Seattle

We had the amazing opportunity of going to Seattle Washington with Will and Allie this weekend.  The boys took their exam and we took off for Washington after that.  Will and Allie were so nice and drove us straight up to see the Seattle Temple even though we were staying in Puyallup.  They watched Porter while we were able to serve in the temple for a little bit. 

 

Allie's fabulous aunt and uncle let us stay with them while we were in the area for the weekend.  It was very nice and hopefully Porter wasn't too loud for them. 

 

Seattle day included: Argosy Harbor Cruise where we were able to see the Seattle skyline, see seals and sea lions, the giant boats unloading railway cars, and learn a lot about the city.  We ate at Ivar's, went to the Seattle Aquarium, and walked along the Waterfront Park.  We also had a great time going to Pike's Place and adding to the Gum Wall.  The city is crazy and fun and it was great having a weekend to relax and hang out after a hard exam.

 

We drove the scenic route home and got to set foot in Mt Rainier National Park which was really cool.  While it was too late to go up to Paradise, and too snowy, the drive was beautiful with tons of Evergreens, lakes, and even a few deer to enjoy.

 

It was a really fun weekend and Porter did great. I am so grateful that he is a good little traveler so that we can still enjoy the Great Northwest.  We also feel blessed to be where we are and to have made new friends like the Hanson's. We are thinking that there will have to be a 2025 Pharmacy Graduation Reunion Cruise, so that is something to look forward to.

General Conference

This was a neat General Conference.  I have always loved Conference, especially in October, and especially when my birthday falls on Conference weekend.  I thought the messages were amazing and I loved spending the two hour blocks with family as we listened to the prophet and apostles speak.  This time, with nice low voices, dim light, and quiet houses made it perfect cuddle and sleep time for Porter.  He was able to snuggle with different grandparents each session which was nice because then I could hear more of the talks too.  My Grandma Ada held Porter the entire 2 hours of the Sunday afternoon session and loved every minute of it. She was called a baby hog, but I was kind of glad that he wasn't being passed around to so many people too.  It is sad not being with JD during conference and my birthday since we have a lot of traditions around this time of year, but it has been good to be with family so much too.

Meeting the Greats

It was so fun getting to show my grandparents and Karen Mr. Porter.  He was his usual calm self as he got passed around to meet so many new people during this trip. I remember 5 of my great grandparents very clearly from when I was growing up.  I am sad that Porter will never know his Grandpa Bryant who passed away when I was about 8 weeks pregnant with Porter, JD's Speth grandparents also both passed away while we were dating, I had never been able to meet them.  How grateful I am for the ones who are still here though! It was fun surprising them in different ways as well.  Karen was over for a visit when we showed up.  We did a doorbell ditch number again for my Grandma Ann.  My Hewlett grandparents were invited for dinner not knowing that Porter and I were in town.  They are all so cute, kind, and wonderful people that I love so much.

The Gorge and Utah

We went to the Gorge with my Grandpa and Kathy today.  We saw the usual falls that we take people to and they loved it.  Erin took lots of pictures and I was able to stay with Porter while it was raining so it worked out perfect.  My grandpa took us to dinner in the Multnomah Falls Lodge.  I have never eaten there and we had seats with a perfect view of the falls.  We got to see huge falls because of all the rain we have had the past three days.
After the Gorge we went straight to the airport to be dropped off.  We got there with the perfect amount of time to get checked in, feed Porter, change his diaper, and then board.  Porter did great on the flight.  He spent most of the time sleeping on Erin.
My mom and sister picked us up at the airport and were so excited to see Porter.  After we got home-I was exhausted from driving in the Gorge and the airport, and packing etc, Sye came and picked me up to go an surprise his parents.  We put Porter in a basket and doorbell ditched.  JD's mom screamed when she realized the package on the doorstep was Porter.  It was a really fun surprise.  It is nice getting to show off this cute baby to family and I'm so excited to be able to play with my sisters for a whole week.

The blue and orange people are Erin and my Grandpa.  I took the picture from the bridge over this fall.

Cape Meares to Ecola

The sun came out today!!!!!  We had a great day driving the Coast Highway 101 from Tillamook up to Cannon Beach.  We started our day at Cape Meares lighthouse.  It was crazy to see all the debris left over from the storms that had come through with wind gusts over 60 mph at times.  After the lighthouse we drove to Cape Lookout and saw the waterfalls that only happen after a lot of rain.  The day followed a pattern of 45 minutes of sunshine following by 45 minutes of rain.  Being on the coast, you could see the storms rolling in, enough so that some storms you could see the blue sky behind them and know about how long they were going to last.  It was actually really pretty and we just learned to time our drive time by when it was raining and get out when it wasn't.  The storms were beautiful to watch roll in as well.  After Lookout, we went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory, Erin had a grilled cheese and I had a cheeseburger. Porter was tired enough that he slept on my crossed leg as I ate my food, it was pretty cute.  We had cheese samples, and then continued up the coast.  There was one point where I really needed to feed Porter so I pulled off at the top of a cliff above Nehalem Bay and we were able to watch a huge storm come in over us and the bay.  It was SO pretty.  We got some beautiful pictures of the storm and I was able to get the baby fed so that I could be comfortable again.  We moved up the coast to Cannon Beach, walked to Haystack Rock, and then went and enjoyed the view from Ecola before heading home.  I am so glad that Erin was able to see some sunshine and that Porter was so good for all the craziness we were doing.  We got back into town and got to spend more time with my grandpa.  I was so tired, Erin ended up watching Porter while I went to sleep that night.  It was sad to have it be the last nightly cuddle for them.  Porter loved cuddling with Erin.