Adventures in Portland

While we were in Oregon meeting our niece, Aubrey, we made plans to visit some of our other favorite people. It was a whirlwind but we had a fantastic time and I really do love the city of Portland. I haven't spent much time there before but after this weekend I'd like to make a point to do it more in the future.

We stayed at a super funky boutique hotel called the Inn @ Northrup Station.
The inn is located in an adorable area just outside downtown Portland right on the streetcar line.
It is surrounded by fantastic shops and restaurants.

Originally built in the 1970s, the hotel was rediscovered and transformed to reflect
Portland's funky character. Here's Stew enjoying our very eclectic (and bright!)
room. We enjoyed a yummy continental breakfast on Saturday morning, too.

One of my lifelong friends, Brooke, drove up from Silverton to hang out with us
for the evening. We took the streetcar downtown to explore and
ended up at a waterfront beer garden for drinks.

So many cool industrial bridges line the river in Portland.

Catching up and exploring the city.

Northwest Portland's "Restaurant Row" was just a block from our hotel,
so we wandered down the street until we found someplace to grab dinner
before hitting McMenamins for drinks.

Our friends Trevor and Ashley met us later on and it was super fun
to catch up with them, we don't see them nearly often enough.

Blondies.



Even though they were included with our package, we never had time to have our
engagement photos done before the wedding. Jamie Jones was nice enough
to meet us downtown to do a "newlywed" shoot and we had so much fun!

Another sneak peek by Jamie Jones Photography.
You can see more photos from our shoot on her web site.

I loved this hat so much that we went back and bought it after the photo shoot.
We also bought lots of t-shirts and sunglasses. I love the Portland Sunday Market!



On Sunday afternoon we went to Kells to watch the Seahawks game.
We won't discuss the game or the score, it will just make poor Stewie more depressed.
We did share a plate of Irish Nachos and Bangers & Mash which were super yummy. 

I love the funky decor at Kells.
There were dollar bills stuck to the ceiling by "Irish Magic."



On our way home we also met up with Russ and Patty for dinner at Henry's 12th Street Tavern. This place was awesome and the food was delicious, plus they have happy hour all day long. I'd definitely like to come back here the next time we visit.

We had a great weekend filled with family and friends, and even though we arrived home exhausted and unprepared for the week our trip to Oregon was a huge success and we had tons of fun. We hope that everyone else had a great weekend as well!

Meeting Baby Aubrey

This weekend we went to visit Nichole, Aaron, Sophia and Baby Aubrey at their house in Forest Grove, Oregon. It was our first opportunity to meet Aubrey and we were so excited! Aubrey Renee surprised us almost four weeks early on July 2, 2012 at 3:42 a.m. She was 6 pounds, 12 ounces, and 19.5 inches long. We weren't expecting Aubrey to arrive until a few weeks later, so it took Stew and I a little longer than we would have liked to make the trip down to Oregon to meet her. But once we saw that precious face we fell in love with her immediately and now I can't imagine this family's life without her! Four just seems like the perfect number to round things out and make everything complete.

We always have the best time when we visit my sister's family. They have this amazing bonus room upstairs with huge comfy couches and lots of room to play with the girls, watch football, and chit chat the hours away. We spent a day and a night catching up, playing with Sophia, and getting to know Aubrey. And of course Stew and Aaron watched a whole lot of college football. We are so in love with our nieces and we can't wait to see the whole family again very soon!



Stew playing in Sophia's tunnel.



Baby Aubrey... I could just sit like this with her for days!
She's such a good baby, she sleeps most of the time and only
fussed when she was hungry or needed a diaper change.
What a perfect child!



Sophia on Trigger, my little brother's childhood pony.



Reading books with Sophia. She LOVES being read to,
my mom says I was the exact same way.



Sweet Baby Aubrey.

As usual our visit seemed too short, and every time we see Sophia she has grown and changed so much. Nichole was pregnant with Sophia while we were in Europe, so while we were there we bought Sophia a handmade wooden clock from this amazing store in Italy that is exactly like Mister Geppetto's workshop. We chose an adorable hippopotamus clock, and since then we've also gotten Sophia lots of other hippo stuffed animals, toys and books. This time we got her some whistling hippo bath toys which she loved, and I adored watching her carry them around exclaiming, "HIPPO!"



