Finally, a vacation!

And no pictures to show for it! Tim and I were able to get one last vacation in before Evie comes. Unfortunately, we totally forgot our camera, so a wordy recap will have to do. We started out by going to New Mexico to visit my sister and family. For those of you who don't know, April lives in a small, po-dunk town (no offense!) about an hour west of Albuquerque. The best and worst part of going to visit is that you don't have to get all wrapped up into figuring out what to do because there isn't much to do! We started off with a trip to the lake so that Tim could try wakesurfing on Kory's surfboard. Tim did pretty good but wasn't able to let go of the tow rope while Kory seemed like a pro even though he had a hard time surfing in the ocean. Tim said it was hard because the "waves" created by the boat push you back rather than forward like the waves in the ocean. For the next few days we pretty much hung around Grants and did a little shopping. i loved hanging out with my nieces, they are so much fun and I think Tim is definitely more excited to have a little girl now. At least we got a run to Sonic drivethrough in! After 4 days in New Mexico, we flew to Portland to visit Tim's bestfriend Richard and his family. Tim goes to Portland about 2-3 times a year but this was my very first trip up there. Portland is gorgeous and we did A LOT while we were there. Our first day we drove the Columbia River gorge and stopped off at Multnomah Falls (the 2nd tallest water fall in the U.S.) I really wanted to hike to the top of the falls, but Tim was worried that I wouldn't make it all the way up and back down without the need for him to carry me. He as such little faith in my abilities while pregnant! After stopping off at the falls, we drove up to the top of Mount Hood and stopped off at the Timberline Lodge. Portions of the drive and the exterior of the lodge were filmed for the original The Shining movie with Jack Nicholson. If it hadn't started raining, the view would have been spectacular! After returning back to town we met up with Richard and Rachel for dinner at a cool little farmhouse restaurant. Our second day we toured downtown Portland including the Pittock mansion and the gorgeous rose gardens. I tagged along with Tim and Richard to the Department of Skateboarding (an indoor skatepark) to watch the two old guys skate. I have to admit that they are REALLY good! While I was watching, a few teenage kids seemed rather impressed with Tim and Richard too and kept asking me questions about how long they had been skating, etc. The next day we drove to Canon and Seaside beaches. I think Canon beach is one of the most recognized beaches because of how much it gets photographed. The towns were rather quaint and cute, but since we live at the beach I guess I wasn't super excited about seeing another beach! We had fresh salt water taffy and the best fish and chips. Of course, each town had their own skatepark so Tim busted out his skateboard and few moves to impress the locals. In Portland, all the skateparks (except the indoor ones) are part of the parks and recreation department, so they are all free and open all the time. I ended up heading home two days earlier than Tim because our Primary Program was on that Sunday, so my last day we headed to one of Tim's favorite restaurants for his favorite sandwich, the 3 Cheese Meltdown. Its a grilled cheese sandwich with cheddar, swiss, and pepper jack cheeses with jalapenos and salsa. I had mine plain to avoid heartburn later, but it was delicious! Tim spent his last two days doing nothing but skateboarding, so I'm sure he was a little glad to send me home early! It was so nice to not be stressed about work and really be able to relax for a whole 9 days!