when d posted about our trip to the Olympic Peninsula, you might have thought all we did was sit around Lake Crescent Lodge pretending we were Eleanor Roosevelt all weekend. Well, that would have been totally delightful, but we had a very. . .important. . .place to be. . . .

LAVENDER FEST!

I love lavender. Love it. Its funny, because i don’t really gravitate towards Lavender scented lotions and soaps, but a couple of years ago i got started cooking with lavender (after Dry Soda came out with a lavender drink i love so much) and i’ve been hooked ever since.

We went to LavFest in ’08 and decided to make a return trip as veterans this year. At each farm you visit there are activities, demonstrations, u-cut, but most importantly. . culinary treats!

This year we had: grilled chicken with apricot lavender BBQ sauce (yum!), lavender margaritas (just as good as last year), lavender rosemary rubbed salmon sandwiches, and d’s favorite: chocolate orange lavender ice cream. These all sound crazy but on a hot summer day they are YUMMMMY.

We also stopped by our fave Olympic Cellars for a restock of their Lavender Infused white wine and some tasting of new bottles. We ended up coming home w/ a bottle of dry riesling that was on sale and a great cab franc (hopefully to be had over a nice fall dinner party). They had a silly bottle of sparkling syrah that was Twilight themed. Delicious, but tacky label, and at $36, not THAT delicious (we are wine cheapos).

At one of the farms, we listened to a “Meet the Farmer” presentation on how to care for your new baby lavender plant. The keys are:

#1: Good drainage. These are a meditteranean plant and like sandy, loose soil with lots of drainage. Mr. Farmer suggested a 50% soil 50% sand ratio. He also said not to overwater. In fact, at the farm, which has had very little rain in June and July this year, they hadn’t watered at all (these are more established plants, though.

#2: Give it a hair cut! In order to avoid getting woody stems, its best to cut back more of the new growth every year to stress the plant into better production. He said to cut back 2/3 of the new green growth at the end of the season. Cut it back into a nice round mound close to the ground.

We’re going to plant our new addition out in front and hope for the best – we’ll let you know how it grows!

Next year i think we are going to try and trek to a NEW lavender fest in Hood River, Oregon if anyone is up for an adventure.

HomeHero: so pretty (for a fire extinguisher)

Saw these on NYT today. D and I are a little burned by Fire Extinguishers (haha, pun INTENDED) because our last house had about a thousand of them. I think the last tenant may have been a teeeensy bit paranoid.

But, with these around, i’d gladly take a thousand. This is like the ipod of fire extinguishers, and whats even better, they are affordable and accessible. Via Home Depot (but not available online, you actually have to GO there )

last night i learned that i LOVE cleaning the refrigerator. Love it. I especially love scrubbing every.last.spot from the inside of the fridge while the door is wide open. And what i love even more than cleaning the fridge is cleaning the FREEZER!

aaaah cooool (note, pic courtesy of flckr. this is not our fridge)

Actually, no. I hate cleaning the fridge, always have. But on a 103 degree day, standing in front of the fridge for an hour* is nothing to complain about. And since we’re moving and it had to be done anyway, i didn’t even feel bad about doing it.

Seattleites: hang in there. The worst is almost past us i hope.

ps. Moving in the heat sucks. Don’t do it if you don’t have to. D and I have barely made it through the last few nights. This weekend we are spending all our time either in AC or submerged in water – if you have activities that involve either of these, give us a holler.

* the environmentalist in me does NOT endorse the energy efficiency of this activity. . . but it felt DARN GOOD.

… while we took an impromptu blogging break.  Sorry about that but, with moving in and moving out, a weekend of family and working, we have been busy!   Don’t worry you will hear all about it.   This week is going to be a recap week.   Today I will reveal the story behind the photo.  

From July 17-19th, B and I went out of town, just the two of us.   It’s a little tradition we  have.   Our destination?   The Olympic Peninsula, Washington, my favorite part of this pretty state.   It was my second time there and  my peninsula love continues.  What did we do there you ask?  Well, for that answer you will just have to wait, that’s its own story entirely!  Where was that photo taken?  At our home for the weekend, the amazing Lake Crescent Lodge.  That’s right, I am writing a post about our weekend home base.

window in our room

In one word it was: glorious.  I can’t wait to go back again.   Its in the middle of the Olympic National Park and right on Lake Crescent.  (aka, the most gorgeous place ever)  Our second floor room faced out to the lake.  We left the large windows open all night and you could hear the intense winds and the waves.  We would move downstairs for some time in the wood adirondack chairs on the shores.  This is probably one of the few times when I was constantly thinking let’s just hang out at the lodge.  (and for those who know me, I am not routinely a hang-out-at-the-hotel-when-we-could-be-doing-something type.)

roosevelt cottages at LCL

The lodge had a great porch, lobby with a fireplace and board games, and a bar with great food.  It also was the start of quite a few hiking trails, one of which we did one morning.   I was so relaxed, slept so well, smiled lots.  Oh, and played with my newish camera.  Great setting to discover what actually all these buttons do!

b hard at work on an etsy custom wreath order

yum! dungeness crab and wine with a view sunset

sunset

I will give you a hint….

a photo hint….