The best recipe for happiness? Memorial Day weekend.

Happy Memorial Day! This time last year Brady and I were on our way to Chile. I can't believe a year has already gone by since that miracle of a trip. This year we're just lounging around and enjoying the extra day we get to have Brady all to ourselves. On Saturday we went to Alki Beach for our family adventure (more on that little ditty later). Brady snapped the cutest shot of Tessa. I know I say that a lot and I know I have some really great shots of that little girl but this one takes the cake:

Let's get a closer look, shall we?

^Just look at that double chin and those plump little cheeks! Irresistible.^ 

What are you doing this Memorial Day?

The best recipe for happiness? An evening at the beach.

   

Yesterday we went to Mathews Park for family home evening. I decided to change it up a bit and make a video rather than make Brady take a million pictures. Let me know if you like it and we'll make sure to include those on the blog more often.  Oh, and shout out to Melissa who is spending the week with us and who just so happens to be awesome. If you're new to the blog, she's the pretty little blond too old to be my baby. We love her. Happy Tuesday!

Discovery Park Pictures.

We went to Discovery Park yesterday for our Friday date.  Tessa decided that she wanted her own date with mom, so her and Kate didn't stay out long before going back to the car to eat.  Dad stayed and took a few pictures.  Enjoy!

This and that

Obviously one of the main purposes for this blog is to keep family and friends updated but it's also kind of a journal for our little family. Sometimes I feel like too much happens too fast and there's not enough time in the day to write about it. I'm so worried that I'm going to miss something and then completely forget what it looked like or how I felt! How sad. In an effort to avoid this actually happening and nip that feeling 'in the bud,' I've decided to occasionally do a post called "this and that." It's an attempt to remember important things without having to do a full blog post about it. That way we can remember the little things that are going on.

Life is so good and, gosh, I just don't want to forget any of these moments.

I'm thinking this may be our new General Conference family tradition. Pork Salads.

Can't get enough of this fall weather! Homemade clam chowder and chocolate, caramel apples...

And a splash of fall color, too.

Highlights from Puget Sound

 I'm pretty proud of this picture I took. Just look how the water sparkles. 

Mel's little "treasure" trove.

 I took this one too. Again, very proud :)

Where I spend a lot of my mornings, just reading to my baby.

It finally started raining for the first time this weekend and it didn't stop raining until today.

Brady took this picture of Mount Rainier, the highest mountain in Washington. Can you see it? Look closely, right in the middle.

And finally, I just REALLY like this guy

Happy Tuesday!

Brother & Sister

Remember the date Brady and I had here?

Yesterday we took Melissa to that very spot to giver her a taste of Seattle, or at least our favorite part of Seattle :) I have to tell you, there is something so awesome about having a big brother protector or having a little sister to protect. I spent most of my time on a nearby rock snapping shots of these two interacting. Gosh they were cute.

Pretty darn great, eh?

And just in case you were missing my pretty face (mom)... Here's a little Kate action for you :)

Date Night: A trip to Puget Sound

Brady and I have never been very creative when it comes to date nights; it's just so hard to think of something new and fun and spontaneous to do sometimes.

Typically it turns into a movie night on our couch, which is great since he comes home exhausted from work and since I'm always exhausted from...um...I'm not sure. Growing a little person in my belly, maybe? That has to be it, since I really don't move much these days.

Luckily, one of the perks of moving to a new state is there are plenty of things to visit, explore, and do. No creative juices needed. Yes!

Well, at least for now.

Yesterday we had our very first, official date night in Seattle. Can you guess where we went? Those of you who know us, and know us well probably could. We went to...

...the beach! Not just any beach. A beach along the Puget Sound.

I bet I can guess what you're thinking.

You're thinking, "Where did you find that picture? It looks amazing."
All I can say is, "I know, right!?"
 Picture courtesy of Brady C. Houston (my handsome husband, who just so happens to also be a handsome photographer with mad skills).

In my book, yesterday was a superlative beach day. I'm finding that Seattle is more perfect for me than I thought. Foggy sky, nippy, jacket wearing weather, dark water, and a perfect breeze. My little Utopia.

After having zero luck searching through the tide pools for star fish or crabs (at least, having zero luck finding ones that hadn't already been hollowed out by seagulls), we pulled out our camera and began documenting the awesome splendor that was around us.

Have you ever been right next to a train as it goes zooming by? Brady has.

Yesterday was his first time standing just a few feet from a moving train. I lived right next to a train yard for 12 years in Montana, so it was nothing new to me. I will say this though, 12 years or not, it still amazes me how big, how fast and how LOUD trains are. You never would have guessed it as you watched it slowly winding its way around the mountain towards us.

Again, if it wasn't for Brady religiously taking pictures of all the things we do and see, you would just have to take my word for it that the train was big and fast and loud. Not the best, most detailed description. 

So, thank you Brady. Thank you.   

For the most part, I love it when we pull out the camera unless i'm in a hurry to move on, then the frequent stops and long waits are NO BUENO. But usually, it's the best because that means I get to play boss and tell Brady what pictures to take and how I want them taken. I figure, since I'm not the one "taking" the shots, I can be the one "calling" the shots :) 

So fun for me, but maybe not so fun for my photographer. 

We love taking pictures.

Brady loves taking pictures of Kate.

And Kate LOVES taking pictures of Brady. 

Gosh, he's good looking.

I think I'm going to make both our dads come up sometime so we can do this together... 

...there's something so appealing about fly fishing. Maybe, for me, it's the fact that I can set the fish free after I catch them. I still haven't recovered from my first fishing excursion, where my dad smacked the head of the rainbow trout I had just caught against a metal bench. I don't think I spoke to him the whole drive home :) 

As this particular fisherman was passing by we asked him if he was having any luck. Discouraged he said, "They don't seem to be around today. Which is unusual because this is supposed to be a great fishing spot." As he was talking, I watched a fish jump out of the water behind him. I didn't really have the heart to tell him they were just mocking him behind his back. 

We thought we'd try our hand at taking couple pictures with the tri-pod. We may have had a little too much fun

Who needs a professional photographer when you have a tri-pod and a husband who can run really fast? 

This is what happens when we try to take a picture looking deep into each other's eyes

And finally, remember this picture from our honeymoon? 

Trying to recreate that was harder than we thought.

Not too bad, eh?

I loved this beach. There were no bright blue skies or turquoise water against white sand but who would have thought a palette of grays could be so beautiful!

A pearly gray sky illuminating a dark bluish-gray profile of trees in the distance, both sky and trees seeming to pop even more in contrast with the silver, gray of the water.

All in all, it was a wonderful, perfect, picturesque afternoon at the beach.

I think this would classify as a sublime first date.
Don't you?