Monday, February 20, 2012
Winter Camping
Justin and I had a snowshoeing/camping adventure on Saturday! You can read about it here. Thank you to Tiff and Jeremy for taking the boys overnight!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
eleven from '11
2011 was a long, crazy year and I think both Justin and I were ready to see it come to an end. With a challenging end to the year, it was easy to forget about all of the great things we had done. Looking back at the past twelve months we have tons to be thankful for. Since I haven't updated in about 7 months, here's a little catch up.
Some favorites, firsts, and fabulous accomplishments of 2011 (not really in order):
1. Experiencing our first official Portland "snow day"
I woke up to an exciting call from my boss at 6am saying that our school was closed. I believe every school within 20 miles was also closed. By 10am this is how much snow had accumulated behind our apartment. It was definitely exciting for a city that doesn't get snow!
2. Romp to Stomp & raising $1700 for breast cancer research
We had so much fun with our R2S team last year! Unfortunately, the annual event was moved from Mt. Hood to Mt. Bachelor for 2012. It's a much longer drive and we were unable to snowshoe the event this year. Maybe 'The Breast Intentions' will return in 2013!
3. Snow camping
Not only was this a bucket list item, it was a definite favorite of the year. For more details, see the earlier blog post here. With the help of a coworker, we were later able to get an amazing deal on a Mountain Hardwear 4 season tent so now we can head back out into the snow whenever we want!
4. Justin starting & nearly finishing a half sleeve
He had been dieing to start a Shepard Fairey sleeve and I finally gave in. The long process was expedited after the artist announced his plans for a multi-year backpacking trip to South America. Justin booked all the remaining sessions and they hammered out a ton of work in about 6 months.
5. Snowboarding on Mt. Hood
We finally took lessons to learn how to snowboard. I had slid down the old garbage heap in Grand Rapids a few times in high school, but that's about all I did. Lessons were super necessary. I can't say that I am any good at it yet, but I haven't given up and I think Justin is doing quite well. Robin and David got us season lift tickets for Christmas, so hopefully we will get lots of practice in this year! Thank you so much.
6. Season tickets for the Timbers
Luckily Justin had the foresight to get us season tickets to the Portland Timbers inaugural MLS season. I was a little overwhelmed by the schedule at first, but quickly adjusted to being a full time soccer supporter. Twenty or so home games were the best part a Portland summer. And this photo is now on the wall at the field, haha.
7. (Tammy) going 100% vegan in May and not looking back
Justin and I went vegetarian together many years ago and we each took our own path. Justin went vegan about a year later and I continued to eat dairy and eggs. Slowly I transitioned to eating only vegan at home, but would regularly have dairy when I was at a restaurant or with friends. In May, I decided enough was enough and cut cruelty completely out of my life. I am so happy with my decision and can easily say I have no intention of ever including animal products in my life again. This is the vegan mini mall that makes any herbivore's life better!
8. Lots of family visits, both in Portland and Michigan
We were fortunate to get in lots of visits this year! Robin and David came out to Portland several times. My parents and Ginny drove out at the beginning of the summer. Justin and I drove to Michigan in August. I flew home to celebrate the wonderful life of my grandmother who we sadly lost in October. And I returned again in December for some pre-holiday festivities! Then Justin's brother Brock came out to visit Portland for the first time since he helped us move here in 2009. We had some wonderful times with both family & friends and are very thankful for this! We miss you Gram.
9. Checking off another dozen plus hikes
I feel like we finally made some progress on our list of 'to do hikes.' Some of the hikes that we have been wanting to do since we moved to the Northwest were checked off. We finally backpacked Eagle Creek, the most popular trail in the gorge. We did overnights at Herman Creek, Salmon River, Lower Deschutes River, Clackamas River, and Angel Rest. And we did plenty of day hikes in the gorge and all over Mt. Hood! Great hikes and great times!
10. Building a garden box and growing food
One of the hardest parts of living in an apartment is that there is no room for gardening. I had been wanting to build a garden box in the small walkway behind our place and finally did it in the spring of 2011. It wasn't the most successful or fruitful experience, but I was pretty proud of myself and vow to do better in 2012!
11. Fur Free Friday
I was both excited and nervous about my first public protest. Being an animal lover, I never thought it was very cool to wear fur. But I think most people either choose to not think about how fur coats are made OR you lie to yourself saying it must be done in some humane way (like finding dead animals and just taking their fur or something ridiculous like that). I didn't know much about the fur trade, but I knew I didn't support it and I wanted to be a voice for animals. Well it turns out, it's a lot worse than I ever imagined and is so close to home. There are several major department stores downtown that sell fur. There is an entire fur store right in the middle of downtown Portland. There are also several fur farms only a couple hours from my home. Fur farms: where hundreds of beautiful animals are raised in extreme conditions and then skinned ALIVE, because fur separates from the body much easier when blood is still flowing through it. Disgusting and seriously disturbing that people support this.
