A Season of Change

It's been awhile since I've written anything about our lives. It's important to us that we're keeping a log of what's happening, so here is a whirlwind four-week recap...

Our CSA adventure has been going well. We've been so busy that there are times I have to force myself to cook, puree and freeze some turnips or roast and refrigerate beets for later. It's been integral for me to fit cooking our veggies in any little time slot I can find. For example, two nights ago I cooked up weeks of beets I haven't had a chance to use and tonight we will have them in a beet, pistachio and goat cheese salad.

I've been overwhelmed with the amount of herbs we've been getting (seriously, cilantro every week?!), but was recently inspired by Emily's Creamy Basil Hummus on her blog, Daily Garnish. I started making my own hummus a few weeks ago and I definitely don't plan on buying prepared hummus anymore...except maybe the Costco tub of Sabra hummus—my all-time fav!

My husband finished his 31st trip around the sun! We celebrated with a Sounders game and some take-out Thai food, which we never do.

I feel like my creative mojo is going to a new level. Ridiculous, but I kind of credit Pinterest for keeping me inspired everyday. I'm planning to do some personal projects on the side to add to my design portfolio. I'll be revamping my online presence soon with a much-needed new portfolio site.

I started sewing lessons with my mother-in-law. She's a seasoned pro, has all the tools and a space to be creative. My first lesson was last night and we made a skirt for my (new) cousin's sweet daughter, Ava. I has so much fun an can't wait for next week when she's going to teach me about my sewing machine and how to use it. I've quilted a few quilts when I was younger, so this venture isn't entirely new. But I'm most excited to get to know my own sewing machine, which I've had for a few years and never really touched.

My parents moved to Alki from Maple Valley and we've been really enjoying spending time on their new balcony. Their temporary condo has it's own private beach. It's also nice to have Dottie so close since she's getting older. I told my husband that if we lived down there I would eat fish and chips every day. There are so many delicious fish and chip restaurants! Our roots in Maple Valley are cut, and other than to visit I'm not sure we'll spend much time out there anymore. This is where my husband and I both grew up.

Perhaps the biggest news of all, I left my job at HTC and now work as designer at Starbucks headquarters! I'm on a two-month contract working on a packaging redesign project. My contract is up on October 7 and I have no clue what the Lord will have for me beyond then. I'm relieved to be out of my old job and into a fancy new one. It's been great so far and exactly the experience I should be having at this point in my design career. I am very grateful.

The environment is really different from where I have been for the past year. So far I've noted that everyone has fancy shoes and about 1/4 of the female population is pregnant. It's a really upbeat vibe and there are many really creative people. I love being in this kind of studio environment, it keeps my creative brain cells working. There is also a full Starbucks on the 8th floor for people that work in the building partners only (I'm a contract worker) that has all discounted prices :)  :(

Finally, I have biked commuted everyday for the past two weeks. My husband has been driving me to work using the bike rack on our Subaru and I bike the hilly trek home. It's been fantastic exercise for me, especially since I have to bike up the mile-long Avalon hill. My bike is really heavy and not super fancy so I'm certainly getting an extra good workout. It's about a 30 minute commute—shorter than commuting in traffic home from my old office in Factoria—and I always get home sweaty and feeling pooped (in a good way). Tomorrow will be my first day driving since he is working an early shift. Here's hoping I can find some SODO parking!

Things are beginning to settle down a bit now that I'm not working crazy-long hours and my commute is shorter. I've been really enjoying having the evenings to relax, cook and get stuff done around the house. This is my favorite time of day. I'm grateful for the opportunity to hopefully start some new fun design/craft/sewing projects soon. Cheers!