Apparently I skipped September, so here's a recap:

9/5 - Bella Joy show in Gates at the Cascade Foothills Saturday Faire. This is the first year for this show and we really enjoyed the atmosphere and we hope to participate again next year. This was our second time at this one and it rained the whole time so that was "fun", but we're true PNWers so it didn't stop us. Megan and Brian knew someone that lived nearby so we called them up and borrow some tarps. I feel eternally grateful to those people because without those tarps it would have been miserable!

9/6-9/7 - Karl and I took an early anniversary trip out to Bonneville Hot Springs Resort. We weren't all that impressed with the resort itself (not much to do), although the food was good and the couples soak/wrap/massage was very relaxing! And we checked out the Bonneville Dam which wasn't exciting at all but since it's the only thing to do out there...

9/19 - My company picnic at a park in Wilsonville on the Willamette River. Tried to get a cute photo of us but once again he refuses to smile normal, I got him trying to frown while laughing so his punishment is me posting it on the blog!


9/20 - Trip to the Oregon Zoo to see the new Predators of the Serengeti exhibit and we also got some video of the cute baby elephant. Then we lunched at Joe's Crab Shack which was yummy and it was a beautiful day so we sat outside enjoying the Columbia River.

Long video because I just couldn't stop filming the cuteness, highlights are at 1:25 when he's scratching his back leg with his other foot, and then starting at 2:20 is some cute trunk cuddling and some chin and leg scratching.




PDX Zoo - 9/20/09 - Baby Elephant from Sarah Koepke on Vimeo.

And another video, much shorter, of him getting out of the water and the older elephant directing him where to go - or pushing him out of the way, it was hard to tell.

PDX Zoo - 9/20/09 - Baby Elephant from Sarah Koepke on Vimeo.

9/24 - HAPPY 4 YEAR ANNIVERSARY TO US!!!!

9/27 - Bella Joy show in Wilsonville at the Villebois Sunday Market. This was also the first year for this market and while it is still small I think it could be a great thing to be a part of as it grows. We froze our booties off but it was fun!

October update coming soon... you have Oysterfest and home-made marshmallows to look forward to :o)

Finger Schlichting Good!

We went veggie picking again down the road in Sherwood at Schlichting Century Farm. We loaded up on cherry tomatoes, green beans, green peppers, and banana peppers -- I'm sensing a vegan dinner in our near future!

Lots of bees around the sunflowers!

Karl found a Praying Mantis hanging out on the green peppers.

Our veggie haul!

Koepkes do Seattle!

The other Koepkes (Kris, Tina, Katie, and Zachary) were planning a trip to Seattle from Sacramento for a wedding so we decided to meet up with them because who doesn't love Seattle, right? They stopped off on in Tualatin on their way up and we decided to follow them up that night instead of the next day, thankfully the hotel could squeeze us in (I highly recommend the Residence Inn hotels by Marriott - they have a game room!!).

On Saturday, Karl and I hung out by ourselves while the other Koepkes did wedding stuff. We explored the Woodland Park Zoo (we like Portland's better), and the Experience Music Project with Sci-Fi Museum (it was really crowded so we just breezed through).

He really is happy, he just likes to pout for the camera.

Then we headed back to the hotel to relax for a couple of hours before dinner at Dahlia Lounge which was so good! We gorged on dessert since they have three that they're known for and we just couldn't choose -- it's vacation, calories don't count! Creme Caramel was our favorite (like the insides of the best creme brulee ever), then the Doughnuts, then the Triple Coconut Cream Pie -- and that should tell you something because I LOVE coconut cream pie!

Sunday started off with complimentary breakfast in the lobby which was pretty good as far as complimentary hotel breakfasts go, and then it was off to Pike Place Market, of course!

Other Koepkes in front of the sign - Zachary was not loving it:

Flowers and fruits and veggies, oh my!

Check our our niece's stylish hat!

And there is the first Starbucks where you can still get the original naked lady (mermaid?) logo... if you're into that sort of thing (who isn't?).

Hom Bow for lunch (he's going to be so great with our kids!!).

Next it was off to University Village to check out Trophy Cupcakes (Triple Coconut was Amazing) and Fran's Chocolates (seriously good chocolate).

A Cupcake Casualty

Again with the hand on the head, so cute, asking for some chocolate covered figs.



Then, to walk off all those calories, we headed over to Green Lake. I hate to say it but I lived just across the water from Seattle for 10+ years and had never been to Green Lake. We walked the 2.8 miles around and even stuck our feet in for a while to cool off.

Again with the cuteness - Uncle Karl and Katie getting their exercise.

