Hudson Vacation: Day 3

Since I have become a fully certified docent at Evergreen, I have the privilege of bringing guests to the museum for a tour and behind-the-scenes activities free of charge. First I took everyone to the space building (where I work) for a couple hours and then it was off to the air building.

A different vantage point of the Spruce Goose

The docents were amazing and found time to fit us in for a Spruce Goose tour!

Hudson Vacation: Day 2

Saturday morning we got an earlier morning start and stopped by Uncle Matt's work:

Engineer-in-training

Then we went to downtown Portland for the Saturday Market:

The market is pretty awesome, lots of handmade items and very unique gifts but very crowded!

Right along the riverfront is the Oregon Maritime Museum

And while we were downtown we indulged in some heavenly donuts:

Finally, on the way home, we stopped by the Portland Aerial Tram and took a scenic ride:

The tram connects two OHSU campuses and is generally used by patients and employees of OHSU but is open to the public as well.

Hudson Vacation: Day 1

The Hudson family (B, C, Liam and baby boy #2 on the way) arrived in Portland very early in the morning on Friday (5/25/12). After a few hours sleep and a delicious breakfast, we ventured out to see what Oregon had to offer.

Our first stop: Crown Point at the Columbia River Gorge

Liam and his Uncle Matt

The Gorge to the east

and to the west

Then it was off to the waterfalls:

542 feet high

Me and my handsome man!

The Hudson Clan

Such a good Uncle!

Walkabout Part II: Durham Park

What I find completely fascinating about Oregon is how you have no idea what is around each corner. Durham Park is that way. I followed a trail out of Cook Park and entered this small opening in the trees to discover just behind it this amazing landscape. It is my greatest hope that I will always view Oregon with the eyes of an Arizonan. This place is magical.

 Bridge over Fanno Creek

 Fanno Creek

Another new trail to explore

Model Building

At any given time I am working on two different models, one at the museum and one at home. At the museum I am currently building a balsa wood airplane called the Pussycat which is powered by rubberbands. The model I was building at home is Gus Grissom's Mercury capsule, Liberty Bell 7. I finished it and despite the face that it is my very first plastic model and quite small, I think it turned out alright! Next up: The Unsinkable Molly Brown Gemini capsule.

Before and...

After!

My model now rests next to the Apollo models that my dad made when he was a little boy.

Walkabout

Today is so beautiful in Portland, I couldn't bear the thought of exercising in a gym so I took off to Cook Park for a walkabout. I didn't go with any particular purpose or direction in mind, I just walked. After 1.25 hours, I found myself in another city, so I headed back home. Here are some of things I saw along my journey.

 Our backyard

 Roses are blooming in our front yard

Butterfly Garden at Cook Park

Railroad bridge over the Tualatin River

Railroads and trains are quite common here

The Tualatin River

Tualatin Park

Trudy: Update

I don't really know what to say about Trudy without sounding melodramatic, but she had another really bad episode on Sunday (after we got home from the fair) and an emergency appointment with the vet took place on Monday. She is on medication but her balance and ability to walk has been compromised this time and I am fearful. This week has been filled with emotion as I try to reconcile the debate of quality vs. quantity and when is it time to let go? How do you make this kind of decision? How long is the right amount of time to wait and see? How much pain is she in and how much more can she take? My "mommy" sense is telling me that hard decisions are going to be needed soon and my heart is breaking.

Bucket List: Plant a Garden

Hubby and I went to the Clackamas County Spring Garden Fair in Canby this past Sunday. The fair had anything and everything you could possibly want to create a garden. It was outstanding!

Over the last weekend of April I spent a tremendous amount of time in the garden, turning the soil and getting it ready for planting. When we were at the fair, I picked up the following plants: green peppers, lettuce, cilantro, red peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, and broccoli. Today I planted them. I have no idea what I am doing (or if they will grow) but it is fun!

Now it is time to focus on flowers. I bought the Geranium above at the fair and every store in town is having ridiculous sales on flowers, so I plan to pick some more up and start planting in pots. Lily jumped up to smell my flowers just as I took this photo. Silly girl!

Springtime

Spring is in full force in the Northwest despite the fact that it has fallen back into the 50s during the day. Last weekend I spent a tremendous amount of time in the garden. It is primed and ready for planting, now if I could just keep the dogs out of it!

Our neighbors tree which stretches into our yard

Bush in the front yard

Also a bush in the front yard

These were outside Fry's Electronics

New baby geese have joined the family

Spruce Goose

Since I am a docent I occasionally get the opportunity to do cool things around the museum. Yesterday I went for a behind-the-scenes-tour through a B-17 bomber and the Spruce Goose (cockpit pictured below). Both were endlessly fascinating and I highly recommend them to anyone who visits. The hat is a replica of the one worn my Howard Hughes when he flew the Goose in 1947. I couldn't make myself wear it...too worried about all the other people's hair germs. :)