Squeezing every last drop of fun out of this summer!

Hudson is our little athlete. He usually has great success at anything he trys. But water sports has been a little but harder for him. He has tried water skiing (has gotten up a few times, but not really loving it), was a little afraid to try wakeboarding, tried wake surfing (but the board was a little big for him to try to manage in the water)....but today we struck gold! Wake skating! He popped right up and LOVES it!

Summer, Summer, Summer time!

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love summer and the extreme heat. I grew up in the Tri-Cities after all and summer heat is in my blood. So when summer hits, we love to entertain and do our best at creating memories. This weekend was no exception. We had the Fehler Family up to play! (Long overdue I might add!) My nephews were also here for the weekend and they came up on Saturday. Here is some of the fun we had:

Wake surfing has become the new favorite activity! So everyone took a turn.

My turn...

Matt's turn....

Rich's (our neighbor) turn...

Chad's turn to show us all how it's really done! (It was his boat that we were behind.) Thanks Chad for the wake surfing lessons!!

Here's my little Hudson trying wake skating!

Happy Flagger!

Our nephews came up on Saturday to play and Uncle Shane taught Austin how to catch a Crawdad fish. Certainly a highlight! I love Brock's face in the background. :)

End of the day - so much sun, so much fun! Love being able to sit down and snuggle with my best friend!

Never to old to try new things!

So I have decided that I am not to old to try new things! Fear held me back in the past, but life is to short, I need to at least try. So this weekend at the lake, it was my time to try wakeboarding. I'm almost 37 years - how hard can it be right? I watched our neighbor who is 8, pop right up after 2 trys. If he can do it - so can I! So with Shane driving (way to go babe! He's a really good boat driver!) our neighbors new wakeboarding boat - I conquered my fear.

And guess what...I got up on my VERY FIRST TIME! Here is the proof!

I'm just saying.....

Resting, Relaxing and lots of Laughing out Loud!

Fedora's unite! :) Great minds shop alike and dress alike. :)

We have owned our lake home for 8 years and I have always talked about having a girls weekend.This year I finally made it happen! It was so nice to have hours devoted to laughter, relaxing, eating and blank staring a the water in quite with good friends. We are all so busy, that it is so important to set the time aside to recharge our batteries. We were missing a few kindred spirits - but we'll get the others here next time to enjoy the fun.

Thanks girls (L-R Heather Hanley, Jaime Johnson, & Me), I look forward to many more of these.

The boys are growing up.....sigh

Everyone said, savor every moment with your kids, because you blink and they are grown up and out of the house. Today I had one of those moments of utter realization that - they really are growing up! Our lake neighbors sold us their little fishing boat.....and Shane let the boys drive it around - by themselves! Yes, I was a bit of a nervous nelly - but seriously seeing them out there by themselves was a little to much to take. Ahhh, where is that pause button on life when you need it?!

First ride was with Daddy...

Then they got to go out by themselves.... (oh my!)

Alright, my turn to take a spin...

Finally our neighbor boy, Owen, got to take a ride.

They are growing up so fast. Into little men. Right before my eyes.

Busy, Busy in Spokane!

I really do love my job! As the Community Engagement Manager in Eastern & Central WA, my job entails community events, speaking engagements, volunteers, donor relations and media. We are working very hard to build the Northwest Harvest brand name here in E. WA. Here are a few recent media hits!

This is the interview that I did for Comcast Newsmakers. It aired on CNN last week.

Also, we got some good press from the Spokesman Review about the new refrigeration cooler that was just installed in the warehouse. More fresh produce!!

http://m.spokesman.com/stories/2012/jul/17/cooler-a-fresh-addition/

Comcast Newsmakers

Today Comcast Newsmakers came to the Northwest Harvest warehouse to film 7, 5 min segments. These interviews will air next Thursday on the :55 of the hour on CNN Headline News. I filled one of the segments along with our Board President, Dick Grader. (Dick the President of National Frozen Foods.) Other interviewee's were representatives from United Way, Parks Department, the new Superintendent for District 81, & Spokane Regional Health District.

Fighting hunger, one day at a time!

My Interview with host Steve Mumm.

Northwest Harvest Board President, Dick Grader.  

Thank you to Pam Novell, McKenzie Novell (Miss Spokane) and Deanna Bunch (Mrs. Spokane) for volunteering today in the background to help viewers understand a little more about how they can get involved with Northwest Harvest!

