A New Year! A Fresh Focus! {Redeeming my time}

It is New Years Eve. The kids are at preschool for half a day, I just finished an uninterrupted workout, and now I am sitting at my kitchen table crying literal tears of joy and gratitude for all the amazing people in my life that inspire me, and for all the things God has taught me in the past year. You see, the past couple of months have been hectic with birthdays, and holidays, and visitors, and underways for my husband, and the end of the semester of teaching for me. Add a couple rounds of whole family sickness in there, as well as ongoing, extremely expensive, emotional, and time-consuming veterinary issues, and I was on the verge of burn out. So the past couple of days I have taken the kids to preschool and have had a personal retreat of sorts. I have enjoyed uninterrupted workouts, quiet sunrise meditation on the beach, cooking new recipes, quiet time with God reflecting on the past year, and praying for vision and direction for the coming year. It is unbelievable how refreshed and renewed I feel!

2014 was a crazy year for us. It started out slow, almost boring, as we endured a long Connecticut winter often cooped up in the house for days on end. After much transition, the year is ending quite differently; busy, frenzied, and on the verge of burn-out. Now I long for the quiet hours that seemed to stretch on forever earlier in the year, the time that I previously cursed for moving too slowly. In an effort to steward my God-given gifts well by returning to teaching, it now feels like I am not doing anything well, just adequately. Each day that passes my children are learning and growing but I have been too exhausted and overwhelmed to intentionally sow into them in the ways that I desire to. I often blame this on my return to work which confuses me because it was so clear to me that I was meant to return to teaching. I have clearly seen the hand of God at work along that course opening doors, providing for me, and sustaining me. Yet I feel as though this pace of life and our lack of margin is not sustainable for our family without repercussions we do not want to face. From the start we have known this endeavor would require more of us than we have to give, but have been trusting God to provide, and He has. Sometime in the past couple of months though I have switched from purpose-driven-eyes-fixed-on-Jesus, to survival mode trying to do it on my own, which I am pretty sure has been my fatal flaw leading to burn-out.

As we face the new year, there currently is not much we can change about our hectic pace of life due to the commitments we have already made, but my little retreat over the past couple of days has given me fresh vision for 2015. God has helped me to refocus by fixing my eyes again on Jesus {our family's 2014 goal}, and has given me the goal of stewardship for the new year. I aim to apply the principles of biblical stewardship to all areas of our current life and to allow those principles to guide us as we consider the impact of future decisions about current and new commitments.

My guiding verse for 2015 is Ephesians 5:15-16;

"Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil."

In studying this verse I found that by going back to the original language it was written in there are several key words/phrases that brought me deeper understanding.

• "Careful" means to see or discern, to turn the thoughts/mind to something, to consider, to contemplate, to weigh carefully. To me this suggest that walking carefully means intentionally turning my thoughts and mind to wisdom.
• "Making the most" literally means redeeming, by payment of a price to recover from the power of another. One source said "to make wise and sacred use of every opportunity for doing good, so that zeal and well doing are the purchase money by which we make our time our own."
• "The days are evil" means the days are full or labors, hardships, and annoyances. Labor, hardship, and annoyances are a reality! They can be so distracting but especially in light of that truth, it is important to make the most of my time.

In light of these meanings I have personally paraphrased the verse;

"Therefore, intentionally turn your thoughts to wisdom, redeeming your time because the days are full of labor, annoyances, and hardships."

I see stewardship as exactly that... redeeming my time. Making the most of the opportunities God blesses me with. As I prayed about stewardship God put several areas of my life on my heart that I need to apply this to;

•  Our children. Training them up in the way they should go in the areas of character, spiritual, and academic development.
• Our finances. Being grateful for and taking care of the things God has blessed us with like our home and other possessions. Eliminating wasteful spending. Intentional and prayerful giving. 
• Our marriage. Continuing to invest in our most important earthly relationship.
• Physical bodies. Eating healthy, exercising, getting enough sleep. 
• Ministries. Following the Spirit's lead in choosing where and how to invest our time and energy including our professions, our church, and our community.

A few action points specifically for our family;

• Scripture memorization with the kids. 
• Work with kids to set quarterly goals for themselves.
• Revisit our budget and stick to it. 
• Practice the Sabbath.

