Keith & Courtney Get Married!

My little brother Keith got married on April 9. Which was also his birthday. I absolutely adore his wife Courtney and I'm so grateful she's joined the family! They got married in Arizona and we weren't able to make it to the wedding, but we went up to Washington for the open house! My family kept me updated with lots of pictures while they were in Arizona, which I appreciated. Welcome to the family Courtney!!

My cute parents

We had some much needed family time in Washington! Paul was loving up on Eloise.

Hendrix LOVED all the animals. Goats and chickens and baby chicks!! He liked collecting the eggs and held them very carefully while we went and toured the progress on Grandma and Grandpa's new house!

I have some pictures of Hendrix as a baby helping Aunt Lisa play the piano.

Eloise likes playing too!

Had to make a stop at Ikea for another bookcase and
a new bed for Hendrix!! He LOVES sleeping in a big bed.

Eloise loves Grandpa!

Dylan is such a great dad.

The kids running around the yard at the open house.
Apparently there was a red memo I missed!

My mom's hairdresser told her about a new sushi restaurant that had just opened by Lisa's house so of course we had to go try it. It was hands down the BEST sushi I've ever had in my entire life. I had a piece of Natalie's rainbow roll and it might have been the single best bite of food in my entire life. I dream about this sushi place and I cannot wait to go back to Camano Island to devour more! (and see my family of course....)

Post sushi happiness!

Hendrix out petting chickens with Uncle Quinn! He decided that Quinn needed to stay.....

April 7 - Hendrix turns Two!

Hendrix turned 2 on April 7! I cannot believe that I have a 2 year old. It was such a fun day with him! I am so incredibly grateful to have Hendrix. He is such a happy child and loves to make others laugh. He is a little jokester and super helpful. He is an awesome big brother for Eloise. He has the best laugh and it is so contagious! Hendrix has gorgeous blue eyes that are always full of light. He loves to wrestle, play with cars, help Mom cook, and take care of sister. He's more into destroying things thank building them and absolutely loves to sing and play the piano and guitar (or his little Uke). He makes up songs and sings to us all of the time and has the sweetest little voice!

Last night as a 1 year old! 

First thing in the morning, we were making him breakfast and he
just really wanted to hold Lou! Hendrix loves Eloise so much.

We decided to measure Hendrix. 35.5 inches tall! And he had grown an inch since March 22!!
Talk about growth spurt!

Good Mythical Morning with Dad

I was cleaning up downstairs and I heard Hendrix laughing  upstairs.
Then it got really quiet so I had to go investigate!
He was just cuddled up with Atticus reading (DotCom Secrets, if you were wondering ;) )

Dad and Papa were working on some wiring in the garage so Papa
pulled out the snowblower to give them some space. Hendrix really
enjoyed driving his "tractor"

"What doin??"

Walked to the post office and stopped for a little rest.

Stopped by the store on the way home from the post office and got a birthday treat!
He was really excited to share it with Dad (although it was pretty melty by the time we walked
the one block home haha)

Hendrix loved helping the boys with their wiring project.
We had to snap a picture to send to his Electrical Contractor Grandpa (my Dad)

We were out running errands and stopped by the dollar store to get Hendrix a balloon.
Best dollar I ever spent! He was so incredibly happy. He didn't stop laughing the entire
drive home.

Made pizza on the Trager for dinner! Grilled pizza is one of my favorites
and since Hendrix couldn't tell me what he wanted, I picked for him ;)

Hendrix already had his bike and helmet (we couldn't wait for his birthday) but we made a point of going out and playing with it! He still isn't very confident on it. I think the bike is just a tiny bit too tall for him still, but he was still pretty excited about it.

After cruising on his bike for a bit he laid it down and took off across the field! I'm not sure where he thought he was going, but he sure thought he was funny. I love this boy's laugh!

Opening his gift from Nana and Papa!

On Sunday the Carlson's came over too and we had a little family party.

Made the same cake I made for Hendo's 1st birthday (again, one of my favorites ;) )

and he loved it, down to the very last lick (p.s. this chocolate cake is so divine, made

with pumpkin puree (but doesn't taste like it), super moist, and as far as desserts go it's pretty healthy!

click HERE for the recipe!)

Opening gifts from the cousins and some more from Nana and Papa. Got a Mr. Potato Head

he is pretty excited about, some new clothes, and some sandals! This boy is stylin!

Happy birthday Hendrix!!

Shed & Turkey Hunting

Dylan has really been enjoying the great outdoors!! I'm so grateful we live in such a beautiful place. I love it when Dylan comes home, exhausted from his hike, but with that sparkle in his eye from the adventure. Since I'm home with the kids (and working!) I don't get out nearly as often as he does, so he is sure to give me ALL of the details and keeps me updated with pictures of his view (when he has service!). Now that the weather is nicer the kids and I will start joining him on these treks (although it means he will have to pick easier hikes, like maybe something with a trail ;) )

It was a good season for shed hunting! Deer and Elk shed their antlers every year and then grow a bigger set! Dylan hasn't really been shed hunting in the past but stumbled across some while scouting for Turkey season and got really excited. Then he found out they are worth money, and I couldn't keep him home! He even started bringing his camera up and making YouTube videos (and has a pretty good following already! Here is his channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1TVwO48OjhH4IezcqsNUMA) 

Dylan's excitement over his finds is so contagious. If someone told me two years ago (or heck, even a year ago) that I would start to get excited about antlers then I'd roll my eyes. Now I have an elk shed on top of my piano......don't judge me ;)

Dylan showing Hendrix how antlers work. Not a bad haul for his first time out!

Dylan found a set!

The spoils 

Turkey season started in April and Dylan took every opportunity to go out. This was his first time putting any effort into Turkey season and he is having a blast! There is a lot to learn still. Frequently Dylan goes out by himself, but if Tom or Shem are available they all go out together! We live in such gorgeous country.

Dylan got a bird! You can get up to 3 in a season, and we were going to dinner at someone's house who frequently have turkey, so Dylan came home, showered, ran out to buy another tag, and packed his hunting gear along to dinner ;)

We've heard that wild turkey is so different, and we've heard a lot of people don't like it. The legs were massive, but ligamenty. We gave them to Tom and he brined them then smoked them. They were SO GOOD!! And there was so much meat, I can't believe people would just toss those. We cooked up the body just like we would for Thanksgiving (went all out with the sides too ;) ) and let me tell you, it was INCREDIBLE. I don't know what all the fuss is. It tasted like turkey and it was delicious. There are some hunters Dylan really likes that have some recipes for wild turkey we can't wait to try, so we are hoping Dylan fills two more tags!