Playing Catch-up

We have fallen behind on our blogging, so this is my attempt to abbreviate the last few weeks and catch-up to the now.

My first weekend home, Jonas (my college roommate), Dohnele and Emma Parker came up from Sutherlin, OR to visit. We hoped to do some shopping with them and then go to the Portland Zoo, however the rain prevented us from making it to the Zoo. Instead, after shopping at IKEA, we went to Multnomah Falls in the rain....go figure. Even with the rain it was still a great time and very pretty. Afterwards we decided to check out Powell's Books downtown, which is a ginormous (yeah that is officially a word now) book store. This place was impressive! So large even after we all split up for an hour we did not cover the entire store! We were happy to have the Parkers and hope they will come visit again.

Jonas and Dohnele with their daughter Emma

The next weekend Kari and I made the drive south to visit my parents in Alturas. My brother Zeke came up from the valley as well, so the parents had a full house for the weekend, with all their boys back at once. It was very nice to see the family and visit with everyone, even though it was a short weekend trip.

Kari and I decided to explore a little this past week and take a hike. I picked a rather easy hike in the gorge that leads to a nice overview, however before we left I realized the storm moving in would obstruct the views. Instead, we went to a nearby state park called Molalla River and walked the trail system there. It was nice to get outside and we practically had the trails to ourselves. The trails mostly paralleled the Willamette and then the Molalla Rivers, where we saw some waterfowl and plenty of deer tracks. This park is supposed to be home to the Willamette Valley's largest blue heron rookery, so we will have to return when the birds are there. All in all, a nice easy walk through the woods and along the rivers.

I told her we were lost in the woods and this is what I got.