Philippians 3:12-14 says "Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

Leading up to this {Ph. 3:1-11} talks about how everything gained apart from Christ is worthless. Therefore, this verse commands me to put it behind me and forget it. Following this verse Paul goes on to describe those who, even claiming Christ, go on working hard toward their own goals {Ph. 3:18-19} and it makes Paul weep because they are missing out on the gift of living life in communion with God! In 2015 I want to steward the life God has given me well for the purpose of pressing on toward the goal of becoming like Christ with the knowledge that my true citizenship is in heaven {Ph. 3:20}.

Motherhood, Career, and Walking in Faith

I have often heard it said, and have likely uttered it myself, 

"Motherhood is the highest calling"

for those of us blessed with little ones to raise. 

While I agree that it is an amazing privilege, and for sure, a very high calling, I whole-heartedly believe that glorifying God is every believers highest calling. Many have interpreted the high calling of motherhood to require moms to stay home with their little blessings as long as it is financially possible. And while I think staying home with children is a very noble occupation, I don't necessarily agree with that interpretation.

I like to think of myself as a missional mom. By that, I mean that I strive to purposefully raise my kids on a "mission" to be God-following world-changers. A large part of that mission involves modeling for my children and actually following God's direction in my own life. Obviously, that direction looks different for every mom, but this is the {very abbreviated} story of what it is looking like for me right now.

For the past nearly four years now, following God's direction has kept me at home raising my babies. At times I wanted nothing more than to just go back to work, but I felt a strong conviction that home was where God wanted me during that time. Looking back, that time was so productive and fruitful, not only for my children's development, but also for my own spiritual development and refinement. I treasure those years that I got to spend every hard and every joyful moment with my children and I am already mourning the loss of that time as I approach the next season of life God has clearly set before me.

For the past seven or eight months I have known that God has been preparing me for something. For many of those months I didn't know just what it was, and I didn't imagine it would involve going back to work full time, but I knew it was coming. Only in the past couple of months has He actually revealed me to His plan for me to return to teaching. Before having children I was a high school math teacher and I loved it. After two and a half college degrees I had finally found the job that perfectly meshed with my gifts and passions and I very clearly remember feeling so fulfilled as if I was doing exactly what I was created to do.

I have always intended to return to teaching, I just thought it would probably be once my own kids were also in school. But God planted a seed of curiosity in my heart, as I renewed my expiring teaching license, about the possibility of going back, and I considered it very hesitantly and many times I dismissed it thinking, "there is no rush," but the Spirit would not let me rest when I dismissed it. The only times over the past couple of months that I have had peace, have been when I have allowed myself to hesitantly step forward in faith in the direction of returning to teaching. God has confirmed my steps every step of the way and has opened doors in unbelievable ways. Really, all I have done is step through those open doors in faith.

I don't really understand why this is happening now instead of in a few years when my kids will both be in elementary school, but I trust that God has His own reasons that I may not understand this side of heaven. I have lost sleep repeatedly counting up the pros and cons of going back to work right now, but ultimately, no list of pros and cons makes any difference when it comes to the will of the Lord. I either submit and follow, regardless of the potential sacrifice, or I miss out on the opportunity to see God work through my life and miss out on the opportunity to teach my children what it means to walk in faith.

With all that being said... I am very excited to be going back to my old job, teaching at my old school, and even the very same teaching line! And I am super excited for my children to get to go to an amazing preschool that I know they will love.  It will certainly be a challenge with my husband on his department head sea tour... but our family is always up for a challenge ;)

A Family In Transition

A week ago my family boarded a plane and flew to our new home in Hawaii! My husband and I have lived here before and are so excited to share the experience of living in one of our favorite places with our two children.  I can hardly believe we actually live here again.  It is something we have been hoping for pretty much ever since we left several years back and it is a dream come true!

It has been a busy week since arriving. We settled into our hotel room, bought a car, got the dogs through the quarantine process, visited a new preschool for our children, walked through the house we are in the ironically long "short-sale" process of buying, went to see a rental property, finished my teaching application, were hailed into Sam's new wardroom, and reconnected with old friends. Plus we have made a little time for taking the kids to the beach, pool, and park of course! And we have been enjoying running outside around Ford Island in the beautiful weather.

As happy and content as we already are here, even without a place to live, we still have lots of decisions and transitions on the immediate horizon. Sam is preparing to go underway for awhile very soon, which will be a first for our children. We are trying to decide whether to continue the short-sale process or to rent a beach house instead; both options with distinct benefits and drawbacks making it very difficult to chose. I am applying for teaching positions with the hope of returning to work in the coming school year, also a first for our children. So pretty much everything in life is about to change one way or another.

