Yesterday morning I awoke to this email from my mother aka mama san:

"This morning at sunrise I went to the mountain to walk leo and drake. It was a lovely start to the day. When I got there the sun was just peeking over the mountains. There is a perfect breeze this morning and off I go. I think of you girls either sleeping soundly in your beds soon to be getting up and starting your day. I think of the thousands and thousands of ways you make me smile. In fact just the thought of you all makes me smile now. I am reminded of how each of us have grown and changed. How our lives are vastly different yet we are connected by love. Knowing that you value happiness makes me proud. Knowing you each value your personal journeys and that you would never be complacent is thrilling to me. Knowing you are of me and a part of me brings me joy always and today as every day I relish your love. Never ever stop being who you are. You are both amazing, caring and loving women who I feel blessed to have in my life."

On my way to work I thought about this sweet email and my even sweeter mother.
I thought about my childhood.
I'm a product of divorce. Often we really struggled with money.
I could have grown up an angry bitter person, many would have.
But despite the tough times, the sad times, what I really remember are the happy times.
The moments spent with my sister and mother and later on my little brother.

We all inherit qualities from our parents.
I think I was lucky enough to inherit my mothers heart.
And by that I mean her ability to love, to see beauty where many would not, to really know and appreciate happiness, to genuinely care about the well being of others.
My mother is often critical of herself as a parent, but I'll tell you what, this is the kind of quality that makes for a wonderful life.
I hope and feel confident I'll pass this on to our own children someday.

Mom, thank you for your unconditional love.

*Photo taken by mother on her phone while walking her dogs on the mountain.

summer dinners

Summer is my favorite season because I LOVE laying by a pool, I LOVE wearing flip flops and sun dresses, but mostly I LOVE going to the Farmer's Market and getting fresh veggies.
This past Friday my sister and I hit up the King's Drive Farmer's Market and I came home with new potatoes, squash, zucchini, parsley, corn on the cob and the best loaf of sourdough you can imagine.

I threw the veggies on the grill alongside some bbq chicken and the result was a meal that reminded me of home and the huge, amazing dinners my mama san prepares.

Exclaimer: Sweet corn on the cob with butter and salt is the tastiest food on the planet.

reminiscing

Mr. P and I were married almost 8 months ago.
I can't believe so much time has passed since the say we said "I DO".
New memories may have moved in, but the memories I have from October 18th, 2009 have a permanent place in my head and in my heart.

A few days ago I received a package in the mail from my wonderful sister-in-law and it was a cd of photos from our wedding weekend.
It was so wonderful to look back at some of these captured moments, many of which I hadn't yet seen in photos.









*Thank you sis-I love you!

yum

Last week at the Farmer's Market I bought a mini loaf of lemon bread from this bakery and boy was it delicious!
I didn't have time to consume the whole thing before it started to become a bit stale.
This gave me the idea to put a slice on the grill last night and I'm at a loss for the appropriate word to describe how awesome it turned out.
We had some frozen berries in the freezer which I put in a saute pan with some sugar and the end result was warm berries in a perfectly sweetened sauce.
Top that all with a scoop or two of vanilla bean ice cream and you've got yourself one heck of a dessert.


I know what you're thinking, YES I've definitely gained a pound or two in the past week, but I did so with a smile on my face...now back to the gym tonight.

Meet....

my new car that i LOVE and plan to have for quite some time.

In a state of yoforia!

Last week I headed to Southpark Mall so that my sister could make my tresses birthday worthy.
In the days prior I'd heard her speak of trips to the newest store in the mall, Yoforia.
As soon as I learned of this franchise I did what I always do when I hear of any store serving any form of food, I googled it!
I liked to be prepared my sweets, I like to at least have my choices narrowed down to one or two items.
This was hard to do at Yoforia! They have everything from Mango to Ferrero Rocher (my favorite chocolate treat).
I decided on vanilla bean w/marshmallows, chocolate chips and graham cracker crumbs.
It was quite tasty, but I'm excited to go back and try one with fresh fruit or maybe fruity pebbles.
Best thing about this yogurt? It's made with organic milk and yogurt and each ounce only has 25 calories.

sandbar

Sunday was lake day for us, one of the craziest days of the summer.
We usually make it out once or twice and when we do it's always a blast.
So much fun in fact that my body could only take one or two days like this a year.
It's a day I'll never forget!
Or will I.........It's already a bit hazy. ;)

My Birthday

This past Saturday I turned 28 years old and for me that's pretty exciting.
I know that each year brings new and exciting adventures.
For instance, as a 27 year old I was married, I got 'Whitey' who was the first car I'd had in 2 years, I wrecked 'Whitey', I started this blog and Emie Jane's Baby Cakes became semi-official...you know, just to name a few.


This year's Birthday celebration began on Friday night at Eez Fusion with some really great friends.
I received the sweetest lil' dress that I can't wait to wear, an amazing cookbook and a certificate for cooking classes.
I told ya', I have great friends!



*Up next...the celebration continues, on a boat! :D