Monday 11.28.11
Our bedroom is basically a few feet of plaster, and the rest is made up of windows. When there are bright mornings in Portland, the sun peeks through the blinds and warms the room before we wake. Then, there are days like today … The skies are gray and heavy. I’m not sure which I love more.
Happy Monday.
Posted in Monday Morning, Our Life, Photography
Yesterday, J and I ventured out in the beautiful west hills of Portland once again. Last time, we hit the arboretum & bird sanctuary, yesterday we went to Pittock Mansion and the rose gardens in Washington Park. Just like last weekend, this trip was about 10 minutes from our front door: which is mind-boggling that we live so close to these beautiful places!
A few from Pittock Mansion:
Even though it’s almost winter, Portland is still really lush & green. The moss makes everything look so enchanting. I love it! 
A view from the lawn at Pittock Mansion. You can see Mt. Hood from here, but it’s TEENY in this photo. It’s almost directly in the middle.
Here’s a better view of Mt. Hood. Look towards the very center. It might look like a cloud at first. Growing up in Indiana, being able to see a mountain from where you live is pretty crazy! 
A view of the city. Our apartment is just a little more to the left. We love this place!
I took a photo of this tree the very first time we ever came out to Portland. The leaves were green, as it was in May, but I still think it’s pretty awesome. 
And, some from the rose gardens:
He’ll always be a kid at heart, I’m sure! :)
The moss! 
Driving back down the hills, the trees were painted in beautiful light!
We’re still getting settled, but this week has been really great. Also, I think it’s important to point out that it wasn’t raining in our last two posts! So see, it’s not all-rain-all-the-time. When it’s sunny, it’s just even more beautiful! This week, we’re hoping to be done unpacking and start decorating for Christmas. I cannot believe it’s less than a month away! Eeeek!
Until next time …
J&R
I know we totally left you hanging when it came to day 4 of our road trip, and we promise we’ll share it soon. However, if we waited to share today’s adventure, chances are it would get lost in the ‘things-we-wish-we-would-have-blogged-about-but-now-it’s-been-too-long’ archive.
This morning, we woke up, made breakfast, then ventured out for a little exploration of our beautiful city. We are lucky enough to live in Northwest Portland, which is home to amazing shops and restaurants, but we’re also nestled right by the most amazing parts of the city. After hopping in the car and driving for 10 minutes, we arrived at the Hoyt Arboretum. It’s a beautiful park/preserve which is home to so many amazing native & transplanted trees/plants. We were able to feel the squishy bark of the redwoods, and man, the whole park smells like Christmas. After the park, we headed over to Skyline Restaurant and tore up some burgers, tots & shakes! Mmmm.
We took our cameras with us … because we vowed to be better at capturing these moments in our lives. Here are a few of our favorites from the day.
Cheers,
J&R
Can you see the teeny tiny mushroom J is pointing to? Look closely.
Images taken with Nikon D700 // Nikon 24mm f1.4
I know we still need to update the blog with day 4 of our road trip, but we wanted to stop in to let you know we arrived Thursday afternoon! It was the only sunny day this week, and with 60 degree temperatures, we got quite the welcome to the city. The truck arrived, we got everything into the apartment with the help of our amazing friends, Amy & Rob. Since then, we’ve made little shopping trips to Target & IKEA (going back again today), and we’re making a bit of progress.
We cannot wait to share more about our place … So far, we’re in love with it. As it turns out 600 sqft. is the perfect amount of room, and we are really happy with our decision to downsize. Until then, here’s a photo of the front of our building and another one from the park down the block:
Posted in iPhoneography, Our Life
Hellloooo! We are almost there! We’re currently in Boise, Idaho resting for the night. In trying to find a way to describe the sights we saw today … I was speechless. To sum it up in one word, ‘OHMYGOSH!’ … We started the morning out in Rock Springs, WY and drove through Salt Lake City, before arriving in Boise.
Today we saw some of the most beautiful views either of us have ever seen. As we weaved through the mountains, the thermometer in the in the car went from 16 degrees all the way up to 51 degrees. Even though we’ve been on the road for 3 days now, we’re still having fun. We are constantly amazing at the landscape we’re seeing, and the pets seem to be enjoying it as well.
