Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Wild and Wacky Wednesday
My alarm went off at 5:30 this morning so that I could work out at 6. I went outside and opened my newly rented garage. I had backed my car in yesterday so that I could just pull out this morning. I got in the car and started it, but it would not shift from park. I tried several times and then pulled out the manual. It said I needed to push the override button. I located that and tried to push it with my storage lock key, but to no avail. I came inside the house, found my tool box, and took out the screwdriver. That didn't work either. So, I called Michelle to tell her I was working out this morning and then I called 1-800-call-mom. I was hoping that Dennis would be able to tell me what to do. He had already left for work, so I called him there. He said it sounded like I wouldn't be able to fix it and that he would have to look at it more to see what the problem was. I should just call a tow truck. [Remember, I can't put my car in neutral to tow it.] This was not sounding promising. I sent Dad a text and asked him where I should have it towed to. He called back and said that he would come over as soon as he finished breakfast. It was now 6:25. I got into the shower, thinking that I would like to be dressed with clean clothes when the tow truck driver called. It was at this point that I realized I don't have towing insurance. I had had roadside assistance with my warranty package and had taken towing off the insurance to save money. When the warranty expired, I forgot to add it back on the insurance. Dad got here around 7:15 and we tried to move the gear shift. We read the manual some more and learned that this can happen when the fuse for the break lights are blown. [I would assume that. :~?] Well, I had break lights. So, it was decided that I would call the Ford dealership. However, they don't open til 8. So, I ate breakfast and waited. The service dealer said I needed to have it towed in and he could fix it. I called the towing company and they said they would be here in 30 min. I called my insurance company at 8:30 when they opened and told them the deal. The kind lady put towing insurance on my package and said they would probably cover today's cost. As I was talking to her, the tow truck showed up. The man asked what was wrong and I told him. He said, "Oh, the break light fuse must be blown." Really??!! I told him the brakes worked, but he didn't believe me. They did. He was able to push the override button and put the car into gear. I paid him for a jump start and he waited while I closed up my apartment and left the garage. I drove straight to the dealer. I got there around 9:15 and waited an hour for a courtesy drive back to my place. I worked on sorting old bills and stuff and sewed on the fleece blanket. Laurissa called around 1 and wanted to know what I was doing. I told her and she asked if I needed a distraction. I said yes, but I hadn't had lunch. She hadn't either, but I had a pizza in the freezer and lots of fruit. I put in the pizza and cut up the fruit by the time Laurissa and Zeralina got here. As we were eating lunch and watching "Zerie" play, the service guy from the dealer called. He told me they would have to replace the entire gear shaft in the middle consult. The good news was the parts were in stock. The bad news was the cost. I told him I didn't really have a choice and to go ahead. He also said one of the front lights was out. I said why not. The three of us girls decided to run errands. We went to Jo-Ann's so that I could buy batting for the t-shirt quilts. Then we went to Cost Plus and wandered around, walked to Barnes and Noble and browsed, went to Staples to get paper and pens, then went to Home Depot to look at stuff. We decided to go to Laurissa's house and wait for the call about the car being done and then she would take me up to the dealer. On the way to her house we stopped for ice cream at McDonald's. It was about 4:30, so I called the dealership to see if my car was close to being ready. I was told that the parts were in and it would be about 1/2 hr. Laurissa drove me up there and I walked in with a glass of water, batting in a bag, two reams of printer paper, two pairs of scissors, and four new pens. I probably looked like a dork, but hey, I got some shopping finished. I sat in the waiting room til 5:15, when I noticed that my car was waiting in the lot. I went and asked if my car was done and the gal said, "No-one came and told you that it's finished." Who knows how long it was sitting there. I paid the bill, [Grateful that I worked 11 days of summer school, cause that was what I needed.] and drove home.
