Oregon Here We Come!

We decided to take a vacation this year right before Brandon headed back to school. We thought it would be fun to go see Mike and Sarah, hit the coast and visit the Dickens as well.

We rented a car so we had a little more room and because we didn't want to worry about breaking down. After we loaded the car we were really grateful we had a bigger car because it was packed to the brim.

Jack did pretty well on the drive, we made frequent stops to eat, stretch our legs and get some fresh air (read: diaper changes).

We made a stop at a random rest stop that was literally right off the freeway, there was a chain link fence between us and the freeway, Jack loved it! He was so excited to watch the cars racing by and the river was on the other side of us.

The night we arrived we stayed in and visited with family. When my brother came home he was all scruffy and scared the dickens right out of Jack.

The next day with made plans to meet Dickens, Adam and Gigi at the beach. We stopped first at Mo's for lunch and Uncle Mike made a new best friend by sharing his food. The beach was so nice and the weather was pretty good too. I love me some beach, feels a little bit like home. It was so much fun to see the Dickens and finally I met little Gigi!! She is just the cutest little thing, and did not want anything to do with the water. She has her mother's independence and does not hand out her smiles to just anyone, that didn't stop me from loving her little cuteness.

Jack absolutely loved the beach! We set him down on the sand and he immediately headed for the water, Brandon grabbed his arms and let him walk into the water and he wouldn't stop. The kid is crazy, the water was so cold, my feet were getting numb and he just kept going. He must be taking after his cousin, Topher took off into the water and before we knew it he was clear out having a good ol' time.

 {jellyfish}

We pulled him out of the water and let him run around on the sand, but he did less running and more double fisting the sand into his mouth.  It was a blast, but like all good things it had to come to an end. We wanted to get back for another visit before we left, but it didn't work out. We're all looking forward to the next time we can take a trip over there.

 {crunchy and delicious}

 {Topher digging a hole, and the beautiful beach}

After the beach we headed down the coast to Tillamook and to the cheese factory. They didn't have all the machines so all we saw were the big blocks being bagged. We headed downstairs so we could taste some cheese samples and get some ice cream. Jack got a little taste of ice cream and was not so excited when the ice cream ran out.

We spent some time with Topher while Mike and Sarah went out to dinner, hit up Ikea, OMSI, this great Hawaiian BBQ place, went to church, spent some time at Dickens house, saw a wounded falcon, Multanomah Falls and had just a great time on our trip.

 {falcon}

 {OMSI}

 {Gigi would rock back and forth when the "earthquake" shook}

 {robot connect four}

 {bath time!}

 {only in Portland}

 {Multanomah Falls}

 {stop on the way home, this kid is always hungry}

Thank you to Mike, Sarah and Topher for letting us stay with you even though our little stinker woke up screaming in the middle of the night, and to Mike for working early so you could spend more time with us. And thanks to Dickens for making time for us as well. It really was so wonderful to see all of you, we miss you all and hope to see you again soon.