Prezdents Day "Camping"

Well I guess it's better late than never to blog about our camping adventure over Presidents Day. After we got back from Christmas break we were dreading the winter term of school. So to have something to look forward to in the middle of the term,we planned a little get away to Silver Falls State Park. We rented a little one room cabin for Saturday night.

 

For dinner that night we cooked up some great dutch oven potatoes, Buffalo burgers and had some great kettle BBQ chip to go along with it all. We were really excited to cook our meal because it was the first time we used the camp chef that we got for Christmas. It worked like a charm! We also topped off the night with a superb raspberry cobbler. We decided it was some of the best dutch over cooking we've done yet!
 

 

We had potatoes left over that we planned to use for breakfast burritos(my new favorite food!!) in the morning, so we thought it would be fine to leave them in the dutch oven out over night. Around 4 am we were woken up to some loud clanking on our deck. We figured it was an animal trying to get our delicious food, so we turned on the porch light and found a raccoon snooping around and attempting to get into the potatoes. This cridder didn't have a chance at opening the lid, but as soon as we had the chance Chase brought the dutch oven inside for the rest of the night. (if you look close you can see the raccoon on the railing of the deck!)

 

The big attraction to Sliver Falls are the 10 waterfalls in a 10 mile circle. We planned to hike to three of the 10 the next morning. First we went to South Falls which we had seen before during Thanksgiving. Chase took a picture with me standing to the side of the fall to show how huge it is compared to me. I am circled in red!

 After South Falls we headed to Winter Falls. This is another tall waterfall but it had less water than the other ones but still really pretty.

 

Finally we ended at North Falls where there is a lookout and you can see the waterfall from the road. Since the waterfall is in a canyon you can hear the water rushing over the edge and hitting the rocks below from a half mile away!It was so pretty from the lookout because you could hear and see the waterfall completely  surrounded by huge pine trees.

 

When we hiked down to North Falls there is a trail that takes you behind the waterfall. This was so cool because it was dark as we walked behind it, but when you look out through the waterfall the green of the trees and moss seemed so bright! We had so much fun this trip we want to make a trip back this summer when the weather is nicer and hike to all 10 falls!

Last few Weeks

So if you have been reading the blog my last post was pretty lame because I couldn't figure out how to get the video posted?! Oh well... on to other things!

The last few weeks have been pretty nice here in PDX. Not too much rain, and mild temps. Finally this week we are getting some snow on Mt. Hood! On the other hand Chase and I have been in the middle of midterms :(  But we have been able to enjoy the weekends and take some time to relax and hang out together. Chase was able to get free tickets from school to the Portland Winterhawks hockey game. Since there was a big group of students who went we all got free hats! (I love free swag, even if it is cheap and ugly! haha).

Justin found a great place for shooting so we all took the opportunity to freshen up our skills! The place we went was basically on top of a mountain. The road is tiny but the drive there is really pretty!

             

 

 Here is a view from half way up the mountain! It was really pretty driving along the Clackamas river and being surrounded by the mountains. If you don't get car sick, Oregon is the place for Sunday drives or scenic road trips!

 Then of course the SUPER BOWL! We had quite the feast! We made ribs, chase made guacamole, and I bought wings, cookies, and root beer/cream soda. Not only did we enjoy all the food we ate but our team pulled through with the WIN!

 And just as a side comment...we had a doctor night! Well actually Chase's tooth was hurting so Justin took a look with his loops. Then Chase used his otoscope to check in Adalay's ears. This all took place on Chase's adjusting table he bought a few months ago. I love the convenience of having doctors close!

December 2010- Christmas Eve Video

Where has the time gone?! I can't believe Christmas was almost a month ago and we are into our 4 week of winter term! We had a great break though. We first went to St. George and experienced the 2nd 100 year flood in five years haha, mass over eating, fun times hanging out with the fam and a great Christmas. We made a video of the Gentry Family and it's accompanied by the one and only Chelsa Squires on vocals!... The second week of break we went to Denver and hung out with the Marsh Fam. Again we over ate (to our delight), had a mad racquetball tourny, and of course enjoyed our movies. I am sad that I didn't take any photos in Denver, but here is the Gentry video...

(Sorry having video problems, check back again soon!)

'Tis the Season

Time has flown by, which is ok with me! I am finally done with the Fall term and have 21/2  terms to go. Chase starts his finals next week then we are off for our Christmas vaca!! We are so excited to be in St George for the first week then Denver the second week. It will be so nice to not worry about school for awhile. 

We had a really fun thanksgiving and start of the Christmas season. We went up to Silverfalls with Caraston, Justin, and the kids. It is kind of a long drive but once you are there it is worth the car sickness haha. The food is so good and the cabin is so cozy. I have come to LOVE making turkey sandwiches with stuffing and cranberries smashed into roll YUM! Silverfalls also has cabins you can rent, so Chase and I are planning to go back in the summer and ride our bikes to the different waterfalls. Anyway we had such a fun time and hope to go back with the Tookes next year! 

I know this picture is dark, but I still like it

The snow brought a nice Christmas feel

 Chase takes pride in his photos, and this is a good one of the waterfall we walked to after dinner.

Yes those are icicles around the walls!

Saturday after Thanksgiving we went Christmas tree hunting. The tree farm we went to was so funny because the had goats and a mini horse! The trees all smelled so good too. Chase and I have a hard time picking out our tree but this year we are really happy with our choice. Its not too cone shaped, just tall enough and keeps our house smelling great.

