Map to Mommy's Work

Asher showing me the map he drew.





Sunday table!



Asher and Soren came home from church and proudly showed me the fish they colored in primary. In addition to coloring bright fish they both drew maps. Asher said his was a map of how to get to mommy's work. Ahhh, cute.

Mega Cutes

I love this girl. Maeve's cuteness is ineffable. I miss her so much when I am at work.

I love babies so much. I watch Maeve and see how she just exists for the sake of living. She takes in the world around her with precision and on both a macro and micro level. I love that she can see me from across the room and when she does--those baby blues LIGHT up! I also love that she is often struck by the presence of her hand--she'll make a fist and watch in awe as her own hand moves around. She's just so beautifully sweet.

Cherry Blossom Cutie Cutes

Maeve in her cute little elephant outfit.



The tree in front of our house is the greatest natural accessory! Our house looks stunning thanks to the generous blossoms out front. Asher, Soren, and Maeve are the luckiest inhabitants in the house because their rooms look out on tufts of gorgeous blossoms. I've always thought the clusters of white blossoms looked like snow and today they were actually covered in snow! Crazy!

I love this time of year so much for the way the color, texture, and life of the season ease us out of our bundled habits. We all desire to be outside where the world really has the appearance of being reborn--everything looks better and fresher.

Added to the beauty of the season is my little Maeve. Oh that girl. She gentles me with her cuteness. She is such a good baby--want to know why? She smiles, she laughs, she caresses my face, she burrows in my bosom, she is easily content, and she makes every single person in this house smile every day and MANY times. LOVES her.

Coco Penny

My friend Marianne used to make gorgeous jewelry and I was obsessed with it! She has a remarkable eye for design and color and those talents were beautifully demonstrated in her jewelry. If I needed a gift for someone's birthday or Christmas then I would eagerly procure one of Marianne's lovely designs.

Marianne is no longer selling jewelry but she and her best friend Mary have teamed up to create beautiful hair bows made from felt and other materials. When I noticed all the babies in the neighborhood adorned in awesome felt clips I was not surprised when I learned Marianne and Mary were behind them because of their effortless style.

You can check out their beautiful flowers and embellished onesies on their website: Coco Penny.

I love putting Maeve in their felt flowers! Here is miss one month old Maeve in one of their sweet flowers:

BEST Black Bean Burgers

I think posts without a photo are boring so here is a photo unrelated to the topic of this post. Asher and Soren LOVE Maeve's new toy from Ikea because instead of seeing a stationary toy they see a motorcyle! Here are Asher and Soren on the motorcycle in front of their 'city bus' (the chairs). Love them!

Maeve took an epic nap yesterday, which inconveniently (or not) coincided with church so I stayed home to let her sleep. While she slept I busied myself doing non-Sabbath friendly activities like cleaning, sweeping, laundry, and cooking. I made whole wheat bread, honey/cinnamon butter for said bread, black bean burgers, put together a salad, and set the table complete with love notes on each plate for my boys. If I have any type of prolonged moment to myself I clean or cook and do so happily.

Anyway...the black bean burgers were AMAZING. I have always wanted to make my own and this recipe produces superlative burgers. Make some (I added carmelized onions but really--this recipe invites innovation. I didn't add parsley and I used regular old store bought bread crumbs not panko but really--next time I'll make my own)!

Black Bean Burgers

Servings: 4 burgers

Ingredients

1 15-ounce can black beans (drained and rinsed), or 1 and 1/2 cups cooked black beans

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup parsley, chopped

1/4 grated Parmesan

2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Squeeze of fresh lemon juice

3/4 cup panko

2 tablespoons olive oil

Whole wheat hamburger buns (or whatever you prefer), toasted

Toppings: Sharp cheddar cheese, onion, lettuce, tomato, etc.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large mixing bowl, mash the beans with a potato masher or fork.

3. Add the eggs, parsley, Parmesan, mustard, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Mix well.

4. Add the panko to the mixture and stir to combine, set aside for at least 5 minutes. (This will allow the panko to soak up some of the additional moisture.)

5. Shape the mixture into four, equally-sized patties.

6. In an ovenproof sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil until shimmering.***If you don’t have an ovenproof sauté pan, just use a rimmed baking sheet for step #8 (see below).

7. Add the patties and cook until browned on each side, about 10-15 minutes total.

8. Once lightly browned, transfer the pan (or rimmed baking sheet) to the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, until the burgers are completely cooked through.

9. Garnish as desired on hamburger buns and serve immediately.

The Protector

My Soren--he is such a marvel. He is social, inquisitive, particular, and passionately loyal. I admire his intelligence, intensity but also his silliness. He's fun and he always wants to be wherever I am. He will leave a plate full of delicious food and the company of Asher and Jamie to follow me upstairs if I excuse myself to care for Maeve. He is good company.

