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.

Wet and Windy Sunday

The downpour continued into Sunday. We had a nice day at church and afterwards spend some time relaxing at home before venturing back into the wetness.  We took Erin to the International Rose Test Garden.  The poor roses had seen better days so much rain and wind had finished off most of the last blooms but some were hanging in there.  After the rose garden JD waited with Porter while Erin and I went to see the Pittock Mansion view. It was so windy there that there was a point were we had to stop walking and just stand still while the wind blew because it was blowing so hard.  It flipped Erin's umbrella inside out, and it was raining hard.  We saw the view, walked around the mansion, and walked on the Wild Wood Trail of Forest Park before getting in the car to go home.

My Grandpa Clarke and his wife drove into town and came over to meet Porter and have dinner.  We had Hawaiian haystacks and brownie sundaes.  It was a lot of fun watching my grandpa play with Porter.  I think it is neat that Porter still has 5 great grandparents around to enjoy.  With three people now here, I really hope the weather decides to cooperate a bit more.

Downtown Portland in the Rain

Day 2 was a very rainy day so JD was nice enough to attempt taking care of Porter while studying so that we could go downtown and explore Portland.

We were able to see and do a lot in 2 1/2 hours in Portland:

• Food Carts: The Grilled Cheese Grill has amazing sandwiches, I can't believe I have missed out on them all this time!  We always felt they were a little questionable for a pregnant lady to be eating from, but my goodness they were good!
• Powell's Book Store: Erin got her book monster t-shirt, journal, and saw lots of books housed in that awesome store
• Burnside walk-saw the China Town entrance, and the Burnside Bridge
• VooDoo Donuts-I don't like donuts so this was my first time being in the shop, it is a crazy place to say the least.  I got JD a Mango Tango donut and myself an apple cider.
• Saturday Farmer's Market-it was very small compared to the summer crowds and with the rain there were not very many people there
• Waterfront Park- it was so windy and rainy without the protection of the buildings that we only stayed there long enough to take a picture
• Pioneer Square-saw the courthouse and the square while we waiting for our train to take us back to Beaverton

We got home with enough time for me to feed a hungry baby and get ready for the Relief Society Broadcast.  It was a wet and fun day and the broadcast was great, I was thankful that we had the back row so that I could let Porter lay down during it. I also enjoyed going with Erin a lot.

Astoria to Seaside

Today we drove to a very wet and windy coast to see Astoria down to Seaside.  We went to the Astoria Column also drove around that cute town a little bit.  Astoria is full of old Victorian style homes that were built up a very steep mountain, it is cute and quirky.  We did a long distance shot of the Peter Iredale shipwreck in Fort Stevens State Park.  The wind was blowing so hard there that sand had almost completely covered the parking lot to the point it was hard to tell where the parking ended and the beach started.  We then went to Seaside.
The Seaside Aquarium was a lot of fun.  Erin gave me a sideways look when I bought by ticket and two cartons of real fish, head to tail, to feed the harbor seals they have there.  Each seal has a trick they do to get attention for food.  Some slap their belly, some look at you upside down, some bark, and others splash.  Erin got Regan the splasher and was soaked from feeding the seals.  Porter loved the dark lighting of the aquarium and had big wide eyes while we were looking at the fish, octopus, eels, and animals.  One fish I thought was pretty cool was the Tsunami Fish.  It was a black and white tang that made it's way all the way to Oregon in a boat from the Japan Tsunami.  The fish survived by eating the algae that grew in the bottom of the boat until the boat was found 2 years later.  There were five fish found, studies were done on four of them but the survivor is now housed in the Seaside Aquarium.
Our last stop on the coast was the Seaside Candyman for taffy and icecream.  It is a fun, random, place that plays the Candyman song from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory over and over again.
Porter was awesome, he slept a lot and didn't cry much.  It was a little hard with how wet it was to have a little baby despite how good he was.  I had just fed Porter in the back seat of the car and knew I needed to change his diaper when we were in Seaside.  I put the changing pad on my lap and had Erin ready with wipes, new diaper, and garbage sack while I tried to change a baby in the back seat of a car on my lap.  Unfortunately that was the exact time that Porter felt the need to pee, just as I was catching that and cleaning him up from that, Porter then had the need to poop, oozing poop and lots of it.  I don't know how many wipes I went through, and I have no idea how I was able to escape from that mess without getting poop on Porter or his clothes, me-besides my hands, or the car, but somehow I did it.  I feel like I deserve a Badge of Mommihood for such a feat because that whole fiasco was insane.
We got home and JD watched Porter while Erin and I went to the Portland Temple that evening.  It was a very busy but fun day and the temple was a great way to end it.

Erin Is Here!!!

Back in March Erin booked her tickets to come and visit in Oregon.  We thought this was a little crazy since at that time we knew I would have a 2 month old baby, but had not clue what that would entail in seeing Oregon.  The price was good and we figured it was worth the risk and worse case scenario we wouldn't see much but we would at least be able to hang out without the busyness of daily life-work, etc-taking up time.

I am so glad we went ahead with the plans, because now she is here and Porter is a fantastic baby, and we get to play for a few days.  It is already so nice having an extra pair of hands that want to hold and cuddle Porter-since that is one of his favorite things.  The only hiccup in our diabolical plan is that the biggest storm system since 2007 is rolling through our area so my fingers are crossed that she will at least be able to see a little bit of sunshine because as of right now it is not looking that promising.  Annoying, but that is Oregon for you.

