This girl likes her apples!

We began giving Stella solid foods about a month ago and that girl loves to eat! If you have ever seen her in person you would know...she packs it on quite nicely:) I decided to stick some apple slices into her little mesh thing (name???) and last time she wasn't a big fan but this time she couldn't leave it alone! It was so cute! Of course now I have a nice mess to clean up but maybe I'll just leave that for her daddy when he gets home....

Trying to show her how she can hold it herself

The video is kind of long...but when the subject is this cute, how do you know when to end it?! I like to catch as many of her cute smiles and giggles as I can. Love my sweet baby girl:)

A taste of the old life

About a week ago Alex and I heard that Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes were playing at Marymoor Mark so of course we looked up tickets and it would be $100 for both of us to go and I would probably say "no" to that since we are still in between jobs:/ However...a few years ago we were walking through Marymoor in the evening and Duran Duran happened to be playing and we could hear them pretty well! We danced around the park to "Rio" and "Hungry Like the Wolf" and other great songs so we figured we would just do the same this time!

We put Stella down for bed at 6:45 and some of her awesome grandparents kept an eye on her for us while we went out. We dressed in our running clothes so that we would just look like some oblivious runners just making our way through the park:) We started running and there seemed to be a lot more security than last time! It got dark and we found a little grassy spot in some trees and so we sat there waiting for the band to start. It was really dark except for the lights from the concert so when people walked past us (we were by a dark trail connected to the parking lot), we probably looked kind of creepy just sitting there in the trees. After what seemed like forever (!!) the band finally started and it was so worth it! We could hear them very well and we could even see a little bit of the stage! Unfortunately it started to get cold and we couldn't stay too long since we had a little baby at home so we left after about an hour. We didn't get to hear our favorite song but it didn't make our night any less enjoyable. It was so fun to get out and enjoy a quality concert (YAY for the awesome concerts in Seattle!!!). And of course we ended the evening with a raw, vegan fudge ice cream bar from Whole Foods.

Supposedly this is the concert we heard but could barely see....

We're excited for more nights like this one.

The famous vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

I've had a lot of people request this recipe so I am going to post it and satisfy a lot of cravings that people are having:) Sometimes I like to change it up a little bit, like changing oat flour for wheat flour or taking out the walnuts since Alex doesn't like them. No matter the variation, though, they never fail to appease my sweet tooth.

• 1 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1 cup whole wheat flour (or 3/4-1 cup oat flour, 1/4 cup whole wheat flour)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup grapeseed oil (you can also use canola oil, vegetable oil, or even Smart Balance or Earth Balance butter)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup (the real stuff!)
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tsp. water

Mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients in separate bowls. Pour the wet into the dry and mix until they are even. For best results, let the batter sit for 5 minutes. Form desired size of cookies and place on oiled baking sheet or on parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-11 minutes. For higher altitudes, begin checking the cookies at 8 minutes.

So I just made these cookies the other day and didn't take a picture of them (didn't think I needed to...so why waste time when they're hot!) so I got this picture off the internet. Not the exact cookies but this picture will have to do until I stop feeling guilty from the last batch and make some more:) They look something like this.... 

I've learned that pictures of food need to be BIG!

Another great vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe that is also low in carbohydrates is one that I found on an amazing blog called Elana's Pantry. My sister told me about it a while ago and I've made a few of her recipes. These are the Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies. Another amazing recipe of hers is the Lemon Lavender Cookies (also vegan and low in carbohydrates).

Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 2 cups blanched almond flour (almond meal works, too)
• 1/4 tsp. celtic sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 cup vegan palm oil shortening (I use grapeseed oil or Smart Balance)
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks

Combine almond flour, salt, and baking soda in a food processor. Pulse in shortening, honey, and vanilla until dough forms. Remove blade from food processor and stir in chocolate chunks by hand. Scoop dough, one level tablespoon at a time, onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Press balls of dough down gently. Bake at 350 degrees for 6-8 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes (do not handle before they are cool or they will break). To see a picture of these just go to her blog.

Dinner with Friends

I had the opportunity to meet Erik and Amy when Alex and I got engaged. They were married a couple of months after us and then we moved to Utah and they moved to Arizona and then Texas. Now we are all back in the Northwest so we met up for dinner! Erik and Amy have a lovely studio in downtown Seattle and invited us over for some homemade pizza! It was so fun to see them again and catch up, and   they got to meet Stella!

    

100% Girl

This morning, Alex decided to set Stella in front of the mirror to distract her while we got ready for the day. We had no idea how much she would enjoy it! She was smiling at herself and of course smiling at us as we looked at her through the mirror. When you look that cute how could you NOT stare at yourself forever?!

Looking herself over...

She sees Mommy in the mirror!

                 

I think she liked what she saw:) And of course some more adorable pictures of Stella playing at Grandma Susan's house.

                

Cutie pie!

Just when you think you could never love another...

Growing up, I always thought that the best veggie burger in town was from Red Mill (and it is still a darn good burger!) but my mom recently took me to Uneeda Burger located in Fremont and this burger is right up there with Red Mill. They have a farro veggie burger with this amazing sauce that I believe is horseradish and grilled mushrooms with an amazing bun that may or may not be local(Mom?) and you also have the option of a gluten-free bun or a locally made kaiser bun, which is in the picture. They also have some other delicious combinations and you can substitute the farro burger for a regular beef burger. Last time I went I shared a burger with Megan that had bleu cheese on it and I saw that they had a burger with mushrooms, black truffle oil (!!!!) and some sort of cheese, gruyere perhaps. It's just good to know that there are lots of good veggie burgers out there because, I think most who have tried it will agree, Red Mill is a tough one to beat.

