Pho me? Why, thank you!

Wow, what a beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest!  I started my day with a jog down to the Tulalip Marina in Marysville, Washington.  It is a little over two miles from my sister’s farm so it was about a 4 mile run, and it was awesome.  The air was crisp and cool.  The sun peaked at me through the trees, and then I reached the bay.  It was GLORIOUS!  The mountains with their fresh snow caps in the background, the sun rippling across the water, the boats swaying with the gentle breeze, it was seriously like right out of a novel.

Down by the bay

I made it back to the farm and got a little work accomplished.  It is nice to be able to be here and still take care of my customers back home.  It would be so frustrating to be in the middle of a home purchase and your only contact for your transaction being like “see you in a week folks, hope it all goes well!”  Yeah, that would not be cool.  So I feel very blessed I have this ability and I am sure my customers appreciate it too.

We met my parents in Everett at a restaurant to eat some Pho.  Pho, pronounced “fuh”, is Vietnamese and is basically broth and noodles.  But it would be a shame to leave it at that because Pho is so much more.

I ordered the small Veggie Pho, and let me tell you, it was anything but small.  It could have fed me and one other person.

Here is me right before I ordered my Pho, excited fo-sho!

The broth is sweet and very hot, not spicy hot, temperature hot.  It is so hot that if you order it with meat they will throw thinly sliced uncooked meat in it right before they bring it out and by the time it reaches the table it is cooked.  So when you get it you have to wait a little before you can really start digging in.

Here is the family enjoying their Pho...

The noodles, made from rice, sit in the bottom of the bowl and you bring them to the surface with your chopsticks.  They present you with a beautiful plate of sprouts, basil, and lime wedges with your Pho, so that you can add it if you so desire. 

You can also add a squirt of Hoisin sauce which is a very sweet and similar to a plum sauce.  Every once in a while I would dip my chopsticks in the Hoisin sauce before going in for a bite of noodles.  I added very little of anything to my Pho and just enjoyed the perfectly cooked veggies and tofu, and slurped up the delicate broth.

The broth is really where it’s at.  It is the signature of the chef and is infused with their family traditions and is passed down and cultivated over time and generations.  I got to sneak in the kitchen of the restaurant and snap a few pictures of the reluctant cooks preparing the Pho and puff pastries that this particular restaurant serves in tandem. 

They are very proud of their little tasty treats as they are “Mom’s” recipe, and they serve them at the same time as the Pho.  And whew, soooo good!  They are filled with a vanilla custard and melt in your mouth.

We left full, full, full of Pho, and each one of us was a happy camper.

Here is Caleb checking out Grandpa's sweet ride.

After enjoying so much tasty Pho we needed a walk.  So we headed down to the Tulalip beach and caught some rays (they are rare in these parts).

Here is Tall Timber Farms the Baker family (my sister’s) homestead.

New Barn

The White House

New addition, the pond

Playing Catch with Uncle Shane



My sister Robin, so fashionable matching the flowers and all.

It is a beautiful place and I am blessed to be here.


Well folks, I don’t think they have a Pho restaurant in Joplin, Missouri, so all you “Joplers” will have to find it elsewhere.  But all you Seattleites, you need to try it now that you know what it is.

YUM!

Xoxo

Ronda

Thank you Lord!

Nervous energy kept me restless all night despite getting to sleep in one of the most comfortable beds on the planet.  This bed is a squishy soft California King at G&G Bowlin’s (Grandma and Grandpa’s house).  Caleb and I made the trek up to Kansas City yesterday evening and rolled into Grandma and Grandpa’s at about 9pm.  Sam’s grandparents live about 10 minutes from the Kansas City International Airport so they bless us by driving us to and from the airport whenever we take a trip.  I got to visit with Grandpa for a few minutes before heading off to bed.  We would have to get up early to catch our 6:35am departure, so getting a good night sleep was something I hoped for, but not what I got.

I set my alarm on my phone for 4:40am.  All night I tossed and turned, concerned that I my alarm wouldn’t go off.  Just general excitement and uneasiness, also Kael getting up so early on a regular basis has me trained to rise and shine in the wee hours of the morning.  We got to the airport a little after 5am.  Everything went smooth; I upgraded my seat for more leg room since Caleb was riding as a lap child.  Praise the Lord that the seat next to me became available and so Caleb and I each got to have a seat for just the charge of the upgrade $30.  Smokin deal!

Then came Denver.  Denver is gynormous.  I had to pull my carry-on, huff my backpack, sling my camera bag, and tote my toddler about mile from my arrival gate to my gate departing to Seattle.  Oh my goodness, I was one tired lady.  I got to the gate just as they were boarding for families with children under 4.  I am just going to say a very quick summary; I prayed for angels. I encountered some real stinkers along my way (namely an over dramatic flight attendant who had to put on a little show and make my trip memorable), but I met some angels too. 

I accidentally sat in 20A when I was supposed to sit in 20F.  So a sweet couple got stuck next to me and my squirmy toddler.  But if I would have set where I was supposed to sit I would have been sitting next to two people clearly travelling for work typing away madly on their laptops.  That would not have been easy with Caleb, who decided to pull his trump “I am two in two weeks” card out and wave it around like it was a winning lottery ticket.  Thank you Lord for the understanding couple, who didn’t give me one bad look, and who repeatedly offered their help when they saw me trying to "tame the two".

The other angel I met was a woman who offered to pull my roller bag.  Thank you Lord for roller bag lady, you promised me that you would never give me more then I could bare and you saw that I hit my lid.  Her gesture of kindness gave me a boost in spirits that let me handle my next batch of stinkers…the baggage people.

Caleb’s car seat, a much needed piece of travel equipment, did not make it past Denver.  I didn’t learn this until after I was told to go to this place, then that, back to first place, “oops, sorry”, ok, “now, go here”, around and around we went.  Now enters another angel the ‘fix everyone else’s mistake and apologize like it was my own’, United Airway lady.  She got us a car seat to borrow till they could bring ours to us and set us packin!  Thank you Lord for United Airway Lady.

Here is Seattle folks!



Traffic, not even rush hour.

Here is a picture my wonderful mother and me, taken by my wonderful father.

Here is a picture my dad took of Shane (my brother in law), Maddie (my niece), and Caleb.  He was teaching me some stuff about my camera… I have a lot to learn, but happy that I have a great teacher!

It has been a long day, so I must say bye for now.  We survived, and arrived alive! YAY!  Thank you Lord!

xoxo
Ronda