God's timing is so amazing to me though! As our family is clearly in transition, our family devotions through IF:Equip are on the Book of Acts which is about the early church in transition. I am loving how God is reminding me that He is in control and He will work everything out for His glory.

Acts 1:7-8 says, "He [Jesus] said to them, 'It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.'"

I love that! It is not for me to know God's timing or His plans for our family through this transition. But what I can rely on is that He is in ultimate control and He will use me for His purposes. The Spirit will empower me for the purpose of bringing glory to God by being His witness wherever He puts me. And really, that is all I need to know to have peace and joy and contentment even through a time of uncertain transition.

As I have continued reading on and studying in the book of Acts, some pretty amazing, unlikely things happen to fulfill God's promises and far exceed everyone's hopes and expectations. And that makes me so excited for what God has for our family in this new phase of life for us! I know that His plans for us are greater than we can even dream and we are looking forward to seeing how those plans unfold!

Christmas 2013

This year we went home to Maryland for the Christmas holiday. We spent two weeks with our families there and enjoyed every moment! The kids were spoiled rotten with all the attention from their aunts and uncles and grandparents and even great grandparents. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have because I was too busy reading THREE and a HALF books while other people entertained my children. It was glorious! 

While at home we spent a long weekend up at a ski cabin at Deep Creek Lake with Sam's Dad's side of the family. Sam got to ski for the first time in many years and the kids got to meet Sam's cousin's daughters that are close to their age and were very fast friends. 

Sam and I also snuck away from everyone for a night to a Bed & Breakfast in Annapolis which was a wonderful start to our New Year. We haven't yet found a babysitter in CT so date nights are few and far between these days unfortunately. 

This is the face LK makes when she gets flashed by the camera- haha! 

Pile on Uncle Colin! This went on forever...

Lanie Kate was thrilled that the appetizers at Uncle Colin and Aunt Gianna's Christmas Eve party were just at her level. 

Snacking and Pop Pop Christmas Eve

Colin and Gianna's Christmas Eve dinner party

Our little family on Christmas Eve

Lanie Kate is obsessed with "big-people" cups and Mom Mom is just the softie to indulge her

Quinn is infatuated with Uncle Kirk's long-time girlfriend, Andy ever since she played bubbles with him at the beach this summer. Watch out Uncle Kirk, you've got some competition!

Christmas morning at Mom Mom and Pop Pop's. Santa brought Q a Kindle Fire, a Ravens football helmet, the Planes movie, and a drum set. Santa brought LK a stroller, doll, and diaper bag.

Christmas morning at Nana and Granpop's. Santa's second stop for the Fromille kids! He brought Q a couple educational games, play dough toys, and How To Train Your Dragon. Santa brought LK a PB Anywhere Chair, a purse, two chunky necklaces, The Little Mermaid, and a couple board books by her favorite author. He filled their stockings with Craisins and Dried Mango- some of their favorite treats! 

Granpop set up his electric train display for Quinn and Q got to blow the train whistle. This display totally saved Christmas because when we arrived at Nana and Granpop's we were 45 minutes into the worst tantrum we have ever experienced over getting dressed {which required him to take off the football helmet}. When he showed up and saw the train set, the helmet was quickly forgotten.

LK insisted on wearing both of her new necklaces.

Carving the turkey breast with an audience.

Hoping for some turkey...

Master chef Nana. It was so nice to have someone else doing most of the cooking! 

Zia made Q and LK a hand painted giraffe growth chart. Probably my favorite Christmas present. My sister is so creative and an amazing artist and her gifts are always the best. She made me two sketches, one of each of our dogs. And painted a catamaran sailboat on a navigational map of the Bimini Islands {where Sam use to sail in college} for Sam. 

I am pretty sure we have a picture of my dad in some sort of goofy head gear for as many Christmases as I can remember.

Nana and Granpop totally spoiled the kids with presents and this little stand mixer and cookie cutter set was a favorite for both kids. 

Another favorite from Nana and Granpop was this little purse. LK got 3 purses for Christmas but this was by far her favorite and has barely left the crook of her arm since!

