Our Trail to Oregon

After our few days in Seattle, we got a rental car and headed to meet up with Michael's family in Bend, Oregon.  Our little family spent the night in Portland.  Soon after we got there, we got on the train and took a short ride into the city.  We enjoyed some food from the many food trucks downtown.

We went into Powell's Book Store which is the largest private book store in the nation. Cool fun fact.

Then we took a nice walk along the river back to the hotel.  (Adding ice cream to the stroll made it pretty darn ideal.)

 The next morning we met up with the Walker family to enjoy the hike up Multnomah Falls.

It was a beautiful day to take a hike.  It was a great start.  After the hike, we drove the last couple hours we needed to get to Bend and meet up with the rest of the Shields.

We rented this beautiful, giant house.  It was awesome.  We all fit comfortably and were just able to talk, eat, hang out, and enjoy time together.

 We got our golden ticket's to tour the Goody's Factory Store.  I'm pretty sure it was Shields heaven.  There are definitely a few sweet tooth members in that family.  Michael kept making sure Laila got her sample even though she refused to eat any. Bummer.

We went spelunking through some caves.  Totally fun!

And overall, we enjoyed the beautiful weather by eating outside, going on bike rides and playing at the park.

Getting all four cousins to look at the camera and smile is pretty comical...

We did have some great times, but sadly we had to leave.  We were pretty bummed to leave family, the amazing temperatures....Michael, however, was not disappointed to leave a state where it's illegal to pump your own gas! haha!  Fun Oregon Fact #2.

 We partied hard and our little girl was quite the trooper.

In the end, we were all pretty excited to come home.  (Being upgraded to first class tickets didn't hurt either.)

Shields in Seattle

About a week after we got back from Chicago, we were off to the airport again.  This time to Seattle.  Neither of us had ever been so we decided that would be a fun place to celebrate our anniversary.  You read that right- we have been married for 5 years!
Our trip started out super exciting when we got to the airport and realized we had not brought a single pair of shoes for Adelaide.  She looked like an orphan for that flight. But, she did enjoy the train ride from the airport. (Despite the face.)

No shoes for Laila was realization number one.  Realization number two hit when we got off the train a few blocks from our hotel and realized Seattle has some steep hills.  It nearly killed me, but it was also pretty comical watching us push our stuff up the hill with our shoeless baby hanging out on our backs. (For the record, the pic below does not accurately show the degree of steepness of the hills.  I simply could not take a picture while we were pushing lest I get ran over by our suitcases.)

Fortunately, there were plenty of stores around.  I'm pretty sure she already likes trying on shoes. Her pick was the boots.  Luckily, we were able to help her realize that although it was twenty degrees cooler than Phoenix, boots were probably still too warm for the summer season.

Our view from the hotel was pretty awesome though!

The next morning we went and saw the "-ish. -ish." at the aquarium.  I'm glad I'm not the glass cleaner because our little lady loved finding and pointing at all the fish.  It was pretty dang cute!

 We LOVED the market. Sooo yummy.  (And classic "Sleepless in Seattle" reference)

...oh those mini doughnuts...

We also went on the Duck Boat Tours which were totally awesome, in my tourist trap loving opinion. Our guide was witty and we got to see Seattle by land and sea! (Including the "Sleepless in Seattle" house. Totally worth it.)  

One item on the Seattle to do list was the Gum Wall. Kind of disgusting, but interesting. Gum Wall- Check.

The next day we started our anniversary celebrations!  Did I mention that the weather was perfect? We took a nice walk around the city and then headed over to the Space Needle.  We ate lunch at the rotating restaurant at the top.  It was a great experience.  The view was awesome, food was fantastic and the company was delightful. Although I will admit Laila might not be invited to anymore of our anniversary dates- cute as she is.

 

Having our little family together in beautiful Seattle for a few days was a perfect way to celebrate all the adventures Michael and I have had together.  I feel really blessed to be able to see the world with my Michael.  Having our beautiful girl tag along is the cherry on top.  I can't imagine how wonderful the next 5 years (and more) are going to be!

Chicago 2.0

I'm playing a little game of catch up.  We have had lots of opportunities to escape the heat this summer and I have loved every second.  We had so much fun in Chicago a few years ago (See here), we knew we needed to go back.  So when Michael had the opportunity to attend a work conference in Chicago, we took it! Michael and Laila were updated to first class and I flew alone with no baby. Win win.

Our little girl is a great travel companion though.  And she looked absolutely darling carrying her suitcase everywhere while waving to passerby's.  *be still my heart*

The conference was by the airport, so for the first couple of days while Michael was in meetings, Adelaide and I just hung out at the hotel.

On Friday, Bryce & Christi and their boys came and picked us up and took us into the city.  Oh how I love this city!  It's just so fun, clean, lovely, historic and accessible. It's just great! And the company made it even better.  Right when we got to the city we conjured up our inner Ferris Bueller and went to the Art Institute.  (PS I miss my Art History class.)

After the museum, we went to the "Bean," toured the city, and got ourselves the pizza I've been craving for years.  Seriously.  It's legit.

The next morning, Christi surprised us with an architectural boat tour. AWESOME!!!  We were able to go alone and it looked just like "My Best Friend's Wedding."  Michael wouldn't dance with me like on the movie, but it was still awesome. Loved getting all the history, being on the water, and imagining being able to afford a house on the river.

Then for the last couple of hours we had in the city, we went to lunch at the top of the John Hancock Center.  Meal and a view- Perfect combination!  (My phone died shortly after this so I didn't get as many good pics as Christi)

The cherry on top to a wonderful couple of days with the Walkers was a trip to the beach.

Once again, the Walkers were incredible hosts.  And once again, Chicago lived up to all that jazz.  I can't wait until we go back again.