Worst Day of the Year Ride

This past weekend we went down to Portland with some friends for the Worst Day of the Year Ride.

We stayed at the condo, did a whole lot of nothing on Saturday with Uncle Ben. The Melickrells and Dylan and Grace joined us Saturday afternoon.

Sunday we donned our Tweeds as we transformed ourselves into the Hillman City TWEED DWEEBS. We looked HOT. We lost Best Costume to a group with tin foil on their heads. We were robbed.

The weather was perfect, sunny and warm-ish. Portland is a delightful city to ride around. Few hills and very well marked routes. We saw new parts of the city and somehow arrived at our favorite neighborhood around Alberta. Laramie and Grace even managed to purchase earrings at Donna & Toots mid-ride.

The weekend concluded with some hot-tubbing, pizza and a cherry red Vespa with a sidecar.



Thanks for the memories.

I don't know why I find this so funny

and now me, laughing.

Breakfast Bars

I have made these breakfast bars a few times now and they are DELICIOUS. Everyone says so. They are super easy and will last a week if you are lucky. My bet is they will be long eaten by Friday. But they are great to make on a Sunday afternoon, nibble on the crumbs while they are cooling and then you have a fast and easy homemade breakfast option on those mornings when you have hit the snooze button 2 or three times already (who me?)

Now, the best part of this recipe is that you can make substitutions to suit your own nut/seed love. I replace the cranberries with dates. Instead of unsalted peanuts, I like to add salted for a bit more sweet/salty effect. I usually add an additional cup of nuts. I use whatever seeds and nuts I have in the cupboard. Spices can be added too. I have used ground ginger.

Here is the recipe:

Breakfast Bars
by Nigella Lawson

1 14-fl-oz can condensed milk
2 1/2 cups rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame)
1 cup natural unsalted peanuts

1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and oil a 9- x 13-inch baking pan or just use a disposable aluminum foil one.

2. Warm the condensed milk in a large pan.

3. Meanwhile, mix all the other ingredients together and add the warmed condensed milk, using a rubber spatula to fold and distribute.

4. Spread the mixture into the oiled or foil pan and press down with a spatula or, better still, your hands (wearing those disposable latex CSI gloves to stop you from sticking) to make the surface even.

5. Bake for 1 hour, remove, and after about 15 minutes, cut into four across and four down, to make 16 chunky bars. Let cool completely.

Makes 16

Excerpted from Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson. Copyright (c) 2007 Nigella Lawson. Published in the U.S. by Hyperion. All Rights Reserved. Available wherever books are sold.

Ride Report: 1-24-09 Seattle Aquarium

One thing I aspire to is to be able to go on rides with visitors. We are mostly there.

This weekend, Laramie's 2 sisters Katy and Rachel, our brother-in-law Jake and nephews Jasper and Quinn Tucker are visiting. Jake is equally obsessed with bikes and so Saturday morning we set off on a bike adventure to the Seattle Aquarium. It was cold. Very cold. We bundled up and started pedaling.



So far I have only ridden with Windham and Harper on the back of the Xtracycle. Harper weighs a mere 26lbs and little big man is right behind her at 23lbs. 50lbs is totally doable. Saturday was a new test. I rode Jasper and Harper. Jasper is probably 40+lbs and he is a wiggler. The weight wasn't bad. Harper rode in the Peapod and Jasper on the back seat I made. This will last for awhile, but I am alreay thinking about the next best set-up. The Fat Franks (tires) made the ride pretty smooth - until Jasper started wiggling. And there was the challenge. We did fine. We just had to keep reminding him to sit still. This is very difficult for a 4 year old, I understand. Jasper was a real sport. Both kids had a great time riding on the bike.




Harper loves the Aquarium. The Seattle Aquarium is small yet the perfect size for a toddler. 1-2 hours is all it takes to see and experience everything. And there is always a new discovery:
2-headed Octopus



Mermaid



and on the street, Evidence of Pirates


There were the usual Harper tears at having to get on the bike to go home. Bad mommy forgot a pacifier which calms her down when she is exhausted. Poor Jasper's cheeks were purple with cold. But by the time we hit the tunnel, Harper and Jasper were singing "Ba-rack O-bama" at the top of their lungs.