Recipes!

I am slowly adding recipes to Julie's and my site...if you have any original recipes that you love, let me know and I will add it!

The link to our site is always conviently located on the left :)

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New Tent!

I just bought the Columbia Hawk Ridge 10- by 7- Foot Three-Person Dome Tent. I am very excited becuase it is the first step of all the exciting trips that I have planned this summer and for many adventures to come!

Product Features
-Dome-style tent sleeps up to four; measures 10 by 7 feet
-GoBeDry rain protection system repels moisture with a protective coating
-Cyclone Venting System exhausts hot air up through the skylight roof mesh panels
-Hanging gear loft, pocket organizer
-Center height of 60 inches; 14.9-pound carry weight

Product Description
Spacious and efficient, the Columbia Hawk Ridge dome-style tent will comfortably sleep up to four people.

Built to withstand the grueling weather in the Hawk Ridge Nature Preserve, the Hawk Ridge tent features moisture repelling fabric, a tub floor design, taped seams, and a fully encompassing rain fly.

It features a pocket organizer, remote controlled light, skylight panels, and a hanging gear loft.

This tent measures 10 by 7 feet, has a 60-inch center height, and weighs 14.9 pounds.

It has a 1.9-ounce polyester taffeta with a 800mm polyurethane coating (PU) fabric with a 1500mm nylon floor.

It includes a carry bag with handles.

The GoBeDry rain protection system combines four technologies to keep you dry and comfortable in wet weather. Dry Tek repels moisture with a protective coating; the DryGuard skirt deflects rain from floor seams and stake loops; the Dry Floor tub design elevates the floor seams to keep away water; and the DryLock sealed floor seams block moisture and prevent leakage.

Palm Springs

Some pictures from our Palm Springs Vacation:

Back of the house
Front of the house

Cute couple bicycling
Golf course
We decided to take lots of pictures of ourselves
Another shot of the back, including the fire pit and hot tub

Sunet over the windmills on the way to the outlets
Tree and flowers
Posing by the pool
Posing by the flowers
Sunset over the gold course and mountains

Gus!

Here are some shots of the life and times of Gus:

He is obsessed with bags. Whenever I go shopping (whether groceries or clothes) he will immediately jump into the bag and claim ownership, even if there is still stuff in it.

Gus and Bootsie on my bed. Bootsie, trying to sleep (as always) and Gus terrorizing her.

I heard a rumbling and soon discovered that Gus found a new hiding place.

Gus' first snow. He spent 2 hours outside chasing the snowflakes until I dragged him back in to warm up his ice-cold ears.

Sleeping on the corner of the couch.

Just like the bags, Gus loves boxes, especially from Costco. This was my shoe box and he immediately jumped in and would not get out. After I put my shoes back in and closed the lid he sat and scratched at the box until I opened it again and moved my shoes out so he could have the box. I think this would be a good shot for a Nike commercial...
By this point he is a little annoyed with me taking so many pictures..

After I found where he hid his toys (under the couch)...

As I cleaned out some old binders, Gus made a mess of the neat piles I had actually created...

He likes to hang out in the bathroom with me.

Spring has Sprung!

Today is the first day of spring and with that comes spring cleaning, flowers, sunshine and bright colors. As my daily reading of news articles has led me to many spring-like touches that can be added to your home, I came across this fun idea from Better Homes and Gardens, pulled off a link on MSNBC.com.

The blurg below the photo is:

Kumquats in a vase of water make a unique base for stems of yellow tulips or other spring flowers. Fill a tray with Granny Smith apples for a delectable coffee table accent.

I love the way this looks! It is a natural way to brighten up a room and someone's mood.

Starting Training...

Now that my foot is rapidly healing, I will officially begin my half-marathing training program starting the beginning of April.

I browsed the internet to find the best training program and I found that Runner's World has this great program called the Smart Coach. Here you get to pick your pace and how long and hard you want to train for.

I am excited to start!

Expresso Fitness

Expresso Fitness

I was reading the news online this morning and I found a reference to this new workout machine. It looks like any standard new cardio equipment with the attached tv, but now the tv is interactive with making your run, bike, etc into a video game! I have never heard of this before, and I am glad I came across it becuase I think it is a great idea! What a way to get video gamers off their butt and put them into the game. Plus it eases the boredom of staying on the bike for 60 minutes.

I know that Wii tried to start this by making their video games interactive as well. I think this is a great idea too. Although I am terrible at Wii, I still think it is fun.

For our Metia Cup (where we played Wii bowling) I think I won lowest score award.

Look What I Made!

Ok, so maybe not a big deal to some, but for me this was huge! I have started the recipe site...find it here: http://stephanie.martin007.googlepages.com/home

And yes, it is small, but tomorrow and for the days after there will be more added!

I am so proud of myself!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Yesterday, Kara and I ran the St. Patrick's Day Dash from the Seattle Center to Quest Field. We dressed up in green shirts and wore headbands with shamrocks attached. In the parking lot of Quest Field, at the finish line, there were lots of festivities, complete with a beer garden. (Keep in mind the 5k race started at 9:00am). I saw lots of fun outfits, and lots bouncing body parts (aka men in green speedos) that are now burned pernamently in my brain.

Microsoft also is big on celebrating holidays. Below is a fountain colored green for the day. Another fountain was full of green beach balls (you can see one in this fountain).

Today we are celebrating with playing Wii Bowling. The teams are basically divided between UW and WSU alumni and the winner gets to decorate the "Metia Cup" (a large trophy currently decked out in husky gear).

