV in his chair.

Me and Elaine.

Transferring frozen blueberries into bags.

At the kitchen sink.

Any wonder why I have carpal tunnel?

2011-07-26T14:02:00.000-07:00

Morning snack.

2011-07-26T13:05:00.000-07:00

Off to bed!

2011-07-25T22:47:00.001-07:00

Week in the Life - Monday

2011-07-25T22:21:00.000-07:00

A few pics from Monday.

Putting on Lavi's collar.

Walking down the path.

Driving to work.

Break sitting on the curb.

Laura taking break, too.

Jemma at end of day.

Gandalf and Matt.

Matt and Gandalf.

At work. Busy today....

2011-07-25T14:56:00.001-07:00

Work key chain makes me think of Lavi (as well as Santa's Little Helper)

2011-07-25T13:57:00.000-07:00

Tweets I love from Twitterrific

2011-07-25T08:15:00.001-07:00

I'm not going to complain about Netflix raising its prices. To me, $16 is still worth not having to put on pants.

http://twitter.com/Aimee_B_Loved/status/95497712698527744

Sent from my iPhone

Gandalf just waking up.

2011-07-25T07:51:00.001-07:00

Lavi outside kitchen window this morning. She is looking out for squirrels. And yes she is sitting on a wet towel that got rained on last night when her cot is right next to her.

2011-07-25T07:50:00.001-07:00

Waiting for dad who is on a long line in Borders. Lavi can only sit so close to me ~ 6 ft

2011-07-22T12:15:00.000-07:00

Lavi playing with Brooklyn

2011-07-19T12:08:00.000-07:00

Lavi loves Brooklyn. Brooklyn lives in our old neighborhood and was Lavi's first friend to visit. She got to show off her new yard - squirells and all.

After some running around, the two girls got down to some rolling around. It really was as cute as it looks.

Berry Picking @ Rowell's

2011-07-19T11:39:00.000-07:00

I finally had my first berry picking excursion of the season. I met Hilary at the berry farm for some blueberry and raspberry picking. Now that we have moved away from Portland, we are really close to some amazing farms. This one was great and all for $1.25/lb!!

This was my final bounty after a few hours. Hilary probably picked 2x as much as I did but she was not picky.

Hilary picking some Duke blueberries.

Some raspberries not yet ready for picking but there were plenty for the taking. I am planning on making some raspberry vinegar one of these days.

Mom and Dad Visit

2011-07-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy month since mom and dad came to Portland for a visit. They were here when we got the keys to our new house! Here's our realtor, Jenny, handing them over to us.

We waited at a coffee shop in SE Portland for the call!

Here's dad refusing to give up his ice cream even when being attacked by a bear!

Of course there was time for them to play golf at Eastmoreland Golf Course.

Father's day included a trip to the Bonneville Hot Springs for a day of relaxation with soaks, massages and wraps.

Even with the new house and all, I am pretty sure that the highlight of their trip was the Naked Bike Ride - all 10,000 of 'em in their birhtday suits.

I bet that we will be seeing them again this time next year ;)

2011-07-15T15:41:00.001-07:00

It's that time of year again! Berries!!!

2011-07-14T11:21:00.001-07:00

Lavi's spot in her new backyard. This shot taken from the living room. From her spot she can still keep her on us.

Long time coming...

2011-07-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

I know it has been sometime since I posted regularly, but that is going to change. I will soon be posting updates we've made to our new house. And I will be doing another Week In The Life project from July 25 - 31.

Stay tuned.

Lavi's spot in her new backyard.

2011-07-14T11:08:00.000-07:00

Chicken hearts - Lil' nuggets of love

2011-06-13T20:17:00.001-07:00

Well, I thought I was buying chicken livers at the farmers' market but when I got home I realized they were chicken hearts! What is a girl to do??? Cook them of course. I found a James Beard's 1956 recipe for grilled chicken hearts Instead of sherry wine, I used rice cooking wine.

Here are the hearts as I am prepping them. I took off the filmy skin that surrounds them.

After 24 hours of marinating, I sauteed them in a fry pan rather than on the grill because it was easy.

DELICIOUS!!! Lavi and I ate them all. If you find yourself with a container of chicken hearts - don't fret, MARINATE!

Cherry Hand Pies

2011-06-13T20:12:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post some pics from my latest empanada creation - cherry hand pies. They came out great. I used fresh cherries and the empanada disks. Yummm.

I love my cherry pitter (also used for olives)

Just off the stove, picture is blurry from the steam

Finished!

