It’s been four years since we met and in true ‘Michael’ fashion, he found us the most secluded, magical camping spot in southern Washington to celebrate each other. I’ve never met someone that loves looking at maps like he does. To be fair, some of the spots he finds have definitely led us to some not-so-great places haha.
Anyway, the view from this spot was unbelievable. You could see five mountains when it was clear!! Mount Hood, Mount Adams, Mount St. Helens, Mount Rainier, and Mount Jefferson. I have to admit, this might have been my favorite campsite ever. We are already planning to take a few of our close friends up here again. The road to the top was pretty sketchy with steep cliff sides, but the drive up was absolutely worth it.
Here are a few of my favorite snapshots from our weekend.
It seemed like the fog was softly rolling down into the other valley like a waterfall.When the sun finally peaks over the horizon.Mount St. HelensLove that smile. Hahah his hair got caught up in the wind and it looks like a mohawk.
This story may be a little TMI, but I just really appreciate him for this. It was about one in the morning on Saturday, when I woke up from really terrible cramps. Being a girl is not so fun sometimes. I tried to not wake him up, but he did anyway. He ended up finding me some ibuprofen and knew I needed to be distracted. So he got our jackets and pulled me out of the car and oh my gosh… the stars!!!! We could see the milky way with our own eyes!!! We don’t get to stargaze often living in the city and wow. It was soo beautiful.
We ended up going back to bed about an hour later and then waking up again for sunrise. Life really is all about the adventures, no matter how big or small.
This whole spot to ourselves.
Some snippets: We got cherries from Hood River, Oregon (which are the best!!). I was recommended the Tokyo Cult cookbook, so I brought it to read. We had baseball going through the radio and just kicked back and listened to our favorite team.
This cute deer wandered around our campsite!
Sunrise & sunset of Mount Hood.
Scott and Seanne actually joined us for one night!
It’s amazing where life has taken us in the past four years and I wouldn’t want to change a thing. We have a few big goals for the next couple of years, so I am excited to see where life takes us from here.
What is more remarkable, beautiful, invaluable, and against the odds, than finding someone in this blizzard of billions that you want to commit to celebrating the rest of your life with? Unknown
Found along our walks in a city aptly named “The City of Roses”.
All of these were taken at Washington Park at a section known as the International Rose Test Garden. You can find over 10,000 bushes of roses with more than 650 different varieties. It’s a stunning sight to behold.
Not much else to say here because the beauty of these flowers speak for themselves. ❤
My favorites tend to be the orange dreamsicle colored ones. But these painted ones were so amazing!! Each rose was so unique, as if they were personally painted with different brush strokes. Beautiful.
As delicate as flower, as tender as rose petals, choosing to be tender and kind in a harsh environment is not weakness, it’s courage. Luffina Lourduraj
Colchuck Lake, The Enchantments
Wenatchee National Forest
The mountain has left me feeling renewed, more content and positive than I’ve been for weeks, as if something has been given back after a long absence, as if my eyes have opened once again. For this time at least, I’ve let myself be rooted in the unshakable sanity of the senses, spared my mind the burden of too much thinking, turned myself outward to experience the world and inward to savor the pleasures it has given me. Richard Nelson
We are six months into 2020, and I think we can all agree it’s been quite the year. Not only are we all fighting a global viral pandemic, there’s a fight against racial injustices, gender inequality, and police brutality happening all at the same time.
With everything going on, I couldn’t find a way to shut up off my mind. My phone was alerting me that I’ve been on it for far more hours than usual. Our conversations at home seemed to revolve solely around what was happening in the world. I’m pretty sure I’ve cried more in the last couple months than I have in my life. I’ve definitely experienced hate and racism, but learning about the violent injustices towards our black community has been devastating and heartbreaking.
On top of this, Michael lost his dad, my father-in-law, from his fight against kidney cancer. There’s nothing that can really prepare you for this type of situation. Nick is truly one of the good ones and to lose him like this, makes life seem so unfair. I wish we could have had him be Pappy to our kids one day, but I know he will be there with them in spirit. Several months ago, Michael wrote something that we never posted. So I want to share it here.
