You should come visit. Just saying.

We will help you have the absolute BEST time of your life if you do. I mean, we will spend all the time we are not at work or school we can with you, you will get your own room, complete with air mattress. Never mind there isn't very much room for your luggage... And, we will take you on adventures!
My sister Lisa and her husband Evan came and visited in April, right after their finals were over. They drove up on Thursday, and stayed until Monday morning. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, the best we had all year, and we decided to take advantage of the sun. We went running, went to the beach, and Tillamook Cheese Factory, and then went to Silver Falls Park for a pickanick and a walk over, around, and behind some beautiful waterfalls. Here are some pictures of the weekend:

I belief Evan is trying to look like a mouse sampling some cheese or something. But this is Lisa and Evan in the cheese sampling line at Tillamook Cheese factory.

 Brad and I eating our ice cream cones. Seriously, you will not find better ice cream or waffle cones! So DELICIOUS.

I was just trying to do something fun with the picture to make it look kinda like it was from the fifties. But, anyway, Evan got bubblegum ice cream, which is why his face looks like that... 

 At Rockaway Beach. 

 Don't be scared! It's just Brad under that towel, doing his best to look creepy. He's pretty good, eh?

 Well, this should be obvious to everyone...

(It says Brad + Jenn = Awesome. None of that lovey-dovey stuff)

This is Even and Lisa. 

  Us looking fabulous. Isn't it pretty there???

 Brad showing off his... hamstrings? This is at our picnic at Silver Falls Park! It was pretty fun. We had pulled pork sammiches, pringles, and coleslaw, and pineapple, and gatorade/water. So yum. Then we went for a walk and saw these (look below).

 This is behind one of the waterfalls. How cool is that?

Another one. There are 10 total you can see, but we only got to see 3 or 4. You could literally spend all day out there.

Easter pictures

 Easter was fun this year. I got to help out the Easter bunny by getting up early to hide eggs around the house for Brad. I filled about a dozen plastic eggs with Sour Patch Kids jelly beans and a Dove milk chocolate egg. Oh, and the best part of the little egg treasure included a little note with either a something I love about Brad, or something we got to tell each other, or a favor of some kind. Like, one of the notes said I would make Brad lunch for a whole week. Lucky for me, he only needs a packed lunch once or twice a week. So, while it sounds like I'm nice, I'm really lazy. If I really loved him I would have promised dinner for a whole week. Poor Brad.

  

 

Brad's Easter basket. Yet another reason I am glad I don't have a Pinterest account. I'm sure I would feel so ashamed after seeing what other people did for their Easter baskets...

Tulips for the March of Dimes decorated our table through Easter. You pay $5 for a bouquet, and they give $2.50 to babies. I honestly wonder if that helped much more than buying postage for something, but, the flowers are pretty...

 Kimmy hiding behind a big bouquet of Spring flowers at Nedra's house for Easter dinner. 

 Here we are, holding our treats from Brad's mommy. Cookies, M&M's, Easter hot pad and towel set. So sweet!

Hoppy Easter.

Maybe we are sort of obsessed.

We kinda love tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, basil, and balsamic vinegar...
We had some friends over for dinner the other day, which was really fun. We made chicken and roasted veggies, and had some really yummy appetizers. At least, they were yummy to us. Unfortunately we forgot that not everyone loves tomatoes like we do.

This is Brad. See how excited he is for bruschetta??

After dinner we played a card game our friend Devin brought that was fast-paced and exciting called Strut. I kept thinking "slut" for some reason. I almost won it like 3 times, but in the end, "almost" doesn't count for a whole lot.

Like bruschetta, but not. I actually learned this cool trick from my brother Jeremy. It's quick, easy, and absolutely heavenly. It's a grape tomato, with a fresh basil leave and a ball of mozzarella cheese. 

This is our classic bruschetta. We can't get enough of this stuff!

Anyway, I do have to say, I'm super glad I haven't gotten into Pinterest yet. I get worked up bad enough putting on a mediocre casual dinner party without having the added stress of seeing all these amazing party ideas and foods. And suggestions on how to dress for a party. I'm happy to keep the expectations fairly low at this point.

The brother... March 23rd, and April 1st, and April 14th

Jeremy, or, as I affectionately call him, Jerome, is my little brother. We have spent some good times together these past several months since I moved back to the Northwest, which has been so fun. Most recently I visited him at his house on March 23rd because I was going to head out to Spokane with my friend Sarah to go to my friend Ashley's baby shower. Jerome let me come over, made me an incredible dinner (and taught me not only how to prepare prawns for cooking, but also that I never want to), and chatted with me for awhile. Then he came down the first weekend in April simply because I told him I make good pulled pork sandwiches. Next thing I know, he's at my door, ready for me to prove it. We also hung out and went up to Multnomah Falls that weekend, which is a must.
I mentioned in a previous post that when the sun comes out here, so does everyone else. Well, while this statement is true, the die-hard people of Portland don't let a little rain stop them from doing the things they want to do! We go out in the rain anyway! And no, we DON'T need an umbrella, thank you very much.
But, a poncho with a hood might be nice...