Agility Fun Match

2011-06-02T21:44:00.000-07:00

Lavi and I had a great time at the JAG Agility Fun Match on Saturday. We were lucky that the weather cooperated and everything went off without a hitch.

After her initial zoomies, Lavi really settled in and had 4 really good runs. I entered her in the beginner and novice runs and that really let us build up some confidence.

Here are some action shots that Natalia got.

At the end of the dog walk expecting a treat :)

Doing some easy weaves...she loves the weaves!

More jumping...

Running out of the tunnel...

To see more pictures of all the dogs, visit the JAG website.

Great Doggie Dash Again

2011-05-14T20:03:00.001-07:00

Lavi and I joined Roxie and Susan for the DASH again this year. Don't know the final count but there were A LOT of dogs and their people again.

Here we are getting ready for our walk.

Roxie modeling this year's t-shirt.

And we are off...

Lavi midway through the walk taking a breather.

Laura and Marv joined us for the walk. We also walked with Tim (another co-worker at 211, actually my supervisor) and his girlfriend. They ran the 2-mi bridge to bridge option of the dash. We did the 1-mi stroll but I think I'd like to do the run with Lavi one of these years.

Thanks again for the generous donations on our behalf. We are happy to help out all those other critters still looking for homes.

Doggie Dash 2011

2011-04-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

Lavi and I are planning on attending the Doggie Dash again this year. Here is a link to our participant page if you would like to make a charitable donation to the Oregon Humane Society in our honor.

Lavi says "You know you want to!"

NJ Trip

2011-04-16T18:15:00.000-07:00

Better late than never, here are some pics from our trip to New Jersey in early March.

After landing in Newark, we went to the Prudential Center to watch the NJ Devils take on Tampa Bay.

Devil's Army truck

Matt's infamous shot from center ice

Matt's favorite pizza from The Trattoria

Mom's birthday

The NJ critter crew

Spree

Suri

Shawnee and Curry

Grammy visit

Julie and Rocco (future Good Fella)

Brandon busy at work

Valentine's Day Heart Brownies

2011-02-13T17:19:00.000-08:00

I saw this blog post by Smitten Kitchen and I knew I had to make these. I followed the recipe pretty much to a tee. I used a cheap white chocolate bar from Trader Joe's and was a little skeptical but they came out great. They were a lot easier to cut out the hearts from than the dark chocolate. In the end, it is so cute. Plus you can make them for any holiday!

Birthday!

2011-02-03T11:27:00.001-08:00

We celebrated the big day this year with Susan and Doug @ Rogue Brewery. Not only do they make great beer, but they have a great birthday offer of a free yard of beer and a free t-shirt, as well as 20% off your bill. We started the celebration off early @ 3pm when we got off work.

Since the birthday girl gets what the birthday girl wants...why not a delicious plate of bacon! This might sound weird, but it was listed as an appetizer on the menu, so why not??

Here is Dougie with his Stout tasting flight. I enjoyed the one made with espresso - yum!

Matt and I on our second round...

Susan and Doug after round ?.................

In bed by 8:30, what a great day!

Rose City Classic 2011

2011-01-26T10:50:00.000-08:00

I attended the Rose City Classic again this year to watch Robin and Posha in their first rally novice event. This was their 3rd day of competition so they had it down by now. At this level, the dogs are on leash and need to follow the correct commands.

I was thrilled to see my friend Kennedy and her Pomeranian, Leo, in the same event.

Both Posha and Leo qualified! Since Posha qualified on all three legs over the weekend, she earned her novice rally title.

I also saw my friend Twylla with her Pumi puppy, Furgie. I had the opportunity to meet Furgie's mom and granddad at the Pumi Meet the Breed event. They are some rambunctions little critters and very tough I learned.

New Vegetable #1

2011-01-19T16:47:00.000-08:00

The first new vegetable of the year is broccoli rabe. We have been enjoying regular broccoli for a while so I thought this would be an easy transition.

I have eaten broccoli rabe before but I have never purchased it to make at home. To mellow out the bitter taste, I blanched it first and then sauteed it with garlic and olive oil.

I give Matt a lot of credit, as I just handed him a plate of broccoli rabe - nothing else, and he ate it like a trooper. He has gotten really good at trying new things and then deciding not to eat it again.

Overall grade = B
I might make it again but there are so many vegetables out there, it may be a while. I appreciated the variation in taste and the nurtient value.

Lan Su Chinese Garden

2011-01-09T08:53:00.000-08:00

Finally, I had the oportunity to visit the Lan Su Chinese Garden in Old Town Portland and on one of the 8 days they offered free admission.