My new love - Matcha Green Tea

So I was watching the Dr.Oz show and they were talking about the benefits of green tea. But not all green teas are created equal...who knew?! So he said that if you are going to drink green tea - get the most bang for your buck. Drink Matcha Green Tea. One cup of Matcha is equal to 9 cups of normal green tea.

So I ordered this Matcha from Teavana.com

I LOVE it! I have my green tea latte every morning. I sweeten it with a little bit of honey or I use vanilla soy milk and then I don't need a sweetner. It's a must try!

If you want to try it without ordering a whole canister - go to Starbucks and order a green tea latte. They use Matcha green tea as well.

http://www.teavana.com/tea-info/what-is-matcha?SC=PPCM&cm_mmc=MSN-_-PPC_search-_-Matcha_What_Is-_-what%20is%20matcha&9mtype=e&9mkw=11000862255&9mad=1310198413.2&9mraw=matcha

These are a few of my favorite things.....

This year's Angel Ball Gala theme was a 'Southern Garden Party'....I love how the decor turned out! Thank you to everyone who helped us make this concept a reality and for the photographers who captured it for us!

Here are a few of my favorite things....

 The light and airy feel. Shot by Tess photography captured it perfectly as a light breeze blew through the tents.



When I saw this picture it brought it all home for me. This is what our event is all about. In this picture you have a mother of 2 Type 1 Diabetic Children (whose husband is also a Type 1), the father of a Type 1 Diabetic son, an adult who has been living with Type 1 since college, and the wife of a Type 1 Diabetic. All taking a minute to talk and share there knowledge, stories and experiences. 

Photo credit: Shot by Tess Photography

Loved these larger than life flowers! They helped really set the mood of the event!

Photo Credit: Diane Maehl Photography 

Watering cans with peony flowers. Pure perfection.

Photo Credit: Diane Maehl Photography 

Paper cones filled with Chips

Photo Credit: Diane Maehl Photography 

2 old wooden ladders + old milled lumber = perfect food station for salads and tea sandwiches!

Photo Credit: Angela Monson

Bird Cages filled with paper peopny flowers sitting on grass wrapped in satin ribbon. Loved this!

Photo Credit: Shot by Tess Photography 

The Giant Flowers also served as the perfect backdrop for the paparazzi wall. Pictured is Kristen & Todd Fail. Kristen and her business partner Amy were the creator of these amazing flowers!

Photo Credit: Diane Maehl Photography 

The food this year was so fun! Hand passed veggie shot glass was the perfect addition to the party!

Sisters of the heart

I have an amazing group of the most generous, thoughtful, brilliant, strong, beautiful women in my life. When we get to have dinner together it is one of my most favorite times of the month! This gathering was particularly fun, because we got to dine on the roof of a downtown bldg on a beautiful summer night! Love you girls and LOVE ~ laughing out loud with you!

Good Morning Northwest!

My alarm sounded at 3:20am. How do people function this earlier? Well I got a small glimpse into life before 6am on June 15th. Our new Social & Media Communications Manager, Andrea Flatley, for NWH is a former producer at KXLY. So she was able to arrange for me to do 2 segments on the morning show to talk about Hunger Awareness Month. My brain was still so asleep that in the first segement at 5:20am, I started every sentence with the word "Absolutely".... thank goodness by the time of my second segment at 5:50am, I was able to expand my volcabulary!  Thank you Robyn Nance for being so good to us! Ha Ha...laughing out loud!

Radio at 5:40am...yes I did.

I love my job. I love talking about hunger relief. It ususally comes very easy for me and I am never at a loss for words....except for at 5:40am. Lord. Have. Mercy. My brain was full of cob webs that early. Thank you to the 920 AM radio team for having me in to chat or should I say ramble! Ha Ha........laughing out loud ~

Laughing Out Loud

As I head into summer, which is my favorite time of year, I realize how quickly time is now flying for me. So in a committment to myself to slow down and enjoy the sunshine, I have decided to start a blog. It will be an opportunity for me to reflect on the joys in my life. The content will not be profound, but it will be a reflection of me. :) Thanks for sharing this part of my life with me! It has been a busy last few weeks, so in order not to forget I am going to go back and start blogging about some of those moments! Remember to always laugh out loud!