But of course Aubrey needed a handmade wooden clock as well, so a few months ago we ordered one and after much deliberation chose an elephant for Aubrey's animal. We also brought her an adorable plush stuffed elephant from the Woodland Park Zoo to match Sophia's hippo. As someone with a younger sister, I know how important it is to make these things fair! We really love being able to shop for all the fun kid stuff that goes along with having nieces. And I really love seeing Stew with a baby in his arms... he's going to make a wonderful dad!

Inaugural Summer Old Man Games

Each event had to be completed while simultaneously drinking
a Coors Light. Hey, who put that Diet Dr. Pepper in there?!

When Gilligan and the other castaways were shipwrecked on an uncharted desert island they certainly didn't sit around moping and staring into the sunset. Instead, they spent their time fashioning a vast array of useful objects from bamboo and other local materials.

So while we were on Sucia Island over Labor Day weekend we certainly didn't want to waste any of the amazing opportunities the island and its resources presented to us. An empty box, a pen, a hatchet and a campfire conversation soon evolved into the inaugural Summer Old Man Games. (I did put in a request to have the name changed to the Old Person Games, but it was rejected by the committee). However, the girls and I were still allowed to participate in the Games, which included some fantastic events!  



Opening Ceremonies.

First Event: Hatchet Throw.

Second Event: Beer Can Rock Toss.
Part of this challenge was gathering your own rocks from the beach.

Third Event: Men's Broad Jump. 

Women's Broad Jump.

Fourth Event: Football Toss.

Fifth Event: Log Balance.

Sixth Event: Log Saw.

Each event had a first, second and third place winner, earning 5 million, 3 million, and 1 million points, respectively. (Why count points in millions? Because it's more fun that way). At the end of the day Stew earned a gold medal in the 2012 Summer Old Man Games, and I walked away with the silver. Great day for the Always! Justin is already dreaming up events for the Winter Old Man Games and we can't wait!

Labor Day Weekend on Sucia Island

For the first time since we met, Stew and I spent Labor Day Weekend somewhere other than Sunland. (Go ahead and take a moment to pick your jaw up off the floor). Yes, friends, this particular holiday did not include volleyball, beer pong, pasties, the sand bar, or drinking to excess (well maybe there was a little bit of that). Instead, we went back to Sucia Island in the San Juans with a few of Stew's buddies. The guys have been camping on Sucia since college and I've really come to love this amazing island. 

Sucia Island is only accessible by boat, and we arrived late Friday night just in time to set up camp. The weather was perfect except for a little wind, and we spent three glorious days hanging out, boating and crabbing, exploring the island, campfire cooking, reminiscing, and participating in the inaugural Summer Old Man Games (more on that later). We got home Monday afternoon feeling extremely well-rested and ready for fall. But I can't wait to go back to Sucia again in the near future. Every time I visit the San Juan Islands I fall in love with the Pacific Northwest all over again.

Awesome views from our campsite on the beach.

Beach exploring. I could literally walk on the beach all day long and never get bored.

The only place on the boat Stew likes to sit.

Yum, yum, get in my belly! Crab for dinner!

Justin, Jason and Stew enjoying an afternoon on the high seas.

The feast. Crab cooked in seawater and Coors Light.

More beach exploring.

Pretty views from the marina on the other side of the island.

Hanging out on the beach in the sun reading a magazine. Heaven.

Incredible sunsets, I just never got over the views.

Fun times at camp and an impressive campfire!

I love the little cove we camp in.

Another amazing sunset.

40% of our groomsmen... plus Stew.

Taking a break from the Old Man Games.

I was by myself with the guys until Sunday when Jessica and Cory arrived... so happy to see them!

Hiking around the island.

Marina on the other side of the island with lots of sail boats.

Family picture!

Climbing in the Chinaman Caves... I've never really done any climbing before and it was so cool!

Another breathtaking sunset for our last night on the island.

We hit a couple exciting detours on our way home. First up was a stop at the Alderwood Mall to pick up a brand new iPad! Our laptop broke about a year ago and we haven't been able to browse the Internet from our couch since then and we've really missed it! So far we're loving our new toy.

After the mall we stopped by Jesse and Katie's house to meet Baby Harper... what a precious little doll! She is a little blondie just like mom and dad, and I can't wait to see what other traits she will inherit as she grows up.

A final stop to pick up Thai food for dinner rounded out our fantastic weekend. We hope that everyone else had a wonderful holiday as well. Stay tuned for a post about the first annual Summer Old Man Games!