Tazmanian devil Tuesday
I got up at 5:30, so that I could go work out at 6:00 before summer school. For some reason, I started thinking yesterday morning. I thought it would be a good idea to make a quilt for a lady who has trained me in a reading program and has been my supervisor in this area for the last 6 years. She is retiring and her last day is Friday. She is a huge Boise State fan and I thought it would be fun to make her a blanket. [I'll just whip it right up!] After work, I went to the storage unit to see what was left in it so I can clean it out. I removed 7 boxes of books. Now, I knew I had more books than the 6-8 I had moved in Sept! I almost need more bookshelves. :-) Needless to say there is no room in my 525 sq. ft apartment for more furniture. But I digress. After the storage unit trip, I went to the church to buy gift cards. The cards benefit the school and families that attend the school. I figured I might as well go get gift cards to Jo-Ann's before I buy fabric. While I was at the church, I found Laurissa feeding Zeralina. We decided to go for a quick lunch since Laurissa had to tutor at 1:30 in Meridian. After lunch, I ran to Barnes and Nobles and got some crossword books. I wanted to have some to work with Grammie. Then, I went to get fabric. I got the neatest fleece material. It has the word Broncos and Boise State all over it in orange and blue. For the back I got a light/dark blue swirl. I brought it home and started sewing. My machine was having issues, so I finally quit working on it around 8:30.
Monday madness
I got home from Michigan on Sunday morning and slept most of the day. I'll write more about the trip later. I am subbing for summer school all this week. It's from 7:45-11:45 AM. After school, I went to grab lunch, dropped off books at the library, and picked up my mail at the post office. I visited with Grammie from 12:30-1:30 and then I came home for a short nap. I went to a swim meet at 5:00, thinking it would be over by 9. Oh no, I left at 10:10 and it was still going.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Busy, Busy, Busy
OK, here is a run-down of my week.
I subbed for summer school all week. That ran from 7:47-11:45. Tues. I left at 9:30 and today I left at 10:45.
Mon. I went for a workout at 6 AM for 30 min. Then I went to work. I had book group from 12-1, then a doctors appt from 1:45-2:30. I ran home for a quick nap and then I grabbed dinner. I was babysitting at the church from 5:45-10 PM.
Tues. I had to take my spit test. I woke up at 5:30 and spent 25 min. spitting into a vial. Then I went to work til 9:30. I ran to the church for a Sunday School Leadership meeting that lasted until 12. I came home and took another spit test. Luckily this one only took 10 min. I rested for a little bit and then I went to Merritt's with Michelle at 2. We wanted to try out their scones. They tasted great, but my stomach wasn't happy later. I was at Grammie and Pa's from 3-4. I went home and at 6, did another spit test which took 15 min. I hung out and watched tv and at 10 did the final spit test, which took 6 min.
Wed. I ran errands and mailed the spit test. I worked on the 2 t-shirt quilts that need to be done by Aug. 13. At 7:15, I met Jack (my brother's father-in-law) to pick out fabric for the back of the quilts.
Thurs. I went for a workout at 6 AM for 30 min. After work, I went to Carmen's house at 12:45. I threw a load of laundry in her machine and we went to lunch. Then we ran errands. After all our errands we done, we took the kids to the zoo. We all had a lot of fun, but it was very hot. On the way home we went and got ice cream. I had planned to go to a swim meet at 5, but by the time we got back to Carmen's it was 5:30. I still had to put my clothes into the dryer. Carmen and I ended up talking and I got home around 7:30, after I dropped off my recycling. I was so tired that I was asleep by 9:45.
Fri. I got up at 6 and got dressed. Then, I sent emails, charged my iPod, and cleaned my kitchen. After I got off work at 10:45, I ran and got my meds. from the store, came home and cleaned my bathroom, and went and had lunch with Dad from 12:15-1:15. Then I ran to Costco to get fruit snacks for Carmen and fill my car with gas. Costco the day before a holiday weekend is not the place to go. :-) I came home and laid down for 40 min. Then I went to the library, the PO box, and Albertsons. I had to pick up flowers for Grammie and Pa because tomorrow is their 64th anniversary. I stayed at Grammie and Pa's from 4-5. Then, I went to Carmen's to give her the fruit snacks. I was there from 5:30-630. I then ran to Fred Meyer to get some snacks and grabbed dinner. When I got home, I cleaned out my fridge, and vacuumed my apartment.
