Oregon Part 2 and back in Ohio

I'm typing this while listening to Bach's Cello suite 1. I love classical music. The second half of my trip was very relaxing. Prior to going to Corvallis I went out to the pancake house with mi madre. I believe I ordered pecan pancakes. Boy was I in for a surprise. The portion I received was HUGE. I didn't even get through half of it before calling it quits. It's amazing how large the portions sizes are in restaurants today. Only in the fancy restaurants do you get normal or "small" portions.

Wednesday-Friday was spent at my in-laws. Wednesday afternoon my father-in-law and I ran stairs at Reser Stadium on Oregon State's campus. It was rough and I know I pushed myself too hard because I was sore for several days after! Wednesday I went with my two sisters-in-law to see Little Red Riding Hood. It wasn't amazing but I enjoyed it. Thursday I met up with my friend, Shadi, from school at my favorite Thai restaurant. Shadi is finishing her last year at OSU in dietetics so we talked a bit about school and internships. Talking about school really made me miss my undergrad and Corvallis in general.....sigh....

After lunch I went to check out a new grocery store that has opened while I've been in Ohio. Market of Choice reminds me of a smaller Whole Foods store. It has a lot of great foods that your normal grocery would not have, say for instance, Walmart. Of course it's pricey though.

Friday-Sunday I stayed with my dad and grandpa. It was weird to think that I haven't spent a night at my dad's (outside of babysitting Jocelyn while my dad and patty were out of town my sophomore year) since Christmas break my freshman year. It was nice just to visit and hang out. Saturday I hung out with grandpa while my dad was at dialysis. It's kind of sad because I can't really hold a conversation with my grandpa due to his Alzheimer's disease. I try talking to him to remind him of who he is to me (by constantly calling him grandpa and giving him a hug) and I share memories I have with him (going to Mexico over spring break in high school). I don't know if it makes a difference but I'd like to think it does. One thing that makes me look forward to returning to live with God is that after death we won't have any imperfections that we currently have on Earth. My dad will be able to walk, my grandpa will have his memory, and I won't have a physical disability that frequently causes pain and discomfort. We will all be perfect and happy. Until then we just have to keep doing our best to achieve that.

Back to Oregon...Saturday evening we met Patty for dinner at Fireworks restaurant. It's a local restaurant that serves organic and local products. They're known for really amazing pizzas. Sidenote: we arrived there right when they opened for dinner hence the empty restaurant.

After dinner we went out to Yogurt Extreme aka fro-yo. It's a self-serve frozen yogurt place that has all sorts of toppings (both healthy and unhealthy) that you can add.

I got back to my mom's Sunday afternoon. I came home to a giant goody-bag full of amazing make up:

If Dan's hobby is LEGO then mine is definitely makeup.

My trip back to Ohio started Monday morning and ended at 1am Tuesday morning. It was a long day. It began with a 30 min flight to Seattle on a mini plane where you actually walk outside to the plane. I got a blurry pic of it. On my first flight I spoke with a guy who goes to U of O about school.
After a 3 hour layover I traveled to Denver, CO. During this flight I spoke with the most interesting woman. She lives on the San Juan islands in Seattle. She lives such a basic and non-technologic life it amazes and inspires me. She has a cell phone and internet but she still has a VCR. She told me she gets by off of very little money. She's very into gardening and composting. She owns her own catering business and provides special dinners to rich families who live on the island. Her daughter lives further off the radar. She lives in a yurt without hot running water or a washer and dryer. How crazy is that?! Sometimes I really want to do that (minus the hot water and washer/dryer part). We would leave my current life move to a tiny town in Ireland. We would live without our amazing TV, PS3/blu ray player, and ipods. I'm not sure if we could get by without cell phones or internet. Life would be simple and I think I would appreciate the beauty of life on a whole different level. Sometimes it bugs me how people today, especially those my age, have lost appreciation for listening to classical music and reading books -- books that actually stimulate the mind and challenge it, ones that make you look at life differently, or make you analyze yourself. Someday I will do that.

Lately, I've been struggling internally with my internship. I've felt very discouraged and I don't feel as knowledgeable about things as I should. Due personal issues I've lost my motivation to study since being here. I know, however, that reminding myself this is just a phase will help me push through it. Through prayer, discipline, perseverance I can not only get through this but come out on top like I want to. Faith and doubt cannot coexist. I know it will get better.  

On a better note: Wednesday night I helped volunteer teaching a class on food safety and reading labels. I had so much fun. Here are a few pics from the night:

Have a good week!

Oregon Part 1: Prineville and Beaverton

After making into Portland late Thursday evening I quickly fell asleep and woke up way too early the next morning. I spent the first part of Friday taking naps to get adjusted to the time change but I think it took the next couple days for me to be on Oregon time.

Reunited with my car!

View of Mt. Hood

After picking my mom up from work we made the 3 hour journey to Central Oregon (Prineville) to visit our relatives. I had such a wonderful time! Not only did I get my hurrr did but I watched movies and shows with my aunt and uncle and I got to bake! For our big family dinner on Saturday I made 1/2 whole wheat rolls (technically I just started them) to go with spaghetti and a salad, and I also helped with some delicious desserts. Back up to Saturday morning, I went on a run with my aunt and uncle....it was so nice running on dry pavement, not having to watch my every step. Saturday afternoon I got my hair and brows done by my cousin, Pam. She did a great job!