Robin and I had a delightful time strolling through the garden and enjoying the winter blooming witch hazel. We also enjoyed ceremonial tea at the teahouse.

I look forward to going back in spring and visiting when it is not so crowded.

BTW - In regards to my early post about The Year of the Rabbit, on this trip I learned that I am technically a Tiger by a few days. I don't think this changes to much because I feel I relate closely with the Rabbit with some Tiger traits mixed in.

Belated Cookie Exchange Party Post

2011-01-08T19:35:00.000-08:00

I know it is a month late but I did not want to totally forget the awesome cookie exchange party I hosted for my friends and neighbors. Not only did everyone bring some amazing cookies, we also created scrapbooks with all of the recipes.

Here are Robin, Sabina and Connie working on their books. Lara, baby Evelyn, Jen and Suzanne are in the back.

Susan and Hilary taking in the Table of Yum!

One of my favorites was Sabina's Rum Balls. I am not usually big fan but these were killer.

I made my Persimmon Spice Cookies.

Our recipe books!

We all had a great time. I could not have done this without Susan's help. Thanks again Susan!!

It's gonna be hard to top this next year.

2011 - HARE WE COME!

2011-01-05T20:31:00.000-08:00

Enter the Year of the Rabbit, well almost. Although 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit it offically does not start until Feb 3. Given that I was born under the Rabbit and Matt and I met under the Rabbit, this should be an interesting year.

Some of the characteristics of the Chinese Rabbit are sensitivity, creativity and compassion. Preferring the company of others. Rabbits are friendly and outgoing.They also try to avoid confrontational situations but if they cannot then Rabbits will take a calm approach, always with consideration for the other party. Rabbits believe strongly in friends and family and their calm nature stops them from becoming visibly upset. However Rabbits can be taken advantage of and can be a push over for sales people.

Here are some of my 2011 resolutions:

1. To continue updating this blog - a lot more than I did the last few months. I will try to include some more of my culinary creations, the pets (of course) and whatever else comes up...

2. To continue eating healthy and to try new vegetables regularly.

3. To start going back to my water aerobics and water yoga class.

4. To utilize my new chest freezer and save some $$ on groceries.

5. Learn to SEW! (also knit if I have the time)

I hope all of my readers (all 3 of you) have a great Year of the Rabbit too!!! I would love to hear your resolutions.

Lion baby card

2010-11-15T13:36:00.000-08:00

Here is a quick card I made to send to Julie for the birth of her son. I used the spellbinders scallop circles to cut out the white and blue cardstock with my cuttlebug. The lion is from a Sandylion sticker pack with baby animals that I love. The brown ribbon is velvet. It only took me 5 minutes and I am thrilled with the result.

Octoberfest

2010-09-29T19:38:00.000-07:00

We had a JAG Agility demo at the Oaks Park Octoberfest. It was great fun during and after the rain. Our course was set up next to one of the fest tents...easy access to beer and brats. I ran Lavi and Boomerang. Lavi had her share of zoomies but I did get her to do some of the obstacles. When Matt and Susan arrived, she was more interested in them than running the course. At least it was cute....

Here I am running Boomerang (he's heading up the A-frame).

We also had fun watching the dogs jumping off the docks in the Northwest Challenge. The winner jumped almost 26 feet! Once Lavi knew we were not going to make her do it, she settled down.

Lavi watching the action.

Lavi and Susan.

Alexander gang (minus cat, bird, fish, fish, fish, fish).

End of Summer 2010 Photos

2010-09-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

Summer 2010 went by really fast. I played a lot of Bocce with the Burlingame Bocce team. We made it to the finals on Thursday night but lost to last year's grand champions. We also played in the tournament of champions but ended up losing in the quarterfinals to the Tuesday night champs.

The Burlingame Bocce team (named after our neighborhood). (L-R Dario, Stephanie, Robin-captain, Clint, Roberta, Kim, Leigh and Laura)

Robin watching the finals from our front row seats. The Thursday night champs ended up winning the whole thing again.

Here I am watching the finals. Nice view of the fancy scoreboard, which was brought out for the final game.

Also made some time this summer to visit the dahlia fields with Doug and Susan.

They are absolutely amazing. Here is a photo of the bunch I brought home.

The animals had an eventful end of summer. Gandalf enjoys watching Tiamet - our new resident Betta.

Lavi got her haircut and they took a lot of her ears. She seems to like and it and it doesn't get matted - for now.