Now I am posting this blog and hoping to get to sleep by 10:30.
I subbed for summer school all week. That ran from 7:47-11:45. Tues. I left at 9:30 and today I left at 10:45.
Mon. I went for a workout at 6 AM for 30 min. Then I went to work. I had book group from 12-1, then a doctors appt from 1:45-2:30. I ran home for a quick nap and then I grabbed dinner. I was babysitting at the church from 5:45-10 PM.
Tues. I had to take my spit test. I woke up at 5:30 and spent 25 min. spitting into a vial. Then I went to work til 9:30. I ran to the church for a Sunday School Leadership meeting that lasted until 12. I came home and took another spit test. Luckily this one only took 10 min. I rested for a little bit and then I went to Merritt's with Michelle at 2. We wanted to try out their scones. They tasted great, but my stomach wasn't happy later. I was at Grammie and Pa's from 3-4. I went home and at 6, did another spit test which took 15 min. I hung out and watched tv and at 10 did the final spit test, which took 6 min.
Wed. I ran errands and mailed the spit test. I worked on the 2 t-shirt quilts that need to be done by Aug. 13. At 7:15, I met Jack (my brother's father-in-law) to pick out fabric for the back of the quilts.
Thurs. I went for a workout at 6 AM for 30 min. After work, I went to Carmen's house at 12:45. I threw a load of laundry in her machine and we went to lunch. Then we ran errands. After all our errands we done, we took the kids to the zoo. We all had a lot of fun, but it was very hot. On the way home we went and got ice cream. I had planned to go to a swim meet at 5, but by the time we got back to Carmen's it was 5:30. I still had to put my clothes into the dryer. Carmen and I ended up talking and I got home around 7:30, after I dropped off my recycling. I was so tired that I was asleep by 9:45.
Fri. I got up at 6 and got dressed. Then, I sent emails, charged my iPod, and cleaned my kitchen. After I got off work at 10:45, I ran and got my meds. from the store, came home and cleaned my bathroom, and went and had lunch with Dad from 12:15-1:15. Then I ran to Costco to get fruit snacks for Carmen and fill my car with gas. Costco the day before a holiday weekend is not the place to go. :-) I came home and laid down for 40 min. Then I went to the library, the PO box, and Albertsons. I had to pick up flowers for Grammie and Pa because tomorrow is their 64th anniversary. I stayed at Grammie and Pa's from 4-5. Then, I went to Carmen's to give her the fruit snacks. I was there from 5:30-630. I then ran to Fred Meyer to get some snacks and grabbed dinner. When I got home, I cleaned out my fridge, and vacuumed my apartment.
Now I am posting this blog and hoping to get to sleep by 10:30.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Portland in 33 Hours
Michelle and I left Boise at 7:25 on Tues. morning and arrived in Portland at 8:00. Flying into the airport I spotted an IKEA and knew we had to go. We did fine buying tickets for the light rail and hopped on. It was a good 40 min. ride into town. IKEA was closed, so we decided to go downtown and go to Powell's bookstore. On the light rail, Michelle and I looked at each and figured out neither of us had printed an itinerary. Which meant, we had not conformation codes, or info as to when our flight actually left! We are quite brilliant together, but apart, it is scary. We got off in Chinatown, not on purpose, and it was quite deserted except for the homeless. Good thing we blended in so well with our humongous backpacks--NOT! We walked and walked and saw a North Face store. It didn't open til 10 so we continued to Powell's, which opened at 9. If we had not been looking for the store, I don't think we would have found it. The area around the store was dirty and deserted.
