Life in Portland!

Sooo.... We live in Portland, Oregon!  Since June!!  Ha ha, a little behind here, but I figure there is no time like the present to do a little catching up.  Every time I let it slip away, I remind myself that I'm doing this for Kaylen or to someday create a book for her or for us of memories.  I just can't quit this thing!!  I... must... keep... going!!  So, to update our lives in a nutshell. 

I went to work for the court here in June.  It's been quite a transition.  It's definitely hard to go to work everyday not surrounded by people you consider friends.  The training process was hard and I'm still trying to get the hang of everything and trying to change a few things for the better with my job.  I did make one good friend soon after the start, Kait, who has become my workout partner and an overall great friend to our family.  She's amazing and I feel lucky to have made such a good friend at work.  We also had two built-in friends when we got here.  One, Dan, was Gregg's friend growing up in California who now lives in Salem with his family and my friend Amy, who was a friend from high school who lives nearby with her family to include their son, Hayden, who is 4 and Kaylen's BFF.  We try to spend a little time with Hayden and family as many weekends as we can.  Gregg has made some great friends with his classmates who have been wonderful and reliable not only to Gregg, but to our family.  Slowly, but surely, we're trying to build a community here.  We've been able to explore Portland as much as possible as well as take two visits out to the coast.  Portland is a wonderful city with lots of things to do, especially for families on a budget.  Kaylen and I take public transportation to get us downtown to work and her daycare.  The bus is definitely a daily adventure with a 2 yr old!  Kaylen loves her school, her teachers and her friends in class.  Daycare costs more here...on less income, but the important part is that we're comfortable and happy with with the care she gets!

Gregg has done incredibly well in medical school as we expected he would.  He never ceases to amaze us with his ability to pick up new things and his dedication to strive.  He studies almost every day, all day.  We usually see him for dinner during the week, but other than that, you can find him in class or at the library studying until all hours of the night. He works hard and we're super proud of him.

Here are some pictures of our adventures since we arrived in Portland.....

The home we rent! Lots of space, lots of storage and a great yard for Kaylen!

Right before we moved out to Portland, Kaylen and I took advantage of the opportunity to visit my family in Minnesota while Gregg moved our whole life to Portland!

No visit to Minnesota is complete without time on the river!

Kaylen's first sea lion show at the Como Zoo with Mima, Grandpa and Uncle Jeff!

We had a great time with my family before starting the newest chapter in our lives!

We took advantage of seeing what we could of Portland while I had to start work right away.  Portland is known to be the city of bridges and my work is just blocks away from the waterfront where I often run.

There is a great fountain just blocks from where I work.  So, while Gregg had a bit of a break before school started, we spent a few evenings after work at the fountains!

We made sure to get our memberships to the Oregon Zoo!!  Kaylen LOVES it there!

There is also a great Children's Museum here that we often go to with Amy and Hayden. I love that these places never get old to Kaylen and each time she explores something else just a little bit longer.

There is a water play area there that Kaylen has NEVER been able to get enough of!

There is also the OMSI which is Oregon's science museum.  A lot of it is more than Kaylen is interested in, but she has found plenty to keep her occupied!

Kaylen wouldn't let Daddy stop with the rocket landings!  She loved helping it land!

There is an aerial tram that takes you from the OHSU hospital up on the hill we live to their clinics at the bottom of the hill.  It's how many people commute and offer some of the best views in Portland to include Mt. Hood, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier

There is a great Farmer's Market at Portland State University with lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, live music... and the balloon guy!

Oaks Amusement park is close by as well.  Gregg was able to take Kaylen on a cheap toddler day before he started school and I was also able to take her on a day her daycare was closed.  She can't get enough of the rides and even when completely exhausted, hated to have to go home!

Our friend Amy turned us on to Sauvie Island, a great island just on the other side of the Willamette River that hosts many great farms.  Many offer pick-your-own seasons.  We fell in love with The Pumpkin Patch and made it out there a few times to pick berries.  They have a great animal barn, food market, lunch place, ..... it's awesome.  We were able to take my parents out when it was the end of berry season.

The hayrides offered at the Fall Festival event at the Pumpkin Patch!

We learned that a neighborhood cat was using our flower beds as a litter box.  My Mom and her green thumb helped us to completely re-do the flower bed and plant some new flowers.  We can see if I can manage not to kill them, but it was fun to help out for both myself and Kaylen!

There are a lot of really great festivals in Portland.  This was the first we were able to go to, the Oregon Brewers Festival.  A lot of really great local breweries as well as many neighboring states.

The Bite- Food and Wine festival... right up my alley!

Portland is known for its GREAT beer and doughnuts!!

We decided to rent a house VERY close to the medical school.  It has been incredibly convenient for Gregg and turned out to be very convenient for us and the bus system.  We love having the yard for Kaylen to play in and enjoy nice summer days!

This is our backyard

Our front yard

Having the extra space allowed for Gregg to finally have his drum set he's been keeping at his parents in Wyoming in our own place!  He was able to play a lot before school started... they've been a little neglected since, but the man knows his priorities!  But he and Kaylen had many a good play session while they've been here!

We were able to make two trips out to the Oregon coast.  The first was to Lincoln City with Gregg's friend Dan's family.  It was a cool, windy day, typical of the Oregon coast.  Not quite what I'm used to being near the ocean, but I'll take that view and the ocean any day... even if a little chilly!

The second trip we took was an overnight trip to Seaside, Oregon.  It was warmer weather in August and was truly an amazing get-away weekend!

Kaylen got to feed some sea lions with Daddy!

As an early Christmas present, Gregg's parents got Kaylen a swing set for our yard!  There aren't any parks nearby, so this was quite the treat for our special girl and she loved being able to slide and swing in her very own yard!!  Thank you Grandma Rie and Grandpa Waz!

We were truly spoiled this summer with some beautiful weather.  We've been warned many a time that the rain WILL COME.  So, Kaylen's prepared with her Elmo rain jacket and boots and her froggy umbrella for any rainy day.  We're not quite sure how a winter full of rain, no snow and rare sunshine will go, but we shall see!  

It's definitely been an interesting journey so far and I have more pictures to post, but didn't want to bring them all at once.  Portland is a great city, but it's been quite an adjustment living so far from family and friends that became family.  We've been lucky to have our families come out for a couple visits each and are expecting friends this next year.  Gregg is working so hard and it's paying off!  We couldn't be more proud of the incredible work Gregg has done since starting medical school.