Some favorites, firsts, and fabulous accomplishments of 2011 (not really in order):
1. Experiencing our first official Portland "snow day"
I woke up to an exciting call from my boss at 6am saying that our school was closed. I believe every school within 20 miles was also closed. By 10am this is how much snow had accumulated behind our apartment. It was definitely exciting for a city that doesn't get snow!
2. Romp to Stomp & raising $1700 for breast cancer research
We had so much fun with our R2S team last year! Unfortunately, the annual event was moved from Mt. Hood to Mt. Bachelor for 2012. It's a much longer drive and we were unable to snowshoe the event this year. Maybe 'The Breast Intentions' will return in 2013!
3. Snow camping
Not only was this a bucket list item, it was a definite favorite of the year. For more details, see the earlier blog post here. With the help of a coworker, we were later able to get an amazing deal on a Mountain Hardwear 4 season tent so now we can head back out into the snow whenever we want!
4. Justin starting & nearly finishing a half sleeve
He had been dieing to start a Shepard Fairey sleeve and I finally gave in. The long process was expedited after the artist announced his plans for a multi-year backpacking trip to South America. Justin booked all the remaining sessions and they hammered out a ton of work in about 6 months.
5. Snowboarding on Mt. Hood
We finally took lessons to learn how to snowboard. I had slid down the old garbage heap in Grand Rapids a few times in high school, but that's about all I did. Lessons were super necessary. I can't say that I am any good at it yet, but I haven't given up and I think Justin is doing quite well. Robin and David got us season lift tickets for Christmas, so hopefully we will get lots of practice in this year! Thank you so much.
6. Season tickets for the Timbers
Luckily Justin had the foresight to get us season tickets to the Portland Timbers inaugural MLS season. I was a little overwhelmed by the schedule at first, but quickly adjusted to being a full time soccer supporter. Twenty or so home games were the best part a Portland summer. And this photo is now on the wall at the field, haha.
7. (Tammy) going 100% vegan in May and not looking back
Justin and I went vegetarian together many years ago and we each took our own path. Justin went vegan about a year later and I continued to eat dairy and eggs. Slowly I transitioned to eating only vegan at home, but would regularly have dairy when I was at a restaurant or with friends. In May, I decided enough was enough and cut cruelty completely out of my life. I am so happy with my decision and can easily say I have no intention of ever including animal products in my life again. This is the vegan mini mall that makes any herbivore's life better!
8. Lots of family visits, both in Portland and Michigan
We were fortunate to get in lots of visits this year! Robin and David came out to Portland several times. My parents and Ginny drove out at the beginning of the summer. Justin and I drove to Michigan in August. I flew home to celebrate the wonderful life of my grandmother who we sadly lost in October. And I returned again in December for some pre-holiday festivities! Then Justin's brother Brock came out to visit Portland for the first time since he helped us move here in 2009. We had some wonderful times with both family & friends and are very thankful for this! We miss you Gram.
9. Checking off another dozen plus hikes
I feel like we finally made some progress on our list of 'to do hikes.' Some of the hikes that we have been wanting to do since we moved to the Northwest were checked off. We finally backpacked Eagle Creek, the most popular trail in the gorge. We did overnights at Herman Creek, Salmon River, Lower Deschutes River, Clackamas River, and Angel Rest. And we did plenty of day hikes in the gorge and all over Mt. Hood! Great hikes and great times!
10. Building a garden box and growing food
One of the hardest parts of living in an apartment is that there is no room for gardening. I had been wanting to build a garden box in the small walkway behind our place and finally did it in the spring of 2011. It wasn't the most successful or fruitful experience, but I was pretty proud of myself and vow to do better in 2012!
11. Fur Free Friday
I was both excited and nervous about my first public protest. Being an animal lover, I never thought it was very cool to wear fur. But I think most people either choose to not think about how fur coats are made OR you lie to yourself saying it must be done in some humane way (like finding dead animals and just taking their fur or something ridiculous like that). I didn't know much about the fur trade, but I knew I didn't support it and I wanted to be a voice for animals. Well it turns out, it's a lot worse than I ever imagined and is so close to home. There are several major department stores downtown that sell fur. There is an entire fur store right in the middle of downtown Portland. There are also several fur farms only a couple hours from my home. Fur farms: where hundreds of beautiful animals are raised in extreme conditions and then skinned ALIVE, because fur separates from the body much easier when blood is still flowing through it. Disgusting and seriously disturbing that people support this.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
KPW #5 - The Naked Bike Ride
On Saturday night, we watched as thousands of people participated in the annual naked bike ride through downtown Portland. The ride promotes the use of bicycles as a better mode of transportation, "less gas, more ass" as one man put it. It took about 20 minutes for the entire group to ride past our corner and it was a hilarious sight. The riders were of all types and really quite inspiring. Even though the idea of taking pictures was "gross" I had to get one for proof, haha!
