Friday was Sean's and my Sixth Wedding Anniversary. I can't believe how fast and how slow those 6 years have gone. We haven't really celebrated our anniversaries in the past so this year we decided to go big to make up for that. And boy did we make up for it.
We dropped Brayden and Asher off with Brad at 3:30. They were going to spend the next 24 hours at Grandma and Grandpa's camping with their cousins! After getting primped and ready, Sean, Everett and I headed downtown. We ate the-best-dinner-I've-ever-had at
Ruth's Chris, recommended to us by a couple friends. After eating 2 days worth of calories (but it was SO worth it) we walked a few blocks to
Powell's Books. I could get lost in those aisles. It was amazing! After Sean pried me from there, we just wandered through Portland. We just pushed Everett in the stroller the entire time and he was a perfect gem. He never cried, went surprisingly long between feedings, and was a pure treasure the entire evening. I honestly think he added to the night by being there. He was just so sweet and adorable and happy.
We wandered through a parking garage with a super tall drinking fountain that made me feel like I was in primary all over again, an elevator that you had to take stairs to access, and a "private access" 6th floor that we explored so we could see the view. We talked about what it would be like to have to go down the creepy fire escape ladder only to find out that the bottom of the ladder was about 15 feet above the concrete. We found some cool places that we'd like to come back to (Glow in the dark
mini-golf anyone?) and really enjoyed the Portland scene that I've never truly experienced.
The next morning, we woke up at 9 which in and of itself was such a huge gift! (I only had to wake up once to nurse all night. Everett ROCKS!) We headed back into Portland to eat crepes at
Love via Crepes. We will DEFINITELY be going back there. We had crepes with ham, eggs, cheese and lettuce rolled up to be eaten like an ice cream cone. Then I had a crepe with bananas, oreos, and strawberry Tillamook ice cream. I don't remember what Sean's 2nd crepe was but regardless, this place was amazing. I can't wait to get back.
Right next door to Love via Crepes is this place called Pinky Jewelry. I think it's technically a costume jewelry shop but regardless, it was amazing. The walls and tables were lined with pink satin, then
thousands of pieces of jewelry. I got lost looking at so many unique pieces, and Sean even bought me a necklace and earrings! (Thanks Babe!)
After jewelry and crepes, we headed to
Pittock Mansion. This is a place that I've been wanting to go since I moved to Oregon 6 years ago. And I'm SO glad we finally made it there! We used the cultural pass from the library, which means we got in for free, and it was amazing. 23 rooms that you could walk through, a grand marble staircase, the original elevator from 1909 that we used (because we had the stroller), and phenomenal furniture and household goods dating almost a century old. If you are in the area and you've never been, you should go!
We still had a couple hours before we told Brad and Lorraine we'd be back for the kids so we headed to
Portland Saturday Market on the waterfront. Holy Smokes. This place was crazy. It is HUGE, with hundreds and hundreds of vendors, and thousands and thousands of people. It reminded me a lot of Pike Place Market but bigger. And crazier. But still super cool. We wandered around looked at tons of cool art, jewelry, clothes, and smelling (and eating!) good food.
At this point, we were spent. We were grateful that it was time to head back to Hillsboro, pick up our 2 older boys, and head home. So that's what we did. We missed the boys, but it was so nice to have 24 hours with just the three of us. I was amazed at how much we were able to fit in 24 hours and I'm so grateful that we were able to do as much as we did. I crossed several things of my "Things to do in Portland" list and most importantly, I got to spend 24 blissful hours with Sean! No work, no apartment managing, and no whining children!
