Cousinpalooza in Seattle

Melinda’s (my Dad’s cousin) son Andrew lives in Seattle. We had seen each other at weddings, but it had been many years since a proper catch up and our first as adults...with new little humans.

It was wonderful spending time with Andrew, his wife Kaity and their kiddos Henry and Olivia.

20 Questions...More Like 100

Andrew’s job has a coolness factor beyond almost everyone I know: Fire Captain. Curiosity kept Sarah and I rapid firing (pun intended) questions at Andrew. My most unexpected response was to “when do you feel most uncomfortable for your safety?” I was expecting a particular scenario involving fighting a fire, but it was when they respond to accidents on the highway. The real danger is the drivers on the road when they’re out of the truck.

Family Farm Recipes

Our grandmothers grew up on a dairy farm in Thorpe, Wisconsin. I’ve willingly become the unofficial generational pass down of recipes from their day on the farm via my grandmother, Busia. An interested Andrew and I cooked up some of the classics at Melinda's house for the family. I think we would have made our grandmothers proud!

Pictures have been altered to protect secret family recipes.

The Big Green Egg

I know two firemen; both own the Big Green Egg grill. When I meet my third, will that change?

Andrew and Kaity had us all over for an afternoon BBQ at their house in Snohomish, WA. While the older cousins played on the grill, the youngsters cooled off.

Party time!

It was a great treat to see Andrew and mash our families together.

Gnome sighting #1 of the trip at Andrew’s house. We love gnomes!