Our pumpkin this year:-).. Brians so proud but it is so cool.. wish it lasted longer:-(

I know I say it every year but man the year is just flying!! The days are now cold, dark, and short but I love it anyhow.. Fall is one of my favorite times of the year.. the leaves are turning and it means that the holidays are here! woohoo.. although this economy is kind of putting a damper on things, I'm staying positive that "all is good"..haha..

Not to mention October usually means CONCORD GRAPE season!! Thanks to a tip from my friend Robert, I hit the Korean grocery store and voila they were still there.. I literally count down the days until these arrive each year then they're gone.. only around for a few weeks..boohoo.. fall also puts me in the baking mood so while Brian was helping Ben on Sunday I baked a loaf of banana bread,..not bad.. next time, more sugar, less baking time..


still hitting the gym when I can. In fact, J&J came over on Sat and we all went to the gym which was great because John showed us how to use some of the weight machines that I was so intimidated to touch before.. now I can go and know if I miss a class I can do the machines instead.. I rode the bike, elliptical(didn't like it but I'll give it another try sometime), then some weight machines.. of course after Mom took us to Bluefin and I ate way too much - so much for the calorie burning we did that morning:-). Oh well.. work was crazy busy so I put in some long days.. had a great dinner on Friday with the "girls" at Elliots.. oysters and more oysters..yum! Oh and J&J brought Joey over to visit Sat before last...3 dogs in the house was pretty crazy. I think Stanley really wants a buddy..k, maybe Amy wants another doggie..

umm..Stanley, thats no way to treat our guests!

NO PAIN NO GAIN!!!

I just got home from my first "spin" class or indoor cycling..whatever you call it.. it HURTS!! ahh.. no one told me.. I sweated like a pig and could hardly walk.. the worst part was the seat..oye, 1 hour on that hard uncomfortable bike seat was killer.. but man what a workout. Who knew. I am sold.. joining the new YMCA tomorrow. I used a guest pass today to check it out and I have to say I love it.. bye bye Curves.. the people are so friendly, the classes non intimidating, and best part, its a 5min drive from home to the door.

I love that it doesn't feel like a gym but just a great hangout. You'll find all ages, nationality, fitness levels here and I dont' feel out of place for once in a "gym" :-) It's a little more then your average gym (and to think I always thought the "Y" was cheaper)..but I'm so excited.. the Pool looks awesome and I can't wait to take the swim lessons. Not to mention this place is brand new! just opened 4 days ago and its HUGE - 52,000 sqft.. sauna, climbing wall, raquetball/basketball courts, wifi and more! they also have yoga, pilates and a bunch of other classes! oye, lets hope my excitement continues and I will use it! but for now i"m happy and very sore.. I just hope I can climb those stairs at work tomorrow:-)

I'm cooking again! haha.. coming home from Maui then Vegas, nothing like home cooked meals.. some dinners I cooked recently..
whats easier then a grilled steak...some homemade caesar dressing, good glass of merlot..we were pretty happy:-)


chicken adobo - recipe I found years ago from a sous chef at Canlis.. some ong choy..comfort food
beef stew with fresh green beans..made so much we had to share with J&J

k, now that I've posted on the house I can talk about our trip to Maui:-). It was awesome - calm, warm and relaxing, just like we remembered it. The weather was perfect, 87 and sunny every day, the convertible came in pretty handy for all the driving we did all over the island. We stayed in Makena but made many trips to Lahaina, Pa'ia, Kannapaali, etc... We didn't have a lot planned for this trip aside from the luau at Lahaina, Haleakala and dinner at Mama's Fishhouse but nethertheless, time just flew. Typical day - get up really early since we were on seattle time, get coffee, go to the beach, lay around till about noon or later, go back, clean up and head out to check out a town and grab dinner. I made a list of restaurants I wanted to try and I think we hit just about every one of them..all the fish here was amazing.. in the week here I had ono, opah, monchong, mahi mahi, snapper.. all very good.

On our 2nd day we did the Haleakala crater..left our hotel at 3am to see the sunrise 10,000 ft up. It was about 75degrees when we started and by the time we got up there around 5am it was freezing cold and windy with a slight mist..around 42degrees I think.. too bad there was cloud cover but we still got to witness a pretty amazing sight, watching the clouds and fog clear while the sun rose above.. beautiful... drove down, got some breakfast - spam and eggs haha..then back to the hotel and off to the beach!

The Lahaina luau - it was so much fun and the setting is just amazing.. we also had an awesome dinner the last night before we left at Mama's Fish House..probably the most popular place in Maui but totally worth it..we saved the best for last.. as the hostess walked us in I asked if he had any more tables by the water.. "for you miss, yes"..and he wasnt' joking. not sure how we lucked out but best seat in the house! this place is just amazing. The restaurant itself is on the beach, lots of beautiful palms and flowers, water..we couldn't have asked for better.. the food was oh so good too..all the fish is caught that day by different fishermen who's names are on the menu.. anyhow I could probably go on and on but overall another unforgettable visit to Maui and we cannot wait to go back..time to start saving;-).. Oh and I am going to say it again ..I LOVE my new camera! We took over 400 photos while there...so fun to test it out on all the beautiful flowers, water, sunsets.... too many to post here but some random ones..

beach at our hotel.

so cool! we found him in the hotel courtyard..

