Pictures from my 28th birthday (11 days ago)

We had a lovely and fun brunch at Bastille in Ballard for my birthday two Sundays ago! I had a French 75 and the Croque Madame. It was divine. 

Mr. F and I took out his new Christmas remote control helicopter to Discovery Park because it was sunny and not too windy. 

We even took a few pictures on the Magnolia bluffs. I love this background. 

For dinner we went to Pazzo's in Eastlake for birthday pizza! 

My sister took us to the Harry Potter exhibit at the Pacific Science Center! 

It was the last night of the show!

I wish I could have taken pictures inside the exhibit. We loved seeing all the costumes and wands. Voldemort's wand was the best!

Kayaking for my sister's 24th birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Janie!  I'm so happy we  got to celebrate together with kayaking, donuts, and a trip to REI! Mr. F and I had a great time kayaking on Lake Union. We love taking pictures with the Space Needle in the background. 

We went on a houseboat and barge tour around Gasworks Park and Northlake.  We saw jumping fish, cute ducks, and an adorable puppy!  If you're ever in Seattle, and you want to go kayaking, check out Northwest Outdoor Center!

Here's a map of Lake Union where we kayaked! We started in Westlake, crossed to Eastlake then paddled up to Northlake.  [If you're interested in floating homes, the Seattle Real Estate Blog has a great guide.] We had such a good time, we plan to rent kayaks and make it to Lake Washington later this summer!

Happy Fourth of July!

Mr. F and I stayed up passed midnight (this is highly unusual for us) playing Rock Band with Nichole. It was awesome. Before I get some shut eye, I just wanted to wish you all a HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY! [P.S. If you like these patriotic balloons, you can find them and more at BalloonManiacs.com!]

When we wake up, we're planning on getting some barbecue items together, getting a run in around Lake Union, and meeting up with friends to watch the fireworks! There's a neat Seattle Times video that shows how amazing the fireworks preparation is on Lake Union and the story behind the funding this year! I also had no idea that "Time magazine has called the Family 4th at Lake Union one of the Top Five fireworks displays in the country"! [The following photos are from the fireworks display above Gasworks Park on Lake Union last year, taken by my pal, Janelle.]

 There's also more cool fireworks facts on family4th.org:

*How high up a firework will fly depends on its size. The spherical shells used in the Family 4th at Lake Union range from three inches in diameter (roughly the size of a baseball) to 10 inches (slightly smaller than a basketball). A simple rule of thumb in calculating how high a firework will ascend before it explodes is 100 feet of altitude for every inch of shell diameter, so a 10-inch shell explodes 1,000 feet in the air.

*The easiest color to produce in pyrotechnics is thought to be gold—a straight mixture of charcoal and black powder. In fact, gold coloring was the first visual effect fireworks ever had. However, gold can also be one of the hardest colors to perfect.

*What makes the weeping willow effect in a firework? Charcoal burns longer than explosive black powder's other ingredients. It is bits of charcoal—like the glowing embers in your barbecue - that drift slowly down to create the weeping willow effect.

Last year the fireworks were phenomenal in my parents backyard, this is my Dad falling asleep even though the fireworks were loud enough to set car alarms off. It was way past his bed time!

What are you doing to celebrate Independence Day?

A few of my favorite Seattle neighborhoods (Part 1)

I love Eastlake. Of course, I am biased because I have lived there for most of my life, but let me count the ways of why it is so endearing.

For starters, Eastlake is a small, friendly and charming neighborhood, between Lake Union and I-5. It's filled with a variety of new and old quirky houseboats, brand new condos, Victorian and Colonial-Style houses, and several local businesses, including the infamous Pete's Market, well-known for its wine selection. (Side note: We went there today and found an Abeja cabernet sauvignon for $35, which is a great deal!)

The original Red Robin is also in Eastlake, by the University Bridge. I can't get enough of their Banzai burgers, but since they started including the calories on the menu, I always order the petite size! For dining with a great neighborhood feel, there's Louisa's cafe and 14 Carrot, Serafina's, Pazzo's pizza place and bar, the Zoo Tavern, and I've recently been introduced to the Tako Truk, which is a delicious $5 gourmet taco stand. It's only open Thursday through Saturday and it's so popular they often close early. It also has an ever changing menu, so you may want to check their websites in advance. According to Facebook, this week's menu is beef brisket, coco piggy, yamirindo, tako taco, green beans with harissa and fried chickpeas.

