Three days ago my husband and I quickly ate breakfast as we dashed for our car and headed downtown at 8:45 a.m.. Pleasantly surprised by not encountering much commuter traffic, we pulled our car into an alley parking garage off of Stewart. Holding hands, we walked up a few stairs into a high rise building only to separate for a few minutes. Me? I headed straight for the Godiva coffee shop calling out to me from the lobby while Rob continued to walk up another flight of stairs to the elevator hub. Moments later I reunited with him in a small office overlooking Puget Sound and the west side of downtown. We sat down and we started the process of signing escrow papers on the house we’ve lived in shortly after being married eleven years ago. With a latte in one hand and a black ball point pen in another, I listened to our closing offer go over the details of each form we were signing with a sad but joyful heart. Every form we signed brought us closer to saying goodbye to dear friends and neighbors simultaneously building anticipation of moving into our new home. We left the office that morning holding hands once again with an unspoken but understood smile on our face. [click to continue…]
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Sometimes life and circumstances beyond my control collide in such a way I’m left feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, and anxious. This pretty much sums up the last two weeks spilling over to this week, too. Last Tuesday my youngest sister gave birth to her second son and I was busy caring for my nephew for a couple days. Then, my husband with our kids left for Ohio and Michigan for a family reunion while I stayed behind. Initially I stayed behind because of my sister’s pregnancy but then, my sister stationed in Germany was able to fly home and my other sister from Spokane is also arriving soon. This will be the first time my five siblings and I have been altogether since my dad passed away six months ago. For those of you who have been following my journey of having my mom move in with s on Everyday Alice, then you know it’s been a difficult transition for me. And if this week wasn’t already busy enough, we decided to unexpectedly make an offer on a bigger house to accommodate our growing family better. With mom living here now, one bathroom will not do for a family of six people, not to mention we are a bit cramped. As a result I’ve been spending practically zero time on my computer and all my time working on clearing blackberry brambles, laurel bushes, de-cluttering, and cleaning the house. Who knew getting a house ready to sell was so much work!? [click to continue…]
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What I was thinking when I bought a 10 pound case of frozen blackberries? Nevertheless, they are taking up valuable real estate in our itsy-bitsy freezer. So don’t be surprised if you see an excessive amount of blackberry recipes on Savory Sweet Life coming to the world wide web soon. On the other hand, if you love blackberries (like I do) then you’re in for a real treat.
Inspired by the gorgeous Seattle (hot) weather yesterday, an abundance of blackberries, and a thriving patch of mint growing just outside my front door, what I have for you today is an awesome recipe for Blackberry Mint Lemonade. [click to continue…]
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Dishes made with puff pastry have a special place in my heart. Perhaps it is all the flaky, buttery layers of puff pastry which makes just about anything taste really good – especially desserts. Today I have a special treat for you. My eight year old daughter, Mimi, is featured in a cooking video I created and posted for PBS Parents Kitchen Explorers. In the video, Mimi shows you how to make a beautiful fresh fruit tart using strawberries and blueberries. It’s the perfect dessert for Memorial Day. [click to continue…]
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I’ve never been one to make a cocktail for the reason of “just because.” But today I’m making an exception because there was half a baby watermelon in my fridge which needed to be used up. Instead of eating it I felt like making a drink out of it, and let me tell you what a fine drink it is.
Made with vodka and not gin or vermouth, I’m still calling this cocktail a watermelon mint lime martini because… because I feel like it. And if I sound a little sassy, it’s because I am. Today was a rough day and I’ll just leave it at that.
I wasn’t planning on writing a post about it but after taking a small sip, I changed my mind because you really need to make one this weekend if you’re a cocktail type of person. [click to continue…]
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