My dad is the epitome of the protector of our family. He showed me what it meant to be strong and that family always comes first. When he started dating my mom (who already had two kids: me and my sister), he wasn’t that much older than I am now. I have so much respect and appreciation for him taking on that responsibility and stepping in as our father figure without any hesitation. If my life continued with my biological dad in it, it would be completely different in the worst way possible.
I wish I didn’t struggle with knowing how or when to express my feelings of gratitude and love for him as a son because I do. Without a doubt, he has helped me become the man that I am today.
It’s hard to grasp how life is going to be without him. There’s such a fear of the unknown for me.
Miss you and love you, Nick.
We realized we both deeply needed some self care. We don’t know a better way other than going outdoors and having no phone service.
A lot of campsites and outdoor areas are still closed, but when we found out this hike was actually open, we had to do it. It’s been on our list ever since we moved here and oh my GOSH is was incredible. All-in-all, we hiked over eleven miles, and it really kicked our butts. Our legs were killing us towards the end of the hike. But this view… is therapeutic. Alpine lakes are magical and so worth the hike up to them.
We still cannot get over how stunningly beautiful this hike was!!
The trail splits off here to Colchuck Lake and Stuart Lake.All smiles here because… how can you not?!!? This view is incredible!Those turquoise-y blues are so dreamy. 💙 After a tough hike, we had to take off those hiking shoes to let our feet breathe. It felt so good to sit back against a big rock and relax.Our hiking snacks this time!Spotted a backpacker taking a snooze. He looks like a watermelon slice with those colors hahah
After enjoying the view from a higher spot, we wanted to continue along the trail to see if we could find a spot down closer to the water.
We ran into a mountain goat along the way!! This goat was so chill and could not care less that we were there. We kept our distance though, just in case.
And we found a spot closer to the water!!
Michael is pointing at a skiier coming down that pass between the mountains. It’s crazy!!Happy as can be.One of these days, we plan to come back here to camp out a few days. (If we actually win permits in the lottery!)
Our walking stats after the hike. 😅
After hiking, we found this lovely dispersed camping site near a lake. It rained all morning and night. I love our conversations together when it’s just the two of us like this. Life together has been a dream and I am just so excited for what’s to come.
Sending a lot of love out to you all.
Times are extremely wild and sensitive right now, so I hope you can take some time to find some mental peace and joy.
This weekend, we decided to just go outdoors to get away from the craziness that’s happening in the city and to try to distance us from other people.
We hiked Neahkahnie Mountain and ended the evening with a stunning sunset at Cannon Beach. We did this hike when we first moved here and it was amazing to come back. The view from Neahkahnie is absolutely breathtaking! It’s a little rocky at the top, so if you go, watch your step. Once you find a spot to sit, all you have to do is enjoy the view. 💙
The hike up to the top!Stopping to look at these heart-shaped leaves!These were the leaves I was looking at. 💚
Neahkahnie Mountain, Oregon Coast
We made it to the top!Loveeeee this view. So peaceful to watch the waves from above.Magical.
Cannon Beach, Oregon
This is such a classic spot in Oregon. As touristy as it can be, it’s such an amazing spot to visit and spend the evening. Last night was an example of how beautiful it is there. The pinks, purples, blues, yellows, and oranges in the sunset were a sight to see.
Sometimes you just gotta be a tourist in your own state.
I see a lot of people being like, “I would survive the coronavirus. I’m taking my chances.”
The way I see it is yeah, I’d survive it. But I might carry it to someone who wouldn’t. And that, folks, is the problem.
There’s a lot of hysteria going on right now regarding coronavirus, which is understandable to some degree. Michael and I both work in healthcare, and I work directly with immuno-compromised cancer patients. It’s definitely weighing heavy on my mind that even though I have a very small chance of becoming severely ill from this, I could potentially carry the virus to my patients. Michael and I are trying to distance ourselves from people as much as we can. The temporary sacrifice is worth it, especially if it can help in anyway.
I’m hoping people are staying safe, being smart, and thinking practically in the next few weeks as it this unfolds even more. 💙
If you visit or live in Oregon, you have most likely visited this magical place! And if you are from a totally different state, like how we are from Texas, this place will never cease to amaze you. What hike in Texas or Oklahoma, or even California would you ever get to see ten waterfalls?!