My fur babies snuggling

Q rocking out on his new drum set. Santa may regret this gift... ;)

There is a good chance that this will be our last Maryland Christmas for awhile and it was such a fun one full of family and great memories with the kids at this fun age. It even snowed after Christmas so Quinn could go sledding, which may be his favorite memory of all time- we sure hear about it enough now! We hope your Christmas was as full of wonderful moments and memories as ours was!

Intentionally Focused in 2014

It's a new year! And over the past couple of weeks I have spent some time alone and with my husband thinking, praying, and discussing our goals for this year. Somehow January 1st sneaks up on me every year catching me unprepared to declare grand resolutions and instead is when I start thinking about goals after the busy-ness of the Christmas season has died down and I can think straight again. This year I had clear direction from God before the ball even dropped on New Year's Eve as to my major focus for the year but have only begun to figure out what that direction means in terms of specific goals.  My inspiration for 2014 comes from Hebrews 12:1-2;

"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

In 2014, I will fix my eyes on Jesus! I will learn to live the life God has prepared for me with endurance. Endurance. It takes endurance to be the wife, mother, friend, daughter, sister, that God intends me to be. And the only way to achieve that is to keep my focus in the right place! 

Today was our first day back at our home in Connecticut in over two weeks. Since all of us are sick with a nasty cold we stayed home from church and watched Seacoast Church online. Pastor Greg shared a great message which helped me to think more about specific goals for this year. He challenged us by asking What Do You Value? and What Do You Want To Change? because according to 1 Corinthians 10:23, "everything is permissible... but not everything is beneficial" and as Proverbs 17:24 says, "an intelligent person aims at wise action, but a fool starts off in many directions." He offered four areas to think about making goals in; intellectual, physical, spiritual, and relational. So as I have thought about what I value and what I want to change in each of those areas as well as how Hebrews 12:1-2 could be applied to my life in each of those areas, I've come up with a few more specific goals. 

Intellectual

As a stay-at-home-mom I often feel like my brain is dying because nothing I do as part of my "job" takes much intellect. It is one of my biggest struggles as a stay-at-home-mom because I love using my brain and learning new things. So this year I plan to further study an area of interest to help stimulate my intellect. I have always loves anatomy and physiology and I love fitness and health. I have learned that I don't want to make a career out of those interests, but that doesn't mean I can't learn more about the connection between A&P and my personal fitness routines just for fun as something to stimulate my brain. 

Physical

I have a pretty good exercise routine as it is so I plan to keep that up. I have missed my gym in CA that had great childcare because here in CT there are no gyms in my area with childcare so I have just been working out at home on my treadmill and using free weights. I greatly miss PiYo, Kickboxing and Spin class. I would love to find a video for one or more of those that I actually like. Any suggestions? I'm also open to trying one of the popular high intensity video workouts but don't really want to spend the money on one before knowing if I even like it since I've never seen a workout video I actually liked. 

Spiritual

For the past couple of years I have participated in Good Morning Girls online Bible studies which I plan to continue in 2014.

Scripture memorization has had a powerful impact on me over the past year so I would like to be more intentional about hiding more and more of God's Word in my heart. 

An area I want to work on personally that I think will pay great spiritual dividends is my desire to constantly be doing something. I attribute this to the ADD that I have had all my life. I often get bored even with just a few spare minutes. And boredom is one of my biggest fears and something that I am constantly running from. So I frantically fill my time with unnecessary tasks to make sure I am never bored. I think this attitude is hindering my spiritual life. I think I need to learn to be okay with quiet moments. I need to give God the chance to speak to me. And therefore I am going to take steps this year to limit some of the typical time-fillers I use to fill the quiet, beginning with a 21 day fast from facebook. I love facebook for keeping in touch with friends and family who are far away and I will miss you guys! But I find myself popping on there on my phone for no reason but to pass time so I think a break will be good. I will use the time to work on Scripture memory and prayer and hopefully fleshing out more of my goals for the coming year.  

Relational

2014 will be a year of lots of relational transition. We have just settled into a new home and will likely be moving again in a few months which will involve reconnecting with old friends and making new ones. Additionally, hubby will be returning to sea tour and deployments which means a transition in our marriage and also for our children. During this time, we want to make sure that we continue to be intentional about building into our marriage. One way we plan to do this is my having more media-free nights at home where we play a game or talk rather than reading our own books or watching television. I also look forward to being intentional about building relationships in our new home, wherever that may be, but don't yet know how that will look. 

