Day 2-4 of Portland

Day 2 of my vacation trip my sister said she was feeling like she might be coming down with a cold with a little scratchy throat ....no big deal so off we went with her husband to the Rock and Gem show that was in town in search for that perfect treasure....no treasures to be found at this rock show so we had lunch at the local health food store called New Seasons and then decided we should head home for my sister to get some rest so we could be up and ready early in the morning to go to a Jazzercise class to get in some much needed cardio.

Day 3

The next morning I was up and ready to go for the class but Dennie was not up to it so she decided to stay home while her husband dropped me off for the class. I had only gone to a Jazzercise class once before years ago, this was a really good class with lots of cardio and strength training, I was dripping wet when they came to pick me up after class was over.

Dennie had some time to take some medication and was feeling a bit better so we ran home long enough for me to take a quick shower, drop Steve at home then we were off to the Saturday Market. Portland's Saturday market is really just a swap meet lost from the 60's tie dye everything and lots of good people watching with a local band playing music.

Day 4 - Sept 25th ...My Birthday and rain was in the forecast for today!

How dare mother nature play with me that way....3 beautiful days then my birthday rolls around and rain??? With the rain upon us and Dennie still not feeling great we decided to stay in for the day, plus our instructor from Art and Soul was stopping by to pick up all her supplies that she has shipped to the house since she lives in Baltimore and couldn't travel with it all. Barbra and her husband came by around 10:00 and we spent about an hour getting to know them ...both were very nice and we now we are so excited for the class on Tuesday we are besides ourselves. At 5 0'clock we got ready to go out for dinner and listen to some blues music ,we were to met my great niece and her boyfriend at a restaurant called the Refractory, we didn't stay too long since Dennie wasn't feeling good at all and we want to make sure she is feeling better to go to our class on Tuesday.

Portland Here I come

I guess this is what helps to keep Portland Weird

My trip to Portland is finally here and how much fun was it to have my friends Ardith and Sally travel with me? My trip was all about visiting my family and going to Art and Soul of course. Ardith and Sally were just flying up for the day to have dinner with a dear friend of Sally's.
Ardith had heard about a Portland local donut joint that apparently she saw on the Food Network and it was one of the things she wanted to see while she was in Portland.  So we arrive at the airport with my sister waiting to pick us up and take us to do the Voodoo Doughnut experience. Ardith and my sister got the famous Bacon and Maple bar donut that makes this place so famous that everyone raves about and Sally and I went the safe route and got the old standard buttermilk and old fashion doughnuts .... can you say yummy?

Now that we were sufficiently hyped up on sugar we were off to the Osmi Museum, I have been wanting to see the IMAX movie "Tornado Alley" for the longest time and it just so happened that it was playing in Portland - the movie was good but not great, Greg and I watch the TV show Storm Chasers, the film maker that made the movie was part of that show. After the show we dropped Ardith and Sally off in the downtown area so they could have a few hours to explore Portland before their dinner and flight home that night. Thanks ladies for a fun day together!

Tuacahn Trip

Every year Greg and I take a trip to St. George Utah to go to the Tuacahn Amphitheather to see a play, spend the night and then bike ride in the morning.
This year the play we saw was Grease; who doesn't love the music from Grease? The play was really fun, with lots of dancing and good music. What made it more special is that my friend Winston was actually a dancer in the movie with John Travolta, as a matter of fact she used to have a dance studio and John would take classes from Winston...how great is that?
Well the show was really fun but we had to  fore go the bike ride this year because my back went out a week ago and I am still really sore. If you haven't ever been to St. George you are missing out, it's such a cute little town and just 7 miles out of town is Tuacahn, you can take in a play.

Not your mamma's pressure cooker

Okay so you know I love the kitchen gadgets and that will probably never change so deal with it! Remember the old pressure cookers that we used to have because our mother's had them? the scary ones that rattled on the stove top and you just watched and waited for it to blow up? The food always did taste better in pressure cookers and you can't beat the efficiency of them. Well there's a new toy in town and it is the new and improved electric pressure cooker. I bought this Wolfgang Puck pressure cooker a few weeks ago and have cooker a few things in it now and really love it. The other day I cooked artichokes in 15 min. and they were fantastic! Before that I tried the recipe that lured me into buying this in the first place. I took a frozen ...I mean frozen package of ground turkey out of the freezer and added organic pasta sauce, organic chicken broth and a box of dry uncooked pasta and threw it in the pressure cooker, closed the lid, pressed the button that says meat and 20 min. later I had a yummy, healthy meal...wow now that's my idea of cooking. Just think of a slow cooker but in reverse, love it - gotta get yourself one, it will save you time and calories.

Sinfully Funny- turn off the music player on the right

Wednesday afternoon I went to see Nunsense with Ardith, Tanya and Winston at the Hilton. The show was pretty funny. This clip  is the first thing you see in the play.
Five of the 19 surviving Little Sisters of Hoboken, a one-time missionary order that ran a leper colony on an island south of France, discover that their cook, Sister Julia, Child of God, accidentally killed the other fifty-two residents of the convent with her tainted vichyssoise while they were off playing bingo with a group of Maryknolls. Upon discovering the disaster, Mother Superior had a vision in which she was told to start a greeting card company to raise funds for the burials. The greeting cards were an enormous success and, thinking there was plenty of money, the Reverend Mother bought a plasma TV for the convent, leaving her with no money in the kitty to pay for the last four burials. With the deceased nuns on ice in the deep freeze, they decide to stage a variety show in the Mount Saint Helen's School auditorium to raise the necessary amount. Participating in the project are Mother Superior Mary Regina, a former circus performer who can not resist the spotlight; her competitive but dignified rival, second-in-command Sister Mary Hubert; Sister Robert Anne, a streetwise nun from Brooklyn; Sister Mary Leo, a novice who is determined to be the world's first ballerina nun; and wacky, childlike Sister Mary Amnesia, who lost her memory when a crucifix fell on her head. The show is a hoot you must go see it.

He's here world!

Isn't he the most beautiful baby? My niece is going to be the best mom in the world I think. She is such a wonderful person and has been trying to have a baby for a few years and now has been blessed with a beautiful baby boy. They named him Logan, nice strong masculine name ...just love it.
Congratulations Kyla and Aaron!!! you are going to be great parents

Logan Olah: Born Aug. 29 12:37 pm 8lbs 20" long