The Gorge with the Hansens'

It was an 'off weekend' this week so we got to go on an adventure.  This time it was an adventure with the Hansens'.  They have lived in the Washington/Oregon area their whole life but had only ever seen Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge, which is crazy because there is so much more to see there.  To resolve this ridiculous situation we got together and went on our every other week adventure together.  We started at the Vista House, which was a new stop for both myself and JD.  It was a beautiful building on the ridge of the Gorge and had a spectacular view.  This will definitely become a regular stop from now on.  After Vista House we saw: Shepherds Dell Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Wakeena Falls, Multnomah Falls, and Horsetail Falls. Porter is pretty much a rock star during the adventures we have had so far.  He typically burrows down into our carrier and sleeps while we hike around not even making a peep; I usually even have to wake him up to feed him. We had lunch huddled under 4 umbrellas as a storm rolled through and it wasn't until we were just getting on 84 to go home that the huge forcasted storm released its fury on us.  I was glad that we had been able to do so much before the rain and that we were dry in our car and not hiking when that cloud rolled in.  It was a really fun and pretty day and the perfect way to spend an afternoon with friends.

Oregon Zoo

Allie and I had a great time taking Porter to the zoo for his first time, not that he will remember it, and let's be honest, it was really so I could get out of the house with my friend, but still....

The Oregon Zoo is part of Washington Park so all the animals are basically set in a big forest in the Northwest corner of Portland.  Occasionally indigenous creatures will make their way into the animals' areas and have to be removed, the most recent I can recollect would be a California Beaver making it's way into the river otter habitat via the river and the zoo keepers having to catch it and release it back into Forest Park.  The reason I go into this is that I usually am not a fan of zoos because I think they are kind of sad, and while not as neat as the San Diego Zoo, I feel like the animals are pretty happy and content in their natural habitats here in Oregon.
Highlights from this zoo trip include:

• The animals were awake and very active today.
• The breast feeding area was actually an Asian Elephant view area, that was unique watching a giant elephant walk past us as I fed Porter.
• Spending time with Allie, I'm glad that our husbands can do the whole school thing together so that we can be friends and do cool things like this.
• The otters, I am a sucker for both the river and sea otters at this zoo.  They are so cute and fun.
• Having a very content baby to walk around while I enjoyed all the animals.

After our adventure we went out to lunch and overall it was a very needed and appreciated day out.  I'm looking forward to doing Zoo Lights in December with the boys already.

Peninsula Garden

We finally made it to Peninsula Garden after church today.  I have wanted to go to this garden since we moved here and we always get side tracked or only go as far as the International Rose Test Garden.  Peninsula Park was created in 1913 and has over 9,000 traditional rose plantings of 60 varieties compared with the International Garden's 10,000 plantings and over 500 varieties.  It was fun going somewhere new and it is always nice when our new family has time to go out together.  Since it was on our way home, we did stop and see the International Garden, it was a little drizzly so JD got to carry and cover Porter so that he didn't get wet.  It will be sad when the roses are gone and we won't be able to enjoy them on our Sunday afternoons.

Temple Trip

With such factors as having a newborn, feeding, recovery, and the temple being closed for cleaning we haven't been able to go for over a month, until today.  We brought Porter with us and took turns doing initiatories and it felt so good to be back in the temple!  When I was done they asked if I would like to do more names, I had replied that I would like to but I had a baby waiting in the parking lot.  The worker looked at me funny and said well then I absolutely must go.  It wasn't until I was changing that I realized she could have taken it in a way that I had left my baby alone in a car to come to the temple, which would have explained the look I had received.  While JD was taking his turn I had fun feeding Porter in the driver's seat of the car and then walking around the temple grounds.  The Portland Temple is set in among a ton of trees and the grounds are beautiful and peaceful.  It was really fun taking more time to enjoy the grounds and watch all the brides and grooms coming out of the temple after getting married.  It was a really nice, peaceful, and happy morning.  I am so grateful for the blessings of the temple, the promises that are made there, and for my eternal family.

Beat the Heat

It has been HOT here in Portland.  Yesterday we got up to 97 degrees.  I know friends in Utah would say that is nothing, but it is something when most people don't even have air conditioning because it never gets that hot, and when it does it is for a day or two.  Problem is no one has air conditioning for that day or two and it can be miserable.  Yesterday Porter and I camped out in our apartment.  I blasted fans all morning and watched the thermometer closely to close the windows at the best time.  It worked pretty well and we were able to stay pretty comfortable, but today wasn't as hot and I was stir crazy and needed to get out of the house.  We drove down to Lake Oswego and walked around the temple grounds, there were landscapers planting the fall/winter gardens and the grounds were gorgeous.  After the temple we ran some errands to the distribution center, and enjoyed the air conditioned aisles of Target for a bit.  It was a welcome change of scenery and we ended up with a few clearance outfits for Porter that were $1.80.  This afternoon I was also able to work more on Porter's room, definitely learned my lesson to devote more time to getting that ready prior to baby next time around, to think I thought my time was limited when I was working full time. Nursery pictures to come soon....hopefully. ;)

 

Porter's Announcement

Porter's Family Tree

I had fun putting together Porter's Family Tree today.  It was also a very good opportunity to update our genealogy on familysearch.org.  Porter is now on there, I need to update my great great grandmother's information on my dad's side, and JD's family was not connected between his grandparents and great grandparents so now they are all linked together.  It is amazing how easy it is to do now and how quickly you can generate a pedigree chart or fan.  Fun afternoon activity and to think it all came because I have a tree themed nursery for Porter!