It was a gorgeous night out. Sadly, my phone’s camera was not able to do it justice.

Dinner leftovers. Roasted vegetable soup and the browned sausage that served as a protein-heavy garnish. Good stuff and helped clear out the crisper.

Scratching a banana bread itch with my favorite edition of the Joy of Cooking.

Home for lunch, still scrambling to unpack, do laundry and generally readjust to being back in Philadelphia.

Oops. This was a travel day and so I didn’t take a single photo. So here’s a placeholder, a delicious doughnut from Portland’s beloved VooDoo Doughnuts.

I was unprepared for how much Saturday Market has changed since I was last there (I think it’s been at least two years since I managed to check it out). I was a little sad that it didn’t feel as wonderful as it used to.

I took Scott to see the house we lived in from 1994 through 2002. Though I we only lived there during my high school and college years, I still think of it as the house where I grew up. My sadness about not having it anymore welled up while we were standing in front of it and I was surprised by the strength of the emotion. In general, this trip was far more emotional than I had expected.

Scott, my mom and I spent the day driving out into the Columbia Gorge. We stopped at the newly restored Vista House on our way to lunch at Latourell Falls (and of course, Multnomah Falls too).

I was sitting at the table by this window, when this crazy seagull started to bang on the glass with his beak. I went outside to see what was going on and he took on this very innocent, “who, me?” expression.

Our little porch is on the first floor, first one on the right. The view of the ocean is unbelievable. I find such physical relief when I’m near the Pacific Ocean, like I can finally lower my shoulders from their regular position up near my ears.