We entered the bookstore and wanted to get rid of our backpacks for the browsing time. We asked the gal at info and she said, "Right over there." She wasn't in a good mood. We walked over to the bag check and that man was not friendly. This was the beginning of the trend. We walked around Powell's and looked at more books than I have ever seen. Around 10, we were hungry and tired. We went back to the bag check to ask about a diner for breakfast. They didn't even know of anything in the area. Really??!! How can you not know what businesses are around you? Finally, someone suggested a little dinner a few blocks away. We went and had good breakfast with a friendly server. We thought we were blending in well, but we were always pegged as people from out of town. Michelle hoped we looked like students, but we didn't! When we finished, we walked back to the store and checked our bags in at a different bag check. That person was slightly friendlier.
We continued to walk around the store for another two hours. Our eyes were glazed over and our minds were slightly numb from reading title after title. I did find out some things. In the cooking section, all the chocolate books have brown covers. In the political section, the covers were blue, red, or white. Coincidence? I don't think so. I found Tiffany's Table Manners for Teenagers. When we left we decided to go down to the waterfront. We missed the bus/light rail, (this will be a recurring theme in our trip) so we went into the toy store and wandered around. Then we caught the next bus. (Stay tuned for the theme to continue.)
We took the bus to go see the Rose Festival. We got off the bus too early--yep, again!-- and walked the rest of the way. When we got down to the carnival, it was closed. Something about a blackout day. :-( So, we walked several blocks uptown and parked ourselves on a windowsill to look at our map and eat a snack. We must have looked quite cute since so many people walked by and smiled at the sight of our huge map. We asked a guy that sitting on the next windowsill for directions. He came over looking helpful, but we found out he was from out of town as well. He, however; was blending in. We finally decided to go to the North Face store. It was so tiny, we were slightly disappointed.
The info center was looking good because we needed to find our hotel and other things to do. [I'm so glad we decided to go without a plan. :-) Katie's the organized one; I thought she would have it all planned out. I was just there for comic relief.] Fining the info center took some doing on our part. We finally found the bus to get to the info center and when we got off, we realized we had been right there on our way to the waterfront.
The women in the info center were slightly helpful, but it took awhile to find our hotel on the map. We should have known we were in trouble at this point. We did pick up some great brochures on where to eat. Voodoo Doughnuts! We also learned that the red & blue line traveled East/West and the green & yellow line traveled North/South. That would have been good to know, but I never could figure out where North was. At this point our feet hurt! We sat down outside to plan out what we would/could do next. At this point it was only 1:00, and we were hungry. Seeing that we were in Portland, fish & chips sounded like a reasonable option. No such luck. We walked and walked around the blocks trying to find seafood place with reasonable prices. We didn't even find a seafood place. The Nordstrom's cafe was near, but it looked fancy; and we were not! So, we decided to eat at Flying Elephants Delicatessen. When we went in, it didn't look very appealing. Plan L, was looking great because there was a Subway that we had passed a few blocks away. Good old Subway saved the day.
Walking back the info center to catch the lightrail was a better option than walking to the hotel. We got off at the baseball stadium, which happened to be one stop too early. [Good thing we are training for the 1/2 marathon. Have I mentioned what is in our backpacks? Michelle had clothes and 2 bananas, M&M's, and a bag of Kisses. I had clothes, a water bottle, 4 apples, chocolate goldfish, homemade granola bars, and two new books. Notice how Katie brings the healthy stuff!] We had to walk uphill to get to the hotel and when we walked passed a hotel we were grateful it wasn't ours. As we were waiting to check in, we looked at our confirmation to see why we weren't closer to downtown and at the bottom in small print it said: The airport is 6.9 miles and distances are calculated in a straight line and may not reflect actual travel distance. In other words it is calculated by way the crow flies. Michelle and I decided we could make up math problems for the 7th graders based on all our walking. We checked into the hotel across the street and was told our room was the one that looked like a dump. We were quickly assured that our rooms has just been redone. We got to the room and it was nice. A nap was in order. After the nap, we decided to go to China Town to eat at a haunted pizza place. We got on the light rail and transferred to the other color light rail and watched our stop go by. By now we were so used to this happening that we didn't even blink.This meant that when we got off we had to walk 7 blocks to dinner. I have to say the pizza was great. We wondered where all the people were, though. It was a empty place and we couldn't figure out where everyone was. Deja vu from our previous visit there at 8 in the morning. As we were waiting for our food and planning the next day, we looked out the window and saw a man standing with a white towel around his waist. He had a mic, so he was in a play? Michelle very much hoped the towel would fall to the ground and make her trip. After dinner comes dessert. Have I mentioned we like chocolate? Although the towel man was pretty sweet!