Multnomah Falls...

Here we are at the bottom of Multnomah Falls. It had been a rather pretty morning, but unfortunately, by the time we got out to the Falls, it was pretty much pouring rain. We sat in the car, looked at the rain, looked at each other, and knew we wouldn't go home without conquering that waterfall!

We thought this jacket was waterproof...

 

It's not. Also, at the top, there was a sign saying the trail was temporarily closed. You can see the extent of the damage just to the left of Brad. We weren't going to let a pansy sign or some flimsy caution tape prevent us from reaching our goal. Especially since we were so close, and had hiked the whole thing in the rain. We went under the caution tape. Sh! don't tell.

This is looking down from the top of the waterfall. 

And this is us acting scared because who knows? We may fall off the ledge.

I just really liked Jer's expression in this one.

Brad and I at the top of the world looking down on creation.

Jerome didn't seem too impressed with the pulled pork sandwiches, but that's ok. It wasn't as good the second time around, so I don't feel too bad.
Last weekend, as in on April 14th, Jerome summited Mt St Helens. Right. He went to the top of a mountain. By himself. He's crazy, but I'm proud of him.
He was able to spend the evening with us. He took us out to Thai food, and then we went home and watched a movie together. Can't wait for the next adventure!

St Chaz's Day

We have a couple friends (gasp!) who we met after we moved here. They have since moved to Rexburg, however, before they left we got together with them and another couple of friends to celebrate St Patrick's Day. Now, because we were also celebrating Chaz's birthday, we decided to combine the two. We went to a wings joint in Portland, and it actually turned out to be really good. The trick is, don't buy the wings with bones and skin on them. GROSS.

Can I just say, Brad's crooked grin just MAKES this picture. P.S. my mustache isn't real.

Kiss me, I'm kinda Irish. (not really, but I have English and Welsh in my blood)

This is us at the wings place.

St. Chaz is on the left, with his wife Veronica, then Devin and Mari-Michelle, then me!

We had a great time together, and after dinner went back to hang out for the rest of the evening. It's been so fun to make new friends. I had forgotten what it's like to move somewhere completely new. I'm really lucky to have friends and family in this area. Happy St Patty's/Chaz's Day!

Pittock Mansion, March 4th 2012

You know, a lot of people don't realize this, but one thing about weather in the PNW is that it rains fairly frequently. Especially from January through December, or so. Because of this interesting and little-known fact, when the sun comes out in Portland, so does EVERYONE else. Including Brad and I. On March 4th, we had our first day without rain in a long time, and I'm almost certain it was the first day there were no clouds in the sky this year. So, we decided to go for a little walk and explore our surroundings. We picked a beautiful trail that went through forest and alongside a creek, and ended up at the historic Pittock Mansion. I'd never been there before, and it was pretty spectacular. It was owned by some guy who owned a newspaper around these parts forever ago.
Ok, I felt a little lame for not having the basics on this house, so I just looked them up. It was built by Henry and Georgiana Pittock in 1909. Henry Pittock was the publisher of The Oregonian. Georgiana Pittock died in 1918, and Henry Pittock died in 1919.

This is me with the Mansion in the background. I know it's hard to see, cuz it's so small, but keep looking. You'll find it.

This is Brad and I overlooking the city of Portland. It was gorgeous.

This was the creek we walked alongside for the first part of the trail. I live here!

It was a wonderful afternoon. It was fun to spend it with the love of my life (Brad). We were able to talk and plan and just enjoy being together and holding hands. 

It's Great to be Eight! March 3rd

Such a grown-up!

Our little niece turned eight and decided to be baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She was beautiful, as was the program. Except the talk on baptism. That wasn't all that good. Probably because I gave it.

Just precious!

The fam before the baptism service.

This is Brad's mommy and his 4 sisters. We are missing Kara! Aren't they lovely? It made me miss my baby sisters. I look like a snobby giant, but hey, if the shoe fits! Also, I was standing on a hill. In heels.

How cute are these?? Cookie popsicles with her favorite color sprinkled all over!

Baptism is a symbol of a new beginning, starting fresh. So is Spring. How cool is it that the first blossoms of the new season began to burst on Ava's special day?

I'm very grateful to belong to the church and for the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. It offers hope and peace, and answers. I'm so proud of Ava taking this big step.