Oregon Odyssey 2014 | Portland

Wow. It's been ages. I know. The truth is, I've been a little overwhelmed with where to begin in sharing the highlights from our recent trip to Oregon, getting settled back into our summer routine in Charlotte, and then gearing up to send the little ladies off for their first "sleep-away camp" experience.

Our trip back west was really great. It was split into three mini-trips: Portland (or West Linn to be exact), Sunriver, and Cave Junction. The Portland portion was focused on seeing our friends from the old neighborhood, giving the girls a chance to reconnect with a few of their great friends, visiting with Greg's sister (now living in Portland) and my cousin (who made the trek south from Washington with her two littles), and enjoying some of the best things we miss about PDX (the food, summertime outdoor activities, and restaurant-hopping) with some of our best friends who graciously hosted our family in their home(s) and hosted a gathering of our friends at their polo fields for a match. Learning from our jammed-packed itinerary last year, we simplified things this time around. While that did mean we were not able to see as many of our friends as we would have liked, the time we did get to spend with a lot of them was much more relaxing and enjoyable.  This is a summary of the first leg of our trip in photos and captions.

Hanging Out

We were quite spoiled spending the majority of our days and nights in the home of our friends (two houses down from our old digs). The girls (Campbell, Scarlett, Piper and Geneva) took turns trading bunkmates each night. Between horseback riding, living room gymnastics, carpet picnics, and silly shenanigans, these four snapped right back into their old rhythm of easy friendship and fun.

A trip to Portland would not be complete without at least one stop at Salt & Straw for some of the best ice cream on earth.

Greg and I were happy to enjoy a night out and about with Gretchen and Sean.

Swank & Swine, Taste, St. Jack

We had fun checking out Auntie Jessica's new apartment and then walking to lunch at Foster & Dobbs.

The girls were excited to be able to join in the festivities at Finley's birthday party.

Sean and Gretchen were delighted to share their downtown flat at The Envoy with us for our last night in PDX. It was really fun for the girls (and us!) to spend the night in this beautiful, French-inspired space that felt like a "fancy hotel." Jessica rode her bike over and we walked to dinner before tucking in for the night.

Hidden Creek Polo Match

We had a blast visiting with friends, enjoying the terrific weather, and cheering on Sean's team at the Hidden Creek Polo Club in Wilsonville. It was a family affair and to all of our friends who were able to join us, "Thank you for coming out!" Between the chatting, polo-watching, food truck noshing, little kid chasing, sipping, divot stomping, and caterpillar collecting--I think the day was a great success!