We walked 3 blocks to a place called Voodoo Doughnuts. This is the sign for ordering the doughnuts. Michelle knew what she wanted, but I took my time and by then the place was packed. Katie, Katie, Katie. We had to stand in line and wait for everyone to order. When I got to the front they were out of the flavor I had chosen, so I got what Michelle did. We chose a doughnut topped with chocolate sauce, Oreos, and drizzled with peanut butter. We were quite full, so we decided to go back to the hotel. After riding the bus back to the info center, we got off and walked through the mall at Pioneer Courthouse Square. It was a cute mall that was getting ready to close for the night. So, we got on another bus and rode it up as far as we could. It was starting to drizzle, so we were grateful to be at the hotel. Unfortunately, the key didn't work. So, we walked down the stairs, across the street, and into the lobby to get help. The night person fixed it and we walked back. The key still did not work. So, Michelle stayed with the stuff, (and the doughnuts!) and I walked back and got a brand new key. We decided we had earned a night of TV. At 9:00, when it's free minute time, I called Southwest to explain our predicament. The person on the other end was not amused. You mean most people don't fly into cities with no idea when their flight home leaves, without their tickets, or confirmation numbers? She finally gave me the conformation code for me and I hung up. Michelle wanted to know why I hadn't handed the phone to her. I explained she wasn't amused and Michelle decided to call home and have her husband look up the info. Explaining the situation to him was harder than the agent. He loves me anyway. I was laughing so hard. We finally both got what we needed and settled down for sleep.
In the morning, we got ready and headed across the street for our breakfast. It was yogurt, fruit, drinks, and bagels. I am so glad we had our doughnuts. So, we went back to our room with some yogurt and hot chocolate and sat on the floor eating our little breakfast. We decided to walk uphill to see the rose garden. At this point we have checked out of the hotel and have our backpacks again. Before we got to the rose garden, there was a Holocaust Memorial that was absolutely beatiful. It had a concise synopsis of the entire concentration camp event.
From there, we walked up to the rose garden. That was so cool to see that many different types of roses. The day was cloudy and it had been drizzling on and off, but it wasn't uncomfortable. The roses had little rain droplets on them and that was so cool. We went up to the gift shop and looked around. We asked the gal when the bus would come so we didn't have to walk all the way into town. She said it would be there in 7 min. Perfect, I had time to go to the restroom. Did I mention that Katie has a bladder the size of a peanut? As I came out, there went the bus. The next one would come in 20 min. Being the walkers that we are, we decided to walk down the hill and catch the next bus at the next bus stop. It couldn't be that far, right? As we got to the park, Michelle said she had to use the restroom. It was Katie's fault; she got me thinking about restrooms. I told her she should have gone when I went, but she said she didn't have to then. At that point, it started pouring. We ran down to the shelter, which at originally been part of the zoo and housed the elephants. Michelle used the restroom and we were going to wait out the rain.
After a few minutes, we asked a bunch of mom's where the next bus stop was. We were told it was down around the corner. Yeah, like a half mile away. So, we walked. And then, we ran because the bus was coming and we certainly didn't want to miss it. We got to the bus stop as it pulled up. We told the driver we needed to buy tickets. He wanted to know where ours were and we said we didn't have any. Then he wanted to know how we had gotten up the hill and we said that we had walked. I don't think he believed us.