 Chase did the hard work!

When you have cut your tree they shake all the extra needles off then use this machine to bundle it up nice and tight!... I was actually really impressed!

The final product! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

And from the extra limbs from the tree I made this very amateur wreath!... It was a good try for my first time haha!(Don't mind the skinny right side).

Oct. 2010

Our highlight from October was, of course, the deer hunt. We had so much fun seeing the fam and over eating! So here is a video of our trip...

Labor Day

Chase finally had a little break from school, so we took advantage of the time off and went camping. We went to Timothy Lake with the Drake's and Moss's. I was so excited to spend time with Chase and I was happy that he had so time off of school. We camped two nights and of course the weather wasn't that great, but it didn't rain on us so I was happy.
As we were getting our stuff ready to go, we decided that it would be a good time to invest in a new tent. So after some price checking we found the perfect 4 man tent. We hadn't been camping in OR yet so we were excited to use "all"our camping gear. This made us pack way more than anyone would need for two days, but better bring too much than too little right?

The New Tent

We also tried to do some fishing while we were there, but not only was it cold but the wind was out of control. That apparently was in my favor because I was able to catch the only fish of the trip! I am also proud to say that I cleaned my first fish as well.

Working on my fresh catch

The whole time we were there we definitely ate well! Chase made dutch oven potatoes, peach cobbler (thanks Heidi for the suggestion) and the trout I caught. The Moss's made burgers that I could live off of if I could, and awesome breakfast burritos! And as each night ended we had to have s'mores!

Cooking up potatoes

The boys preparing the trout

Eric and Heidi were only able to stay for one night, but we wished they could have stayed longer! As they were leaving the rest of us decided to check out some of the other lakes around the area and we stumbled upon Little Crater Lake. This lake is like nothing else I have ever seen! It is crystal clear blue water and it is 45 feet deep. It was created by the earth shifting and now it is an artesian spring fed by underground springs, and is ice cold!

A couple shots of Little Crater Lake

It looks amazing in person!

We had such a fun trip hanging by the fire, fishing, being in good company and of course eating! I am so glad we were able to spend some time roughing it. I am excited to put that tent to more use maybe one more time this year, but for sure next year!

Chase enjoying his fishing time

Nothing's better camping than warm socks!!

Hood To Coast Relay!!

Last weekend I competed in the Hood To Coast Relay! Just to give you a little background about the relay, it is known as "The Mother of All Relays" and claims to be the biggest one in the world. It is 197 miles starting at Mt. Hood and ending in Seaside (the coast). We had 12 people on our team, but we were split into two vans. I was runner #3, so I was in van 1. Our team started at 7:30am and it was 35 degrees on Mt. Hood!

The legs I ran were not as hilly as some of the other legs, but mine were a little longer distance (I could have prepared a little more for them haha). I started running my first leg at 9am and it was 3.93mi. It was all down hill, so I was able to finish in about 30 minutes. After van 1 finished we were 2 hours ahead of schedule! We had a break for about 4 hours while van 2 was running so we had a nice lunch break and Du's Grill downtown.

 After some much needed food and a change of clothes we were back on the road to start running again. Tiffany was runner #1 and she is the one who invited me to join the team. Our team was made up of mostly her cousins and a few friends, but it was really fun to meet new people and run with them. I started my 2nd leg around 7:00pm and this was my longest 7.25mi. This leg took me about 1:13hr. I wasn't too sore to start out the run but by the end my legs and hip flexors were feeling it! While I was running the sun was setting and it was perfect temp to be outside. When I finished it was totally dark, and I'm glad I finished before I had to wear a head lamp.

That night we parked the van at the second van exchange and expected that van 2 would meet us around 4am. We all slept in the van and I think that is the last time I will do that! It was so uncomfortable and just thinking about the air in there makes me kinda sick haha! Luckily for me van 2 was an hour early so I didn't have to sleep anymore, but Tiffany had to hurry and warm up for her 3:30am jog!

I started my final leg around 5am and it was 5.79mi. I was so stiff from being in the van and running the day before I could barely get going for my 3rd leg. I decided to take this leg easy and run 5 minutes then walk 5 minutes. I ended up making a friend while running so we finished the leg together and it was nice to talk and run with someone who is in as much pain as you! By the time we finished our leg it was light out but still pretty chilly. I was so happy that I made it through, but I couldn't believe how sore I was. At the time I was thinking that this was my first and last Hood to Coast, but I can't wait til next year to make a team! (So if you want to join the team next year let me know!!)

 This was the final van exchange and the people who own the house had a little snack bar that they ran out of their garage and a designated sleeping area. Van 1 was so happy to be done with their leg and we were excited to get to the coast. Before we hit the road we had to rub our legs a little bit, but it almost hurt me more than it felt good.

We finally made it to the coast and the finish line was on the beach. It was basically a giant party on the beach with a band and vendors everywhere. We hung out there for awhile and when the final runner from our team was done we crossed the finish line together!

We were all so tired but had to pose for one last team photo!

 

Chase was able to drive all the way out to the coast and meet us in Seaside. Im so glad he came! It was nice to be around someone new and someone you actually aren't sick of. I wasn't sick of my team but being in a van with 6 other people for over 24 hour was enough for me! 

I had SO much fun running Hood to Coast and anyone that knows me knows that running is not my specialty, but I can't wait to make a team for next year!!