Anyway, here are some of the waterfalls we captured and I even attempted to label the names of them 💙 :
Silver Falls State Park, Oregon
South Falls
Standing behind the waterfall!!! I think this is South Falls…
Lower North Falls
Just a pretty forest view.
Lower South Falls
Double Falls
This fallen tree is along the path and we wanted to climb it!One of the waterfalls in the back. 💙
We are all naturally seekers of wonders. We travel far to see the majesty of old ruins, the venerable forms of the hoary mountains, great waterfalls, and galleries of art. And yet the world’s wonder is all around us; the wonder of setting suns, and evening stars, of the magic spring-time, the blossoming of the trees, the strange transformations of the moth… Albert Pike
In spring of 2017, Michael and I were visiting Portland because he was visiting his new workplace and I was interviewing at OHSU. We talked to a stranger about local recommendations and they suggested this hike.
We didn’t read about.
We didn’t look it up.
We just… went and did it.
It ended up being one of the hardest hikes we’ve both ever been on. The elevation gain was so difficult. I’m almost thankful we didn’t know what to expect, because we wouln’t have done it otherwise. We even got cheers once we got to the top by the people that passed us because we told them we were struggling haha 😅.
In May last summer, we decided to do it again to see the sunset at the top and to hike down at night. We can definitely report that the hike is still very difficult! However, the sunset made it so. worth. it. It was like we were seeing a live painting because the color changes were unreal. And we finally saw all of the wildflowers!! 💛
When we made it to the first clearing and saw this view!Michael waiting for me.It’s impossible to not stop a million times and take in this view… or to take a breather. 😅
The last two at the top!! The two guys we met took this picture before they hiked back down. We got to enjoy this place with just us… and some double stuffed Oreos.
We can officially say that we were so freaking exhausted after this hike.
As much as I would love and wish to go outdoors on my days off, it’s not a time to be selfish. What better time than to work on house projects and do some spring cleaning!
Michael & I could sit on a park bench and stare up at these beautiful trees and flowers for hours.
The significance of the cherry blossom tree in Japanese culture goes back hundreds of years. In their country, the cherry blossom represents the fragility and the beauty of life. It’s a reminder that life is almost overwhelmingly beautiful but that it is also tragically short. Homaro Cantu
These days, the sun is staying up a little more in the evenings, the flowers are beginning to bloom, and there’s less rain in the forecast. Just those little things make us pretty darn happy as the season is changing. The end of winter is sort of near and we are ready for it.
When cherry blossoms bloom here, you can find me and my nifty fifty running around.
The painted hills are truly a natural wonder. All of the layers of yellow, gold, reds, and blacks reveal millions of years of history. It’s incredible. Eastern Oregon is the other side of the state that gets a little bit overlooked sometimes. Yes, it’s a lot less green and a lot more desert-y, but it is still breathtaking in its own way.
Life has been pretty darn crazy since the year started! How is it already March!? Even though it’s been busy, it’s been an amazing start so far. When things get like this, it’s hard not to get nostalgic for some past trips we’ve had. Here’s a few photos from when we visited this place with our friends, Seanne and Scott Holmes. 💛
Exploring life together is the best thing ever.Look at that cutie recording some videos with his drone.Seanne & I. 💜Seanne made these beanies and they’re so amazinggg.The Holmes & The Bitzers!
We are hoping to plan a few more camping / road trips with these two! These are the friends that have become a part of our family here and I’m so thankful to have them in our lives.
“Painted Hills is named after the colorful layers of its hills corresponding to various geological eras, formed when the area was an ancient river floodplain.”
Hahahah some candids because Michael has the remote and always takes shots when no one is ready. Gosh, we love these people!
We are coming up on our one year wedding anniversary next month. I still can’t believe how fast time is flying! There is so much planned for this coming year, and we are definitely looking forward to all of the opportunities and adventures to come.
You can pack for every occasion, but a good friend will always be the best thing you could bring.
As much as we love disconnecting from everyday life to find ourselves adventuring in the outdoors, we also really enjoy simple dates within the city.
Through all of high school and early college, I was either painting or playing the piano. I love the arts and any chance we get to visit a museum, we gotta do it! In Seattle, there’s the Chihuly glass and garden exhibit that is… mind-blowing. All of the unique blown glass pieces are illuminated to show off the most vibrant colors. Your jaw will drop from how incredibly beautiful it is.