And Gandalf hogging Lavi's bed. She is so good and doesn't kick him off though she could if she wanted.

Rosh Hashanah Carrot Cake

2010-09-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

My first layer cake. I was excited to make a layer cake since I feel the sheet cakes just don't have the same elegance. I research and tried all the tricks I could with out spending any money.

Here is the Carrot Cake recipe (taken from the back of the Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour package but modified slightly).

Makes 2 8" round cake pans.

1 c brown sugar
1 c white sugar
1 c canola oil
4 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 c whole wheat pastry flour
2 c grated carrots (grated by hand)
2 tsp baking powder
2 8 oz cans crushed pineapple (drained and juice reserved)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 2 8" round baking pans (I also cut parchment paper to put on the bottom of the pans after I sprayed with cooking oil and before I added and tapped out flour). Mix the first 6 ingredients (sugar to cinnnamon) and then add the remaining ingredients. Pour evenly into the two pans. Bake for approximately 40 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean). Let sit for 15 minutes in pan and then pop out onto cooling rack.

At this point I triple wrapped the cakes and stuck them into the freezer. You can leave them in the freezer for up to a week. Remove them when ready to apply frosting. It is a lot easier to apply frosting to the frozen cakes but leave ample time for the cakes to defrost entirely before eating.

Leigh's super-duper cream cheese frosting

6 oz cream cheese softened
2/3 c butter softened
1 tsp real vanilla
6 c sifted powdered sugar

Mix cream cheese, butter and vanilla really well until light and fluffy. Add sugar by the cup. After about 5 cups, add in smaller amounts until you reach desired sweetness.

A few more hints: After you remove the cakes from the freezer, take the reserved pineapple juice and brush on lightly. This will help the cakes remain moist. I also made a crumb layer with the frosting and then stuck it back into the fridge to set up for 30 min. Once set, apply the remainder of the frosting.

TA DA!

Gandalf being Gandalf

2010-08-10T09:15:00.001-07:00

Gandalf still loves his perch. It is not unusual for him for hang his head over the side but this time he hung his head through the hole.

Here's his head through the hole.

He is also a big fan of Lavi's bed.

Agility Demo at Hazeldale Park

2010-08-10T08:46:00.000-07:00

We had our second agility demo in two weeks. This one was at Hazeldale Park in Aloha. Besides agility, they had flyball demos, disc dog demos as well as dog dancing. In a spur of the moment, I decided to have Lavi take the Canine Good Citizen Test. She did great. I figured she would but since you can't use treats during the test, I was a little concerned. She was rewarded heavily afterwards.

Here are the dogs from our club that passed their Canine Good Citizen test.

(L-R Finn, Leo, Lavi and Jewel)

Natalia was there again taking photos. Although these photos look like Lavi is an agility superstar...they are a bit misleading. Yes, she does have her moments but since she does go kind of slow the pictures look good. I do love how her ears fly all over the place.

Mount Hood birding

2010-08-05T08:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took a trip to do some mountain birding around Mount Hood. Shockingly, we have been here 2.5 years and this was the first time we got up there. It was beautiful. We found several good birds (3 lifers for me - Clark's Nutcracker, Pine Siskin and Hermit Warbler). Lavi enjoyed the scenery.

Videos from agility demo

2010-08-02T07:56:00.000-07:00

Agility demo at Schnauzer Walk

2010-08-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from yesterday's agility demo. Lavi had a ton of fun!!

It is good to be home for a little while.

Elko and Silver State Stampede

2010-07-11T17:24:00.000-07:00

There are a few things in Elko that are worth writing home about. The best is probably the taco truck. It is actually a great food truck and that says a lot coming from a Portland resident where food carts are everywhere these days. Here is Julie, Jean and Katie enjoying our lunch at the truck.

I had the opportunity to attend the Silver State Stampede, aka the rodeo. It was exactly what I expected. My favorite parts were the cowgirls racing their horses in the clover pattern. One of the ladies is even an aesthetician. My other favorite part was the "Ring of Fear". They had 6 guys standing in their own circles in a small ring. The goal is stay in your ring when they turn the bull loose. The last man standing wins $500. I heard a woman won the night before, but she also works at a ranch and was more like a "bull whisperer". There was no whispering tonight, these guys got their asses handed to them except the last one. The bull didn't even make it over to his part of the ring and didn't have to do anything. Here is the bull about to charge one of the other poor dudes.

It was a very interesting night...another good time in Elko, Nevada.