This was my first ever bite! I took a picture and sent it to Alex...I don't think he appreciated it as much as I hoped he would. He just needs to try it. Oh and as if the burgers aren't good enough, the fries are amazing and I hear the shakes are up there as well. They have some yummy flavors, too. I love Seattle:)

Stella's BFF from Day One

My sister Megan announced that she was pregnant last June and we were all so excited beyond belief. Soon after Alex and I discovered that we were expecting as well! And imagine our excitement when just a few months later we found out that we were both having girls!! Vivienne Claire was born on January 20th and she was only 4 lbs 15 oz and so when Stella Mae was born on February 28th weighing in at 7 lbs 6 oz, Miss Vivienne was just getting to that size! They were 5 weeks apart and roughly the same size (although by now Stella has passed Vivie up and now weighs about 3 pounds more!).

Ever since we found out that I was having a girl as well we have planned for these two girlies to be best buds! And best buds they are:) We were so sad to leave Utah and Vivienne but their friendship runs deep.

The two little troublemakers a few days after Stella's birth

Stella with her Uncle Matt and Vivienne with her daddy

The girls at Uneeda Burger in Seattle

These cuties even have matching dresses and Vivie's crafty mommy made them some cute little headbands with felt flowers! Unfortunately I'm not quite so crafty:/ It's so fun to see Vivienne grow and learn new things and know that Stella will be right behind her! Vivienne rolled over one day and a few weeks later Stella did, too! Vivienne is about to check off crawling and I'm so excited for Stella to do the same!

My all time favorite picture of Vivienne:)

Love these girls!

Mornings with Miss Stella!

We have been working on establishing a sleeping routine with Stella and we have made a lot of improvement. Stella started sleeping through the night at about 2 months or so but then some dark clouds rolled in and she began waking up once during the night. Then twice. Then every two hours!! So we decided it was time to work on a routine to help her sleep better and it's working thanks to help from my sisters and the book, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weissbluth. Stella is now waking up only once at night to feed and on special occasions she sleeps through the night again! We are all much happier in the morning and I've found that instead of sleeping only 8-9 hours at night she is able to sleep 11-12 hours. Naps are also a lot easier, but that's another story:)

We love Stella in the mornings! She typically wakes up around 7-7:30 and for about half an hour she just sings! Of course we are both way too tired to go pick her up so we just listen until she is actually crying (I know...we're great parents). When we go to pick her up she always has the biggest grin on her face and is just as happy as can be!

So happy!!

Stella and her daddy love to cuddle! I used to think food was the best way to wake Alex in the mornings but I think Stella tops that. She's a lot cuter than food:)

My Staples

Since I have been trying to eat a little more healthy I have some "staple" foods that I eat often. I probably eat them more than I should but I love them and as long as they are healthy, who cares! My favorite is my green smoothie!

Green Smoothie:

• 1 frozen banana
• 1/2-1 cup frozen berries
• 1 cup almond milk (or however much you need to get the smoothie to a good consistency)
• Handful of spinach/kale/swiss chard/collard greens (I use whatever I have in the fridge but spinach has the most mild flavor and I throw in as much as I can handle!)

I blend it until it's thick and smooth (I like to eat it with a spoon!) and then I eat it with peanut butter:)

My other staple is my vegan vegetable sandwich. I tried this at a health food store in Utah and I just recreated it at home. Everyone has variations of this sandwich so there are a lot of yummy ways to enjoy it but this is how I like it:

• Whole wheat bread - my favorite bread is Kneadin' Bread but it's only in Utah so I have to find something here:(
• Veganaise
• Spike
• Yellow, orange, or red bell pepper
• Yellow onion
• Tomato
• Avocado

Spread the veganaise on both sides of the bread and sprinkle the spike generously on both sides. Put the tomato on first, then the avocado (the avocado is the best part so I put on a lot!), then the bell pepper slices and finally the onion. This is really yummy with Kettle potato chips or Alex likes it with tortilla chips and homemade salsa. This is one of those sandwiches that I think I will never get tired of.

Hello Seattle!

Well we just moved home to Seattle after living in Utah for the past several years. We are so happy to be amongst family and friends but we greatly miss those we left behind in Utah. We decided to move on a Wednesday and by Sunday we were in Seattle. Even though Alex and I were both born and raised here we are both in awe with the beauty and the fresh air. My brother Ryan always tells me to "wait for the rain to start" but we got some rain today and I was in heaven! I'm sure it will get old soon but right now I'm just trying to soak it all up.

Soaking up the Seattle sunshine

The move was a little stressful and I am now finally getting back into the groove of things. We've been doing a lot of running and mapping out some good runs in the area. Back in Utah we had everything all mapped out so if we wanted to go for a 3-mile run or a 10-mile run we would know exactly where to go. Moving to a new area means we have to start from scratch unfortunately. Stella is settling back into her nap routine and I am starting to cook and bake my favorite things again. We made a yummy vegan crisp the other day with some plums from Alex's parents' backyard and some mixed berries. We also went blackberry picking and made a pie with peaches and blackberries! I have been loving the farmers markets as well. Fortunately there is a market in the University District in Seattle that goes year round so I'm excited to start eating a little more locally. Since we have been here, Alex has discovered Mighty-O vegan doughnuts and will do almost anything to get one (I now have a good bribery tool!).

We downsized a lot for this move because we didn't want to spend a fortune to move across state. So now we kind of have a blank slate. Alex drove down to Utah to get the rest of our stuff in his dad's truck and somehow he made everything fit! He is an amazing packer!

This took skill

Anyway this is our blog! I'm new at this so hopefully I'll be good at posting on a regular basis. This is kind of a fresh start for us so I'm trying to do a lot of things that I've felt like I needed to do but haven't had the time for.

Back in the Pacific Northwest!