Our 2013 VACATION

This year is Barry and My TEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY! So we wanted to do something fun. It really isn't until the end of the year, but we are planning to have a new baby, and with my birthday, Natalie's birthday, Christmas, and Lauren's birthday and our anniversary all within a few weeks of each other, we decided to celebrate it now. (Aren't we wise?)

We have left the kids before and went places, but we always miss them and have more fun with them, so we decided to include them this time. (I know, weird). Of course to make it special, Barry and I would each get something we've been wanting for a long time to take with us......

Hehehehe. :)
I rather agonized over my decision. I wanted to get something nice, but not soo scary nice, that I was afraid to use it. I finally had Barry order me a Nikon 7100, with a sweet lens. Barry ended up ordering the wrong lens, so now I get two. :) Unfortunately, I didn't have the right one for our trip.

Barry got some NICE binoculars, and when I say nice, I mean they cost more than my camera and my len put together. They ARE certainly incredible to look through. :)(James is NOT holding them, Barry told him he may, when he is 21. :) He is holding his own pair)

We have many plans for both of our new presents, but we started out with going on VACATION!

We left for Oregon Wednesday afternoon and got as far as Baker City. We were happy to find a nice Best Western Hotel there to stay at. I can't say we did much in Baker City, mostly just watched a little Myth Busters and went to bed. In the morning, Barry went running and then we began our adventure to Portland.

 Okay, so these were taken from the car. We didn't hike up to the waterfall, because it was raining buckets, and we only had one umbrella. It was gorgeous though.

Portland was WET. Extremely WET. It was very much a rainforest. I have never been anyplace like it, and the roads were twisty turny crazy. I'm surprised we found anything.

We ate at Red Robin that night. I had never been there, but I screamed at Barry that he had to pull over somewhere so I could use the restroom. He pulled up in front of the restaurant. I ran in, barely made it. We felt a little obligated to stay. I must say I wasn't really impressed. All the stuff they put on their hamburgers is good, but the meat itself, sure isn't anything special. Definitely, not a favorite. 


Barry, against my recommendations and the Internet's, booked us a hotel right by the Japenese Gardens. (He didn't want to drive around Portland looking for them, which I really couldn't blame him)

but


Let me say this about our hotel.

 A hotel door KEY?!? I haven't seen one of those in 20 years.

Yeah, and the TV was a bit ancient. I was a bit scared of the place, but the kids were all smiles.


The next morning we went to the Portland Rose Test Garden, established 1917. It was beautiful! It had been raining a lot, so a lot of the roses were missing, but it was still beautiful. I would love to go on a clear sunny day. **I do have a disclaimer for my photos. I am only yet learning how to use all the focus points, and there was maybe one or two days of our whole trip that we saw ANY sun. Most of the time it was lightly raining on us, which was fine, but it didn't make for the best pictures......but alas I will keep trying. :)

It was a jungle of flowers and plants and trees. I have a close up, but I wanted you to see a bit of the jungle.

Love this color, I am a sucker for roses with orange in them.

                                                               James HAD to smell them all.

That tiny blob on the grass is a duck, and YES James did catch up to it. I just don't know how he knew what it was from so far away. Some sort of natural little boy instinct I guess.

blurry. Lauren splashed in every puddle and soaked her feet.

 Confession: Barry and I both fell asleep the night before, and Ellie stayed up watching countless episodes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. (Her new favorite show). So she may look a tad bit tired in some of the pictures. ;)

These were Ellie's favorite roses.

*Barry was constantly making fun of our funny looking hats, little did I care, they kept our ears warm, but I guess they do look a little silly in the pictures.

Next post: Portland Japanese Garden.