Fish Camp according to Bryan's Awesome Waterproof Camera

Every year in Southern Oregon, the Pellissier Family does this thing called Fish Camp, where we raft down the river all day fishing and camping. It's like a family reunion with too many people to count =) Anyways, here are some pictures with Bryan's camera...

Bryan's beautiful Grandmother, Dianne

Once we float down the river, Bryan's grandpa picks us up and sends us back to the top of the river again. Do you see what the School Bus is called? =)

Goodbye, Portland!

Voodoo Doughnuts

We were told that Voodoo Doughnuts was a must see when we got to the city, but every time we would pass it there would be a long line all the way around the building to get in. Even at 8 am or 11 pm?! So Bryan and I decided that we would go on our last day, a Monday, thinking that Mondays have got to be slow.

We woke up early, got on our tandem, and biked to Voodoo. To our dismay the line was still way out the door [kind of like the lines you find at Disneyland]. So Bryan and I thought, "it's either now or never", so we stood in a 45 minute line.

I don't think we knew what we were getting into because as we got to the front ready to order our doughnuts, we realized the menu had hundreds of options.

Anxiously, I told the cash register man, "uh, uh, uh, can we just get a box of your favorite doughnuts?!" So as the man is boxing a dozen, Bryan realizes that there are 5 gallon buckets of day old doughnuts for only $5 [I think he was more excited about the bucket than the doughnuts].

Seventeen dollars later, we exit with a box and a bucket--both overflowing with doughnuts. We find a picnic table, choose our first doughnut, and bite in, only to remember that we don't really like doughnuts.

When I was little I LOVED doughnuts. Once I told my grandparents that doughnuts and Jesus were my two favorite things. We both haven't had them since we were young and with all the excitement of a 45 minute line and the rush of ordering, we forgot that.

We also forgot milk. Bad choice. And, we forgot that we biked there, so with the bucket on the handlebars and the box in my arms, we tandemed our way back to the car. Every time my knee would hit the bucket, a doughnut would pop into the air and onto the street. It must have been a sight to see =)

My face in pain from having no milk.

Don't worry, these doughnuts didn't go to waste. Later, Bryan's family made rolled pork loin with a doughnut stuffing [it was unbelievably good] and then a bread pudding with homemade ice cream on top =) Thank God, for them. We had no idea what to do with that many !

July 31st, 2011 Evening

Bryan had made surprise reservations for us at Portland City Grill. This place is jaw-dropping. You walk into this industrial skyscraper, take the elevator 30 floor up in this classy elevator, and when the doors open there is the sound of people enjoying good food, conversation, and a gorgeous view. Bryan had told them it was our anniversary so they sat us at their best table, which overlooked the river, mountain, and 180 degrees of city. They even decorated the table with confetti and rose petals. It was incredible!

Also, look at the food! We had Apple, Candied Hazelnuts, & Gorgonzola Salad...

Fennel, Thyme Roasted Vegetable Cannelloni with lemon pistachio pesto, mozzarella, and arugula salad...

Macadamia Nut Crusted Chicken Breast with vanilla infused passion fruit sauce, grilled greens, and sushi rice...

And dessert that had fresh berries and a pesto sauce on it that was sooooo delicious [who would have thought?]

But the best part was the view...

July 31st, 2011 Morning

We woke up to a beautiful sunday morning on the day of our anniversary. For our stay in Portland, we had been staying at Conner & Sarah's house [Bryan's cousin and his wife, who have the love of organic farming in their blood too]. Their house on two acres had a multitude of food growing in the backyard and the first night Bryan and I walked into their house, we both saw so much love there. You know when you walk into a house and you can tell there was a lot of beautiful memories had there? Well, this is the kinda place that Sarah and Conner have. Probably because this is the kind of people they are--so full of love and passion.

This is why it was such a blessing for Bryan and I to spend the first part of morning picking blueberries in their back yard and sitting down to a wonderful pancake breakfast with them. Talking about the love and struggles that come with wanting to be farmers.

Our day then turned to the Homestead Store in their downtown, where we bought a pasta maker and admired the bicycle powered grain grinder. Then had lunch at this bakery with a garden.

After, Bryan and I biked to a park overlooking the city and reflected on the past year. Before we got married we wrote down what we thought our needs and expectations were for marriage. Bryan happened to bring them along for us to look at [what a thoughtful man I married]. It was beautiful to see the foundation that we've made in the past year. Both of us working towards our dreams, finding a community of people who we love, and growing in our faith with God and each other. We prayed over the next year, sharing how excited we are that we've been given another year with so much ahead.

Powell's Book Store

When we first walked into Powell's, I was so overwhelmed that I just needed to sit in the cafe with a store map. This place is a whole city block with multiple stories and sells used books as well as new all in the same place. I heard that Powell's actually buys 3,000 used books a day. Crazy! You really do need a map to get around that place.

Bryan and I spent a large amount of time in the Sustainable Ag section. Ogling over books such as the Beekeeper's Bible.

Before leaving for this road trip, I was camping on church property with some of the high school kids. We sat in the tent telling weird stories about our childhood. Sarah, my friend, who is also one of the coolest high schoolers you'll ever meet, was saying when she was younger, she would check out this book on Gnomes to become an expert on them. She memorized the whole book and made an anthem to them. Childhood stories are the best!

Anyways, somehow between meditation and religion, I found the Gnome book. What are the chances?! I texted Sarah the picture asking, "Is this the book?!" And she was like, "Yes! How did you find it?!" Haha, it seemed like a pretty crazy coincidence considering I was in the biggest bookstore I've ever seen. Powell's has everything, people--even the Gnome Book.

Portland, OR

Portland was just too good to us. Perfect weather and wonderful to bike around with our tandem.

Here is a list of some of the things we did:

-Get lost in Powell's Book store [it's a whole city block]

-Swoon and droll over the Saturday's Farmer's Market

-Have dinner with our dear friend Nick and get to see where he's living

-Eat at way too many great places [great food, but we were starting to miss a good home cooked meal]

-An unnecessary purchase of a 5 gallon bucket of doughnuts at VooDoo Donuts

-Hang out in their beautiful parks

-Lust after some items in the Homestead store in Milwaukie and come out with a Pasta Maker!

Part of us wants to live there. The land is so cheap. It makes the dream of owning a farm so much more tangible. But, who knows how far we can stray from our families without being homesick. We would miss them too much. Plus, we know Portland was deceptively beautiful. The other half of the year is a cold rainy weather. Not sure this California girl can handle that weather. Ha!