When we got to town we went to the library so we could check in for our flight. From there we went to the Lloyed center which is a huge mall that has an ice skating rink. Unfortunately, the rink was closed, but we saw a lot of cool shops and had lunch. We went outside and watched the bus we needed go by us. Go figure. We had 20 min. to buy a ticket and people watch. IKEA is a great store and we definitely could have spent more time there. The airport had fun stores that we wandered into and then we got on the plane. We flew to Reno and had 2 1/2 hours to kill. That airport is tiny with nothing to do. Good thing, we had books and cards. And chocolate!
By the time we got home, we were tired and sore. Portland has been crossed off our bucket list.
Here is the shirt I got at the airport after our trip.
P.S. the bananas didn't make it because Michelle kept putting her feet on the backpack as a foot rest.
[Michelle's comments are in purple.]
We entered the bookstore and wanted to get rid of our backpacks for the browsing time. We asked the gal at info and she said, "Right over there." She wasn't in a good mood. We walked over to the bag check and that man was not friendly. This was the beginning of the trend. We walked around Powell's and looked at more books than I have ever seen. Around 10, we were hungry and tired. We went back to the bag check to ask about a diner for breakfast. They didn't even know of anything in the area. Really??!! How can you not know what businesses are around you? Finally, someone suggested a little dinner a few blocks away. We went and had good breakfast with a friendly server. We thought we were blending in well, but we were always pegged as people from out of town. Michelle hoped we looked like students, but we didn't! When we finished, we walked back to the store and checked our bags in at a different bag check. That person was slightly friendlier.
We continued to walk around the store for another two hours. Our eyes were glazed over and our minds were slightly numb from reading title after title. I did find out some things. In the cooking section, all the chocolate books have brown covers. In the political section, the covers were blue, red, or white. Coincidence? I don't think so. I found Tiffany's Table Manners for Teenagers. When we left we decided to go down to the waterfront. We missed the bus/light rail, (this will be a recurring theme in our trip) so we went into the toy store and wandered around. Then we caught the next bus. (Stay tuned for the theme to continue.)
We took the bus to go see the Rose Festival. We got off the bus too early--yep, again!-- and walked the rest of the way. When we got down to the carnival, it was closed. Something about a blackout day. :-( So, we walked several blocks uptown and parked ourselves on a windowsill to look at our map and eat a snack. We must have looked quite cute since so many people walked by and smiled at the sight of our huge map. We asked a guy that sitting on the next windowsill for directions. He came over looking helpful, but we found out he was from out of town as well. He, however; was blending in. We finally decided to go to the North Face store. It was so tiny, we were slightly disappointed.
The info center was looking good because we needed to find our hotel and other things to do. [I'm so glad we decided to go without a plan. :-) Katie's the organized one; I thought she would have it all planned out. I was just there for comic relief.] Fining the info center took some doing on our part. We finally found the bus to get to the info center and when we got off, we realized we had been right there on our way to the waterfront.
The women in the info center were slightly helpful, but it took awhile to find our hotel on the map. We should have known we were in trouble at this point. We did pick up some great brochures on where to eat. Voodoo Doughnuts! We also learned that the red & blue line traveled East/West and the green & yellow line traveled North/South. That would have been good to know, but I never could figure out where North was. At this point our feet hurt! We sat down outside to plan out what we would/could do next. At this point it was only 1:00, and we were hungry. Seeing that we were in Portland, fish & chips sounded like a reasonable option. No such luck. We walked and walked around the blocks trying to find seafood place with reasonable prices. We didn't even find a seafood place. The Nordstrom's cafe was near, but it looked fancy; and we were not! So, we decided to eat at Flying Elephants Delicatessen. When we went in, it didn't look very appealing. Plan L, was looking great because there was a Subway that we had passed a few blocks away. Good old Subway saved the day.
