Our roadtrip down was great, but tiring. Instead of a straight 18+ hours, we split it up over a few days. We left Portland after Em's last day at preschool and headed down to Ashland, OR, which I immediately recognized as home to the famous Shakespeare Festival.
We arrived late that evening and awoke to a happy surprise dusting of snow the next morning. It was a nice send-off. I always loved the little bit of snow we got in Portland.
Before leaving town, we enjoyed a gigantic breakfast at a popular breakfast spot called Morning Glory.
We were surprised to see that the city is one of the few, if not only, cities in Oregon with a city-approved sales tax. It caught me off guard when I noticed it on the bill, but then I thought of it as a way to transition ourselves back to the state of sales tax.
Then we headed down to see Brent's family in Walnut Creek, CA.
We spent one night with his aunt and had a great time with his extended family there, including the 4th birthday of his cousin's son. Em LOVES superheroes and was enamored with the Captain America & Spider-Man who came to entertain the kiddos.
It was so fun to see Em interact with all her cousins (and one of their friends).
We then went to San Jose to visit our friends, Matt, Nicole and their son, who as sweet as sweet can be! Em had such a great time playing with him.
Check out their most amazing drinks fridge! Something for everyone, and it's like that ALL. THE. TIME!
They also showed us this amazing holiday light display in their neighborhood -- a Santa & his sleigh, which spanned half a dozen houses!
From San Jose we drove straight through to Los Angeles. I'm glad we broke up our roadtrip the way we did to catch up with friends and family, but man, oh man, are we sick of the inside of my car.
Em did great in the car, and at one point exclaimed, "What's that big red thing in the sky, behind the clouds?!"
We laughed and explained that she was admiring the sun. Between that and her complaining about how bright it is here in LA, it looks like that she was more acclimated to Portland than we thought.
It's nice to be back, though.
welcome home!!
ReplyDeleteLove that drink fridge! But since I have vowed to give up soda in the new year, I don't think I will be running out to get one. Em's comments about the sun crack me up. Glad the trip went well and hope you are enjoying being back in California!
ReplyDeleteAshland is so cute. My aunt lives down there and we really need to get down there for a visit.
ReplyDeleteALSO! WE MISS YOU GUYS ALREADY!