Need a great ebook?

I recently purchased this e-cookbook, written by a girl that I follow on Instagram, and I am loving it!  I have already made the Pad Thai a few times, the chocolate chocolate chip muffins, chipotle tilapia, spicy tuna salad and the super seed loaf.  The recipes are all very clean, all gluten-free, and the author gives suggestions on how to make most of the recipes vegetarian/vegan as well.  I highly recommend it, if you are looking for some easy, healthy ways to perk up your food-life.  Her blog has a lot of really great recipes on it, as well.  Take a peek!

Day 'O Dads

What a great Father's Day we had this year!  Aside from the new tv, that was sort of Brad's gift (that he mostly gave to himself:), we also had lots of time to do some fun family stuff.  Like, the first swimming session of the summer!  I can't believe we didn't go swimming until nearly the end of June!  We are all such fans of the water.  We stinkin' love the Highlands pool, as they have the zero depth entry, so Willa can just run on in and play and we don't have to always be holding her or helping her.  We really need to get that kid some swimming lessons.  Then, we had Chinese food and ice cream cake and watched basketball at my parent's house. 

The day after Father's Day, we went to Omaha to the zoo.  I just love the Omaha Zoo.  I think our favorites this time were the hippos and the monkeys.  But that is only because I didn't find the armadillo.  He will forever be my favorite zoo animal.  We also rode the Skyfari thing for the first time and that was pretty fun.  

This peacock really liked our blueberries.  I am sure there is a rule about  not feeding the animals, and I'm not sure what blueberries do to the digestive system of a peacock, but he seemed very fond of them.  And us.

After the zoo, we made a quick stop at Whole Foods for a few things.  (I could make a whole day out of Whole Foods, but we only had a few minutes.)  Then we had dinner at a new seafood restaurant in the Old Market called Plank.  We were pretty sure we would love it, as we love Blue, seafood, Bloody Mary's, nautical tattoos, and Dave's design work.  We were right!

I love this picture of Willa, but has anyone else seen that episode of King of Queens where someone gives them a painting of themselves and Carrie's arm looks super huge?  That's what Willa's arm reminds me of.

What a nice weekend.  I love to watch Brad and Willa interact and have fun with each other.  They are such buddies.  He's a pretty good buddy to me, too.  And a million thanks to my own dad, for everything that he does for our family.  Not a lot of grandpa's are able to, or even maybe want to, spend as much time with their grandkids as my dad does with Willa.  He also has a friend for life:)

Berry Pickin' (#190)

Willa and I visited Martin's Apple Orchard this past week, to pick some strawberries!  We had gone in the fall for apples, and they were the best apples I had ever tasted, so I had high hopes for the berries.  We were not disappointed!  And, it was so much fun to look for them and pick them all by ourselves!  We filled one of those white buckets nearly full, for under $3.  Can't beat that.  That evening, we made strawberry shortcake for ourselves and for my mom.  Such a perfect summer food.

A night with friends

We've been having book club at some places other than our houses the last few months.  Two months ago we went to the Blue Orchid, which is one of my all-time favorite places to eat.  This month, we visited Deer Springs Winery.  This is now one of my all-time favorite places to be.  It was so pretty and peaceful there.  We went on a Friday evening, and they had some musicians and people making very tasty coal-fired pizzas.  There were small groups of people in lawn chairs, on blankets, having picnics, with their dogs.  It was great.  I am excited to go back.  If anyone needs a good place for a date night, or if anyone wants to date me for an evening, its the perfect place.

PS:  The book we read for the evening, Looking for Alaska, was very good.  I would recommend.  It reminded me of the Catcher in the Rye.

42 inches of heaven (#80. For now)

I really didn't know, until very recently, that I cared about tvs.  At all.  The tv that Brad and I had in our living room, as our main tv (really our only tv, aside from the one in the basement that I use if I'm going to be on the treadmill for more than half an hour), was purchased at the Conestoga Mall, at Sears, back when I worked at Vanity.  We're talkin, 1999.  I got a mall Friends and Family discount.  I think it still cost like $800 or something crazy like that, but when you are selling $39 jeans at 2% commission, you are living large.  It was a beast of a tv and nearly threw out the backs of anyone who ever helped me move.  But it was something of a family member by the time it gave out on us a few months ago.  I was sad.  I also didn't think I cared enough about tv watching to spend much money to replace it.  So, we brought up the treadmill tv, which is the one you see pictured above. It might by 13 inches.  Maybe 18.  I'm not sure because I was too embarrassed to measure it. Watching it sucked and strained our eyes.  As the days wore on, we all became more and more eager to get something new.  So, we made a plan to purchase a new tv sometime during the week before Father's Day, hoping maybe there would be some good sales.  As soon as Sunday rolled around and the sale fliers were distributed, we found ourselves back at Sears.  The circle of life.  This probably won't be the very nicest tv we ever own, but OH MY GOD, we are enjoying it.  And, 42 inches doesn't seem all that big in the store, when it is displayed next to the 70 inchers, but in our living room it seems gigantor.   Love it.

There she is, in all her Bob's Burgers glory.

And here is a chair that I found at Cool and Collected this weekend, that I think I would enjoy watching the new tv from.  Someone buy it for me?!?

#107

That's my blood, in a bag.  I took several pictures, as Willa was super confused about the whole process of donating blood.  She may need to have another conversation with her Auntie brooke about the wonders of platelets and stuff.

Willa's last day of (her first year of) preschool. And, #219.

I am such a good photographer.  Here is Willa, covering most of her face and probably 5 minutes late for her last day of preschool!  She will go to Dimensions again next year, as she will only be 4 and not quite ready for kindergarden.  She was the youngest in her class by several months this year, and her teacher said that at the start of the year, all the other kids kind of wanted to "baby" her, but by the end of the year, they had learned better:)  She had such a good experience this year and is already missing her new friends and excited to return to school in August.  And, she is like, 3 feet taller than she was at the beginning of the year!

Note, if you will, the Popples sleeping bag.  Nice.

That evening, we had a picnic in the yard followed by a movie night/slumber party.  We watched Rise of the Guardians and ate popcorn and Kit Kats until the wee hours of the evening.  I will admit, we didn't actually sleep on the floor.  That would have been insanely uncomfortable.  I could barely move all my bones after laying on the floor for the 2 hour movie.  Oh, the trials of getting old.