ah crap, it's Friday

I forgot awkward and awesomes for this week.  Again.

I'm sorry, friends.   I'll try harder next week.

On the plus side, at least summer finally decided to show up.  Hopelessly and gloriously late, sure, but I can certainly relate to that.  :)

I've noticed my sense of adventure increases exponentially as my sense of freedom disappears, therefore these last few weeks of summer break have been somewhat action-packed.  I've been soaking up as much sunshine (doused in SPF 30, of course) as possible.  This includes training for my 10k on Springwater trail - a 40 mile loop, accessible through the Wildlife Reserve a mere 3 minute walk from my front doorstep.  The other day I ran all the way to the park where I was re-baptized.  Speaking of which, here are some pictures:

Yes folks, this is my pastor.  Or as my friend Katie refers to him "Jesus with tattoos"

The dip and dunk.  I was careful to cover my nose so as to protect myself from brain-eating amoeba.  Or whatever else might live in the Willamette.

Katie also pointed out there appears to be "fairy dust" coming off of me in this photo.  Hey, I'll take it.

My support crew (from L to R): random guy I don't know from church, Jake, Katie, ME, Joelle, Kendra, Vanessa, Marc

I also visited the Oregon State Fair (though, at night, so there was not much sunshine to be had):

We had free admission, Schuyler bought the elephant ear, AND we finagled our way onto this vertigo swings without tickets.  How great is that?

I did a little bit more research towards my goal of becoming an expert Portland foodie by joining a friend for food cart lunch, which we carried over to the Waterfront and ate on the steps.

Later that day, I journeyed to Sauvie Island for the first time... and fell in love.  Our little beach was totally secluded.  My friend Jackie and I packed a cooler with savory snacks and played in the water for hours.

 

Today, I had the privilege of introducing my siblings, their spouses, and their children to the wonder that is THE WAFFLE WINDOW (we missed you, Vanessa!): 

I highly recommend "The Whole Farm"

Cadence went for the "Berry Bliss"

And the twins had a little bit of everything, it seems.

After that, Joelle and Heidi and I explored the vintage shops in one of my favorite parts of Portland.  I fell in love, again, this time with a little blue clutch on sale for $10.  I reluctantly decided I didn't have enough money to purchase it, so I did not.  Being a grown up really sucks sometimes.  We rounded out our day with a trip to Keana's Candyland Bakery, where we even scored free sugar cookies. :)

Finally, tonight, I prepared one of my favorite meals: apricot glazed pork with sweet potato gnocchi.  I even treated myself to some nutella and graham cracker sandwiches - dipped in milk - for dessert.

So as you can see, I've pretty much been eating my way through summer.  Yum.