These are rough starts at goals, but I wanted to write them down while they were fresh in my mind and before it gets too far into the new year to be making New Years blog posts! 

Unshakable

American Thanksgiving isn't a religious holiday, but when I think of giving thanks, I naturally turn my gratitude to the Giver of all good things. So as our family has been preparing for this holiday we have made it a habit during prayers at bed time to discuss what we are thankful for and to include those things in our prayers. We have so much to be thankful for in this life! Family that loves and supports us, health, a secure income, a lovely home, abundant food, friends, and many luxuries. It is easy to make a list a mile long of all the things we have to be thankful for. But, I think those are just the small things. Yes, I am immensely grateful for those things, but what if I had no family or was estranged from my family? What if we had no secure income or no place to live or food to eat? What if tragedy struck our family and we lost a loved one? What if, all of the above? Because there are those for whom that is a reality and yet the Bible commands, "Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" {1 Thessalonians 5:16-18}.

It might be easy for me to rejoice, but it is not difficult to imagine circumstances in which gratitude for the hand you have been dealt might be difficult. Here is the thing, we are not called to be thankful for the hand we have been dealt in this life, we are called to be thankful to God for His presence in our life. The presence that means no matter what we are facing, He is greater than the challenge and capable of redeeming even the most terrible circumstance to work it together for the good of those who love Him {Romans 8:28}. This makes all the "small" blessings in my life that are so important to me, truly seem small. Everything is small in comparison to the One who holds the whole earth in His hand and yet cares intimately about every detail of my life.

Hebrews 12:28 says, "Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping Him with holy fear and awe." My whole life could be falling apart, and yet this life is temporary and I can still praise God with thankfulness in my heart because my inheritance is a kingdom that is unshakable. "So we don't look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever" {2 Corinthians 4:18}.

So this Thanksgiving, I am focusing my heart on the unshakable. I am thankful for all I have in this life but I am most thankful for the presence of God in my life and for the unshakable Kingdom that is my inheritance.

• I am grateful for Jesus who made God's presence in my life possible. For the sacrifice He already made on my behalf and the righteousness He transferred to me so that I could enjoy God's presence here and now as well as for all eternity. 
• I am grateful to be chosen, holy, and beloved. {Colossians 3:12}
• I am grateful that my God is kind and merciful and that He is in control of all things. {1 Chronicles 29:10-20}
• I am grateful for God's grace renewing me day by day. {2 Corinthians 4:15-16}
• I am grateful for peace that surpasses all comprehension. {Philippians 4:6-7}

Unlike the many wonderful physical blessings in my life, these things are unshakable. And no matter what happens, I can praise God with thanksgiving in my heart because of these things. 

The following words were written by a psalmist as he relayed his frustration over his observation at the prosperity of the wicked and then realized the real blessing was not the things the wicked enjoyed in this temporary life, but God's eternal presence. These words resonate with me as I think about the subject of my thanksgiving;

"But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

That I may tell of all Your works."

~Psalm 73:28

We enjoyed a wonderful celebration with some of our military family this evening. And I hope that each of you enjoyed this holiday in the presence of friends and loved ones. Most of all, I pray that as we enter this season celebrating God's love for us, that you experience the unshakable blessing of God's presence.

Happy 1st Birthday LK!

My baby girl is turning ONE! As I type this I am thinking back to one year ago at this time when I was in the middle of my labor with her freaking out about having another premature baby. It was an awful labor but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the past year with this sweet, happy, healthy, precious little girl was well worth the terrible pregnancy, nerve wrecking labor, and 15 day NICU stay. Her infectious smile lights up my world every single day. I have never met a sweeter or happier child in my life. She is truly a joy in every sense of the word and I have really savored this past year with her. I honest-to-goodness even treasured the middle of the night feedings when she was in her first few months, knowing this time around that the lack of sleep would be short lived and so would the sleepy infant snuggles. In all honesty, this first year has gone too fast and I'm clinging on to the last moments I have left with my baby as she too quickly turns into a toddler. It is impossible to be too sad though because it is so fun seeing her bubbly personality continue to develop and at this age I enjoy watching her learn, discover, and experience new things every day.

