Contrary to what you may have believed from reading my blog, I am a total country girl. (I know the last entry I posted was all about getting dressed up and going out on the town, but let me tell ya, that is just a small part of the wonder that is Carrie.) I was practically raised on a farm, I never even lived inside city limits until I was almost out of high school, I love camping and I go hunting. Yep, that’s me. I used to be kind of embarrassed about the way my family did things, but the older I get the more I realize it is what has shaped me into the person I have become today. And I don’t care who knows it.


So where was I? Oh yeah. Simeon and I were gone all last week on a big family camping/hunting trip. I totally planned to blog that I was leaving for awhile and not to worry any of you, but I was super busy getting ready to leave and totally spaced it. Sorry. But we are back now and glad for those of you who missed us and wrote me concerned emails. I love you guys! But we totally had a blast. It was great to get away from work and computers and schedules and just relax out in the woods of Northeastern Oregon.

So there was a huge group of us (I think 25 at last count) and a number of kids running around to keep things interesting. Mostly friends and family. We did all the great camping stuff: slept in sleeping bags, cuddled around the camp fire, went hiking, and ate s’mores. Mmmmmmm.

So I checked the weather before we left so I could pack accordingly. That was my first mistake. I failed to take into account the change in elevation from where we were camping and the town I typed into weather.com. Yeah. So when I packed for high 60’s to mid 70’s you better believe I was a little shocked when it snowed. Yeah. Snow. Don’t believe me? I took pictures.

Luckily we know how to do camping right (go back up to the top where I said I was a country girl!). We have HUGE tents that are more like houses. Complete with sleeping bags on cots, carpet on the ground, and a working wood stove. Oh yeah baby. So while it was showing outside, it was 80 degrees in our tent. Being a country girl is not so bad when you look at it that way, huh?

Long and the short of it, we had a great time. Its nice to get back to your roots every now and again. But don’t think for one minute I wasn’t happy to be back to electricity, showers, and my brand-new bed. Somethings you just have to do without for awhile to really appreciate. Like plumbing. Ha!

So there are a ton of pictures in the new galleries. I divided them up, for those of you who weren’t raised in such a country environment and might not be comfortable with some of the pictures. We have the Camping Trip gallery and the Hunting Trip gallery. Oh yeah, and its good to be back. 🙂

Well wonders never cease. Simeon and I had a fabulous time on our date. In fact, it can all be summed up with one word: amazing. Dinner was amazing. Dessert was amazing. The Lion King was AMAZING. I tell ya, it was the Best. Date. EVER.


This was my dinner. Wild Mushroom Ravioli with a Riesling Cream Sauce. I told you I was dying to try it. Oh and it was everything I hoped it would be. Ok, its making me hungry.

Simeon had the Herb Garlic Rubbed Grilled Pork Tenderloin. He even let me try some of it. Oh and that obscured mountain under the pork? Yeah, it’s garlic mashed potatoes. You better believe I snuck bites of that when Sim wasn’t looking!


Then we ordered dessert. Vanilla Creme Brule. I think the vanilla beans were soaked in bourbon or some other fancy-pants thing, but it was SOOOO good. I just love cracking all the burnt sugar and dipping into the creamy custard. Talk about melting in your mouth.

This was the view from the restaurant. We were on the 30th floor and it was gorgeous. Really makes me appreciate how green and lush Portland is, with all the trees and the river twisting throughout the middle of the city.


Then we went to the Lion King. We had great box seats and there were even parts of the play where cast members came into the audience. Simeon mostly went because I wanted to go so badly, but after the first five minutes of him whispering, “Wow” and “Ohmigod!” and “Look at THAT!” I knew he didn’t mind me dragging him along.

All in all, it was a great evening. Happy 3rd Anniversary to us. Now we just have to think of something equally fabulous to do next year….

The few additional pictures we managed to take with our camera phones (like I could carry around my Nikon D70 without anyone noticing!) are in the Date Night gallery. Go on, take a peek. You know you wanna.