I have taken a step back on running this summer and have been concentrating instead on getting in at least 10,000 steps a day according to my fitbit. However, I signed up for my 2nd half marathon. Eek! My goal when I started running was to finish a half marathon. I’m ecstatic that I enjoyed that accomplishment enough to go for it again.
I have previously posted about Love Rocks & the impact they have had on our neighboring community. The Love Rocks family hosted a 5k as a fundraiser to build a playground in the girls honor. I got up early yesterday and took part in the event.
To train & keep me motivated for my first half marathon in May, I signed up for another 10K. Honestly, there’s not much to say about the run. The weather was nice, which can be rare around here in February, so that was a bonus. It was a 5K course that the 10Kers ran twice. At the end I did get a nice looking medal.
This was my first organized race in 5 months. Although I took a break from running in December, I went right back to it in January beginning to train for my first half marathon in May. So I thought I was prepared to run this 10K. I absolutely underestimated the hills on this course. They were real killers. I finished with an ok time, but
Since the last day of this 31 Day Challenge falls on Halloween, I’m highlighting a pumpkin patch. I’m choosing Roloff Farms, which is in the Helvetia community of Hillsboro, Oregon. The Roloff’s are stars of TLC’s Little People Big World. The pumpkin patch came before the tv show, but certainly had less hype.
Just outside of Hillsboro is the community of Helvetia. If you’re in the area, Helvetia Tavern is the place to eat. You go there for a burger, fries & onion rings. It’s simple. It’s greasy. It’s good. When my Aunt & her family visit Oregon, we always eat here with them. I have never heard one bad comment about the food or service. I can’t
About an hour outside of Portland is the small town of Vernonia. It is located in the upper Nehalem valley. In 2007 flooding caused many millions of dollars in damages to the schools, hundreds of homes & community buildings. FEMA stepped in to help, but it still took a couple years to get the city back and better than ever. Logging is a big part
Keep Portland Weird has become the city’s slogan. Why we need to be weird, I don’t know. I appreciate weirdness when people step outside of the box to better themselves or community. But, weird, just to be weird, I don’t really get.
Powell’s Books is the largest new & used bookstore in the world. The Burnside location in downtown Portland is one entire city block. It’s huge with more & more rooms filled with books. It’s also slightly quirky, which fits in perfectly with Portland.
The kids & I love going to the Audubon Society. We enjoy seeing their education birds & exploring the trails.