Walking back the info center to catch the lightrail was a better option than walking to the hotel. We got off at the baseball stadium, which happened to be one stop too early. [Good thing we are training for the 1/2 marathon. Have I mentioned what is in our backpacks? Michelle had clothes and 2 bananas, M&M's, and a bag of Kisses. I had clothes, a water bottle, 4 apples, chocolate goldfish, homemade granola bars, and two new books. Notice how Katie brings the healthy stuff!] We had to walk uphill to get to the hotel and when we walked passed a hotel we were grateful it wasn't ours. As we were waiting to check in, we looked at our confirmation to see why we weren't closer to downtown and at the bottom in small print it said: The airport is 6.9 miles and distances are calculated in a straight line and may not reflect actual travel distance. In other words it is calculated by way the crow flies. Michelle and I decided we could make up math problems for the 7th graders based on all our walking. We checked into the hotel across the street and was told our room was the one that looked like a dump. We were quickly assured that our rooms has just been redone. We got to the room and it was nice. A nap was in order. After the nap, we decided to go to China Town to eat at a haunted pizza place. We got on the light rail and transferred to the other color light rail and watched our stop go by. By now we were so used to this happening that we didn't even blink.This meant that when we got off we had to walk 7 blocks to dinner. I have to say the pizza was great. We wondered where all the people were, though. It was a empty place and we couldn't figure out where everyone was. Deja vu from our previous visit there at 8 in the morning. As we were waiting for our food and planning the next day, we looked out the window and saw a man standing with a white towel around his waist. He had a mic, so he was in a play? Michelle very much hoped the towel would fall to the ground and make her trip. After dinner comes dessert. Have I mentioned we like chocolate? Although the towel man was pretty sweet!
We walked 3 blocks to a place called Voodoo Doughnuts. This is the sign for ordering the doughnuts. Michelle knew what she wanted, but I took my time and by then the place was packed. Katie, Katie, Katie. We had to stand in line and wait for everyone to order. When I got to the front they were out of the flavor I had chosen, so I got what Michelle did. We chose a doughnut topped with chocolate sauce, Oreos, and drizzled with peanut butter. We were quite full, so we decided to go back to the hotel. After riding the bus back to the info center, we got off and walked through the mall at Pioneer Courthouse Square. It was a cute mall that was getting ready to close for the night. So, we got on another bus and rode it up as far as we could. It was starting to drizzle, so we were grateful to be at the hotel. Unfortunately, the key didn't work. So, we walked down the stairs, across the street, and into the lobby to get help. The night person fixed it and we walked back. The key still did not work. So, Michelle stayed with the stuff, (and the doughnuts!) and I walked back and got a brand new key. We decided we had earned a night of TV. At 9:00, when it's free minute time, I called Southwest to explain our predicament. The person on the other end was not amused. You mean most people don't fly into cities with no idea when their flight home leaves, without their tickets, or confirmation numbers? She finally gave me the conformation code for me and I hung up. Michelle wanted to know why I hadn't handed the phone to her. I explained she wasn't amused and Michelle decided to call home and have her husband look up the info. Explaining the situation to him was harder than the agent. He loves me anyway. I was laughing so hard. We finally both got what we needed and settled down for sleep.
In the morning, we got ready and headed across the street for our breakfast. It was yogurt, fruit, drinks, and bagels. I am so glad we had our doughnuts. So, we went back to our room with some yogurt and hot chocolate and sat on the floor eating our little breakfast. We decided to walk uphill to see the rose garden. At this point we have checked out of the hotel and have our backpacks again. Before we got to the rose garden, there was a Holocaust Memorial that was absolutely beatiful. It had a concise synopsis of the entire concentration camp event.
From there, we walked up to the rose garden. That was so cool to see that many different types of roses. The day was cloudy and it had been drizzling on and off, but it wasn't uncomfortable. The roses had little rain droplets on them and that was so cool. We went up to the gift shop and looked around. We asked the gal when the bus would come so we didn't have to walk all the way into town. She said it would be there in 7 min. Perfect, I had time to go to the restroom. Did I mention that Katie has a bladder the size of a peanut? As I came out, there went the bus. The next one would come in 20 min. Being the walkers that we are, we decided to walk down the hill and catch the next bus at the next bus stop. It couldn't be that far, right? As we got to the park, Michelle said she had to use the restroom. It was Katie's fault; she got me thinking about restrooms. I told her she should have gone when I went, but she said she didn't have to then. At that point, it started pouring. We ran down to the shelter, which at originally been part of the zoo and housed the elephants. Michelle used the restroom and we were going to wait out the rain.
