Portland Day 3: Exploring

Day 3 we decided to take advantage of Portland's excellent light rail system.  I wish we had something as extensive and convenient here in Utah.  There was a stop just a minute from our hotel and we just rode it right downtown.  Jane thought the train was pretty cool, but she was not crazy about when it stopped and started if she was not safely in her parent's lap.

Our first stop was Powell's Bookstore, the "largest independent new and used bookstore in the world,"  or what my co-worker referred to as "Mecca for bibliophiles."  It is quite dazzling to walk through, taking up several floors and I think almost a whole block of downtown Portland. 

 

Jane picked up a pop-up book about monsters eating silly things, and didn't put it down again.  Well, we did wrestle it out of her hands to pay for it, which she was not happy about.

 

After this we stopped at bakery to pick up some yummy baked goods for lunch, and afterward went back to our hotel for Jane's afternoon nap.  When she woke up, we were back on the train, headed downtown to the Lan Su Chinese Gardens.  Portland has tons of parks and gardens, and we had quite a few on our list that we wanted to try to visit.

We probably horsed around a little more than people should do in such a beautiful place.

We had dinner at a nearby Chinese restaurant and then took the train home to put Jane to bed.  It didn't seem like we did much, but we were pooped!

Portland Day 2: The Coast

We really wanted to drive out to see the Oregon coast and some of the cities along the coastline.  Day 2 was supposed to be the rainiest day while we were there, so we decided that since we would spend more time in the car than out of it, that we'd use that day to go to the coast.  I think it worked pretty well.

Our first stop was Cannon Beach, which was stunning and really, really windy.  And really cold.  The rain stopped right as we got there, so we were able to walk around for a few minutes before it came back.  But basically, we came, we saw, we ran back to the car.  After taking some beautiful photos!

Jane, for one, thought the chilling wind and rain was absolutely AWESOME, hilarious, the best thing ever.  She was super happy in all of our photos and even though she clung to us, still thought everything was great fun.  What a great person to have around!

She and I also talked beforehand and agreed that we should wear matching shirts that day.  Just kidding, it was a coincidence.  

Chilly!  Windy!

But happy!

After leaving Cannon Beach we headed north for Astoria.  All along the way we kept seeing markers for the Lewis and Clark trail and there was even a Lewis and Clark national park, but we didn't have time to see it.  Astoria is the oldest settlement on the West Coast, founded in 1811, so this year they are celebrating their 200th anniversary!  Astoria's other claim to fame is that it's where the Goonies was filmed... but we didn't go see that house, either.

One notable moment we did have in Astoria was when we drove up the steepest street I've ever driven up!  As I drove towards it I was like "Are you sure that's a street??  It looks more like a wall!"  Michael said yes and so I just sped up that thing but it was honestly terrifying.  I almost had a heart attack.  Fun!

We also went to the George Flavel House Museum, a beautiful Queen Anne Victorian home that was owned by an influential captain.  They had a children's room full of Victorian toys, where I think Jane had the most fun she'd had all day.  I know, it seems impossible after her awesome freezing-windy beach experience, but somehow it just got better!  She cried when we finally had to take her away because we were all starving.  

After getting some grub, we drove up to the Astoria Column, designed after Trajan's Column (right, Art History friends?) depicting historical scenes from the area.  It's also the highest point in Astoria and had some gorgeous views of the surrounding rivers and green countryside.

That's Washington behind me.

If you are crazy, you can run up to the top of the column, which Michael couldn't pass up.  I honestly thing he ran.  Maybe the first 2/3.  But if you do make it to the top without having a heart attack, you are rewarded with some of the most beautiful views around.  

Astoria

After this we made the trip back to Portland.  It would be nice to spend more time in this area some day and see all that it has to offer, but for us it was a great day trip!

Portland Day 1

I was really nervous to fly with Jane.  It was only a two hour flight, but I spent hours researching "how to take a baby on a plane" on the web.  I think it might be easier with a smaller baby who can't walk yet and will just sit in one place, but Jane seems to be in full toddler mode, walking and moving every moment.  I wasn't sure how she'd react to being stuffed into such a small space for two hours.

