portland day trip

 On Friday, August 26th, we took a day trip to Portland.  We were invited to a going away party that evening for our church's Director of Children's Ministry (Miss Chelsea) & we knew Erik would be in town that day too!  While in Portland, we took the opportunity to hit up IKEA for some lunch & shopping.  :)  After exhausting ourselves at IKEA, we let the boys get out some energy at a splash park before meeting up with Erik & Julia.

Cedar had just woken up from a nap, so he was content to just watch his big brother for a bit.

 

 Finn was loving every second in the water fountain!

 I just love that genuine look of pure joy!  This kid loves people & loves playing!

 My 3 favorite boys on the slide.

 Erik & Julia invited us to the Grilled Cheese Grill for dinner.

 It was a hot & beautiful day, so we ate outside at the picnic tables.

 But we did go inside the double decker bus to check it out!

 Julia & Erik

This was our first time meeting Julia...as adults.  Erik & Julia actually went to middle & high school together, so I've known who she was for a long time.  :)

 It definitely took a few shots to get a photo of all 4 of us looking at the camera.  :P

 The double decker bus!

 Another shot of the Grilled Cheese Grill!  It was definitely a hit for the whole family.  They have really yummy, original grilled cheese options.

A cool family photo from Erik.

 After dinner, we headed over to Miss Chelsea's parents' house for her going-away party.  She accepted a new position at a church in Indiana & while we were happy for her new opportunity, we were very sad to see her go (& still miss her TONS!).

 The boys entertained themselves by going outside to explore the pretty garden & coming inside to watch video games & sneak cookies!  :P

 Miss Chelsea's brother, Andrew, is so cool!  Finn loved watching him play games.

 Finley, Cedar & Miss Chelsea

She does a good job wrangling my busy boys!  ;)

 Me & Chelsea

I really enjoyed getting to know her during the two years she worked for our church & directed Finn's preschool.  I wish I would have had more time to spend with Chelsea - I always had tons of fun & I know my boys REALLY love her!  We miss you, Chelsea!