Lovely photo after a hot, sweaty, windy walk.

Super cute house I love:

Then it was off to dinner at Blue Fin at Northgate Mall. It's a crazy sushi/seafood buffet that was so good! Even if you're not into sushi you can chow down on the crab legs!

Hopefully we won't go a year + again before we can have another Koepke adventure!

The 2 Hour Doughnut Adventure

So last night we're watching Man Vs. Food and he's eating this 14" diameter doughnut. Karl disappears into his office for a few minutes, I hear some tying and some clicking, and then he comes out and says, "let's go to Voodoo Donuts". So at 9:15pm on a Saturday night we set off to get some sweet treats.

Little did we know that a million blocks of Portland were blocked off due to whatever it was that was going on, so we couldn't get anywhere near 3rd street where our doughnuts were, and at this point we'd been thinking about them for a good 30 minutes so we had to get there somehow, but after fighting traffic for another 30 minutes trying to find a way around the blockade, and getting flipped off by an oblivious guy more interested in texting than driving, we decided to just head home.

But Wait! Voodoo Donuts has a second location!

So, per the demanding voice in our GPS, we got off the freeway and found our way to VD II, only to go inside and see a note on the display case that said "cash only". Lovely.

At this point I'm ready to just call it a night but Karl isn't ready to give up the doughnut dream just yet so we look around for an ATM, and not seeing one in the store or around the building, we drove off to find one a few blocks away. After retreiving some green, we went back to VD II and tried to decide what to order. Some of the names don't really describe what they are, and the display case didn't have any of them labeled, so I asked for ones off the board that sounded interesting, only to pick three that were not available, so the gal -- in a sleeveless top with hairy armpits -- points to the case and says "these are the kinds we have available". I say something like "that's nice but we've never been here before so I don't know them by name yet" and then, since I'm too tired to deal with it I settle for the thing I do recognize and like, a maple bar.

It was a good maple bar, but just like any other good maple bar, so I wasn't hugely impressed. I could have walked to the grocery store next door to us and had the same thing. And to top it off, there on the register, is a small little sign that says "yes, we do have an ATM". Lovely.

So we arrive home two hours after leaving, our doughnut craving satisfied, but I'm not sure it was worth it. Although now we have a doughnut adventure to fondly recall, and that's what memories are made of, so maybe it was worth it.

Blurb Blurb Blurb

Blurb is the word.

It's a website where you can create your own book!
It could be a novel that you wrote, photographs you have taken, recipes you have collected, or a blog you wrote that you want bound for a keepsake.

I love the idea of turning a blog into a book! Not this blog of course because who would want to read this over and over again, but I'm seriously thinking about doing this in the future.
When we do start adding to our family I will most likely start another blog (probably a private one because the whole world doesn't need to be exposed to pictures of my growing belly and all the gory details that go with it), and that would be a blog I'd consider turning into a book as a keepsake for us and the child.

I guess it's the modern day version of hand-written journals our mothers and grandmothers may have had, only cooler.
No, cooler isn't the right word because no matter what form it comes in, reading a pregnancy journal that was all about you would be cool, this is just more high-tech... and you won't get writer's cramp.

Flowers, Food, and 848 Feet Up

We attempted to go to the Tulip Festival in Woodburn yesterday but the freeway exit was backed up for five miles so we drove passed that and turned around at the next exit to get to Woodburn from the opposite direction which wasn't backed up AT ALL!! Things were good until we got about 2 miles away and it was stopped again. So we turned ourselves around and decided to go early this morning. We got there when they opened at 9am (no traffic) and took a leisurely walk through the Tulip fields in GORGEOUS weather. The festival has been extended due to the cold weather slowing the growth of the flowers, so they weren't as in bloom as normal but it was still beautiful!

After the flower fest we decided to try brunch at Salty's on the Columbia River. The food was definitely yummy and we were able to sit outside which was wonderful on a day like today. This is Karl's "stop taking pictures and let me eat" face:

While eating brunch and enjoying the weather we decided we should drive out to the Bonneville Resort and see what it was all about. We picked up some brochures on the natural hot spring and maybe one day we'll go back. On our way there we passed Beacon Rock and I remembered my friend Sarah blogging about it a while back so on our way back from the resort we stopped for a hike and I discovered just how out of shape I really am!

Beacon Rock is 848 feet tall (1.8 mile round-trip hike) and it is a apparently the exposed core of an old volcano which is kind of cool! This first part of the hike I was not fond of. Yes there is a railing but it still felt too open to me and it was actually bothering me. I don't think I have a fear of heights but this section was kind of freaking me out!