Nevada - Take 2

2010-07-11T16:57:00.000-07:00

I am back in Nevada after three weeks at home. This time I have a new partner and a whole new area to explore close to the Nevada-Utah border. Right now we are on mountains surrounded by juniper trees.

This cactus was on top of the summit of one of the mountains.

The easterly view from the summit over the mountains and the salt flats in Utah.

One of the many lizards we have observed.

So far this rotation has been a lot hotter and dryer than last time. It is a good thing we start so early in the morning and can be done by the time it gets super hot. Plus the birds are more active then as well. Some new species so far include Pinyon Jay, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Juniper Titmouse and Blue-grey Gnatcatcher. Hopefully we will see more hummingbirds this week.

Quote of the Day

2010-06-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.

John Wooden

Appropriate quote from my Honest Mate bottle cap. Sadly this is the last bottle of tea from my Earth Day tweet prize :(

Man's Best Friend

2010-06-28T08:23:00.001-07:00

She LOVES the truck...as do we now that it is running again.

A Little Birding in Oregon

2010-06-28T08:08:00.001-07:00

We have been trying to get up to Larch Mountain for the past couple weeks and the weather is now finally cooperating. It is only about 22 miles from Mount Hood (pictured above). There is a 14 mile drive up to the top where the Sooty Grouse can be seen. After several miles we finally found one crossing the road - Yeah! A new life bird for Matt and myself.

It was a pretty nice day and the view from the top was great. We could see Mount Hood, Mount St. Helen's, Mount Rainier, Mount Adams and Mount Jefferson. This picture shows a little bit of the Columbia Gorge below.

On the way back to town, we stopped at the Sandy River Bridge. I got two more life birds - Swainson's Thrush and Common Merganser.

Earlier last week we did some birding at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, where I saw my first Willow Flycatcher, Vaux's Swift, Savannah Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch and Hairy Woodpecker.

Just a few highlights from the past few weeks at home. I'll be heading back to Elko next week for a month.

A few more photos

2010-06-15T10:59:00.000-07:00

Lamoille Canyon

2010-06-08T21:25:00.000-07:00

We visited Lamoille Canyon on Sunday. It was beautiful but now that it is warming up, the glaciers are melting and causing landslides.

Photos from Week 2

2010-06-03T20:54:00.000-07:00

A day in the life.

Working on the GPS.

Climbing under the barbed wire fence.

Looking at the sea of sage scrub.

Flowers in the field.

Swainson's Hawk on the side of the road.

Only 6 more days in the field before I come home. It has gone really fast.

More pics from week 1

2010-05-31T19:52:00.000-07:00

Week 1 was very long. We ended up working in the field on Sat since Monday was a holiday. I slept a lot on Mon as you would imagine.

Val and I. I am wearing waterproof pants after the miserable day we had on Fri. We got rained and snowed on. I was very wet and unhappy. Luckily I found some pants later that day.

Taking a break on one of the hills. It was right after this that we found a Loggerhead Shrike nest. It was very cool.

Black Beauty - our truck's name. She is a sight of beauty when we see her at the end of the day.

Giving Black Beauty a bath.

Week 1 - NV

2010-05-27T19:43:00.000-07:00

Well, we have been in the field for several days now and it has been very interesting. This is what it looks like most of the time for miles.

Here I am on the first day getting ready to start working.

On the second day, we walked on clover fields and cow pasture, as well as sage scrub.

This is my field partner, Valerie. She works for Matt's company in the Houston office.

A Lewis' Woodpecker we saw next to the road on our way home.

We have seen a ton of hawks, eagles, sparrows and other small birds. I am really enjoying myself even with having to get up at 4 am each morning.

SLC, Utah / Elko, NV

2010-05-23T14:43:00.000-07:00

After 3.5 days in Salt Lake City, Utah I am finally settled in Elko, Nevada for the next three weeks. Matt and I got to spend time togther during the training. It was really nice to be together - minus the no-see-ums and mosquitoes.

I also got to meet some of the people he has talked about for the past 2 years. Here is with Zack and Don.

I am very lucky to have a great partner, Valerie. She has been out here for the previous 2 years and knows the ropes.

Valerie and I drove to Elko on Saturday past the salt flats. This was my first time in Utah and this part of Nevada.

Once in Elko, we immediately went to the decent coffee shop. After taking care of some business, a bunch of us went out for sushi. It was pretty good sushi - especially for Nevada.

Counter-clockwise: Valerie, Jean, Rebecca, Miriam, Luis and Mikal

Tomorrow we start searching for bird nests...and breaking in a new pair of boots (uugh).

