Hello Friends,
In late November my friend Annie and I explored the glorious city of Portland. I have driven through it on my way to Seattle, but hadn’t really spent much time. I fell in the love with the fall colors, glorious food, rainy weather and beautiful gardens. Here is a short video about our trip to Portland Oregon.
Have you ever been to Portland? Found any places that I should add to my list for when I return?
Love,
-S
On Saturday Uncle Chip, Dad, Mum, Richard and I explored downtown troy. We started off with some hot coffee from Spill In The Beans, a local joint. We walked through a lovely farmers market and picked up a tasty goat chevre. From there we checked out a local all-girls high school called Emma Willard. The campus was unbelievable!
Next we took a short walk down to the local stream, which used to be used to gather energy for the town. We enjoyed hopping from one rock to the next as I tried to not fall into any of the puddles.
The stream bed
The trees around this town looked like they were on fire. The spectacular colors that make the East Coast look dazzling were on full display for our visit.
We hugged my uncle goodbye and sent him on his long drive back to NC. Richard and I dropped my parents off at their hotel and set off to go apple-picking, one of my favorite childhood activities. We munched on fresh apple cider and apple donuts as we picked 9 varieties of apples. The sweet smell of ripe apples and the lazy sunshine on my sweater made the day feel perfect.
On Sunday I waved goodbye to Richard, and to my parents, who were flying to Pittsburgh. They will enjoy a few days with my Grandfather before coming home later this week.
Today I jumped headfirst into work, coming home around 6. A long day, but it’s good to be home!
I hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Happy Monday! (The Bones episode tonight was really good!!)
Love,
-S
Before the wedding my father, Uncle Chip, Richard and I decided to go explore a local town called Sharon Springs, in search of coffee and breakfast snacks. The cafe wasn’t open when we arrived, so we wandered down the street to peek at the little downtown section.
The town used to be a big vacation spot for a famous bath house.
This old funky hotel was beautiful, but showing its age.
It was also for sale, at a great price! (if you need 10acres)
We grabbed donuts and cappuccinos at the Black Cat Coffee shop.
Yum.
On Friday, Richard and I picked up my cousin Andrew and his wife Katie from Jeannette’s house. We drove 4.5 hours from Troy to Niagara Falls. I was the only one that brought my passport, so we stayed on the American side. We stopped for pizza and wings for lunch, and munched on Dunkin’ Donuts as well.
Our lunch on Friday
We walked around the Falls for a bit, snapped tons of photos, and got tickets for the Maid in the Mist tour boat.
It was amazing! I loved how the water was rushing so loud, and disappeared off the edge. I know sometimes doing the touristy-thing can be lame, but this time it was fantastic!
Despite the blue ponchos they gave us, I was totally drenched.
Katie and I.
We walked back to the car and saw some cool statues.My cousin and I had matching converse shoes! Can you tell which are his and which are mine?
Matching outfits, totally unplanned.
Naturally, my cousin crawled onto a public monument while I took his photo. #ilovemyfamily
My cousin Andrew is awesome.
We drove back and crashed. It was one very long, but still lovely day! Did you do anything fun on Friday? Have you ever been to Niagara Falls? Have you been to any touristy places that you really enjoyed? (Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, White House, etc)?
Love,
-S
Classy and Fabulous 
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