Once we were in the trees towards the top I was okay and the views were definitely worth it!

And a view from the bottom...

Lincoln City

This weekend unexpectedly used up 3/4 of a freshly filled gas tank. Saturday started with Karl waking me up at 8am wanting to go to the zoo, so I rolled out of bed and off we went. We like to go early to beat the crowds and it was the first good weather forecase for a weekend in quite a while so we figured it would be busy. But, the weather hadn't quite warmed up by 9:30am so we were freezing but still had fun.

We took the little train ride around the zoo which was basically just the backs of buildings and piles of construction materials. We did get a good view of the wolves and the elk and the highlight was the baby elephant which was being closely guarded by the two adult elephants. They were standing on each side of the baby and crossing their trunks in front of him, it was so precious!

After that we walked over to the Forestry Museum. Not quite as exciting as the Zoo but interesting in an educational sort of way.

It was around 1pm by the time we left and the weather was sunny and gorgeous and finally waming up and we decided to go to the beach! We haven't been in quite a while so it was fun to get away. We ate at Blackfish Cafe which we loved the last time we went, but this time wasn't quite as great. Still good, not great. I got a pasta with smoked salmon and white cheddar which was tasty, but for some reason the smoked salmon tasted like lil smokies. Weird.

Inn at Spanish Head is fabulous and I highly recommend it.

And now for your viewing pleasure:

And this is Karl's "shoot, another picture" smile:

Jan/Feb 2009

Hmmm, it's already March and I haven't posted since Christmas! Here is an update:

January - Our New Year's was pretty quiet but that's how we like it. We just rented movies and I think we were asleep by 10 or 11. We don't like going out and dealing with crazy drunk people making silly decisions so we just stay home. Once we have kids I'm sure we'll start the whole stay up until midnight thing again, but if we don't HAVE to be up that late, we won't be. I finally had my wisdom teeth removed at the end of January. They prescribed Halcion for me to take the night before and the morning of, I think it's an anti-anxiety type of med. When I took it the night before I had just eaten and I was up at least an hour before I started feeling a little wobbly and went to bed (slept great!). So the next morning I was supposed to take it again an hour before the appt and I did, but it was on an empty stomach and I don't remember anything after about 30 minutes from taking it. Seriously. The last thing I recall was putting on my shoes to leave and the next thing I knew Karl was putting me in bed with ice packs. I never gave Karl directions to the doctor's office so I'm not too sure how we got there but we did. Karl took great care of me too, waking me up ever four hours to take my pain pills. I only threw up once and he handled that well too, didn't even flinch or gag, haha! If anyone needs an Oral/Maxillofacial Surgeon I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Stacy Geisler in Lake Oswego, she was amazing! Her office and my dentist's office even sent flowers, how cool is that!

Not much happened in February that I can remember. Valentine's was low-key, Karl ended up having to work a lot. He wasn't supposed to but he got a few emergency calls and in this economy you don't turn customers away! In honor of Valentine's Day, here are 14 things I love about my husband and being married to him:

1. He is a very hard worker with a stronge work ethic.
2. He still likes to hold hands and cuddle.
3. He remembers the little things, like that I prefer to drink Pepsi in a to-go cup with a lid, a straw, and just a little bit of ice.
4. He sends me flowers at work and includes a box of chocolate for the girls I work with.
5. He lets me sleep in on weekends even though he's always up at the crack of dawn.
6. He likes to watch Jon & Kate + 8 with me... our kids will be way cuter ;o)
7. He fixes my computer for free when I unknowingly download junk.
8. He's smart about so many things and instead of making me feel stupid he patiently explains.
9. Even though he may not see or talk to them often, he is extremely loyal to family and friends.
10. He supports and encourages me in my ideas, especially recently with the start of Bella Joy Creations.
11. He is a super cute and funny guy.
12. He loves me even though I'm not the greatest cook, housekeeper, or most fashionable.
13. We have a lunch date almost every weekend to our favorite Vietnamese restaurant.
14. It's impossible to stay mad at him because he has this goofy smile that gets him out of trouble every single time.

Merry Christmas!

And it just keeps coming...

Didn't make it to work today... Portland is basically shut down and chains are required everywhere, even side streets, and since we don't have any of those, it was safest to stay home today. They're saying this is the worst storm in 40 years! We did venture out around noon to clear off the car and see what we could do but we didn't get very far:

On top of my car... 6" snow + 1/2" ice + 6" snow








This is as far as we made it!


After that adventure I went on a snow walk and took 80+ pictures, haha! Here are a few and of course you can see all of them here: http://picasaweb.google.com/sarahsamara/ArcticBlast08Part2