In all seasons, walking around Eastlake is enjoyable. (According to walkscore.com, South Lake Union ranks in the Top 10 most walkable Seattle neighborhoods, and Eastlake is in the Top 30.) After brunch this morning at Louisa's, we walked along Fairview Ave E, over to Fuhrman Ave E along the Montlake Cut to Portage Bay. There were so many flowers in bloom, picturesque parks along the water,

and fun houses that I had to share the photos. On Fairview, there's a cool T-rex sculpture in a garden! On the corner of Hamlin and Franklin, there's a neat tree that is always decorated according to the season. Today it had a beach theme complete with sand buckets and plastic shovels! There were also some ripe blackberries on Fairview that we sampled, yum!

We also stopped into Lake Union Mail from some stamps and to get the latest neighborhood news from the shopkeeper, Jules James. He always has his finger on the pulse of Eastlake. If you need a rental, help with shipping or moving, or even the sense of the neighborhood and the TOPS/Seward school, talk to Jules.

Eastlake has a very homey feel and if you don't believe me, just walk along Eastlake Ave E. You're bound to see children playing at the Seward school, catch a whiff of the freshly baking bread at Louisa's, perhaps even hear a strain of music coming out of Serafina's. On any given day, you'll see the seaplanes take off or hear the whistle of the Virgina V. If you're interested in a longer walk, the 6 mile route around Lake Union is well paved and connects with the Burke-Gilman Trail on the North side of the lake.

A few favorite brunch places

The weekend is here!!! My husband and I are relaxing by watching the movie Inkheart. I'm really looking forward to brunch tomorrow. Since I love all things breakfast, I have many favorite places that I frequent for brunch.

My most favorite recent brunch is the Sourdough Slam from The Hi-Life in Ballard. The Hi-Life is one of the Chow Foods neighborhood restaurants. It has a rotating "food festival" menu, which means they feature a different global cuisine every season in addition to a standard menu. Currently, Columbia Gorge is the theme and it brings back fond memories of college. I absolutely love how the Sourdough Slam mixes savory with the sweet, the fresh berries, sweetened sour cream, sourdough pancakes, eggs and sausage. It is 100% truly amazing! I also stole bites of my husband's Walla Walla Wakeup which is a whole wheat crepe with scrambled eggs, Walla Walla sweet onions, corn, goat cheese and salsa. It was soo totally wicked.

We also regularly go to Dish on Leary in Ballard (practically Fremont) for brunch. They have great specials like Huevos Rancheros. The Eggs Benedict and Biscuits and Gravy are my favorite things to order. My husband loves to get the Slacker Especial which is enchilada sauce, chiles, and scrambled eggs on tortilla chips with cheese, sour cream and onions.

Last weekend, we went to Alexa's Garden Cafe in the middle of Swanson's Nursery. It was a pretty decent breakfast, but the atmosphere is really why I want to go back soon. We sat in an atrium filled with a multitude of tropical plants and a huge koi pond. The koi were very interested in people going by and some were up to 3 feet long!

Louisa's Cafe on Eastlake Ave E is a old childhood fav, and it's really expanded with the new management. (They now serve dinner, along with wine and beer!!) My favorite thing to get there are the McTio's. They're a fried egg with tomato and bacon in a bagel. It's very messy but very delicious.

Volterra has the best french toast that I've had in town. It's egg dipped challah bread topped with bananas flambe! I've yet to try the "Ultimate Peach Thyme Bellini" but I've heard several rave reviews!

Portage Bay Cafe in the University District is a very charming breakfast place with it's exposed beams and old crew boats but it's quite small. We've enjoyed the newer South Lake Union location much more with it's spacious and industrial looking motif. I've heard the third location, near the Ballard Locks, just opened! I recommend the Migas which are awesome although, I always love to get something that includes the toppings bar. The toppings bar has fresh fruit, nuts, and syrups that you can apply to your breakfast galore!

Mmm, it's a good thing I've already eaten dinner. I'm salivating thinking of all these yummy breakfast items!