Haleakala sunrise at 6:15am, 10000 ft up

at the luau..he's demonstrating how to open a coconut with a sharp stick- you know in case you ever get stranded on an island:-)

luau dancers

Our table at Mama's fish house

Tahitian black pearl dessert at Mama's..almost too pretty to eat..almost

Brian enjoying a cold beer at the Pa'ia Fish Market

pretty feather??/flower..

We are back to the rain and cold ..unfortunately:-) We had an amazing time and while it was hard to come home, we're also glad to be home.. got back really late but we turned into our streeet and could not believe our eyes...our house was all painted and the windows and trim were all so nice and bright.. love it.. we couldn't be happier with the paint job and it was kinda cool to come back to it all nice and done:-)..

Some pictures of our home before and after: Before with the vinyl siding.. looks okay from afar but trust me it wasn't:-)

2 summers later.. new roof , siding, and new paint!!
The back is the best part..so clean and pretty now.

well how fast things change.. hired the roofer after mom did some negotiating:).. told him he was hired yesterday afternoon and they started work today! ugh, I coudnt' sleep all night all worried and thinking what are they going to find under all those old shingles..I'm crazy I know.. it worked out okay because I delayed the painter until this weekend after the roof is done since the scraping of the roof may damage the new paint job so that was good..now they'll come on Sat and clean the house after the roof to get it all ready. Johnny is going to stop by and supervise the work while we're gone.. everything's moving so fast its crazy! Came home today and the roof was all scraped, new tar paper..tomorrow they lay shingles..or I think thats whats happening.

and I got the Nikon D60! its here and how fun!! I dont' know how to use it but its fun to explore with it. I've taken quite a few photos...200 and probably 3 turned out the way I'd like it to..haha.. thank goodness its digital.. be fun to take to Maui...now if I can just wrap up all my todos at work, I'll be good..because I am not checking email or voicemail while I'm gone:-).. can't wait. I've booked us a convertible, a luau, dinner at Mama's, scoped out places to eat and see.. going to try for sunset at Haleakala..

The end is finally in sight!!! and we are happy happy happy.. Hired a painter yesterday thanks to a referral from Anna.. Hope he works out but we are happy to let him paint this house.. ugh. Brian was pretty set on painting it himself on Friday but when he came over Saturday and talked about the powerwashing, then the scraping of paint, the caulking, and then 2 coats..we said, um, yeah we're sold..when can you start..no way we were going to do all that work or have enough summer to finish it.. I think they start work on Wednesday and should be done by Sat which means when we get back from Maui the house will be all painted! woohoo.. now the decision is whether to do a trim color on inside of the windows and to paint the doors. I t hink the answer is yes and we're going with a vintage wine color from Benjamin Moores.. Man their paint is pricey but oh well..how often do you paint your home.. we had to get 10 gals of exterior plus 2 gallons of white trim and nwo another gallon of the red wine..

I also had the roofer stop by and ugh, the quote is coming in about alot more then we expected.. He says our roof is steep which it is but man an extra 2K just for a steep roof? also told us the price of roofing materials went up with the oil and that is unfortunatley true but still.. torn..want to do it this year but man thats a lot of moola too.. guess we spend it this year or its next year .. Boy do we need that vacation..5 more days and we'll be sitting on a beach in 85degree weather in Maui..can't wait!

Is it September already?! Geez.... Just recovering from a long weekend. I didn't do much other then not feel too well but poor Brian:-(.. He tackled the hardest to reach part of our home to replace the siding. The dormer (I think this is what its called) in the back of the house is impossible to get to so I spent the weekend freaking out while Brian did all sorts of weird acrobatics with the ladder to get to it.. Brian threw the extension ladder (with the metal bars) over the roofline to reach it - great idea but just scary looking. .. eek! I couldn't watch but I couldnt' stay in the house either and of course no way was I leaving him at alone with that going on.. ahh....one more weekend and he'll be done.. thank goodness.. Aside from that, we had dinner with J&J at Jak's after John came over and helped out on Sunday.. Monday was labor day and a very last minute BBQ turned out to be pretty nice.. had some of the family over..the weather all weekend was icky.. very cold for this time of the year but gave us a chance to break out the firepit which was great..not sure what it is but an open fire is so relaxing and naturally gets everyone chatting..we also made smores:-) love it. Thanks again to Judy and Dan..

oh and some food photos.. made a blueberry galette with all those berries I picked from the farm.. yummy.. hot out of the oven with some vanilla ice cream. And some of my special bitter melon .. yep bitter melon.. one of those love or hate food items. I happen to love it and so does John so gave him some too.. :-).. Next weekend we are wrapping up the siding, calling the painters cuz poor Brian needs a break, then getting ready for Maui! We leave in 10 days..woohoo..can't wait to get some sun!

firepit in use for the first time..so awesome...

we found shingles under the vinyl..we were hopeful it would be salvageable but no luck :-(
scary.. can't watch..
pretty with the new siding:-)
blueberry galette..ready to go into the oven
Yummy.. looks just like the picture in the recipe..berry juices leaked but aside from that, awesome.. cheated and used a ready made piecrust..didnt' matter, still yummy
ahh.. comfort food..a pot of bitter melon with spareribs.. Mom would be so proud..haha..Brian on the other hand thinks its so weird I eat this stuff.. poo to him!

