Life in the desert...

A long time ago I had the great privilege of going to a private art gallery showcasing of work by Gal Weinstein. It was fantastic and has stuck with me for a long time. I finally found some photos of his work.

Let me set the scene:

I was 18 years old and living in Ramat-Aviv, Israel. I was homesick in a way that I can't describe. Some days I felt like I was crazy; what in the world was I doing in Israel?!

When I was invited to the gallery I was really kind of flippant about it. It was just another outing with all of the family. When I saw the main ballroom I nearly lost it!


The whole floor looked like the dessert.



It was entirely cracked and fragile dirt. Bowed pieces with rounded edges. I waited until everyone left the room before I swooped down and touched the smallest of corners.


It crumbled.


I felt like I was home. In my parents back yard on the mountain.



* Just a little piece of information: the picture in the back ground is 3D and entirely made up of white canvas and black steel wool fuzz. Lovely.

Time to stop the train

Why don't I ever blog anymore? Well mostly because I am a busy girl and I have a pretty set schedule!

Like usual, my life is a lot of cake and flowers. What's not to love?

My neighbor brings me flowers from her garden almost every weekend. Sometimes I use them for cakes...



and other times I make them into arrangements with some of my flowers...



I have been working about the same as usual and have been having a lot of fun. I am getting to do a little bit more complicated or larger cakes. It is awesome.

This is a half sheet banana whipped cream cake for a birthday.



This cake was for a sweet little old lady. It is hard to tell the proportions of the cake, but the entire cake had a diameter of only 4 inches. That was one tiny loop bow. The pictures don't really capture how dainty it really was.




Today I spent 2.5 hours in the dentists chair and my whole jaw is super sore. I'm sure I will feel better in a few days. I hope...

Our 3rd Wedding Anniversary!

Yesterday was so much FUN! We took the day off to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary!

First he surprised me with these...



So lovely. He has perfect taste!

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We spent most of the day down at the river and of course we brought our favorite child. (Who just had her 3rd birthday on Monday)











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For dinner we went into downtown Portland to the Galleria building and had dinner at Bleu.






We went at 6 pm, which was the earliest dinner begins seating (we wanted privacy). We had a blast tasting and experiencing everything.





We decided on the 5 course meal, which is always super fun!

Hy had:

1.Soup:Beef and Barley soup
2.Appetizer: Pan Seared Shrimp with Bayou vegetables
3.Salad: Mixed Greens with grapes, bleu cheese, and walnuts.
4.Entree: Salmon with a lemon cream sauce, herb polenta, and tender asparagus.



5.Dessert: Crepe Suzette with mango sauce


To die for right?!

I had

1.Soup: Potato and Leak
2.Appetizer: Duck confit served on a puff pastry with a plum coulis.
3.Salad: Mixed greens with crab, mango chutney, and avocado.
4.Entree: Peppercorn crusted beef fillet, garlic mashed potatoes, and a bed of greens.



5.Dessert: Lemon and honey souffle...drool.

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After dinner we took a relaxing stroll around downtown to Pioneer Square, until it started to pour!







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It was an entirely PERFECT day. I am so thankful for H and everything he has done in my life. I cant imagine anyone being a better husband or best friend.



Better run, he just made smoothies! (BOY AM I SPOILED OR WHAT?!)

There are no bunnies in this house...

Since the Johnson family currently consists of 3 members (Hyrum, myself, and puppy Lily) there is no real reason to have an Easter bunny celebration! So instead of plastic eggs stuffed with manifactured candy, we spent the day relaxing together!

Hy suprised me with flowers, lilies and irises!



Lily got a GIANT bone for her Easter present!



Work has been pretty busy getting ready for all of the Easter orders and trying to fill all of the extra whole sale orders! I spent some time on Saturday morning making Baccone Dolce...drool.



They consist of baked meringue, a banana in the center, surrounded by warm ganache, whipped cream on top, and chocolate filigree behind a glazed strawberry.



Last weekend...



and some of the lovely ladies I work with...



Spring has come and the most exciting thing for me is the blooming of my pear tree!



If we end up with even half as many pears as we had last year, it will be far too many!





Now I am off to bed, hoping that tomorrow gets here pretty quick. The family has been waiting for some news the last few days and we are all on pins and needles. Good luck to us.

The post where I feel like crap.

Hyrum and I have just been a handful of busy lately. Between his work, my work, and our mutual commute there just isn't enough time in the day!

Today I am sick and miserable. I cant breath, hear, swallow; I think you get the point.I stayed home from work and laid on the couch all day. It was entirely boring.


Last weekend Robin and I went to an old hotel for a wedding out in Hillsboro. It was lovely.






After the Christmas rush and the pace of the whole Holiday season, The last few months have felt really easy. Now that Easter is closing in (and thankfully Valentines day is over) we are picking up again. We are doing these fantastic 3D egg shaped cakes.

Beth has been up to her shoulder in cake batter constantly!



Now that it is full blown SPRING here, our little family has been venturing outside!
We are lucky to have so many hiking areas and fantastic little spots for a picnic.





I am really hoping we can get over to the International Test Rose Garden tomorrow and just hang out after work tomorrow!

And finally my favorite two photos of the week...