The Undisclosed Location

Well, continuing from the last post...

After Portland, Jonathan had told me we were not going home right away.  We were going to "an undisclosed location", a surprise vacation, a "baby moon" (taking a special trip, while you still can, before the baby comes).  He did a really good job keeping a secret.  Oh, he dropped hints (c'mon, he's Jonathan, after all), but too many, I was totally confused and had no idea where we were going.

We checked out of the Hilton in downtown Portland and took off on foot.  To the metro stop.  When we got off the metro, we walked some more.  

 To here.  Union Station. 

 ...where we got on a train headed north to a place called Tukwila, WA.

 Then Jonathan picked up a rental car and we headed toward this lovely city,

Seattle.

 And we stopped for lunch at my favorite place in Seattle:

The Crumpet Shop!

 Tomato/cheese/pesto (Jonathan's), salmon/egg (mine), nutella (to split)

and of course, tea.

Can't have crumpets without tea.

 I know, I know, I look like a dork.

But seriously, words can't describe these delicious treats!

 And, by the way, I think we got the last few crumpets of the day.

As we left they put this up: "Sold out of crumpets"

Good timing.

Then we were on our way again, heading north some more.  We got in a long line of cars at a place called Anacortes.  A few hours later (yeah, this part was lacking a little planning) we finally boarded a ferry.

 Headed to our final destination: Orcas Island.

It's one of the San Juan Islands off the coast of Washington state.

The sunset view from the ferry.  

I love pink mountains.

After a short drive across the island, we arrived at our resort, a place called Rosario.  It was an amazing trip!  One of the best vacations ever, in my opinion.  We slept late, ate at some fun restaurants in the small island town, drank good coffee, relaxed, and talked and talked and talked.

 Mini chocolate frosted donuts dipped in coffee,

a vacation must.

 The view overlooking our island from the mountaintop.

We took the ferry to another island one day,

 And almost plowed through some sailboats!

 We rented a tandem bike on San Juan Island.

So funny, we assured the guy we'd ridden a tandem before, but he still made us prove to him that we could before he let us leave!

 We rode all the way to the point,

boy, was it hilly!

 The lighthouse on the point.

 My view.

I'd say it was one of the most beautiful bike rides I've ever done!

 I think those mountains in the distance are the Cascades.

 We had a blast watching from our room window 

as the sea planes took off and landed.

The resort had a really nice pool and spa, and while it isn't overly warm even in the summer in the Northwest, it was still a great place to relax.  I was even treated to a "Mommy and Me" massage, so amazing!  

We packed a picnic and spent a few hours hiking around the state park on the island.

 Our picnic spot.

 Some gorgeous red-trunked trees, 

and that crystal clear water below!

 Tall, tall, tall pines that smelled amazing!

 A waterfall.

Overall it was fantastic, wonderful, beautiful, relaxing, fun, and basically a blast!  We had a great time! And we were thankful for so much set aside time for talking since just before we left on vacation Jonathan heard from Apple.  They made him a pretty tempting job offer, and we desperately needed those quiet days to really consider what God was calling us to.  It's been tough to have to turn it down, but we're confident following God is always the best way.  Now we're working to keep trusting that He's got something even better for us and our little family!  

Portland

Jonathan had an engineering conference in Portland last week at which he gave two presentations.  We took the opportunity to hang out in one of our favorite cities, and also the chance to see some dearly loved people we've gotten to know at the Portland AC church.  

The weekend was spent with some families who graciously agreed to host us.  Starting off with one of those fun sushi places where the options go by on a little conveyor belt (sorry, there's no picture) and some good conversation, our stay with the Gallops also included good wisdom on life, cool stories from Holland, funky fish in huge tanks, and lots of fun!  Sunday was church followed by a picnic with the church family at a State Park nearby.  That night we stayed up late chatting with the Lemans who saw us off early the next morning and even provided transportation to downtown.  

Jonathan took off for the conference, and I wandered my way toward Powell's City of Books.  Yes, the biggest bookstore you've ever seen, I literally got lost in the towering shelves of new and used reading material.  I even picked up a few special books from my childhood to add to Silly Goose's collection.  Then, off to the famous food trucks for lunch.

 The view of Mt. Hood from our room.

My initial fun time hanging out around Portland downtown kind of faded after awhile.  I apparently don't enjoy wandering around even a fun city like Portland if I'm by myself.  Not to mention, there's kind of some weird characters out there who gave me the creeps.

 Yup.  They're doing a good job!

I did venture out for coffee (it's too good to resist!) but otherwise I made use of the pool, took long naps (no shame, I deserve it, right?), read and generally relaxed.  In the evenings Jonathan and I would take to the streets.  I enjoyed it much more with him!  We ate at fun places and enjoyed the sights.  The last day of the conference, he was done early and we spent the afternoon doing some really fun stuff--and we even had coupons from a book he picked up at the conference!

First we visited and toured the Chinese Gardens.  Very cool.  Not as humongous as the Huntington's, but (according to our biased tour guide) more authentic.  

 My favorite part was the very intricate stone work 

that varied room to room.

Then we hit up the Art Museum.  They had a super cool display called "Cyclepedia" being featured which was basically a bunch of cool/old/interesting/unique bicycles suspended from the ceiling at eye level.

It was a blast!

I posted some of my crazy favorites on Facebook.

Check it out!

By chance we caught an open air free concert about a block from our hotel on the way back from the museum.  Only in Portland!  First there was an upbeat and talented acapella group singing, and then a super fun marimba band!  I haven't been exposed to much marimba music (a percussion style from Chiapas Mexico), but I'm a new fan!

We topped off our Portland days with, what else, Salt and Straw ice cream.  We waited in a line that went out the door and around the corner!  All to try their unique flavors like "Blue Cheese and Pear", "Strawberry Balsamic", and "Coffee and Bourbon", and you can't forget their house-made waffle cones pressed right before your very eyes.  Mmmm!  As my dear friend, Louisa, would say, "I'm craving a little calcium!"  (meaning, I want some ice cream!) 

All in all, Portland was a success!  

The Grand Revealing of the Gender

Da-da-da-daaaaa!!!

Announcing!

Silly Goose is a boy!

We are thrilled!  I was so excited when we first found out, the nurse had to retake my blood pressure after asking me to take a few deep breaths to calm down a little!  

He's doing great!  Everything from the anatomy check looks healthy and right on schedule.  We got to see his extremely brilliant brain developing, all four ventricles of his heart, his spine, femur, cute little baby face, and, my favorite,

his adorable little baby feet!

What a miracle!

He's an active little guy, too!  I've been feeling him summersault, poke, kick, and squirm for a few weeks now.  And Jonathan is just starting to be able to feel him too!

Thanks for blessing us with love, support and prayers during this incredibly special stage of life!  We can't wait to meet our sweet little baby boy!  Halfway to December!

And in case you're wondering, while it's been a blast to share is gender with you all, we will be keeping his name a secret until his arrival.  There has to be some surprise!