Today we had a little fun with the {almost} birthday girl. We dragged my old high chair from when I was a baby out into my parents back yard that is on the brink of fall in Maryland and got Lanie Kate a cupcake from a local cupcakerie {that is catering her upcoming cupcake themed party}. This was LK's first cupcake so it was really fun to see her enjoy a sweet treat and yummy mess for the first time. I went a little crazy with the photos in this post, but I just couldn't choose! I love all her little expressions!

 Confession... I have given my parents a hard time my entire life for ditching me with my aunt on my 1st birthday in order to go on vacation to Hawaii. As it turns out, tomorrow morning before the birthday girl wakes up I'll be boarding a plane to go visit a good friend for a few days sans children {taking advantage of daddy being off of work and available}. I'm sure I'll never hear the end of this from my own parents or from my little birthday girl! Hopefully she can forgive me since I let her eat cake a day early and we're throwing her a party next weekend too!

Love you to pieces my little sweetness! 

California Dreamin

Over the weekend we had a few of our closest friends over one last time while here in our home in California. We did a "California Dreamin" themed party inspired by our memories here {game nights & s'mores on the beach} and the delicious, fresh produce found at our local farmers market that we enjoy weekly. We had such a wonderful time enjoying the company of some cherished friends and sharing many laughs during highly competitive battle-of-the-sexes rounds of Catch Phrase and Guesstures.

 I am a little obsessed with the gorgeous {and cheap} flowers available at the farmers market. My flower arranging skills are a bit lacking... but the natural beauty shines through even when you just plunk them by the handful in some old mason jars.

 I had fun going down "memory lane" and creating this photo banner of some of our favorite CA memories. Since we moved here we have been blessed by the birth of both our children. We've enjoyed road trips to visit friends, friend's visiting us, sporting events, birth's of friend's babies, military balls, birthday parties, halloween parties, Christmas parties, charity fundraisers, and lots of globetrotting. It was tough narrowing down the photos to contain them on just two walls! This has been such a wonderful season in our lives.

 Sam and I love California cuisine. In all honesty, we are a little obsessed with it! Everything is so fresh and, for the most part, healthy. The menu was completely inspired by California favorites and almost every menu item featured a key ingredient from our local farmer's market.

 Anyone who knows me at all knows that I am completely in love with peaches. Hands down my favorite food on the planet. I prefer them plain, right off the tree, but since peach season is so short and I can't bear to go 10 months without them {and canned peaches definitely do not count}, last year I learned to make peach butter so I could still enjoy a taste of summer on my toast year round. So when thinking of a party favor, this was a natural fit. All homemade with fresh local peaches from the farmers market! Other "peach" menu items included peach cobbler and fresh, homemade peach ice cream. 

 Second to peaches, I think my favorite farmers market item are heirloom tomatoes. I was never in love with tomatoes till living here and now I can't get enough of them. We have the most gorgeous varieties all with their own distinct flavors here. I used a Pioneer Woman bruschetta recipe along with a delicious local CA aged basalmic for these and I think they were my favorite bites of the night. 

 Artichokes are a local specialty. You would not believe the delicious things they do with them around here! I kinda copped out and just used canned artichokes and a less-than-creative spinach-and-artichoke dip but it was still yummy.

 Another local specialty is garlic. During the harvest you can smell it as you drive through Gilroy {nearby town}. So I roasted some with rosemary and added it to our favorite family hummus recipe along with pita bread from our favorite falafel place at the farmers market.

 CA cows must be anatomically different than "other" cows because here we have a cut of steak called "tri-tip" that is pretty much unavailable in the other parts of the country where we have lived. It is the easiest and most delicious cut of meat we have ever worked with on the grill and this recipe with homemade BBQ sauce has become a staple in our family and always gets rave reviews when we make it for company.

 It wouldn't be CA without fish tacos! We used Monterey Bay Halibut from the farmer's market for this.

D photo bomb!

 We obviously don't have a beach in our backyard {although you can see the bay from our front porch}, but one of our favorite CA activities are bonfires on the beach complete with roasted marshmallows and s'mores. I maintain that the most useful thing I have ever found on pinterest is that you can roast marshmallows over sternos! Surprisingly good flavor too. So we set up a little marshmallow roasting station on our back porch. 

Deconstructed s'more

Marshmallow mouth!

"Look at mommy and look happy!" haha!

Sticky fingers

I was laughing too hard {and too fully invested} in the games to get any good pictures. Such a fun night! So glad we were able to do this one last time before moving. Monterey will always be a special place for our family and these people will always have a special place in our hearts.