Take a peek below!
This little room with the ceiling of glass pieces and the light coming through them was my favorite!!! There are benches in here so you can sit back and just get lost in the view.
Also, the Native American blanket wall (first photo) you get to see when you enter the exhibit is incredible.
They almost look like enormous clam shells.He got close, but he didn’t touch!!
Michael takes so many candid photos hahahHello, space needle!
Also, this is just us enjoying ourselves on a rooftop after our date. 💙
Whether the glass is half empty or half full, you have the power to fill it up. Matshona Dhliwayo
Sometimes it’s just the two of us in a mutual awestruck silence taking in how extraordinary Mount Hood really is.
I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, ‘This is what it is to be happy.’Sylvia Plath
Tamanawas Falls, Mount Hood
Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature — the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter. Rachel Carson
Psst! We are going to let you in on a little secret of ours…
When we have friends or family visit us from out of town, we have probably taken almost all of them (if the weather behaved) to these easy-to-visit-but-absolutely-stunning sights along the Columbia River Gorge. I mean.. how could we not?! The drive is less than an hour away from Portland. Even after visiting several times, we still aren’t tired of these views.
Michael and I both grew up in Texas, so we used to joke around about how when we would see a small stream on a hike back then, we would be so excited. Nowadays, we are constantly blown away by the mountains, the waterfalls, the rivers, the trees and everything else we get to see in the pacific northwest.
Here’s our little tour. 😊
Latourell Falls
We loveeeee how moody the pnw can be. Look at all of the beautiful fog hugging the trees.This waterfall is gorgeous with the columnar basalt rock formations behind. It is amazing.It’s a big plus when you get to stand behind the falls!Latourell from afar.
Columbia River Gorge
The drive along the gorge that separates Washington state and Oregon is breathtaking.
Bridal Veil Falls
Michael climbed that big ol’ rock to get a close up view of these falls!
Multnomah Falls
If you visit Portland and don’t visit these falls, did you even come visit?!
Yes – it gets crowded. Probably the busiest tourist spot in Oregon, but worth a visit. She’s just so picturesque.
Rowena Crest Viewpoint
Driving further east along the gorge, you can stop aside to see this winding road!
Hood River, Oregon
You have to stop in Hood River, Oregon for mountain views, local beer or wine, and delicious food. It’s a must! Also… if you see salmon on the menu, order it.
I’ve posted this quote before, but it’s a personal favorite. 💙
Here in the corner attic of America, two hours’ drive from a rain forest, a desert, a foreign country, an empty island, a hidden fjord, a raging river, a glacier, and a volcano is a place where the inhabitants sense they can do no better, nor do they want to. Timothy Egan
Crater Lake is known for its vibrant blues… but when you’re there at sunrise or sunset, the colors you get to see are unbelievably stunning. Seriously… on a clear summer day, take that road trip out there. It’s 100% worth it.
We had already planned to wake up early, but did not expect to witness the most magnificent sunrise. Seeing all of the soft shades of blue, pink, and orange painted across the sky was truly a sight to see.
We felt like we had the whole place to ourselves because no one was around us. This place is also very special to us because it was the last road trip we were able to take Layla on before she passed away.
Experiences like this always remind us to appreciate and love the little things in life. ❤️
Look at those morning sunrise colors!! 😍This viewpoint was perfect. It felt like the lake wrapped all around you.Sometimes you gotta hide behind a bush to get those ~*angles*~ of Wizard Island. Photography can be a pretty funny hobby.
Mount Thielsen in all of its glory in the early morning.
We also got to witness a pretty darn amazing sunset here, too.
Sunset at Crater Lake
Our little family at sunset. Miss you, sweet Lay.
The girls and the moon.
This grand show is eternal. It is always sunrise somewhere; the dew is never all dried at once; a shower is forever falling; vapor is ever rising. Eternal sunrise, eternal sunset, eternal dawn and gloaming, on sea and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls. John Muir
I think we are going to go out on a limb and say… these are our favorite waterfalls in Oregon!
