Corner Piece with Extra Frosting

My parents did a great job about making birthdays in our house extra special. I got to choose the dinner menu, presents were a given, & more often than not a really fun party was approved. I have a lot of great childhood memories, but the birthday parties definitely make the highlights reel. That time when we made Pocahontas vests out of brown paper bags, we had a tea party & decorated hats, a dress up party where everyone got a disposable camera as a party favor, a Halloween party, an obstacle course that included climbing up in the treehouse, a sleepover, a Bubblegum blowing contest....One year I remember I really wanted KFC for dinner, one year I think I just had Mr. Fleece & a few other friends over for cake & ice cream, another year I had an "S" party where everyone wore stripes/sweaters/skirts/socks etc.

It's different to think about now that so many of my friends have children. A birthday is certainly a celebration for the child, but in a way it's another milestone for the parents too. Moms still remember the day they gave birth, & quite frankly, their lives changed a lot too. So on this birthday, I'm cheers-ing to my parents. Thanks, Miriam & Darryl! For everything.

Blowing out the candles,

SJW

Black Cats & Witch Hats

A fan of pep rallies, theme parties, & clever DIY reinterpretations, here are my favorite Halloween ideas this year! From classic movies & Pixar characters to food & animals, there's a lot of inspiration & creativity on display.

Forest Gump & Jenny

Lady & the Tramp

They nailed it!

Love this one!

Gumball machine :) 

Funny!

An all-time classic.

Pixar lamp!

Characters from UP

Super cute & easy!

Clever :) 

They nailed it!

So creative!

Fun group idea!

So cute!

Squirrel!

Greek yogurt :) 

Fun couples idea. 

To the only time of the year when I eat Heath bars & Almond Joys, 

-SJW

Three Times the Charm

Or is it third time's the charm? In this case, perhaps both. By God's grace we own & manage two duplexes in Lower Queen Anne. Our story is unique in the fact that within five years, we've lived in three of the four units. To have only moved twice, all within 20 feet, & without the need of a U-HAUL truck, is unheard of, not to mention kind of ridiculous. Our address has changed three times now, but we're still holding strong to Aloha St. We think we've landed the best unit of the four & hope to stay here at least a couple more years. We're looking forward to an extra bedroom, an open layout, french doors out to the patio, & a turquoise kitchen! Still living small in just 600 square feet, but there's a fair amount of storage & the place is just so darn cute.

After just having bar stools & a breakfast nook, an actual dining table is really nice!

Kitchen & Living Room

French doors & art collage.

Bright colors & mirrors help brighten the space.

Mr. Fleece installed a new dishwasher for us!

Spacious bathroom.

Standing shower. W/D is to the left. 

Our goal is to have a functional kitchen using vertical storage space, spices near the stove, & clean counter space.

View from the front door.

Doors to bedrooms in back right.

Simple bedroom. 

I like having carpeted areas again.

Our bikes, books, & games are all hidden behind the curtain.

Large covered deck!

Love having a garden & grill. 

Playing duplex roulette,

- SJW

P.S. There really is a second bedroom (office + game room), but as I feared, it's become a bit of a junk yard/waste land at the moment. So no pictures for now!

When the Cat's Away

Mr. Fleece is out of town today, which means I have the house to myself! Though my default mode is to reach out to a friend to meet up, grab coffee, or go for a walk, I intentionally made no plans & reserved a day for myself with the goal of some self care. When I have an unscheduled free day, here's what I like to do:

- Read Bible with no time constraints.
- Get a manicure & pedicure.
- Tidy up the house.
- Cozy up on the couch to read. Currently reading The Girl Who Drank the Moon.
- Walk Ebony to the Uptown P-Patch garden.
- Watch a movie while cooking. Just watched The Big Sick.
- Drink hot peppermint hot cocoa while blogging :)

-SJW

Pirates of the Mediterranean

Mr. Fleece & I were able to take a Mediterranean Cruise with his family this summer. With six people, having all the decisions made up front was incredibly helpful. It felt like the only decisions we had to make was what to order off the menu at dinner :). The cruise ship itself was the definition of opulent, but I suppose that's part of the fun.

Highlights:

- We absolutely loved Barcelona & had the best food & relaxation here. Tapas for the win. Air BnB for the win. Play "nutsy" on the hotel patio for the win.
- Watching children play soccer & ride bikes after 9pm(!) in Placa de la Villa de Gracia which turned out to be one of my favorite local spots of the entire trip!

- Rome was beautiful & historic - our tour guide Hugo made the trip with his chill demeanor & off-the-cuff side commentary. "There are two things I do not tolerate. Impoliteness & confusion."  

- Our favorite port stop was in Villafranche, exploring Nice, the medieval city of Eze with its winding streets & charming views, & Monaco. Hearing our personal tour guide Karen say "isn't in beau-ti-ful" at every strop.
- Walking the streets of Pompei, the Roman Forum, & Colosseum. Took me back to my 'History of Ancient Rome' class I took my freshman year at UT.
- Watching the ice skating performance on the boat - we were the perfect jaw-dropped, hand-clapping, can't-stop-cheering front-row-seated audience there ever was.
- Winning Family Feud & trivia. Mr. Fleece coming alive again at Harry Potter trivia & Patrick running out to find the snitch :)
- Eating so much gelato!
- Riding electric bikes through the city of Marseille on our first day off the boat. Though rather dangerous at times, it was a unique & amazing way to see the city. City streets, parks, the calanques & a leisurely lunch near the water! I just wished we would have see the Count of Monte Cristo.
- Dinners with the family in the "corner office" in the dining room - with the best views & service staff!
- Getting to practice our Spanish & listening to the cruise director switch back & forth between languages in rapid succession.
- Touring a perfume factory & cameo factory. I always love seeing how things get made.
- Making our last day one of pure relaxation in the sun, eating pizza, dozing, reading, & eating out at Cerveseria Catalana.

SPAIN - Barcelona

FRANCE - Marseille

FRANCE - Villefranche, Nice, Eze, Monaco

ITALY - Portovenere & Monterosso in Cinque Terra

ITALY - Rome, Vatican City, Trevi Fountain, Roman Forum, Colosseum

ITALY - Naples, Mt. Vesuvius & Pompeii

It's really fascinating & eye-opening to see new places, explore new cultures, & take in iconic sites. But honestly, it's the people that make a trip! The conversations, laughs, connections, & memories made along the way! Grateful for this amazing trip & time with family.

In honor of our cruise director,"Chao Chao for Now,"

- SJW