After a few minutes, we asked a bunch of mom's where the next bus stop was. We were told it was down around the corner. Yeah, like a half mile away. So, we walked. And then, we ran because the bus was coming and we certainly didn't want to miss it. We got to the bus stop as it pulled up. We told the driver we needed to buy tickets. He wanted to know where ours were and we said we didn't have any. Then he wanted to know how we had gotten up the hill and we said that we had walked. I don't think he believed us.
When we got to town we went to the library so we could check in for our flight. From there we went to the Lloyed center which is a huge mall that has an ice skating rink. Unfortunately, the rink was closed, but we saw a lot of cool shops and had lunch. We went outside and watched the bus we needed go by us. Go figure. We had 20 min. to buy a ticket and people watch. IKEA is a great store and we definitely could have spent more time there. The airport had fun stores that we wandered into and then we got on the plane. We flew to Reno and had 2 1/2 hours to kill. That airport is tiny with nothing to do. Good thing, we had books and cards. And chocolate!
By the time we got home, we were tired and sore. Portland has been crossed off our bucket list.
Here is the shirt I got at the airport after our trip.P.S. the bananas didn't make it because Michelle kept putting her feet on the backpack as a foot rest.
[Michelle's comments are in purple.]
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Very Busy
I have been so busy that you'll have to wait to hear about my Portland trip. Mon, I worked around the house and then had book group from 12-1. From 1:30-3:30, I had a leadership meeting at the church. Then I ran to Grammie and Pa's for an hour and after that I went to the grocery store. I arrived home around 6:30.
Today, I went to Carmen's at 10. She was not ready to leave, so it took about 45 min. to get out the door. We went to the library and stayed there until 11:30 and then we went and got lunch at Burger King. The kids had a blast playing on the equipment until 1. We went back to Carmen's house where she was ever so gracious to let me do laundry while we watched a movie. I left around 3:00 and went to a different library to get my books and then I went to the store. I arrived home around 4.
Tomorrow, doesn't look any calmer. I have to go pick up a spit test (hormone testing) and then I have a meeting, I'll run to Grammie and Pa's. Then I get to go watch a swim meet.
Thurs. and Fri. are just as busy.
So, as you can see, I am staying busy and I would love to post my Portland trip, but it will take awhile. Plus, Michelle says she has to help so that you can all get the REAL story. :-)
Today, I went to Carmen's at 10. She was not ready to leave, so it took about 45 min. to get out the door. We went to the library and stayed there until 11:30 and then we went and got lunch at Burger King. The kids had a blast playing on the equipment until 1. We went back to Carmen's house where she was ever so gracious to let me do laundry while we watched a movie. I left around 3:00 and went to a different library to get my books and then I went to the store. I arrived home around 4.
Tomorrow, doesn't look any calmer. I have to go pick up a spit test (hormone testing) and then I have a meeting, I'll run to Grammie and Pa's. Then I get to go watch a swim meet.
Thurs. and Fri. are just as busy.
So, as you can see, I am staying busy and I would love to post my Portland trip, but it will take awhile. Plus, Michelle says she has to help so that you can all get the REAL story. :-)
Saturday, June 5, 2010
1st Day of Summer Vacation
I woke up this morning at 5:30 and decided I wasn't going to get up. I fell back asleep and when I woke up at 6:40 I decided to get up. It is now 9:00 and I have done my laundry, talked to Grandma Michigan, gotten yogurt at the store, gone to the bank, and recycled. I plan on quilting til 10:30 and then the day really starts. My friend and I are going to look at remodeled homes on a tour and also look at the open art studios, in people's homes, that are open this weekend. This is my Sat. in a nutshell. What does yours look like?
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