Which darling house to buy?!

I'm surprised I haven't been arrested or anything...
I cant help taking pictures of such adorable and incredible houses here in Coeur d'Alene!
We have NOTHING like these and I constantly walk down the streets pointing and saying...
"I'd buy that one! Oh! I'd buy that one too! And that one! Oh! Look at that one!"

Roger's Ice Cream Parlor

WOW!!! And boy did they look good!

Perfect ending to a wonderful day!

Steaming cup of tea, brisk walking and shopping till we dropped...all in 2 hours!

The Bakery

Yummy tea to get us going on a brisk morning of shopping!


I'm DYING to go in this Antique Shop downtown...Goal: a salt cellar!

This Antique Store is right next to the above one...is that HEAVEN or what?!
MIX IT UP! A very cheerful store with must-have items like the bamboo curtain, happy dishware, specialty candles, wonderful sayings on plaques, gardening tools and toys,
and much more!

My new silk skirt from The Lucky Monkey downtown...


My new silk dress that is soooo not my jean shorts and t-shirt!

My new lotus dress...

And my new earrings to go with everything!

All this (and more) in 2 hours thanks to Grandpa taking little Jillian and the other 4 kids taking a super-fun art and music class! What a glorious day!

Pampering to new heights...

Ready to be pampered with a Pedi outside overlooking the beautiful park?
Comes with a fleece blanket to cover up with in case you get too cold!

View from that chair!

Community Gardening

*Note: a portion of what each family grows is then donated to the local food shelter...how cool is that?!

Coffee shop and snapshots

Relaxed today and walked downtown. Checked to see if some of my favorite stores are still around...thankfully A LOT were!

Java On Sherman - Map

324 E Sherman Ave,

Coeur D Alene, ID 83814

Still a GREAT place to get a cup of Joe...or anything else for that matter! Huge cookies, pastries, bulk specialty coffees, teas, sandwiches, shakes...you name it- they've got it! Plus FREE WiFi!!!!!

So I sat there looking out the great expansive windows, peering into the streets and people watching...while sipping on some yummy Passion Ice Tea! It is in the heart of downtown, so stop on by when you come this way!
Here are some highlights of the day...

Garlic Turkey Burgers and Homemade Chunky Potato Salad...

Just to name a few of the entrees we feasted on for the 4th of July!

My sister made an artichoke hummus (so yummy) and one of those fancy veggies on skewers cut into shapes of stars and firepoppers, and for the finale- a delicious "Freedom Cake" complete with sparklers on top! (How she has time to do this with three little ones I'll never know)
Peek at first pic- the veggie 'flowers' are ont he table.




Sandcastles turned into mudpies....




















Swimming and hoops were popular...













Me and my incredible sister Erin












Sneak-attack of getting Mom in the picture too















the beautiful moon that came out that night
















The very yummy and gone-in-seconds 'Freedom Cake' my sister made













And this is Lex. No party or gathering of any kind is complete without Lex and his guitar. He makes everything seem so much better as he strums his guitar and sings along. He is the icing on any cake!

It was a wonderful day and our Hostess Melissa was just fabulous! Thank you Melissa!

Empty Airports and Very Old Trees....

Here I am! Back and in the Cd'A Library- a HUGE and beautiful building dedicated to all the readers here in town. It truly is breathtaking! Check it out! Cd'A Library

Speaking of empty airports, we flew into Spokane and it was like a ghost town...no one in site, all the stores closed up, food court seemed open but the custodian was mopping the floor and putting the chairs up on the tables....and it was only 4:30pm! Maybe because it was 4th of July?














Beautiful view outside the airport windows! That is (I think) a river...?












Thank goodness for these wonderful WiFi seats!
The kids had three hours to wait for the next plane and they played their games in their own area.










The ride from Spokane Airport to Coeur d'Alene is so pretty...and I love glimpsing at the surroundings, like this old bridge and the river underneath...











Have you ever been to a Cabela's? It is a hunting/fishing/boating/camping/etc. store that is just fun to shop in....BUT THIS STORE...is the HUGEST CABELA'S I've ever seen!
It is inbetween Spokane and Coeur d'Alene...you really cant miss it!
Post Falls, ID to be more exact...and you could easily spend the day in there! You GOTTA go check it out if you come this way!





Looking at some of the old downtown Spokane buildings....reminds me of Pittsburg. Love old brinck buildings and especially ones that are vacant with old peeling billboards painted on the sides of them.










Ancient churches with old-fashioned steeples are just my cup of tea!













Here is another great example....check out the stained glass right in the front...I'd love to see that from the inside!











Looks like we have arrived in Coeur d'Alene!!!

Let me get settled in and unpacked, grab some tea and Ill be back with great things to do around town!