What a scorching hot weekend! but I shouldn't complain. In Edmonds, we were about 10 degrees cooler them mom and dad's in Seattle plus we have all that shade so it wasn't too bad.. This weekend mom , cheng goo and I went blueberry picking in North Bend.. what a blast! who knew it was so much fun..aside from getting slightly turned around plus the heat..next time we will go earlier and on a day where its not going to hit 90 with no wind whatsoever..either way, 1 hour later we each picked about 6lbs of berries.. it was awesome. I probably ate about a pound while picking:-).. the farm is just gorgeous..no bugs, no mud.. trees my height so no bending..and good berries to boot.. we might go again this weekend when its cooler so we can do more picking!

Farm at the base of Mt. Si... berry trees right of the entrance

HUGE berries.. love the hats:-)

Look at what one week of sunshine will do for me veggies!! Sugar peas should be ready to pick by this weekend..same with the tomatoes..exciting...Its such a good feeling to be able to "grow" your dinner! veggies, fruit trees.. love them. I've learned a lot this year and next year I hope the garden will even be better:-).. year 3 and maybe I'll finally have it right.. Oh and the firepit is here!! Its awesome, nicer then the pictures. We love it and goes so well with the yard. Can't wait to fire it up and roast some marshmallows!

pretty firepit.. and big!

sugar peas! These were so easy to grow I think I'll do it again next y ear..
Cherry tomatoes almost ready to pick

Zucchinni!

bush beans
Strawberries! I thought they were done for the season but maybe I will get to one afterall..the last time this plant had a strawberry, the birds or squirrel ate it before i got to it:-(
Pretty hydrangeas..this one is about the size of my head!

Is it really August already? Geez.. summer is flying by..well we are starting on the siding again.. and once again maybe a tad too late but we're hoping for the best so we can wrap it up and get it painted before fall is here. Markane is in town and we did the usual BBQ at our house . it was great..ate so much food and helped Markane celebrate his Bday..I think we have some blackmail worthy photos:-). And this weekend I decided to do the camping thing while Brian does the Uncle Tom's cabin thing.. Yesterday was my American bday.. not one I celebrate..in fact I dont' really like to celebrate my bday at all but Brian was very nice and got me flowers and dinner at Lolas which was "amazing".. best dish I've had in awhile - off their "meze" menu - red wine braised octopus with peas, caramelized onions and crispy pork belly.. sounds weird but OMG.. it came on this bed of lemony creamy white sauce.. I couldn't stop eating it and probably not something Brian would usually eat but he even called it awesome.. we also had skordalia, some trout and lamb.. all really really good..we will be back.. Oh and to top it off we finally got a firepit!! yay, thanks to Dan and Judy:-). We just got an email that this was coming in the mail.. can't wait to use it this summer..Need to stock up on mashmallows and invite Kelley over..haha.. this one is so much nicer then what we've seen in the stores becuase its nice and deep so less embers and you can burn more wood at once.. Yippee!! Oh and we're going to Maui! yes, finally.. booked the trip last week and I can't wait..we're going back to the Maui Prince for 6 nights.. should be fun..just sit back and relax..

The weekend is almost over..so sad..It was very relaxing.. had dimsum Sat then shopping with mom, googooo then dinner at Chef Liaos.. Brian's parents were also in town for about 2 weeks and it was busy as usual. They left on Tuesday..We did a lot of shopping, eating, and worked in the yard. The weather was perfect. We also had a nice 4th celebration at J&Js.. Brian finished building the planter boxes plus the trellises for the clematis. Turned out a lot better then I thought:-)..as usual. Also finished the yearend review stuff at work so just some followups and we're through. This Thursday, I'm headed to Suncadia resort in Cle Elum for a leadership retreat..should be nice. I've never been to Cle Elum. Markane comes into town this Wed and we have a BBQ the following weekend then Uncle Tom's cabin after that.. the Family is going camping but we wont' be going this year so we can go to the cabin.. boohoo.. not enough weekends during the summer.. anyhow, some pictures. I still haven't done anything to the bedroom.. thats next;-) still getting ideas. Now I"m thinking of an upholstered headboard...hmmm some progress on the plants..

boxes with trellises and the clematis

Hanging plant Judy/Dan bought for us

pretty flowers I got at the Edmond's farmers market

sugar snap peas growing finally

Tomatoes!