She also does NOT sleep in random places like some other toddlers you may see out there.  Jane will only fall asleep in her crib if the room is totally dark and silent, or in the car seat when the car is on the freeway.  Not in our arms or in the stroller... not on a plane, not on a train.  Not in a tree or by the sea.  She will not sleep just anywhere, she will not sleep at all, I swear!  So I knew I would need to keep her entertained for the whole flight.

Turns out everything went fine.  I made special toys that she had never seen before so she found those interesting, and was pretty happy to sit on Mom or Dad's lap most of the time.  She did slip down the floor occasionally to see what was in the diaper bag, but there's wasn't much room for maneuvering:

The most useful thing we brought was probably the ipod, which I had loaded up beforehand with baby einstein movies and her favorite: Tangled.  Jane LOVES Tangled and will sit quietly forever and watch it and giggle at that crazy horse.  I think Jane only cried for about five minutes on the whole flight, which isn't bad for two hours.  

I was also very impressed by the stunning view of Mount Hood as we passed it by.  Luckily we were sitting on the left side of the plane!

Our flight was in the morning, so we got to our hotel around midday and got settled in while Jane took a short nap.  We also went to a grocery store and got stocked up on some food for the week.  After an early dinner we headed out to Multnomah falls, which is a short drive out of Portland, an even shorter hike, and a lovely view.

This was what I watched as we went back down the trail.
Lots of stripes!

The biggest thing we noticed about Portland right away was how green everything is.  Beautiful!  Because of the spray from the falls, this area was even greener if that's possible.  Lush and mossy.

That was all we had time for our first day.  Jane did great even after the flight and seemed totally excited to be in a new place and seeing new things.  I think she's a traveler at heart!

Playing catch-up Part 2: the Tulip Festival

Michael and I took Jane to the local Tulip Festival a few weeks ago.

On our way there we saw big, dark rain clouds in the sky and I kept saying, "We'll get there before it rains," and "I'm sure it will be over quickly," and "We can make it, we can make it."

By the time we got there the rain was in full swing but we decided to go in anyway.  The plus side to that was that we practically had the whole place to ourselves.

After awhile the sun came out even though it was still a little bit rainy.

Jane just went with it.

After the first 20 minutes or so, the rain left and the sky cleared up - you couldn't see a cloud!  It was like it never happened.

Beautiful!

All in all a good day!

Playing catch-up Part 1: the Zoo

I realized that before I can post about the last couple of weeks, I have a few things to catch up on.

In April Jane and I went to the zoo with my sister and her kids.  It was a very nice day - a little cold, but sunny.  I had never been to the zoo here in Utah and obviously Jane's only animal experiences so far have mostly been watching her mom get too close to a llama.

So get ready for lots of pictures.

Jane was a doll

3/4 of my sister's cute kids

Jane looking at an elephant

Said elephant

Jane absolutely adores her aunt Jacque and
insisted on being held by her for most of the day.
Mommy had no problem with that (heheh).

Jane didn't want to ride by herself but she was
more than happy to sit on mommy's lap

Cute cousin Ella

Cute cousin Alex

When I saw the ostrich I knew we had to ride it.

I didn't even have to push the stroller up
this big hill!  Nephews are the best!

One of these things is not like the other...

And help going DOWN the hill...

Jacque said, "Hey, Bre, you should go get
reeeeeeeal close to that llama!"
Ha ha.

Awesome tigers

Jane thought they were cool, too.

Hey, we just rode one of you!

Giraffe

Jane watching said giraffe

No idea what these things were called,
but Jane sure liked them.

Enough to lick the glass.

Jane, quit it!

Jane we have to move on, now.  Jane?

Sup?

"Take a picture, it'll last.... oh."
He seemed to say.

What can I say, I like the aviary.

Jane was happy as a clam with Aunt Jacque.

Self portrait.

Beautiful Ella.

We went for a little train ride.
Jane was getting pretty tired by that point.

But her cousins were still going strong!

I think I have forgotten most of the anecdotal events of the day, which you may or may not take to be a good thing.  But all in all it was pretty fun. =)