New York City

Now that Greg is home, I have my camera back. So now, ladies and gentlemen (or the three of you that read these), I can share some of my photos from my trip to New York City....




We took a ferry to the Statue of Liberty. It had been sprinkling all day long, but I kid you not, the minute we stepped foot on the island, it started POURING. Luckily, I had bought a cheap umbrella from a stand in the city. Unluckily, it was a really cheap umbrella that kept flipping inside out. We were soaked by the time we were done with the tour.




I love Central Park. I had gone there the last time we visited NYC, and even though there are so many other sites to visit, I wanted to go back to the park. Greg teased me: "You've traveled across the country, from a state that's filled with parks, and you want to hang out at a park." What can I say? I love parks. But Central Park is way beyond an ordinary park. We ended up walking around the park for hours. Wow, this caption has the word "park" in it a lot.






Ok, don't laugh, but this was at another park. This time, it was Greg that wanted to stop at the park. It's called High Line Park. It stands about thirty feet above the city streets, on top of an old railroad line. The top photo was taken under a covering, and I thought the glass in the background was interesting. I thought the integration of urban and wild was well done.








There are many beautiful cathedrals in New York. We passed by a few, but the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine was one we really wanted to see . It was enormous and absolutely stunning. The unique blend of Romanesque and Gothic style gave the cathedral a look that was uniquely it's own. We tried taking a lot of pictures inside, but alas, my little Casio camera does not take the best pictures in dim lighting. Yes, I'm blaming the camera and not it's operators.








One positive about the rainy weather was the gorgeous night sky enhanced by the city lights and the hazy clouds. I shot these as we were walking back to the hotel. The ACE is only a couple blocks from the Empire State Building. Greg had been frequenting a Walgreen's while he was in NYC. It was about day three when he took another exit of Walgreen's and POW!- he was in the front lobby of the Empire State Building.

Anxious

We leave for Mexico in three days!!! I'm so excited, but I feel totally unprepared for this trip. I always feel like I'm forgetting something when I go on vacation. Still, I hate how anxious and nervous I get- it puts me in a foul mood, and I'm sure I'm not much of a peach to hang out with.

I just have to breathe.....

For those who don't know the details:

Greg and I are flying to Cancun on Thursday night (hell yeah!). We'll meet up with Brian (my brother) and my mom, and take a guided tour of Chichen Itza. From Cancun, we fly to Mexico City so we can see Teotihuacan. Then we rent a car and drive to Guadalajara to spend the rest of our trip with family. Good times!

Roughin' it for Our Fourth

Last weekend, Greg and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary by camping at Crater Lake. Despite getting sick on our last day, I had an amazing time. Crater Lake is truly one of the most beautiful sights I have ever laid my eyes upon, and I can't wait to go back! I would love to describe in every last flourished detail just how breathtaking it was, but alas, my skills as a descriptive writer are quite lacking- I just wouldn't do it justice. I do however, have quite a few pictures from our trip. Below are a few, and I'll probably post the rest on the Flickr account that I've recently set up.

Our first peak of the Lake. We immediately pulled over and oggled over the spectacular view.

Getting my toes wet. The water is usually around 32 degrees year round- yikes! But seriously, if I had worn my bathing suit that day, I would have dove right in! It was the clearest and bluest water I had ever seen in my life!

Strolling along in a wildflower meadow. It was a little late in the season for a lot of the flowers, but it was beautiful nonetheless.

See! I told you that water was clear! I took this sitting on a rock-edge about ten feet from the water's surface.

A cute old man took this picture. We look pretty dorky with our jeans rolled up....Greg more so than I :0) I knew I loved dorks.

This mini vacation will go down as one of my all time favorites. The anniversary may go down as a favorite as well, but we've got lots of years to top it! Seriously, we've come a long way in our marriage, and I am so happy that we are in such a good place right now. We had a rough time about a year ago, probably more serious than anyone really knew- if they knew that we were having problems in the first place. Last year, if I was told that I would feel this loved and this fulfilled in my marriage, I wouldn't have believed it. I am glad we are long past that now, and whatever struggles we had, we have survived them and (ok, here comes the cliche) have come out stronger than before. I am so in love with Greg.

Come Back Soon!

Exploring Ape Caves



A Skylight


CAVE PEOPLE!


We were being attacked by bugs


Riding a bike with tiny wheels at the Tour de Fat Festival


Last weekend my sister visited me. This is a momentous occasion because she finally had an opportunity to go on a trip without her kids. Now don't get me wrong, I love my neice and nephews to death, but it was nice to finally have some long overdue "grown-up" time with Erica. Not that we act like grown-ups, but you understand what I'm saying.





It was a perfect weekend, filled with lots of Portland and Pacific Northwest activities. We hiked a trail near Mt. Hood, attended a fun bike festival, went out clubbing and even explored some lava tubes. All in all it was a memorable weekend, made even more special because I got to share it all with my sister.