FIVE YEARS MARRIED!!!

Original plans were to revisit Denmark & Holland but with Covid and flights being over-the-top expensive, we decided to spend some time exploring Oregon - something we also haven’t really been able to do with all the restrictions. We always heard how cute and cool Bend was and some of our favorite PNW Breweries live here.

Our first stop was a highly rated gastropub, Bangers & Brews. We were greeted by the owner who walked us through his menu and helped us order a Duck & Bacon and Wild Boar Sausage over their mac&cheese. I cannot express enough how good this was. This place is 10/10 and the best part is that the owner’s Father hangs out there and chats with everyone. It was so cute and personal.

After dinner we made out way 10 Barrel and Duschetes Breweries and walked along the Drake River before calling it night which was very quaint and peaceful sans the massive amounts of goose poop. No one warned us about that.

The first two nights we spent at an Airbnb in Tomolo, a quiet town 15 min outside of Bend. It was definitely rural but very beautiful and quiet. We napped, read & drank wine outside, and hung out the owners cat, Grey, who I liked to call Alphabet.

The next day we planned to hike Smith Rock: a very picturesque State Park with great hiking trails, rock climbing, and more. We chose to Misery Ridge for it’s views but it 100% lived up to it’s name. It was one the hardest hikes I have ever been on. And going down isn’t a blast either since it’s so steep but it had incredible views. Would probably do it again.

BUT the best part of the day was when we were driving to the park we passed Crescent Moon Alpaca Farm and we had to stop. This farm homes over 200 Alpacas of all ages, even 1 day old babies. We spent hours here feeding and petting them. I even talked to owner about buying some but now is not the time. This is another 10/10 most visit.

We ended the day dinner at Dogwood Cocktail Cabin, which was highly recommended by our friends and it was great. A nice spot of top notch cocktails and bites - get the Firecracker Shrimp!

Bend is also home to Sparrow Bakery, famous for their croissants, especially their Ocean Rolls. We enjoyed one of these as the best Chicken Waldorf sandwich I have ever had. There will be a line and worth the wait. Also, they do sell out so get there early!

After our stay at the airbnb we checked into McMenamin’s Old St. Francis School which we were really excited about. We got a lovely corner room in Art House that was just perfect. After grabbing a cocktail we immediately went into robe life and went for dip in their Roman inspired soaking pool. The roof is open in it which would be so cool to be in if it was raining hard or snowing. After, we roamed around the grounds visiting all their bars and getting stamps and locating all their secret rooms, including the Broom Closet Bar which is so fun.

Having visited and stayed at a few McMenamins, this is definitely my favorite for food. Though they all kind of serve the same food, their chef at this location does an exceptional job. You can’t go to Bend without popping in here and at least getting some tots.

All and all Bend was cool and we are glad we went but I would like to come back during off season. The one thing I didn’t mention was how crowded it was - EVERYWHERE. And lot’s of BROS. Water Sports + Beer = Bros. Also tons of Bachelor/Bachelorette parties but it come with the time of year. It also drizzled the majority of time which we coined Bendrizzle. It’s definitely clean, pretty, and has tons to do for everyone.

Thanks, Bend. We’ll see you in the winter.

Hello, Thirty-Four! What an in-between number to turn. There isn’t much excitement around it, no turning points.. SO I made it my own this year and went kind of big and took advantage of the entire week.

MCMENAMINS EDGEFIELD

My friend, Nikole, and I started the week off with an evening at McMenamins Edgefield in Troutdale, OR. If you know McMenamins then you know it’s a portal back in time filled with many secret pockets and places to explore. This once “poor farm” is now transformed into a gorgeous and historical hotel. Each room is different and named after an individual who once stayed there. There are no TV’s, no radios.. just beautiful decor and amazing hand painted art throughout.

Once checked in we had cocktails at the Little Red Red Shed, which used to be the farm’s incinerator, followed by wine tasting at their in-house winery, dinner at Power House (the original power station for the farm), and ended the evening by floating in their lovely salt-water soaking pools at Ruby’s Spa that sits at a constant and comfortable 102°.

After an early night and a good rest, we continued on with “robe-life” and grabbed some breakfast cocktails from my favorite bar there, the Black Rabbit Bar, and headed back to the pools. It was a foggy, cool morning which made the pools even more enchanting. Going on a weekday is ideal since we were literally the only ones in there. I never wanted to leave.

And lastly before we headed home, we had a lovely brunch at the Black Rabbit Restaurant which was so good! Beet hash? Yes, please. I can’t wait to go back

MOUNT HOOD, OR

It’s always been my dream is stay in an A-Frame in the woods in the PNW. And when I came across this gorgeous one some time ago I knew I had to stay here. It’s aesthetic is right up my alley AND it was only about an hour away from our home in Portland. So what better time to splurge than this week! It was EXACTLY like the description and photos plus more! And there was even a little snow!

The designers of this home really did a fantastic job at optimizing the space and making it really unique. The first floor is a large space with the most comfortable sofa which is perfect to lounging back and enjoying the fire and the fun spiral staircase. It had a great kitchen and dining table that seats six. The additional floors are divided into split levels which house the two bedrooms and a reading nook. Though the entire space is an open floor plan but the division of levels provided enough privacy between the bedrooms and created sound barriers from the main floor.

On my actual birthday we drove up the mountain a bit to Trillium Lake. The road was closed due to snow so we found this to be the perfect hiking opportunity. The snow was pretty thick and icy in spots but thank to our yak-tracks it was relatively easy. Every now and then you would step in a spot that wasn’t as packed and would sink about a foot… always fun. Steve loves the snow so he was having a blast. We didn’t realize how far the lake was from the main highway and ended up hiking about five miles but since it was a Thursday there weren’t many people out so it was the perfect way to spend the afternoon.

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Later that afternoon, Nikole and her lovely Mom, met us at the cabin for the evening. We grabbed a drink at the fun Skyway Bar & Grill before dinner. I highly recommend this place if you’re in the neighborhood. It’s funky, kitchy, and it’s been there forever. They have a ton of in-house infused vodka’s and can you sit by the fire and relax from the day.

We wrapped up the day by sipping champagne, cooking dinner, playing cards, and Nikole even brought a home made cake which was the cutest. But all good things had to come to end and we had to head home. We had an awesome stay and would definitely come back.

Thank you to everyone who joined me during my birthday week! I love you all and couldn’t imagine going into another year without you! Xo.