Have a great day!

Recipes!

Due to public demand Julie and I will be creating a website of our favorite recipes. It is still in the making...details to follow...

Camp Pendleton Races: ASYMCA Mud Run

Camp Pendleton Races: ASYMCA Mud Run

The next race I am looking at after the SF Half-Marathon...

Best Walking Cities Finder

Best Walking Cities Finder

Recipes

This blog is for Julie:

Check out my aunt's recipe website. Everything I have ever eaten from her has been delicious!

As Julie and I are now on a Eat-Clean diet, we love creating our our recipes and trying new ones. We also enjoy taking recipes and altering the ingredients to our eat-clean standards!

Sydney!

In light of Dagwood deputing his new blog, I have also added some pictures for my friends to see of our furry family:

Sydney digging, always a favorite.

Sydney waiting patiently on the dock

Swimming with the tennis ball

Best friends! Syndey and Sadie (Jena & Sean's super sweet dog)

Cousins! Sydney's cousin Dagwood

The ultimate. The dog would kick us off our our rafts in the lake that we now bring out her own.

Saturday Adventures

Saturdays are Julie's and my day of fun. We start the day by me picking her up at Jed's work and then hit the Bellevue 24 for our Turbo Kick-Boxing class (where we made friends with a super nice girl named Cynthia) followed by our Pilates Pulse class (where we have an amazing looking instructor who has had five girls).

After food and shower we go on our adventure. This can range from running errands, going grocery shopping (always a favorite) or picking something random out.

A recent adventure took us to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens . Here we saw a variety of plants and were able to immerse ourselves in nature without having to leave the city. There were a few trails around the park and explored different categories such as the Japanese Gardens and the Rock Garden. Along the way we noticed a sign for volunteers. This would be a great place to come and volunteer and integrate it into our Saturday Adventures. I love gardening and there are so many opportunities within the gardens. Many events take place throughout the year in the gardens so I look forward to seeing what else we can explore there.

As Julie and I were not able to spend last Saturday together (I was in Palm Springs) nor this Saturday together (she will be in Boston) I have been planning some really good adventures for us, especially as spring will officially begin in 8 days.

As another incentive to browse and create adventures, many of my girlfriends have been asking me recently about good places to take a date. This is something I enjoy doing. I love thinking of fun and creative things to do.

Here I have a list of fun date and Saturday Adventure ideas:

• Bellevue Botanical Gardens

This is a great place to take a picnic or a stroll with a friend, family or significant other. Throughout the seasons there are different plants blooming and growing so everytime you go there is something new to see.

• Become a Tourist

Many people live in a city or an area for a large amont of time never actually get to explore it. Book a hotel room downtown and spend the weekend doing what tourists do. Take pictures, learn the history and study the architexture of your hometown.

• Play a Board Game

While board games are one of my favorite pastimes, this time, take the game public. Board game bars are a new trend that hasn't quite become super trendy (ie not too crowded). Yelp is another great website to help you find highly ranked board game bars.

• Go on a Scavenger Hunt

While you reminisce memories of your childhood birthday parties, it time to start some new memories. The Watson Adventure Scavenger Hunts has created a company that hosts scanvenger hunts. Many corporate companies are using this as team building and there are a variety of hunts that take place throughout your area. You can go on a public hunt with people you do not know (yet!) or book a private hunt for you and your friends, loved ones, etc.

• Have a Picnic

Without sounding too mushy, a quiet picnic in a park, on the beach, in your backyard is a fun and comfortable way to spend a warm afternoon. You can choose a spot (there are lots overlooking the lakes) and watch the UW crew team row by yelling at the beginning canoe-ers to get out of the way and challenging the million dollar yatchts to create a wake. I have also learned that a park in Amsterdam has just legalized sex in the park, along with other green items.

• Go Camping

While some may not be interested in the great outdoors, camping is always an experience wherever you go. You can camp in a far away mountain, a the base of a lake or just in your backyard (something my sisters and I did when we were young...of course Dad would always turn on the sprinklers at 5am...). Spending time with your friends or significant other helps creative memories, even if you do run inside the house to go the bathroom.

• Go to an Arcade

There are many places to plays games. Become a kid again and go play laser tag, purchase tokens, accumulate as many tickets as possible and win that slightly deformed teddy bear. These games can be played at fairs (local are usually the best, then you get to take in the real red-neck flavor) or find a place like Gameworks where they specialize in cheap beer and games.

• Woodland Park Zoo

The Woodland Park Zoo is a great place for a Saturday Adventure or a relaxing date. The zoo manages the largests live animal collection in Washington state, with approximately 1,100 specimens. It also provides a home for 35 endangered and 5 threatened animals. The zoo also has botanical gardens of 7,000 tress and more than 50,000 shrubs and herbs.

Now I am aware that I have not mentioned fun restaurants or food-affliated dates. While there are many great places from that department to choose from, I will have to do some more research to post some of my favorites.

More to come later, but for now, ta-ta!

Palm Springs

I just spent the last 5 days in warm Palm Springs. The weather was constant 75-80 degrees each day and lifted our gloomy Seattle spirits.

We spent 5 days with the following routine:

8am wake up
8:30-10:00am gym
10:30-4:00pm tanning (usually topless) by our private pool
4:00pm shower/get dressed

Now this is where we had an occasional difference, whether it is cooking dinner, browsing the outlet mall, or baking cookies

10:00pm all of us passed out on the couch

It was a wonderful vacation