Pam and me with my new hair and brows

Making rolls after my run

Making rolls got a little distracting with this cute face

Aunt Jennifer and marshmallow bark

YUM

Sunday night we watched the season finale of LOST. I miss that show so much! This was my second time watching it and I cried again. Watching the finale got me interested in re-watching the entire series...maybe after I'm done with House MD?

While heading back to Portland Monday afternoon my mom and I debated on how we would spend the following day together. We contemplated going to the beach but after the forecast of lots and lots of rain we started planning something else....our very own TWILIGHT tour.

Setting out on our adventure

Blurry pic of Scappose water tower

Today, after my morning run, we set out on our tour. First stop: Saint Helens, OR. Not only was it neat seeing some of the filming locations but I had never traveled to this town before.

Welcome to St. Helens

The Swan residence

The "Bloated Toad" restaurant

The "dress shop"

The "book store"

The following picture is for my friend, Anna:

Warren, Oregon

After viewing Bella's house, the restaurant, book store, and dress shop we set out to our next destination: Multnomah Falls.

picture would be better sans old man

I'm ashamed to admit that even though I've lived in Oregon practically my entire life I've never been there. It's kind of like living at the beach and not going. You take it for granted because it's always there. Multnomah Falls was AMAZING! Being there really made me appreciate Oregon's beauty. Picture looking up and seeing overcast, dark grey skies with rain. Picture walking past moss-covered wet rocks. I could smell the rain and the wet bark from the woods. I could feel the mist rising from the falls. It was perfect. It basically summed up what Oregon feels like. And I never realized until now how much I love it.

We also stopped by another waterfall:

Note: moss-covered rocks

Our original plan involved another stop at the Viewpoint Inn, the location of where prom was filmed (and also a place I looked at for my wedding reception) but we ran out of time. We quickly booked it back home to get ready for dinner at:

Chart House

This upscale restaurant serves primarily seafood and is situated on a hill that overlooks the entire city of Portland. Amazing views. We went for happy hour which allowed us to experience great-tasting food without the normally attached price.

Ahi fish tacos

Mom's clam chowder in a cute bowl

Mom and I with a view of Portland behind us

Mounds lava cake (took 30 minutes to make!)

After dinner, I met up with some of my high school friends at Starbucks. I hadn't seen these girls in over a year so there was much to catch up on. Since seeing them last, one friend had cute baby girl, another moved back to Oregon from California, and the third switched majors and is now preparing to graduate next year. Talking with them made me realize how far we have come from high school. We've each taken our own little road that had led us to where we are today. Oh, how time flies! 

Tomorrow my mom and I are finishing own Twilight tour. I am then heading down to Corvallis and Brownsville to visit the in-laws and my dad, step-mom, and step-sister. Plans for the next few days include running stairs, watching red riding hood, having lunch with a friend, playing mariokart, going on a hike/trail run, and more.... Expect a thorough recap in a few days.

Despite having an enjoyable time I am missing my husband more than ever! Thank goodness for cell phones because I would be so Dan-sick (get it, instead of homesick?) without them. Since I've been gone Dan has been fending for himself in our kitchen. Yesterday's dinner was hot dogs with sour cream. Not sure if that's going to be added to our favorite dinners list he he. He also sent me a pic of the snow Ohio received the day after I left. I will be glad when Spring officially arrives!

Back in the Pacific Northwest

Hello all. As of midnight I have been back in Portland. My flights went pretty well and all arrived on time. The only bad thing is that I'm really tired and I'm pretty sure my body is still on Ohio time. But oh how glad and excited I am to see my family and friends!

While there's been a tsunami warning for the pacific coast, I heard that it has snowed in Ohio! The weather is so crazy right now.

Back to the past couple weeks: I've been making an effort to cook more dinners at home and here are some of our eats:

BBQ pulled pork sandwiches via crockpot

Turkey burgers and baked fries

Her's pizza: veggie

His pizza: chicken, bacon, green onion, and tomato

Last week our couch arrived! It is so comfy and supportive. Dan and I both really enjoy having it. So far we have kept to our strict rules of no eating or drinking on the couch (including water). Here are some pics of it:

It fits in our home so nicely

Isn't it cute? We are very fortunate and thankful to be able to have this nice and new piece of furniture.

Last weekend we also had Jim, my father-in-law, visit us! It was great having him here. Unfortunately due to my cold we were unable to run a 5k that we registered for but we still had fun and ate lots lol. He was the first to test out our couch. I think it got pretty good reviews.

Last Saturday I went to my friend, Corissa's, bridal shower at our church. It reminded me of when I got married. It was so much fun! Each table was decorated in their wedding colors and had some sort of delicious dessert as the centerpiece. All of the desserts looked good! During the party all the guests put their names into a drawing to win each centerpiece. I really wanted our table's German chocolate cake. On second thought, it's probably for the best that I didn't win.

The future Mrs. Freeman and I

So far today I have slept. I have plans on making it down to Powell's book store before my mom and I head to Prineville this weekend to visit family. I'll try and  update as the week progresses but no guarantees. See many of you very soon!