July awesome-ness

July has been month of fun for the May family. Here are the highlights, but I'm warning you: this is long; July has been REALLY fun.

*Nathanael spoke at the Issaquah summer series on the evening of June 30th, and the next morning we left Ezekiel at my moms house. We spent a couple of hours at Pike Place Market with Dan and Robyn and Mindy and Daniel We leisurely drove home and stopped for coffee...and then ice cream.

* We watched Tangled for the first time. Good movie.

*I started a new 30 day challenge. I'm getting up every morning at 6:20 on weekdays to run. I'm on my fourth week, and I'm really enjoying it. I think I'll go for a second month!

*I painted a wall in our dining room with chalkboard paint. We have already received much enjoyment out of it. Ezekiel in particular likes to draw straight lines on it.

*We had dinner with our new friends Beth and Mark...twice!

*We had dinner with Daniel and Mindy at Famous Dave's

*Nathanael and I had a lovely morning at Rain or Shine coffee while Ezekiel was gone, where we both studied for bible class. It was supremely relaxing.

*We received our beef from the Carpenters. Dan and I picked it up at the butcher shop. Almost half a side of beef fit in our freezer, minus three packages of hamburger meat. I was pretty impressed with our freezer space. So far we have grilled burgers and the t-bone steaks. It is AMAZING.

*I got my hair cut. FINALLY. It is shorter that it has been in a long time. I really like it.

*The Mowrers came for a visit. It was wonderful! We loved visiting with them and sharing our home and new lives with them. We went to Powell's Books and ate lunch at Pacific Pie Co., two of my favorite things in Portland!

*Nathanael's grandparents stopped in for a very brief visit

*We went camping in Lincoln City for 3 days. We used our new tent that we got for Christmas, which held up great in the rain. We were able to walk to the beach from our campsite. It took some time for Ezekiel to want to walk on the sand, even with his water shoes on. He didn't like it at first. But he eventually did, and he and Nathanael played in the sand together. The ocean was beautiful and my favorite part of the trip was the afternoon we spent sitting at the beach. Ezekiel seemed to love camping...probably because he got to be outside all the time.

*Nathanael had the young men from church over to watch Inception...which meant that I enjoyed reading my book in my bedroom.

*Robyn came down on Sunday the 24th and stayed with Ezekiel so we could go and see Harry Potter. I loved it! I can't wait until Ezekiel is old enough to read Harry Potter so I can go through the whole series again with him.

*Ezekiel went to stay with Dan and Robyn for 4 days! I think I will always simultaneously like and not like it when he goes to stay with family. It is a very strange feeling.

*I painted another wall! One of the walls in the family room is now brown, to match the opposing wall in the entryway.

*I hung a curtain rod and put up the curtain in Ezekiel's room which has been on my mind to do since we moved in. I love how it makes Ezekiel's room come together. His room is my favorite room in the house now. Next project: paint stripes!

*Nathanael and I saw Captain America (in the theater) and Iron Man 2 (at home). We're preparing for The Avengers.

Well! Can you believe those are just the highlights??

Hello August! You will be fun too!

my favorite thing(s) about today

1. While I was making dinner (trying to), Ezekiel came over to me and tugged on my pant leg until I followed him. He tugged me all the way outside because he wanted me to play with him out there. I realized that he will not always want me to play with him, and so right then and there, I treasured that moment up in my heart.

2. Smoothie making. I made a smoothie with the following ingredients: orange juice, frozen blueberries, strawberries, a banana, lemon juice, vanilla, blueberry yogurt, ice. I was going to throw some Red Bull in there, but it was already a little on the thin side, so I didn't. Maybe tomorrow. I love making smoothies with my smoothie maker.

3. Trying a new recipe. I had some collard greens to use from my produce box, and I must say, they are a bit of a challenge. I scoured the internet for a recipe that I thought we both might like, and I came up with Pasta with Sausage and Collard Greens from Kalyn's Kitchen. I give it a 6 out of 10. Collard greens are just plain difficult to work with, unless you are from the south and know what a ham hock is (which I don't).

4. I discovered today that Ezekiel knows how to say wiggles. As in, "The Wiggles" from the Sprout channel. This was not super intuitive for me, since when he says "wiggles", it's a cross between yogurt and yo-yo, with maybe a little bit of yodeling thrown in. I had to hear it in context, which means while he was excited about me turning the show on for him. It was the best.

an anniversary list

Today is our 5 year anniversary. In honor of that, I'm going to make a list.

Anniversary eateries

1. On our first anniversary, we returned to the place it all started. We ate at the Duval Beach Club in Key West. It's where we got married.

2. Our second anniversary was a little less glamorous. We spent it in beautiful Fresno, and ate at the Cheesecake Factory. It was a week day, and Nathanael was working at Apple and had to close a store in Fresno. The weekend before however, we went to a Death Cab for Cutie concert and ate at the Stinkin' Rose in San Francisco.

3. Our third anniversary was spent hiking Half Dome in Yosemite, and I know that my friend Val prepared a delicious dinner for us at the cabin upon our return, but I don't remember what that was. What I do remember is the trail mix that got me through the rough patches of the day and the hard boiled eggs that I carried in my pocket all the way to the top.

4. Our fourth anniversary was spent at Donner Pass. At the time I had a morbid fascination with the Donner Party. Nathanael humored me with an anniversary trip to the memorial site and we gazed upon graves as we celebrated the day we were wed. We ate at Smash Burger for the first and almost last time (we moved to Oregon 2 weeks later).