These two nearby waterfalls are incredibly easy to access and you will leave feeling like you were just in a scene straight out of a pacific northwest postcard. It’s incredibly beautiful. When you go, definitely wear waterproof everything and bring extra microfibers because your camera will get wet.
We also included a couple of photographs to compare the falls between the spring and fall season. 💙
Koosah Falls, Oregon
Behind the scenes of photographing the falls!Spring | The falls are so full and powerful this time of year.Fall | It’s so different compared to the spring season. Look closely, there’s Michael!Feeling refreshed being so close!
Sahalie Falls, Oregon
Michael was SOAKED after this!! It was a huge sacrifice for the photo, but there really is nothing like a good waterfall shower.Happy dance because who wouldn’t when you’re surrounded by the amazing outdoors?
Detroit Lake, Oregon
This was a little pitstop we had on our road trip. It was a beautiful lake.
If you look closely, there’s a stranger at the edge of the water. So happy we captured him in time before he walked away.
To find the universal elements enough;
to find the air and the water exhilarating;
to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter…
to be thrilled by the stars at night;
to be elated over a bird’s nest or a wildflower in spring —
these are some of the rewards of the simple life. John Burroughs
This winter wonderland, Bavarian-style mountain town in Washington state is absolutely a dream and if it’s not on your places-to-visit list yet, it should be. It is unlike any other town we’ve ever visited up here in the pacific northwest.
Michael wanted to snowboard for his birthday and when we found out this adorable village up in Washington was pretty close to a ski resort, it was a no-brainer. Our good friend, Ashley, wanted to learn to snowboard while I learned to ski, so she came along with us too!
Leavenworth, WA
Bavarian Village of Lights
How can this even be a real place?! It is so beautiful in every direction you go.
So many lights covering all the trees in the town’s central park area.We came into town at night, so when we visited during the day, we finally saw the cascades surrounding it! So incredible to see.As if the town couldn’t get more adorable, there were even horse drawn carriages!
cold wrinkly finger tips & water droplets on pine needles.
We haven’t picked up our camera in a good while… but looking back at some of our somewhat-macro shots go us excited to shoot again. We are going on a trip this weekend for Michael’s birthday, and I think we are gonna finally dust off the little guy and take some photos again!
In the meantime, here’s a few of our favorites we’ve taken on some of our adventures. 🌿
Snuck up to this little bee!Getting close up and personal with pine trees because look how beautiful it is!Moody tulip season.
Pretty droplets.
SO sorry for the terrible quality on this one because it was compressed… and I’m a little too lazy to sift through alllll of the old photos for the original.
A field of daisies where we saw a view of Mount Saint Helens.
The fall colors here in the Pacific Northwest are stunning. I’ve never seen colors like this before. And when it rains, we love seeing the water droplets on everything.
All taken with the good ol’ nifty fifty f/1.8 Canon lens.
I wish more people felt that photography was an adventure. To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them. Elliott Erwitt
Today we went on our first snowy adventure of the season!
Last night, at around… seven thirty-ish, we decided, “hey, we should go on a hike because it’s been since… September?!” Life just gets by you sometimes and before you know it, so much time has passed.
We bounced a few ideas around and Michael brought up that he’s always wanted to hike Tom, Dick, & Harry Mountain. So I told him, let’s not even think about it.. let’s just go! It was around eight p.m. when we realized we needed a few things. Michael needed a set of trekking poles because I already have some, and I needed new gloves. We got to REI with about twenty minutes to spare before closing.
We woke up around six a.m. and I made my favorite breakfast for us – lightly scrambled eggs with turkey sausage & spinach and we also made a blueberry-banana-spinach smoothie! This was perfect fuel for this hike.
Let me tell you… this hike was unbelievably beautiful! It is about eight miles long with a gradual elevation change that lead to a frozen lake and ended with a view of *five* mountain peaks (photo below)!
There were these adorable bridges in the beginning of the hike.Look at that cute smile of his. Mirror Lake, Mt. Hood National ForestMe running out onto frozen Mirror Lake and so happy about it.Checking out Mount Hood back there.Just the two of us.Snow hikes makes us happy hahah
Tom, Dick, & Harry Mountain Trail
We made it! We found a rock to rest our day packs and snack for a bit.
