Portland Day #4

Today was our last day in Portland. We didn't have much of a game plan but knew we wanted to see Mt. Hood.  The drive up was so pretty!  Greenery everywhere, crisp blue sky and a snow-capped mountain in the distance!

We stumbled onto this SkiBowl Adventure Park in Government Camp.

Matt and the girls bought wristbands to do all of the activities.  They started with a few trips down the Alpine Slide.

 They said the chair lift ride was really pretty and the carts went quite fast if you let them.

 The girls tried the tube hill,

 the trampolines,

 the aqua rollers 

 and the batting cages for a fun morning!

 It was getting hot and we were getting hungry so we had lunch at Mt. Hood Brewing Co.  before heading down the other side of the mountain into Hood River.

 We stopped for coffee and to check out the waterfront. What a cool spot to beach around or do water activities!

 Our last stops were along the Columbia River to see a few more waterfalls.  This one was called Horsetail Falls and you could actually just walk up and swim under it!

Vista House is a great lookout spot to see the breathtaking scenery along the river gorge.  

 The land to the left is Washington and on the right is Oregon.

Portland Day #3

Another 8:00am game this morning at Lakeridge HS.   They had a fun time meeting each other downstairs for breakfast before heading to the field, although they probably would have preferred doing it a little later than 6:30am!

A tough 2-0 loss so no advancement out of bracket play.  The upside was more time to explore Portland, but we had hoped the girls would make it to Sunday playoffs.  They have improved as a group and are playing in top brackets so their skills will continue to get better. Well done ladies!

 After quick showers, we drove down to the waterfront for the Portland Saturday Market.  This place is booming!  A ton of craft booths under the Burnside Bridge and then

 lots of flowers and food heading into town.

 We were only about 2 blocks from Voodoo Donuts so decided today was the day to wait in line.  Matt wanted no part of it so he went and found a pub to get lunch and a beer.  Taylor joined him for a bit and Leslie took her girls for some sushi while Allison and I waited in the line. It took about 40 minutes, but I think its well worth it.

 We tried some new ones this time…some better than others.

 The No Name was one of the favorites…a yeast donut coated in chocolate, rice krispies and peanut butter drizzle!

 I also loved my Dirty Snowball…chocolate cake donut coated in marshmallow creme, coconut and a dollop of peanut butter!

 We walked off our donuts with a stroll to Powell's Bookstore.  This place is huge!

 The rooms are even color coded!

 We were still too full to eat, but we toured the food trucks and this was my favorite.  Mac & Trees!  I would have ordered the mac and cheese with chicken, broccoli, bread crumbs and parmesan!

 Our final stop was along the waterfront to check out all of the bridges and local activity.  There are so many homeless in Portland, but they just sort of intermingle with all of the hustle and bustle in town.

 We attended the team pizza dinner at Belaggio's and then drove back into Portland to get Salt and Straw.  The line wrapped around the building!  Amazing how social media helps drum up business.  When the girls and I went last year, we just walked right in.  Not anymore so no Salt and Straw for us this time.

We went across the street and loved our gelato from Alottogelato!

Portland Day #2

The girls had the 8:00am and noon games today at Lake Oswego HS. It was a rainy, chilly day which was a nice change from our normal summer weather.  They won the first game 1-0 against a team from Portland, then went back to the hotel to warm up for a bit and dry their uniforms.  Game 2 was a little tougher battle and they lost 5-0 to a team from Washington.

 After the games we went to the town of Lake Oswego to explore the area.  I would love a house on this bay!  They even have garages right on the water for the boats!

 This quaint little path lines the water.

 We found lots of funky art 

 and plenty of treats.  We went into St. Honore' Bakery for some macaroons

but also found these lovely treats.  They are the bakery specialty made of eclair dough and covered in rock sugar…so good!

 but I spotted this beignet shop just down the block.

 We may have sat there forever waiting for them, but they were worth the wait!

 Matt stumbled onto this park that lined the Willamette River, so we followed him down there.

 We talked to a local who said it costs millions for any property on the water.  I could see why.

 The girls wanted to do some shopping down at the Woodburn outlets.  They each got a few things before getting hungry for dinner.  With not much to eat at the outlets, we turned to Yelp for suggestions.  Trapala had rave reviews and was only 1.9 miles away.  Once in the neighborhood, it seemed like worlds away!  The area was a little sketchy, but we were thinking positive that these kinds of restaurants usually have some of the best food.

We were right!  Everything was delicious!

Reanna and I had the best Chicken Tostada Soup.  Matt and Leslie shared a giant skillet with chorizo, cactus, ribs, chicken, carne asada and more.  The portions were huge and the food and service were wonderful!