Building a cabin in the woods

short hikes near Seattle with kids

A family friendly hike that’s a no-brainer if you have a 4×4 but still doable if you don’t (Mirror Lake, Snoqualmie Pass, WA)

July 16, 2015

A few weeks ago when we had the use of a decked-out Toyota 4-Runner the hubby reminisced about camping and hiking trips from bygone days when we used to borrow his aunt’s 4-runner and explore.  He found a hike in Snoqualmie Pass where we’ve been hanging out a lot lately and it seemed pretty kid-friendly […]

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fancy place to drink tea near seattle

What social media made me shop and forage for in Seattle on a Monday

June 2, 2015

It’s been a drizzly but hit-the-ground-running kind of Monday where I somehow found myself lost in the aisles of Costco. (Oh my goodness, is there any other place in the world like this that induces sane people to buy copious amounts of things they don’t need?!!  I need to stay away.)  Except they sell Tutta […]

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An easy hike If you wake up in Seattle and want to go on a small hiking adventure with kids or grandparents in tow

May 23, 2015

Hikes to me mean an excuse to eat trail mix and junky foods while walking through a forest.  Sometimes a little drive to get there also heightens the adventure.  The Snoqualmie Pass area is usually one of our first choices because of the cabin project and it’s only about an hour drive from Seattle and […]

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home building with kids

On finding my pinterest dream light in real life (building a cabin in the woods)

March 15, 2015

Can I do a happy dance here? Ages ago I found this light in a pinterest post by Design Milk and I wanted so badly to find it in real life.  I think it would be the perfect light over the long table I want for family dinners at the cabin and when I find […]

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winter cabin near seattle

We have windows! (Cabin building in the Woods, Snoqualmie Pass)

February 21, 2015

While we’ve been a little sad about the lack of the snow in the mountains, it hasn’t been horrible for building and hiking and biking with kids in these wintery months has been so fun because it’s so gorgeous and mild.  If you’ve been following our cabin building progress, we’ve learned that building in the […]

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biking in seattle with kids

When spring comes in February in Seattle

February 9, 2015

If it ever snows here again I swear I’ll fully embrace my Seattle winter uniform (down parka, fleece lined jeans, Ugg boots, lip balm) and try my best not to complain about the cold because it’s almost tropical this year and without our usual blast of freezing weather in February it just feels like something […]

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amazing seattle weather

Because this week Tuesday still feels like Monday so here are some thoughts

January 27, 2015

Yesterday we woke up to sunshine streaming in all the windows and a record seven birds were holding onto our bird feeder for dear life while they guzzled down a twenty dollar bag of birdseed like it actually might turn wintertime over here.  They also took down the 12th man flag, so I’m wondering if […]

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We almost have a roof over our heads (cabin building in the woods)

November 19, 2014

The snow is threatening to fall and we’re oh so close to getting the roof on before we get tons and tons of it in Snoqualmie Pass.  But we’re not quite there yet.  And that’s the nail-biting exciting part of building in a place with a short building season. On our last site visit, I […]

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Finding Fall at Gold Creek Pond (A great hike for kids near Snoqualmie Pass)

November 5, 2014

Everywhere in Seattle the leaves are putting on the best show they can and I’m trying to snap as many pictures of my kids as possible because it is just too beautiful to stop and one day they probably won’t want me taking so many pictures any more.  I’ve also decided that because of this […]

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gifts that give back in seattle

Toilet shopping that gives back and a way to leave a mark at Pike Place market in Seattle on a Monday

November 3, 2014

Happy Shopping Monday friends! I hope you all had a wonderful candy-filled weekend.  I almost kept the kids at home today to prevent myself from being left ALL ALONE WITH ALL THE CANDY, but there is work to be done and I guess this is a great test for me to see if I can […]

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Apparently there are a million fixtures out there (A cabin-building update)

October 22, 2014

I think that I’ve reached the point in the cabin project where I wish it was more like buying a dress because we’re starting to ACTUALLY pick out fixtures (like sinks, faucets and shower parts) and that’s where what I dream about and what I really can afford or need becomes a reality.  In dress […]

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A cabin-building update as we race to beat the snow

October 9, 2014

If you’ve been following our cabin-building project it’s been quite a fun project and our whole family has been enjoying the process so far. It’s neat learning about how a home is made, choosing how we’re going to utilize our space and imagining how we’re going to live in this place in years to come. […]

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building a cabin in the woods near Snoqualmie Pass Washington

A super dark tunnel and a cabin building update

October 1, 2014

Living with boys is not as horrible as I might have imagined if you told me as a high schooler this is how my life would turn out.  It’s actually mostly lovely and I’m getting used to being outdoors more and embracing all that is frogs, dirt and bugs. But sometimes I do feel like […]

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wheelhouse coffee in seattle

Eyes to the sun shopping for snow on a Monday

September 16, 2014

Was there sun in your eyes this Monday? It seriously still feels like summer here in Seattle and after a weekend of play it is so hard to get up.  The kids and I lounged a little too long and we barely had time to brush our teeth, change and run out the door in […]

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Cabin shopping on a Monday when I should be buying for back to school

September 1, 2014

I guess it’s the 11th hour and I haven’t bought the perfect lunchbag or my guys’ first day of school outfit, but my inbox is full of a couple winter sales and I can’t help but look forward to this winter because I’m so excited about our cabin project.  (And I’m trying to avoid thinking […]

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buidling a cabin in the woods in Snoqualmie Pass near Seattle

Loads of home and cabin goods shopping on a Monday

July 28, 2014

Yay Monday!  It looks like there will be a lot more home stuff in my Shopping Monday posts in the next little while.  The past few weeks we’ve spent a lot of time up in Snoqualmie Pass about an hour from Seattle, Washington, where we’re starting to build our dream cabin and it looks like […]

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In Real Life shopping on a sunny Monday

April 8, 2014

It’s not everyday I get to go shopping in real life IN an actual store, but I needed to run some errands this morning and that brought me to Target, which is always a fun exercise.  I have loved Target for so long (but hasn’t everyone?) and today I was proud because I didn’t buy […]

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Marshmallow Revelation for your Monday

June 17, 2013

After millions of hours of research, I finally figured out how to melt both chocolate and marshmallow at the same time for our camping s’mores.  (I’ve had way too many s’mores with hard chocolate or burnt graham cracker from our experiments!) I used a ginormous campfire marshmallow and cut it in half.  These are not […]

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