Let me share a few of my favorite Soren-isms and quotes.

"I like to be the protector. I will protect you from all the scary things in the forest."

"How we get there? What it doos?"

"E is for Easter!"

"Do you like turquoise mommy?"

"I LOVE parties!"

"How I can live with Jesus again?"

Recently Soren debuted his talent for walking like a crab. It is seriously my favorite thing in the world. I ask him to do it all the time because it makes me laugh EVERY time. He puts his hands up in the air and pinches his fingers like crab pincers then he does an exaggerated sideways squat walk--JUST LIKE A CRAB! He's hilarious.

He does talk a lot about being a protector and I think it is just his nature. If he thinks Jamie is talking too harshly to Asher then he will get right up in Jamie's face and defend his brother! If Soren's got your back--you'll be okay.

Thanks Mom and Dad

I got these shoes for my birthday--compliments of you!

Have a Great Weekend!

Sending a little Maeve love your way!

River Farm Again

George Washington married well. Martha's fortune allowed him to live on quite a beautiful property. River Farm is part of his former property and I like to imagine how much he must have enjoyed surveying his land and taking in the views of the Potomac River.

Some places never get old or tired--Old Town is one such place and so is River Farm. When we want a little more space than our tiny tiny backyard allows--we head here. Soon it will be stunning with blooming azaleas and dogwoods. My favorite blooms at River Farm are those of my children and their little friends.

Purl Projects

I have yet to use the sewing machine that Jamie bought me after Maeve's birth. I think my first project will be...hemming curtains! Oooh, exciting, right? I do have a powerful desire to create and I have a few projects in mind.

The women in my family are very talented quilters. My mom, my aunts, and my sister are all wildly creative when it comes to spinning color and patterns. I want in! This is the quilt I want to make (I love Purl Soho):

Isn't it pretty? My mom is my biggest cheerleader and she has confidence that I can make this so once I can find agreeable material I will start cutting!

I also want to make these pillows:


I want to make mine with bold blues and greens. Aren't they fun?

This is one of the three cutest things I have ever created:


She's my fave.

Projects are fun!

In other news, my tree is covered in cherry blossoms! I love this time of year.
Asher and Soren got their hair cut and as a result they look like they are several years older. Sigh.

Turning 34!

Road trip silliness.


I loved the colors at our hotel--even the roof had fun colors.




Baby Maeve cuteness.


Maeve poolside.



I love those cheeks.


Yay!






Train tracks--downtown Richmond.








Watching a train pass!




The doors to the flood wall.


The canal walk.


Soren--he's so cute. He saw this patch of gravel and couldn't resist playing in it.





Jamie surprised me with a trip to Richmond for my birthday! We had been talking about taking a little family trip to Richmond for some time and my birthday was the perfect excuse to go!

We stopped by Wegmans for breakfast on the way down, which I loved but caused Asher to cry hysterically because he just wanted to go to the hotel! The boys were absolutely ecstatic about staying in a hotel. I had to answer close to a million of the same two queries, "Are we going to the hotel?" and "How we get there?" Thank goodness traffic on I-95 was moving because two little dudes would have rioted in the car had the trip been delayed by something like bad traffic.

I love Richmond and Short Pump! We stayed in a fun hotel, A Loft, in Short Pump. One of the things I really like about Richmond is the cool neighborhood names. Short Pump? Awesome. Shockhoe Slip? Even more awesome. We all enjoyed the hotel but none more than The Deuce! Jamie took them swimming shortly after we arrived and after feeding Maeve we joined them poolside. Maeve looked adorable sitting in her lounge chair and the boys were in recreation heaven.

After swimming we drove to Richmond and ate at Bottom's Up pizza. The location is exciting because it is the center of transportation routes in Richmond. Freeway ramps, train tracks, and the canal all dance around each other in one place. It is urban and edgy and beautiful. The pizza was very hearty with thick crust and I liked it but I am definitely more of a thin crust- woodfired pizza kind of gal.

Post-pizza we strolled along the canal and wandered a bit around the neighborhood. Driving back to our hotel Maeve was a little fussy but being such an amazing baby--she would go from tears to laughing hysterically in seconds. All I had to do was play peek-a-boo with her little monkey taggy and she was all chuckles--she had us all laughing hysterically. She's the cutest.

My birthday celebration ended with the most delicious vanilla cupcakes from UKrop and watching the Jimmer and BYU win their ball game! Fun!

It's hard to wrap up a birthday post about such a perfect birthday. The day after my birthday we had breakfast at The Baker's Crust, which was agreeable to everyone in the family. The boys devoured their banana pancakes and I enjoyed my spinach, goat cheese, and roasted tomato omelet. After breakfast the boys went swimming one last time. They were sad to leave and so was I...except I knew that coconut cake was waiting for me when we got home! My friend Caroline made me the most amazing coconut cake with cream cheese frosting. I love birthdays!