Family Adventures in July 2021

Portland

In the beginning of July, we flew to Portland.

Don and I spent 10 days hanging out with Heidi, Jamie and our grandbaby.

Charlie couldn't have been more fun. 

5 months is a pretty perfect time to enjoy this little one! Good sleep schedule and no crawling!

Getting Out

Our time felt so different, than the time we spent together last winter. It was cold and none of us were vaccinated, then. We enjoyed those special 2.5 months in a family bubble, but activities were obviously restricted.

What a treat to be together this July. We were able to get out and enjoy the beautiful Oregon weather.  

We enjoyed a couple wineries, without sweating!

And we sampled craft beer in the city. Mostly we just enjoyed being together.

Travel

After our stay in Portland, we rented a car and headed south towards Sacramento. 

We meandered along the coast driving to California and back, staying at 9 epic hotels. We slept in a riverboat and in a few 100-year-old hotels. A couple vintage motels, balanced it all out!

Sacramento

In Sac, we stayed with Scott and Chali. The 4 of us enjoyed cooking and hanging out, just like we did during our last visit. But this time we had fewer restrictions. We got out and explored!

It felt like we'd gone to a tropical island, when we had drinks at Shangi-La.

Locke, California

I felt like we'd stepped back in time, when we wandered the small rural Chinese town of Locke, 30 miles south of Sacramento.

We spent a peaceful morning exploring the historic community, that has changed so little  since it began, in 1915.
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​James Motlow

We had a nice surprise before leaving Locke. We met the photographer of the book, Bitter Melon.

James Motlow lives in Locke. Chali and I each bought his book, which features his photographs from the 1970's. Such a special community.

Scenery

Don and I soaked up some stunning scenery, in both Oregon and California.

We appreciated it even more, after stopping to buy warmer clothes. Our Texas blood is too thin, for the cooler temps at the coast.

Eugene

On our trip back to Portland, we had a 2-night stop with my sister and family.

Jennifer and Kate served up some amazing meals. Aly, got us laughing with her "Cards Against Humanity" game.

A heatwave annoyed the locals, but Don and I loved it. We took off with  Jennifer and her pup, Charlie. Nice to get out hiking!


Mini Reunion
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Back in Portland we had a Sunday picnic, the day before we left town. 

Charlie got to meet her second cousin and all of Jenni and Kate's family. I got to do little more baby holding.

It was wonderful to spend a few hours visiting and feasting on a lovely day. A good ending to a good month!