Oregon

We returned to Colorado on Tuesday after spending a week in Portland. It was a great trip. Crystal and Jeremie were wonderful hosts. Even with three young children we managed to get out quite a bit. I went to Powell's Bookstore for the first time and discovered a place where I could possibly happily spend the rest of my life. The place takes up an entire city block. I only got to the sale shelves and still walked out with seven books for me and four for Bennett. I have never seen books on sale in a store like that. I didn't spend more than $6.95 for any of them (all new). Apparently books can be ordered online and shipping is free for orders over $50. They may be my new book source from now on.

Bernie and I took a side trip to Bend which is about three hours from Portland. We visited a couple of old friends from Great Falls which was fun. They just had a newborn baby boy five days before we got there. At 8 lbs, he seemed so tiny. I can't believe Bennett was half his size. Bennett had a HORRIBLE blow out on the way up which resulted in throwing away a onsie.

Bernie and Jeremie went fishing on the ocean for Father's Day. They caught a ton of fish, but Bernie was unfortunately very ill the entire time. He threw up about 20 times while on the boat. Bernie being Bernie claims he had fun despite all the retching. We were all in Lincoln City for the fishing trip and stayed in a hotel next to the ocean. It was beautiful, although a totally different beach experience than San Diego. It was very cool with hardly any people around. I think I prefer the less crowded beach even if there will be no suntanning. Bernie and I got to spend an our or so in the evening on the beach at sunset. It was beautiful and a moment I will never forget.

The rose garden was amazing. Emily had a great time running around taking pictures with my camera. She surprisingly got a few good ones.

We went to a winery on the day we left. We got a little tipsy in the middle of the afternoon. It would be great to return one day to see a few of the wineries, with a designated driver of course!

If you ever get a chance to eat fresh Mt. Hood strawberries, don't miss it. They are the most amazing strawberries I have ever eaten. I didn't know they could taste that good.

Seeing Emily and meeting Grant was fun. Emily is growing up so fast. She has a ton of energy and has a very cute personality. Grant is much more laid back and can entertain himself nicely. Hopefully Bennett learned something from him.

Bennett is doing well...nothing new to report on that front. He is enjoying his solids more and we are up to twice per day.

My mom's visit went well. We did some shopping and cooking, the normal things we do. We also went on the luxury home tour. We only got to see about six out of 27 houses, but the ones we saw were amazing. The most expensive was 6 million. I still enjoy getting out and seeing homes...especially those that cost millions of dollars.