5. Pacific Pie Co. was the eatery of choice on this special day, our fifth anniversary. A favorite of ours since we moved to Oregon, I had yet to visit their new location. I think we've eaten pies from Pacific Pie Co. more than any food from any other restaurant since we've moved here. Australian savory pies are my favorite!

the top ten things I love this week

In no particular order,

1. The mango/banana/strawberry smoothie I made for dinner. It was so pretty - orange on the bottom half, and red on the top half. Check Facebook next week for a picture.

2. The slow cooker pot pie recipe I found on The Simple Dollar website. This was the best, because you use any vegetables that you have on hand for the vegetable part. Which is awesome for me, because I always have vegetables that I'm trying to figure out what to do with from our weekly produce box. I'm going to make it every Monday night for the rest of our lives.

3. Sharing a churro with Ezekiel at Costco. It was the best part of our grocery adventures this week.

4. My impromptu trip to Washington for Serena's birthday BBQ. I decided on Thursday night to go, and we left Friday after breakfast. It's so awesome to be able to do that, living so close to my family and all.

5. Playing with Ruby and Ezekiel on the trampoline. Amber and Brian have one at their house and it has a net around it, so we played on it until all 3 of us were worn out.

6. Ezekiel burped in my mouth. I know this sounds gross, but it was so precious, and I am convinced you will only ever hear a mom say that. It coincided with a kiss he was giving me, which incidentally was one of the first kisses he has ever offered.

7. Nathanael had dinner ready for us when we got home from our little trip. He is so thoughtful.

8. Having Natalie spend the night with us, and playing Dominion with her.

9. Being excited about celebrating Nathanael and his awesomeness on Father's Day

10. I finished picking out the wedding pictures for my collage frame. It has taken me forever, and really feel like I've accomplished something. Now I've only got 2 more collage frames to fill.

fill in the blank friday.

1. This weekend I'm making a trip to the Hallmark store tonight to buy some much needed greeting cards for various occasions, going to eat dinner at some tasty Portland food carts on Saturday night, helping a co-worker of Nathanael's with some dog walking on Saturday afternoon, and going to a graduation party on Sunday afternoon.

2. My last vacation was hmm, I was just wondering this the other day. I feel like it has been so long, and I'm really craving a beach vacation. Alas, it will not happen in 2011. So...our last vacation was to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in July of 2009. Thanks to Robyn for reminding me of when my last vacation was!

3. My next vacation will be somewhere amazing and tropical, like Hawaii. I don't know when that will be, though. I only know we'll be paying cash for it. :)

4. My favorite way to relax is to read a book in the sun.

5. When vacationing one should always have fun, relax, be in the moment, make memories, smile, take lots of pictures.

6. When vacationing one should never count calories or plan too much.

7. The best part about a vacation is the anticipation, and how it makes you appreciate home.

Quotes and sayings I love

• 1/1/19  "It is not the x-rated video but the prime time dribble of triviality that we drink in every night that dulls our senses and appetite for the things of heaven. It fills our spirits with a faux sense of satisfaction that leads us into thin living." -Matt Chandler
  
• 1/1/19  "The story that we're living in is that everything we have has been given to us by the grace of God and is therefore to be held with an open hand, wherin we look for opportunities to be generous, as we have been the recipients of such stunning generosity." -Matt Chandler
• 1/1/19 Being present is absolutely essential for experneincing and appreciating the small joys of life. Instead of always thinking of the next thing on our to-do list or itinerary, being present allows us to recognize and enjoy those small moments of joy as they arise.
• JESUS. PURCHASED. REST.
•  "Normally, we do not so much as look at things as overlook them."
• "Stop before I go." -Kara Tippetts

the top ten things I love this week

1. My mom's visit over the weekend. She hasn't been here for a visit since December, and it was so nice to spend some time with her. We did lots of fun stuff (see other things I love this week).

2. The summery days! Friday and Saturday were amazing. I love having the windows open, and waking up in the morning to bright sunlight, with the covers half off already, because it's so warm. I can't quite figure out how I love the Northwest so much, but also love warm sunny days.

3. Blueberry smoothies! I made them myself!

4. Making an extra payment on our credit card. That feels AMAZING. We're on our way to being DEBT FREE!

5. Coffee and Conversation with my friend MacKenzie. I don't know her that well, but I like her!

6. Buying Death Cab For Cutie's new album, "Codes and Keys". Thanks for the extra ten bucks, mom!

7. Date night! My mom babysat for us Saturday night so we could go to dinner and a movie. We (finally!) visited a few food carts in Portland. I've been dying to visit a food cart all winter. Nathanael let me choose, so we went to to a collection of food carts on Belmont, and we each got a corn dog and fries at Rollin' Etta, and I got a fizzy lifting drink at The Sugar Cube. Definately the best corn dog I've ever had.

8. My fizzy lifting drink from The Sugar Cube (this warrants it's own place in the list). "Ginger ale infused with fresh ginger and a splash of Japanese plum drinking vinegar, served over ice. Japanese drinking vinegars are super popular in Japan and we love them too! Refreshing and good for you."

9. The Beaverton farmers market, again! I never get tired of it. This week, it was just my mom, Ezekiel, and I. We shared a sandwich from PBJs grilled called the Pumpkin Pie. Challah bread, pumpkin butter, Two Tarts carmel sauce, pie crust, and PBJs peanut butter. So yummy. Can't wait to try something new next week!

10. Shala bought me the book Listography: my amazing life in lists - the very inspiration for my blog! I can't wait to read it and start making lists in earnest.