Roses and Watermelons

While I was in Oregon last month, Joe was able to take a weekend and come and visit. It was the first wonderfully sunny day that we've had all year (It was terribly rainy almost the whole month I was in Oregon). We spent Saturday morning visiting my Grandmother in the hospital. After that we went to downtown Portland to watch the Rose Parade and check out the Saturday market. The parade was wonderful! There was everything that should be at a parade--floats, marching bands, dancers from different cultures, street vendors, balloons, and excited children. It was the perfect start to summer!    

It's not a great parade without a Chinese dragon!

We got lunch at the Saturday market. It was warm and I wasn't in the mood for anything heavy or fried. Thank goodness for a fruit stand! You could pick to have slices of watermelon, honeydew, cantaloupe, mango, kiwi, or strawberries. I chose watermelon and mango and had the women drizzle lime juice on it. YUM! I have to say, I'd never had lime on my watermelon before, but I will make sure and have it agian for sure!

When all is said in done, we love Portland with all it's spunk and personality!

American Pride

We had a great 4th of July! I love this summertime holiday with all the BBQing and fireworks. This year I celebrated being American with Joe and his family.

We spent the day in Portland on the river. It was blazing hot and we thought we were going to melt. Now, I know I'm a California girl, and I like heat. But I hate humidity. Joe and I tried to stay in the shade so as to not pass out.

That's Mt. Hood through the lens. Doesn't that snow look refreshing? We had a great time walking along the marina. There were lots of fun shops, good ice cream, and of course, many fun boats to admire.

For dinner we spent time with his family at his Grandmother's condo that is right on the river. They have an amazing view!

I love the skyline in the background!

We had plenty of time to wait for the fireworks.

Isn't that an awesome balcony view? I don't think we could have had a better seat for the firework show!

After the show, we went back to his parents house for some more fireworks. I love the fireworks setting on my camera and what you can do with sparklers!

This is my favorite. Gotta love LOVE!

Joe decided that one sparkler just wasn't enough. So he set 10 off at once. Crazy boy!

Yes, someone is inside that blaze of sparks! Don't worry, no one was hurt!

We had a great holiday. I hope you did too. I am so grateful for this country.

We truly are blessed to be Americans.

ChinaTown Northwest Style

Portland is just a great city. The more I experience it, the more I love it. Portland's Chinatown makes for a nice outing and so a bunch of us headed up to see get some Asian culture into our afternoon. Of course, the day started out with a laugh. We met up at the stake center parking lot so we could all carpool. As we were chatting, the green VW Bug that we were leaning against started to move. Oh, yes. Morgan had forgot to put her e-brake on and left her Bug in neutral. An opportunity for a prank like that just can't be passed up, so we pushed the car to the opposite end of the parking lot and left it there for Morgan to find. Word is, that when she came out to get her car, she though that it had been stolen. Sad! She found it after a minute though and from that day decided to always put her car in park ;)

Chinatown was really neat. Unlike San Fransisco's, it is a bit small, and CLEAN. We got some great food and got to hear Jason order all our food in Mandarin.

Welcome to Chinatown.

Jackie & I

Here's a view of the sidewalk outside the Chinese gardens.

Jason and Jared

Me and Joe, totally cheesin'.

Here's us outside the Chinese gardens, we didn't go in--it was $9 and we didn't think it was that worth it. We took a pic outside it though ;)

Jared, Jackie and Joe look at souvenirs in the bookshop. Looks like Jared was a bit warm! Thanks goodness for Chinese fans!

I saw this store and had to take a pic. "Moshi moshi" means hello in Japanese and is what my roomie Patsy would say all the time when answering the phone. It was a windy day as you can see...flyaway bangs!

Of course, we had to stop at VooDoo Donuts, the shop known for having the craziest kinds of donuts you can find. Perhaps a maple bar topped with bacon strikes your fancy? No problem! We got one topped with Butterfinger pieces and it was so yummy!

We also walked through a craft fair and there were amazed by this one-handed musician. He could really play! It just goes to show, no matter what life deals you, you can do anything if you put your mind to it!

After such a long day, we were pretty wiped out. Todd grabbed my camera and had to snap this pic of Jackie and I as we were taking a break.

It was such a great day!

Sweets, Spunk, & Samaritans

A few weeks ago, some of the girls and I decided to take a little trip to Portland. It really is a gorgeous city full of spunk and culture. Upon arrival we found the cutest little cupcake shop. Although a bit pricy, they were worth the experience. It pretty much was the best cream cheese frosting I've ever tasted.

Amanda, Brittani, & I with our sweets.

Downtown Portland offers a lot of beautiful architecture. This is the synagogue from the Jewish neighborhood we walked through.
Britt & I pose before the this Catholic church. It had the cutest, peaceful little courtyard that really reminded me of my days in Spain.
Of course we had to head to the Downtown Mall while we were there. Here's Sarah enjoying a Brookstone massage. I got one too and it was by far the best massage by in inanimate object I've ever experienced. What a great way to relax after hours of walking!
Sadly, upon arriving back at are car, we were met with a little disappointment.

We tried to change the tire ourselves, and although we were giving it our best effort...

...thank goodness for everyday good Samaritans!