Monday, May 2, 2011
MLS
A transformation has begun. Tammy and I are becoming hooligans. OK, not hooligans, but crazed soccer fanatics. We are of course season ticket holders for the Timbers, which turned out to be a brilliant move now that all of the home games are sold out (the entire season). But more than that... we are actually watching soccer on the tele! And not just the Timbers, we are watching every MLS game we can, and occasionally watching English Premier and La Liga (Barcelona!), but mostly MLS. It's just talk, but I keep bringing up Brazil 2014! This is definitely proof of a transformation from loving a team to loving a sport.
The Timbers Army @ the home opener on 4.14.11
The Timbers Army @ the home opener on 4.14.11Coyote Wall
We took a nice 7 mile day hike in the Columbia River Gorge. The area is known as Coyote Wall and the trail started with a steep climb (1700 ft. elevation gain), leveled off and descended into a nice loop. We took plenty of pictures along the way, check them out!
View from the wall
Tammy on the trail along the wall
Us with Mt. Hood in the background
A type of wild sunflower?
Wild flowers
More of the wall
It's steeper than it looks!Friday, March 25, 2011
Backpacking @ Lower Deschutes River
On Tuesday, we went backpacking at Lower Deschutes State Recreation Area. It's on Oregon's northern border east of the Cascades, so it was a nice escape from the rainy city. Justin and I, along with the dogs, hiked in about 3 miles and stayed the night. Tuesday's weather was a fabulous 55 degrees and sunny. But overnight the temps dropped significantly and even the boys were cuddling in our sleeping bags to stay warm. I definitely should have brought my warmer bag! We still had fun and are ready for our next trip!
we always find room for a bottle of wine :)
our campsite was right along the river
we always find room for a bottle of wine :)
our campsite was right along the river
Deschutes River
hiking out
it almost looks like a Bald Eagle
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Winter Camping
Justin and I like to think of ourselves as pretty "outdoorsy" people. We love being outside and regularly hike, camp, and backpack when the weather allows us to. A few weeks ago when we were at White River Sno-Park we spotted several backpackers enjoying tent time in the snow. We have read about winter camping in Backpacker magazine and have always wanted to try it. Unfortunately, the price of 4 season tents has always stopped us from attempting it. So when I found out that REI rents winter tents, it needed to happen!
We picked Trillium Lake on Mt. Hood as our destination (since it's practically impossible to get a reservation at the campground in the summer, why not enjoy it in the winter when it's closed to car campers?). We parked at Trillium Sno-park and snowshoed in three miles to the lake. I think we had the (frozen) lake to ourselves which is something few people can say. We set up camp along the south side and we attempted to make a small fire. It turned out to be pretty difficult as you can imagine, but we were somewhat successful. Our zero degree sleeping bags kept us toasty warm in the just above freezing temps and the tent did a decent job of keeping us dry. It was really a great trip and I think we will be doing it again, next time at a higher elevation. I was worried about bringing my Canon along in the cold, so I just brought our old camera which doesn't do so well anymore. Bare with the pictures for a look into the crazy winter camping!
A Frozen Trillium Lake
First flag picture. Love the Madness.
We picked Trillium Lake on Mt. Hood as our destination (since it's practically impossible to get a reservation at the campground in the summer, why not enjoy it in the winter when it's closed to car campers?). We parked at Trillium Sno-park and snowshoed in three miles to the lake. I think we had the (frozen) lake to ourselves which is something few people can say. We set up camp along the south side and we attempted to make a small fire. It turned out to be pretty difficult as you can imagine, but we were somewhat successful. Our zero degree sleeping bags kept us toasty warm in the just above freezing temps and the tent did a decent job of keeping us dry. It was really a great trip and I think we will be doing it again, next time at a higher elevation. I was worried about bringing my Canon along in the cold, so I just brought our old camera which doesn't do so well anymore. Bare with the pictures for a look into the crazy winter camping!
A Frozen Trillium Lake
First flag picture. Love the Madness.
R2S 2011
We had a great time with Romp to Stomp this year! Our team, "The Breast Intentions" had 15 members helping to stomp out breast cancer. Family and friends joined forces and we raised a total of $1780 taking second place for team fundraising! The Oregon event brought in about $24,000 for Susan G. Komen, which is pretty fantastic. Thank you to everyone who supported our team this year and last. We can't wait to do it again in 2012!
off we go!
We did a good job of staying together for the first mile or so.
Made it to the top of the hill!
Tiff, Jeremy, and Aiden
At the finish line!!!
off we go!
We did a good job of staying together for the first mile or so.
Made it to the top of the hill!
Tiff and I finishing the 5k!
Tiff, Jeremy, and Aiden
At the finish line!!!
Me and Vanessa
With Nicki and Suzanne!
With Tori the awesome volunteer we meet!
Most of The Breast Intentions!
Justin, Suzanne, Nicki, Jeremy, Tiff, Migdalia, me, Vanessa
Aiden, Luis, Wendy
Justin, Suzanne, Nicki, Jeremy, Tiff, Migdalia, me, Vanessa
Aiden, Luis, Wendy
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