Getting ready for the field

2010-05-18T17:31:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I am leaving tomorrow for 3 days in Salt Lake City and 3 weeks in Elko, Nevada. The hardest part is leaving Lavi and Gandalf...Matt will be with me in SLC. Since I am home most of the time with these two, this time it is a lot harder to leave than it use to be. Namir was a trooper, for the most part, although Matt said he would miss me by day 3 and would throw up all over the place - whatever. Speaking of Namir, the 1 year anniversary of his passing is on Friday. It is hard to believe it has been a full year. I am lucky to have Gandalf though, he has filled a big void.

Since I am leaving for a while, I thought I would make Matt some food he could take out of the freezer. I marinated 2 flank steaks and made him 2 batches of chicken enchiladas. I even called the Everyday Food lady on the Martha Stewart Sirius Radio channel to ask about freezing them. She said as long as the chicken was cooked, I should assemble them and then freeze them. He could cook it off later. She also said I was a very good wife :)

My "good wife" enchiladas

It is going to be hard living in a hotel room with only a microwave and mini-fridge. I don't think there are many dining options in the town and in trying to save money I am planning on getting creative. I will keep you posted :)

I did make a double-sided photo accordian to display in the room to help bring home just a little bit closer. I used the Bind-it-all to connect the pieces.

I hope to make some posts about the trip but I don't know how often that will happen after 12-hour work days.

Getting Piggy With It

2010-05-16T21:49:00.000-07:00

Cochon 555 is an event to raise awareness of heritage pigs...it is also an opportunity to stuff yourself silly with all things pork. This purpose of this event is to hold a competition for 5 chefs tasked with creating 5 or so items each from their own heritage pigs. The winner was picked by attendees and a panel of judges. They have helpd this event in several cities around the country already. Along with the amazing bites created by the chefs, there was also a butcher demonstration and another whole roasted pig. If that is not enough, the event was topped off with pig-related dessert. There were also 5 wineries doing tasting to pair with the pig creations.

As much as I would have loved to just attend the event, the $125 ticket was a bit much for us. So, I found a way to volunteer and helped with registration. I did get a chance to enjoy some of the VIP reception prior to the main event. I stuffed myself with incredible cheese and also tried a salt sampling.

Here are some pictures of the butchering demo.

After the demo, they held a raffle to give out all of the pork that was just cut up.

Jen and Michelle both won! Unfortunately, I was not so lucky.

By this point I was stuffed from all of the food. Some of my favs included, the pork rillettes ravioli, pork liver mousse, blood sausage, roast pork loin, pork'n'beans with pork cheek slaw (yes, the crunchy bits in the slaw were pork cheek) and so much more I have no idea what it was. But this was not the end. All of a sudden, they rolled out another whole roasted pig!!

You would think it was over now...but no...dessert was next. I was not about to pass up candied bacon and ice cream sandwiches. I know there was some type of "bacon fat" involved in the ice cream sandwiches but it I was in such a haze at this point.

In the end, the chef from Olympic Provisions was the winner. He will participate in the national competition in Aspen, CO next month.

But I did not go home empty handed. I was able to score the pig snout for my pooch. Many people were envious but truthfully it was so hard it would not have been easy to eat. But Lavi was in pig heaven!

Til next year and boy do I hope there is a next year.

Another article about the event:
EaterPDX

Doggie Dash 2010

2010-05-16T11:48:00.000-07:00

Once again, we particpated in the Oregon Humane Society Doggie Dash along with ~5,000 of our closest friends. With that many dogs you'd think there would be lots of barking. But no, it is more of an organized chaos.

Our Burlingame Buddies team was rockin' red and orange bandanas.

The team roster (by size):

Toby (and Kathi)

Lavi (and me)

Gomez (and Laura)

Roxie (and Susan)

The team during the Dash

Some of the interesting sights included a minature horse and the same cat as last year sitting on its owners leg amidst all these dogs. Here is Roxie trying to figure out the horse.

The cutest dog award goes to the bulldog puppy:

The crazy face award:

Lavi enjoyed snoozing in the sun after her exciting morning.

Until next year...

Week in the Life 2010 - Book

2010-05-04T20:42:00.001-07:00

Here is the finished daily pages of my Week in the Life 2010 book. I decided to only use supplies I had on hand. I had an 8 1/2 x 11 book by SEI sitting on the shelf, craft cardstock from Paper Zone leftover from my holiday cards, and many coordinating papers and die cuts from My Minds Eye (MME) that I won as a giveaway last National Scrapbook Day at Craft Warehouse. All I had to do was print my photos at Costco.