Tomorrow morning, we’ll be waking up around 4 AM, hopping in the car, and driving the final leg to Portland. We are so excited, and if we’re being completely honest, we’re still in disbelief that we’ll be there tomorrow! Can’t wait to share the last photos from the road and shots of our new place.
Here are our favorite iPhone photos from the road today:
The sun on the rocks this morning was beautiful!
Devil’s Slide … One of the coolest formations I’ve ever seen!
Hey sports fans! You’re probably on the wrong site. Everyone else, welcome back! After a pretty great night’s sleep (in a queen sized bed with 2 dogs and a cat), we’re at it again. Today, the goal was to blast through Nebraska and most of Wyoming. Turns out, there’s no such thing as “blasting” through NE. WOW! it’s a wide, repetitive state. At least the repetition was beautiful, hilly farmland; a constant reminder of our friends and family in the Midwest.
As we rolled into the WY border, we noticed something a little… off. Snow! Not tons, but enough to get our attention and keep big, goofy smiles on our faces for a while. As we stopped for another doggy break, we noticed something else; accompanying the snow was a CRISP 25 degree temperature. It was 50 at our last stop. After a bladder empty and a gas fill up, we were ready to rock through more of Wyoming to our hotel in Rock Springs.
It was a long day of driving; around 12 hours. But, it was a really beautiful day and we got to see a pretty rad transition from midwest to mountain west. Here’s a recap of the day as seen from the road. Enjoy! I know we did.
Cheers,
Jim
So, we did it! Day 1 of our Indiana to Oregon road trip is done. After 11 hours of driving, we made it to Omaha, Nebraska at about 6:30 last night.
The trip itself was super easy. Surprisingly (and if you know our animals, you know how surprising this is), the animals were perfect! The dogs mostly slept and Bill (the cat) meandered back and fourth between his crate and the front seat. Our minds were seriously blown when we realized how amazing they were doing … I think it was our biggest worry before we left.
Last night, once we got to the hotel, we ordered pizza, drank some wine and watched a movie. We were asleep by 10 and up this morning at 6. I can tell you, being productive so early is nice!! :) We are hitting the road in just a few minutes and hope to get almost through Wyoming today! We have a few fun stops planned and will share the photos along the way!
Here are a few iphone shots from yesterday … It was raining most of the day, and it all sort of looked like Indiana, so we don’t have a ton to share. Once we’re settled in Portland, we’ll share the photos from our ‘big-kid’ camera! :)
Hope to check in later tonight! Until then, have an amazing day!!
We leave for Portland tomorrow … My heart is heavy, and these last few hours in Indiana are being treasured. As we start packing the Jeep, it’s starting to feel real. Our friend Amy told me the vomit feeling will go away once we really get on the road … then we’ll turn into giggling 10-year olds! We’re so excited to share this adventure with everyone!! If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to the blog (over there on the right side) … you’ll receive an email each time we update during the trip.
We’ll see you on the other side …
Photos taken with iPhone 4 :: Edited with Instagram
Happy Birthday to my baby sister, Haley, who is turning 13 years old today. It feels like just yesterday that I was anxiously waiting in the delivery room for her to arrive. Being 13 myself when she was born, I have a super vivid memory of the moment I found out she was a girl (even though I thought I knew all along).
Realizing my baby sister is becoming a teenager today at 4:17 pm is bittersweet. It’s likely that the next 5 years will bring experiences her way that will change her life forever … She’ll start and graduate from high school, have a boyfriend or two, start driving, get her first job, and who knows what else! Thinking about all of this leaves me with some advice for her:
Posted in Our Life, Photography
We’re in the homestretch … The truck is gone, projects are being wrapped up, and we’re within 72 hours of leaving! As of this morning, we were still waiting for our new license plate to show up in the mail. Thankfully, we got it today! That was the last little piece that was making me nervous before the drive.
Tonight, we have dinner with friends … Tomorrow is my sister’s birthday party at my dad’s … Sunday is my sister’s actual birthday and her party at my mom’s. Sunday evening is dinner with friends, and that’s it! When we wake up on Monday we’ll hit the road. WOOHOOO!! We’ll pop in on the blog a few more times before we leave, but until then, have a great weekend!!
