Favorites around here

I met some new people tonight that are new to our area. They're friends of a friend and they came to Rosaruck. In conversation this evening we brought up several cool things in our area that I'd like to pass on. There are a lot of local treasures around here!


Alleluia Catholic Store!!
This is a really great Catholic Store. Every time I go here I can't help but spend at least an hour parousing everything. They always have new and exciting stuff! I just found out recently that they also have Catholic DVD rentals!! Woohoo!

Spotted Cow
We go to the one at Mill Creek Town Center. This is my favorite local spot for gelato and ice cream. They make their own gelato and ice cream and they come up with really creative flavors! All very good. They have some great sandwiches and other stuff too. They have local art on their walls, local wines, a variety of local merchandise on the bookcase at the entrance, a great coffee house feel, a kid friendly play area, host local musicians, free wifi, it's just a great place to hang out. Oh yeah and they have coffee (I've become a Mystic Monk coffee snob, so I haven't tried the Spotted Cow Coffees yet).

Nirvana Kebab and Curry
This place is a couple of blocks from where we live. Great indian and mediterranean food and absolutely wonderful customer service. We often have to order take out because we don't want Clare to start whining, squirming, screaming while we're in the restaurant, but when we get there we're seated at the special take out waiting couch and coffe table, given complimentary chai and very well taken care of. This guy is also a very experienced chef. The service at this restaurant is really great.

San Miguel Grill
17917 Bothell Everett Hwy, Bothell, WA
(425) 481-7870‎
There's no website for it. It's attached to a Mexican Store called "El Paso". It's got a really homey feel and has great food. It tastes like it was made with love by a relative who loves cooking! Good variety and better prices than the chain Mexican restaurants. And hey, who doesn't like a restaurant that has St. Michael as it's patron!?

Everything Tea
I'm a huge tea drinker so I was really excited to find this place! Not only is it in the very cute historic town of Snohomish, but it's loaded with hundreds of types of tea and tea accessories!! They scored points because they had my favorite type, "Monks Blend". A few other good teas I've tried are the creme caramel and Canadian Ice Wine Tea. Make sure to spend some time wandering around Snohomish. There are a ton of antique shops and a huge antique mall that's fun to poke around.

Country Village
This village has a lot of really cute shops, a small park like area with a stage, chickens that roam around, a children's train, and is just a neat place. One of my favorite shops is
Toys that Teach
The Whitehouse Antique and Candy Shoppe is also lots of fun. They have all the candies you loved when you were little but may have forgotten about.

Trader Joe's!
I know Trader Joe's isn't really local, but there's one around here and it's great. I love getting organic produce, good specialty foods and wines at low prices. It's just a great store to have around.

Aca Las Tortas
This place used to be a taco truck, but now it's inside a convenience store on 164th street across from Martha Lake park. Cheap, good, real Mexican.....I think.

Mayuri Indian Cuisine
Great Indian Food. Nicer dining atmosphere. Great Samosas and homemade mango ice cream!!

Thai Bistro
I don't know if this is locally owned or a chain, but they have great thai food, great service, elegant decor, and reasonable prices. This is the best thai food around here in my opinion.

Himitsu Teriyaki
20806 Bothell Everett Hwy, Bothell, WA
(425) 483-2152‎
Again, I don't know if this is locally owned. They have great sushi, teriyaki, etc. Really nice lady who runs the shop. Everything tastes fresh and it's fast.


That's all I have at the moment. I'm sure we'll add more as time goes on. Enjoy!

For those of you who aren't in the facebook world - A Clare update

She's getting good at standing and is probably going to be walking very soon.

She's trying out new facial expressions. I call this "stink face".

Doesn't it look like she's smelled something nasty?

She's getting more cuddly. She fell asleep on Daddy a few weekends ago while we were in Canada.

She's developing a naughty streak. You can see it in her eyes. Ha ha!

And some things haven't changed. She's still loud.

She likes being tickled and she has a lot of teeth!

She is giving "speeches" full of facial expressions and hand gestures. I have videos for proof of both of those statements, but they won't load onto blogger. I think I'll have to load them on to youtube and post them another time.

Happy Feast day of St. Teresa of Avila!

St. Teresa of Avila is the first female doctor of the Church, reformer of the Carmelites, and my mom's patron saint. Happy Birthday Mom! Here's the Second Reading from the Office of Readings today.


Reading - St Teresa of Avila

Let us always be mindful of Christ's love

If Christ Jesus dwells in a man as his friend and noble leader, that man can endure all things, for Christ helps and strengthens us and never abandons us. He is a true friend. And I clearly see that if we expect to please him and receive an abundance of his graces, God desires that these graces must come to us from the hands of Christ, through his most sacred humanity, in which God takes delight.

Many, many times I have perceived this through experience. The Lord has told it to me. I have definitely seen that we must enter by this gate if we wish his Sovereign Majesty to reveal to us great and hidden mysteries. A person should desire no other path, even if he is at the summit of contemplation; on this road he walks safely. All blessings come to us through our Lord. He will teach us, for in beholding his life we find that he is the best example.

What more do we desire from such a good friend at our side? Unlike our friends in the world, he will never abandon us when we are troubled or distressed. Blessed is the one who truly loves him and always keeps him near. Let us consider the glorious Saint Paul: it seems that no other name fell from his lips than that of Jesus, because the name of Jesus was fixed and embedded in his heart. Once I had come to understand this truth, I carefully considered the lives of some of the saints, the great contemplatives, and found that they took no other path: Francis, Anthony of Padua, Bernard, Catherine of Siena. A person must walk along this path in freedom, placing himself in God’s hands. If God should desire to raise us to the position of one who is an intimate and shares his secrets, we ought to accept this gladly.

Whenever we think of Christ we should recall the love that led him to bestow on us so many graces and favours, and also the great love God showed in giving us in Christ a pledge of his love; for love calls for love in return. Let us strive to keep this always before our eyes and to rouse ourselves to love him. For if at some time the Lord should grant us the grace of impressing his love on our hearts, all will become easy for us and we shall accomplish great things quickly and without effort.