goodbye 08, hello 09

Being in Oregon means having a great time with family and friends. We have done many fun things that we said, oh, we will do that next year!, and have really enjoyed seeing more of our old friends and especially my siblings (it's the first time we've all lived in Portland since 1999!)

....in early October my sister Melissa, my dad, and my two favorite dogs in the world went on a spontaneous trip to the gorge. We saw beautiful waterfalls, ate a wonderful meal at none other than Burgerville, and got to play "Oregon tourist"... so fun!













...in October I visited my dear friend at the coast... it was so fun! Kari came and trick-or-treated with us, jan showed me her garden, and i got to help jan take and post pictures of her beautiful home!

Later in November we were able to come again and both Donovan and I said it was such a fun visit but someone we didn't realize we missed so much was Chloe the cat! We were so happy to visit with her again, she's our favorite!

Our friend Kari has been such a joy to be with. I have been able to share unemployment woes with her and spend some quality time with her. On this day we baked cupcakes together. Another day we went to Starbucks to chat and then on to Goodwill (with all the other grandmas in Tigard, lol).

We have had lots of crazy adventures with Steph and Scott too. We went to a Korean market, a Japanese restaurant (so good!), we go to church with them sometimes, we went on a breakfast date, we play Yahtzee and wii with them all the time, and we just generally like these guys, they are so fun!

In my moments of frustration with unemployment (of sorts) I have to remind myself that these are the reasons why I moved to Portland. Professionally it might be falling on a sword, but personally it is so rich and good. My sister Meliss tells me that in five years it will seem so much better because my network will be stronger and things will be moving forward... and I try to listen and believe her.

Since the snow has subsided, a record 18" in Portland!, and 2009 has begun we have continued to have fun with family and friends...

hanging out with the Pratt's is so fun! Kevin is so precious (Don's cousin), he has a crush on me! It was also fun to care for Kent, Don's uncle, because he had rotator cuff (spelling?) surgery and I played nurse for a little while...
















...on Alberta St with Steph, Scott, and Don... we saw Scott's fav wine shop, so cute! And they even sell my fav chocolates from Seattle!

...and then last weekend seeing Linds in Olympia. We had McMennamin's (so NW!), Caffe Vita (our Seattle favorite) and some bakery food (the BEST!). Yes, we chatted the whole day away and ate a lot of calories! Linds and I have plans to do more fun girls dates in the near future. Yea! That has to be one of the best parts about being in the NW!