Snacks we brought for this hike were:
Celery with Justin’s honey peanut butter packets
Milton’s olive oil and sea salt crackers
CLIF bars
Sour Patch Watermelon gummies (best thing ever!)
Mount Hood with three (if you can see them) other mountain peaks! The fifth mountain peak we saw was behind us.
Mountain peaks you can see at the top:
Mount Hood
Mount Adams
Mount Rainier
Mount Saint Helens
Mount Jefferson
Squinty Michael.
Michael was squinting so much at the top because of how sunny it was. We definitely forgot our sunglasses. At one point, he had to pull his beanie over his head hahahah 😋. It was so silly.
This was on our way down the hike.
What a lovely day despite not knowing what to expect.😊 Isn’t that the best when that happens?
The mountain is supposed to snow tomorrow, so we got lucky with a clear view. We were giddy hiking this trail and we were bummed (but definitely tired) when we finished. But! We have a few snow adventures planned this coming week, and we are so looking forward to them. 💙
May your dreams be larger than mountains and may you have the courage to scale their summits. Harley King
When we found out Michael’s old friend, Jonathan, from college was doing a huge cross country road trip with his girlfriend, Laura, and they were going to be in the pacific northwest, we had to take a few days to go adventuring with them!
We decided to meet up with them at Mount Rainier National Park and because we didn’t have service, we had to pre-plan our meeting site and approximate time. We chose the Paradise area around Reflection Lake.
7.5 miles RT.
2200 ft elevation gain.
Unobstructed panoramic views.
This was our first fire lookout!
This place is also first come first serve for overnight stays. We thought it would already be taken, but when we arrived, nobody was staying there!! 😭 We wish we had our backpacks with us. Next time we visit a fire lookout, we plan to bring a small backpack of necessities just in case we can stay!
Love love love windows.
Took some snapshots inside the fire lookout. So many filled guest books, old maps, and drawings from people who have been there before.
About half-way through the hike, there’s a spot where you can get some really neat reflection shots.
On our way home.
Although I deeply love oceans, deserts, and other wild landscapes, it is only mountains that beckon me with that sort of painful magnetic pull to walk deeper and deeper into their beauty. Victoria Erikson
Crater Lake will take your breath away. It is such a unique place no matter what time of the year you visit.
In the winter though, it’s different.
There’s a quiet stillness that envelops you when your surroundings are blanketed in snow. But don’t be fooled by how beautiful it is… winter here is definitely cold and harsh. Moving here from Texas, winter in the northwest is still something we haven’t gotten used to yet. Luckily, it doesn’t snow too much in the city here in Portland. If you visit Crater Lake in the winter, do not forget to stuff your gloves with some hand-warmers!
Mount Rainier National Park might be the most visited place we’ve been to since moving to the pacific northwest, and we already can’t wait to go back.
Even though we live in Oregon, we tend to gravitate more towards Washington for hiking and adventures. There is SO many hikes we want to do, but finding the time to roadtrip up there has been tricky due to work / school.
Below are some photos from one of our favorite visits up there. 😊
There is just something mysteriously magical about the ocean. Maybe it’s all of the brilliant shades of blues it can be, or maybe it’s the unpredictability of its storms, or even all of the life that is teeming underneath the surface. Whatever it is, whenever we visit the coast, there’s a sense of awe that just takes over us.
This weekend we were planning to backpack up to a fire lookout in Mount Hood, Oregon. On the way there, we started noticing snow along the forest roads. I always get a little suspicious with road conditions once snow starts to appear, but Michael gets… a little ‘confident’ in his FJ when if comes to a lot road-wise. 😜
When we got to huge snow covering on the road, he pressed the gas and we plowed right through only to get us stuck in about 2-3 feet of snow. It took us an hour and a half to get out because all we had to use was a poop shovel, a skillet, and two hiking poles to plow all of the snow away from his truck. It was exhausting, but so hilarious after it was all done.
We obviously had to change our plans last minute, so we looked on google maps and found Timothy Lake was pretty close. There were also campsites you could backpack in!
It. Was. Beautiful.
We had absolutely no service with no one around us. After a stressful week of work and school, it was exactly what we needed to unwind.
Once we set up everything, we hiked about five-six miles around the lake. We got back to camp right in time to set up the hammock and catch the sunset. 🧡