Non-MME: Supplies - American Crafts Thickers, American Crafts camera sticker, Maya Road sheer calendar.

On the first page of each day, I stamped the day and date with Technique Tuesday letter and number stamps and then heat embossed with white embossing powder from Joann. I also used a Technique Tuesday stamp for the black dot border with Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink.

I still have some random pages I plan to make with a few lists and other materials I collected during the week.

JAG Agility Fun Match

2010-05-03T10:11:00.000-07:00

Our agility club, JAG Agility, held its first fun match yesterday. It was a lot of fun and a lot of work. We got very lucky with the weather partly sunny and best of all - no rain! I was focused on so many other things and forgot to put on sunscreen and my face got fried.

Lavi did as I expected - zoomies, but she did settle down and finally do what I asked. I believe the zoomies and the sniffing are stress-related. I am doing my best to be patient because in the end it is fun. I still think she is happy when she is zooming and also when she is performing.

Here is a movie of her first 2 runs and her last run. Unfortunately, I did not video the 4th run, which was her best. After watching the other clips, you probably won't believe me but she did the whole course at a moderate speed - even the weave poles. The last run in the video is a typical run when she is tired at the end of the class. She is more focused on the treat and stops at a lot of the jumps looking at me like she has no idea what I am asking her to do.

I also ran Boomerang a few times. He is my instructor Jim's dog. It is like driving a Ferrari. I will have someone video that next time so you can see what a driven dog is like on the agility course.

Here is a picture of Hillary (Jim's daughter) running Boomerang.

This is Jim, our faithful leader.

Jewel, one of the Corgis.

And Lavi chilling in her crate...

The morning after...conked out on the bed with her buddy who missed her terribly yesterday.

Matt Nevada 2010

2010-05-03T08:29:00.001-07:00

Here's a nice photo of Matt during his aerial surveys last week. Isn't he handsome?

Another Baby Album

2010-04-30T18:21:00.000-07:00

This is my last baby album for a while. I made this one for my cousins Mike and Marie and their little girl due in June.

Doggie Dash 2010

2010-04-29T10:16:00.000-07:00

Once again, our favorite fundraiser is coming up quickly - Doggie Dash 2010 at Waterfront Park on May 15.

This year we started a neighborhood team for all of our family and friends to join/support. Visit our Doggie Dash page and donate to help homeless pets.

Taste of the Nation 2010

2010-04-29T09:29:00.001-07:00

It was that time again - stuff your face silly in order to raise money for hungry kids. As odd as it sounds, it is a great event. 100% of the proceeds (General Admission ticket is $75) is given to charities. All the restaurants and wineries donate their food and wine, as well as gift certificates for a spin the wheel game. I volunteered again because it is a pretty good gig. This year I was the "line nazi" or as they called it - directional staff. Basically I made sure people did not enter the event until their time - the more you pay, the earlier you get in. After the VIPs got in, I took a quick break to sample some of the fare before the rest of the crowd got in. Best idea ever since some of the restaurants were only there for the early high floutin' crowd, plus a lot of the other vendors ran out of the best stuff early. Once I stuffed myself in record time, I was back on the job and letting my stomach come to terms to what just happened. This time I was trying to keep the General Admission crowd in order while also fitting as many people under the tents and out of the rain. Needless to say, if I did not take over, half of the people would have been soaked before they even got in. After a job well done and some more room in my stomach - I was flying free and caught up with my TOTN partners in crime. This time around they did not have to work since Jen scored a much coveted media pass for her food blog - Under The Table with Jen.

Let me start off with my most favorite bite of the night - Screen Door's Maple Bacon Profiterole (pre-caramel gooey topping).

My next favorite was a simple but truly amazing raclette from Steve's Cheese Bar. The wedge of cheese was slowly warmed to a gooey perfection, spread on fresh baguette slices and topped with salami and pickle. Actually the salami was made by Michelle's brother, Elias of Olympic Provision.

Other favorites not pictured included Wildwood's refreshing grated radish and sea salt mascarpone crostini, Bamboo Sushi's albacore sushi (raw and soy marinated), Chop Butchery and Charcuterie's duck proscuitto, Laurelhurst Market's steak tartare, and to top the night off a cappuccino from Cafe Umbria and salted caramel ice cream from Lovely's Fifty Fifty.

Between bouts of eating debauchery, Michelle, Jen and I found the best seats in the house -in Luxe Authohaus' Land Rover sitting on display.

