By Kari Ann

Last weekend, Bryan and I hosted my youngest sister Kolby.  She decided to spend her spring break with us in the lovely (but not so sunny) Pacific Northwest.

Thinking back to when she was 3 and my dad and I would play Oregon Trail with her on the computer, she used to cry when one of the family members would die of typhoid.  Luckily her method of transportation was a bit easier, although it was her first time to fly alone.

We spent our first day huddled under an umbrella, dashing from boutique to boutique, and grabbing coffee along the way.  On our way back from shopping, we stopped at one of the Thai streetcarts for Kolby’s first ever Pad Se-ew experience which she loved.  That afternoon we took a break from shopping and decided to watch Alice in Wonderland in 3D – great flick!  Later that night we made Empanadas and had crepes at Le Happy.  It was a busy first day, and despite an unlikely downpour (usually the rain is only misty), we managed to see quite a bit of the city.

On her second day here, we went out to the Columbia River Gorge and explored the Twilight prom house, views of the Gorge, and Multnomah Falls.  Luckily, it wasn’t raining in the Gorge so we enjoyed a quick hike up to the falls and taking some good photos along the way.  Kolby is interested in photography and was particularly intrigued by the moss-covered trees in the forest.  She took a few great shots (see our gallery).  We also had quite an adventure at the Nike store – probably one of the highlights from her trip.  Later that night, we went to the Whiskey Soda Lounge with the Dadsons where we introduced Kolby to all kinds of adventurous foods – frog legs, Thai chicken wings, pig ear, cuddle fish…

Saturday was better weather in Portland, so we walked around our neighborhood a bit more.  We also went by 916 Gallery to take a look at Blakely Dadson’s solo show.  And of course, we grabbed coffee and did some people watching.  That night, we played a few games of Scrabble with Bryan and then went to the Barista opening on Alberta.  She was a trooper hanging out with all of us “old people” and listening to “old people music” like Arcarde Fire 

It was so great to have her hear to visit us!  It had been a long time since I’ve spent one-on-one time with my youngest sister and it was Bryan’s first chance to spend some quality time with her as well.  We were sad to see her go but imagine she will be back for more adventures in the near futures.