How we spent our long weekend

It’s been some time since I posted about our life so this post will be part Q and part general. Divided into two sections for those who may wish to only read about one or the other. 🙂

General
This evening I will start with some general stuff. We are really enjoying our new house. We have tidied up the yard a bit, making it seem less like a jungle for the winter. Not knowing some of what was planted, it is a hard task. Our friend Lorrie came over shortly after we moved in and helped me tidy the raspberry bushes so they will be ready for production next year. We are really looking forward to having fresh berries! We have also discover many strawberry plants, rhubarb and parsley. I’m hearing nothing but strawberry-rhubarb desserts next summer! I’m so excited already.

Here’s a photo of Richard taking down the wallpaper border in the kitchen. The ivy design really isn’t our style. Needless to say, we don’t miss it or the coordinating items that were left behind, those were the first to go.

IMG_0384 Very quickly, my favorite features of the house are the sunroom and our wood stove. We just found a small table and chairs which fit perfectly in the sunroom. Here’s one of the afternoons I spent there during nap time. I watched one of my favorite Anime(Shonen Omiyouji), drank tea and knit. It was wonderful.

20131123-223027.jpg In the afternoon, it’s an amazing place to sit and look out over the back yard. Especially, when there is any sunlight! As for the wood stove, I’m pleased to say we just bought a second cord of wood and should be set for the winter. Yay! Our nest thermostat is helping to learn our habits and keep our house just the way we like it when we aren’t using the wood stove. We prefer to use the wood stove on days that are colder anyway. There’s something really comforting about it.
As I type this we are on the Coho ferry back to Port Angeles after spending the long weekend in Victoria with my family. Thanks to Tanya and Chad for having a room for us! Q had a ton of fun playing with Kyle. They seem to really enjoy each other. Saturday, I got my hair cut while my dad, Richard and Q went to the bug zoo and walked on the waterfront. We then hit up a great fish and chips place! It was called Haultain Fish and Chips and we are totally going there again. My dad has tried to take us there before, but they were closed. Boy were we glad they were open, the fish is cooked just right so it has lots of flavor still. We also got the fried zucchini, which also came with a great dill dipping sauce. In fact, my dad was dipping everything else in it too he liked it so much. And yes, their coleslaw is good just like the reviews say!

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The above photo was taken at a park not far from my dad’s house. It’s a nice place to walk around. We went there in the morning before catching the ferry back home.

As always we went out to Chinese food with my family. I love that we do this. It’s fun to sit around the table have good food and chat. The only time I get Chinese food that authentic is when we go to a place in Seattle. That’s not to say the places in Port Angeles are bad, they just are different. I have my favorites at home too.

Probably the biggest difference is that at the end of the month my Grandma’s house will have closed its sale. She and my grandpa bought the house for just over $4000.00 sometime in the 60’s and has lived in it ever since then until about two years ago when she started spending part of the time with my Aunt or Uncle. Now that she lives between the two of them full time, there is no need to keep her house. It’s one of those bittersweet moments. From there I got a picture which hung on the living room wall since I can remember. I also got her recipes.
Q update
This kid is growing and changing each day. Some days are leaps and other days are not. He’s new trick is to open the fridge on his own. He loves orange juice so that’s always what he goes for. Favorites include: Pitch Perfect, the movie(still), music in general, after all we do rock out in the car together, Nutella and toast. He loves his cats but they don’t love him as much. Hahaha! He’s been great about going to the bathroom. In fact these days he is more regularly telling us he has to go. I’m so proud! It was a year ago now that he first wanted to sit on the toilet, so we started putting him on there whenever he would ask. It worked out to be maybe once or twice a week. Slowly, we have worked out way up to today. Not really pushing it and we had a huge back step when we moved. In fact, that back step is part of why I’m so excited he’s doing so well now.

The words are flowing like crazy and each day it seems there is something new. Last week he told me he wanted to carry his plate. Phew, I had no idea he knew how to say all those words, let alone put them in a sentence! Enjoy the cheese photo!IMG_0400