Up, Up and Away

The modern airplane creates a new geographical dimension.  A navigable ocean of air blankets the whole surface of the globe.  There are no distant places any longer: the world is small and the world is one.  ~Wendell Willkie

Another vacation has come and gone.  This trip marked Clare's 8th flight and she is a true veteran when it comes to airport/airplane etiquette - she plays hard in the airport, get's antsy when we board, and sleeps or listens to music when we fly.  I love it!

First we flew up to Portland, the city that Jonathan and I both love.  We talk about moving there, but then we talk about how hard it would be to leave our family here, and so far, the family has kept us planted.  However, every time we visit we become a little more attached to this little city in the Pacific Northwest.  During this visit we were all suffering from a head cold, but we fought through it because the weather was far too beautiful to let a pesky cold keep us down.  The temps were in the 90's (HOT) at the beginning and in the 70's a few days later when we left.  Despite the heat, Fall was in the air - a season we love because it marks the beginning of the holiday's - a bustling time that brings much excitement.  This was Clare's second time in the Rose City, so she trekked through the streets with us just like a local.  We decided not to rent a car, but to enjoy the trains, buses and our own two feet.  The weather was so nice, we found ourselves walking and walking and walking and walking and walking...you get the idea.  We visited the Oregon Zoo one day using the passes we have for the Santa Ana Zoo (it gets us into zoo's all around the nation either for a great discount or free...)  We enjoyed the roses, the parks, the eats, a concert in a record store, playgrounds, the people and the fantastic diverse neighborhoods.  I did some "if we lived here I would live in that house" daydreaming.  A great time was had by all.

After a few days in Portland, we boarded the Amtrak, Seattle bound.  Jonathan had a conference to attend and Clare and I thought it would be a shame for him to go alone.  Off to the Emerald City we went, a location that Jonathan and I have visited together a number of times, but a first for Clare.  The train was great fun and once we arrived Jonathan got to work and Clare and I found ourselves free to do the girly things we love.  First we checked out some shopping, then we grabbed lunch, then we picked up some goodies for the room and then we headed back to get a little rest since we had 3 more days of fun filled adventures ahead of us.  Jonathan joined us in the city when he had some free time, otherwise, Clare and I explored Seattle, just the two of us.  We visited downtown, Pike Place, Pioneer Square, the Waterfront and all the great places in between.  While I still prefer Portland to Seattle, I have to admit, this city has some of the coolest old buildings, eclectic neighborhoods and endearing charm.  More than anything, this city is home to the Nordstrom's Flagship store.  I mean, come on, how stinking great is that?  And let me expand my love for this by stating that the Nordstrom Rack in Seattle is off the charts.  Even if you aren't a fan of Nordstrom Rack (to which I say you are missing the adrenaline rush of "the find" if you've never had a good shoe experience in Nordstrom Rack), you have to love the idea that this is where the shoe frenzy began.  Yes, Nordstrom's and Nordstrom Rack does sell more than shoes.  The many floors of shopping temptation were proof of this; but the shoes, oh the shoes...I could go on forever about the beauty that Clare and I found in the "shooos" sections.  We escaped the clutches of this store a little worse for wear, our pockets dinged only slightly, with our heads held high proud of the willpower we both exerted when faced with the bounty that the store was all too willing to sell us.

But, enough about that; on to more fun stuff.  We did some tasting at a winery (we had the wine, Clare had the grape juice - it was PERFECT) and then Clare and I happily fed the ducks while people toured the grounds.  It turns out toddlers could care less when a winery was built or how the wines are fermented.  After that we headed over to taste some beer at a brewery and Clare decided that was a good time to nap.

Finally, we packed our bags, homeward bound.  Of course, no Dease trip is complete without some strange event.  As you may recall, when we were flying back from San Francisco last year ON my birthday, our plane was struck by lightening mid-flight (if you missed that story, you can read about it here).  Jonathan and I both felt that was our one event - I mean we fly a lot so we were bound to have one - and that was plenty exhilarating for us.  However, once we landed the pilot came on and informed us that we would need to remain seated with our seat belts fastened as the Port Authority would be boarding our "craft".  We both looked at each other with a that "hmm...that doesn't sound good" expression.  Sure enough, about 6 or 7 police officers did board both the front and back of the "craft" with a number of airline reps in tow and removed a passenger from the plane.  After she was off, we were all permitted to leave.  Our imaginations went a bit wild (at least mine did) and I wondered if this person had threatened the flight crew or something.  After doing some hard investigating (a.k.a. asking other passengers) we learned that this person had been extremely belligerent - like off the charts bad - and the crew had even considered turning back to Seattle at one point (I'm glad they decided against that TERRIBLE plan...)  So, now I think that we've had enough weird on our flights for a lifetime and we can get back to normal.

While we had the best time imaginable, we were all ready to sleep in our own beds and to get back to reality.  Jake's wedding is in 6 days - and we have A LOT of preparation ahead of us.  We have laundry, cleaning, last minute items to pick up; and the best part - guest rooms/beds to make since Wes, Amanda, Cole and Madilyn will be here in a couple of days WOO-HOO!!!!