One of our visitors was Richard, a christmas tree grower and exporter (originally from Ireland). He couldn't pass up the chance to join us in our fine ride. Plus the car was situated directly in front of one of the cocktail stations.

After a night of fitful sleep and crazy dreams (thank you spicy bay scallops), the party still wasn't over. I had yet to enjoy my take home rhubarb goodie from Baker & Spice.

Phew - now I can eat salad the rest of the week.

Sunday - final day for Week in the Life project

2010-04-25T15:20:00.000-07:00

Matt left on his trip this morning. Here he is saying goodbye to the cat. He never kissed Namir like that.

I took Lavi to the dog park since this is suppose to be the end of the sun for a while. This white dog really wanted to play with Lavi but she never engaged it.

She was tired enough to take a load off.

This cute puppy was the hit of the park today. Lavi sniffed it and left it alone.

Hope you all enjoyed a peek into our everyday. I will post the scrapbook pages when I finish them next week.

More from Saturday

2010-04-24T17:08:00.001-07:00

Hillary and Baby Beatrice

Bumber and Bea

The start of Doug's garden

Gandalf being Gandalf

Lavi giving me the cold shoulder

Saturday

2010-04-24T13:44:00.001-07:00

Saturday morning coffee on the way to go birding.

Birding together.

The damage we made at the sushi track for lunch.

Freshly painted house.

Afternoon nap.

More Friday

2010-04-24T07:50:00.000-07:00

Not a winner.

Sitting down to dinner.

A man who really wants chocolate chip cookies.

Gandalf checking out the painters.

Friday

2010-04-23T15:15:00.000-07:00

Merlin breakfast.

Getting ready.

Trip to Columbia Employee Store with Susan.

Susan and turkey burger at Burgerville.

Matt at home today watching tv after his last rabies shot.

Unfortunately I forgot my camera on my walk with Lavi and we visited with Hillary, Bumper and Baby Beatrice. Hope to get a photo of me holding baby Bea by the end of the weekend.

Thursday PM

2010-04-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

Soaking up some sun.

Dinner at Susan and Doug's house.

Thursday AM

2010-04-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Today was a change in the routine. I had a job interview at 9:00 so I had to get ready with Matt in the morning. Normally he wakes me up when he gets out of the shower but today I had to get in before him.

Here he is this morning playing with Gandalf on his perch.

Getting dressed for the interview.

Driving to interview after I dropped off Matt.

After I got home, I decided to take Lavi to Tryon Creek for two reasons. 1- It is Earth Day and is there a better way to celebrate than to spend time with nature? 2- To practice birding.

Who knows what the rest of the day holds?

Wednesday

2010-04-21T14:21:00.000-07:00

I've been hanging around the house for most of today.

Here's Gandalf sleeping at the end of the bed. I lifted up the covers to get the picture.

Walking the dog and enjoying the flowers in the neighborhood.

Filling up the bird feeder.

Working on the bird list for the upcoming field work.

Tuesday PM

2010-04-21T08:57:00.000-07:00

@ library

Crabs @ Uwajimaya

Robin and Roxie

Matt during Devils game

Tuesday AM

2010-04-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

It is not even 10 am yet and it has already been an eventful morning.

Don't know why there was a large group (kids and parents) walking down the street next to our house with horse-mounted cops?

Driving Matt to work with Lavi in the back (Pre-shower and half the time pre-bra :)). She comes with me every morning unless I have somewhere else to be.

Merlin working on the wooden dowel/perch in his cage. At least it keeps him quiet. I'd rather hear him chipping away at the wood than his screaching.

More later.

A Week in the Life Project - 2010

2010-04-19T15:18:00.000-07:00

I decided to do the Week in the Life project again this year. It was kind of a last minute decision but I thought it would be fun to do it while Matt was here. I really enjoyed looking at the last book I made in Oct 2008 but Matt wasn't in any of the pictures.

Today is Day 1. Here are just a few shots I took of the cat and dog and us at agility class.

More to come....

Pittock Mansion

2010-03-27T14:15:00.000-07:00

Since it was going to be a nice day, we decided to go the Audubon Society of Portland and pick up the new Willamette Valley Birding Trail guide. Fortunately/unfortunately, they do not allow dogs to walk the trails around there since it is a wildlife sanctuary. So we decided to take a quick trip up to Pittock Mansion. It was hazy/cloudy day so the view from the mansion wasn't all that spectacular but I am sure it is incredible when it is clear.

We did take a few pictures in the front and back of the building.