Mommy & Daddy's Weekend in Astoria

Dear Monkey,

I took Daddy on a surprise trip this weekend to Astoria, Oregon. Can you find Astoria on the map?

First we drove from Portland, which took about 2 hours. What direction did we drive?

We drove through Seaside, Oregon, where I saw an advertisement for a Shark Tour. Maybe we can go on a Shark Tour next summer!

Once we got to Astoria, Daddy and I drove around and crossed all 3 bridges. The biggest bridge took us across the river to Washington State. Can you find the name of the big river we crossed? I definitely want to learn more about the big bridge and when it was built.

It was a little rainy and windy on Saturday, but we still had fun driving around. We went up some steep hills to a tall monument. Up there, we could see all of Astoria and the 3 bridges. Can you find the name and a picture of this monument?

Daddy agreed to go to some little shops downtown with me - brave Daddy! First we went in a fabric & yarn store that smelled funny. I saw lots of pretty things, but didn't buy anything because the prices were about twice as much as my favorite fabric store in Portland. Then we went in a toy store that had lots of baby toys, but no big boy toys for you, sadly. Finally, we went in a store that had clothing from the country of Nepal. Do you know what continent Nepal is on?

Daddy was very patient while I tried on pretty shirts, skirts, and scarves. I ended up buying a red skirt for $10, a blue skirt for $10, a brown shirt for $20, and a brown sweater for $27. How much did I spend altogether? Then, surprise! I got a free scarf from the store owner because I spent more than $50, and guess what? It's purple!

Then Daddy and I went to the hotel, checked in, and took a nap. I still don't understand why you stopped taking afternoon naps - they are great!

After we woke up from our nap, we went to a little movie theatre near our hotel. Daddy was wearing a PLU sweatshirt and one of the boys working at the theatre asked if we were from Tacoma. It turns out he went to the high school where Daddy worked as an aide before we met. After so many years living in Virginia and Texas, I'm still not used to running into people who even know where Tacoma is, let alone used to live there!

I decided to be brave and chose a scary movie, called "The Woman in Black". Daddy didn't think it was scary, but I had my eyes closed at several parts & held Daddy's hand through most of it. I'm still not entirely sure why people like scary movies - I was exhausted from being so tense through the whole thing! One of the previews was for The Avengers, made by Marvel - we saw Thor and his hammer!

By the time the movie was done, it was pouring down rain and really dark outside. I was still a little scared from the movie, so I held Daddy's hand REALLY tight on the way back to the car. We went and bought a pizza to have for dinner. Daddy's half had Canadian Bacon & pineapples; my half had chicken & tomatoes. What would you have put on your pizza?

Daddy slept really well last night, but I had a hard time staying asleep. Good thing we didn't have to get up early this morning! Our hotel room had a bathtub so big that Daddy & I both fit in it together - it would have been like a pool for you! I let Daddy be in charge of the bubblebath and so we ended up with *mountains* of bubbles. It was like taking a bath in whipping cream! What do you think it would feel like to take a bath in whipping cream? I bet it would be hard to find your sharks.

For breakfast we went to a cute little cafe that served breakfast in the mornings and sushi in the evenings. Do you know what sushi is? Do you think Daddy likes sushi? I had a bagel with delicious cream cheese and jelly, as well as a fruit smoothie. What is your favorite kind of smoothie?

We drove back to Portland a different way than we came, going along the Columbia River instead of through the forests. There were lots of homemade signs for little shops along the way, including one advertising "Elk Jerky" and "Buffalo Jerky" - we didn't stop for those. We did stop when Daddy saw a Blockbuster Video store that was going out of business, though. I got about 25 DVDs for $20, it was pretty cool.

When we got back to Portland, Daddy and I stopped for some lunch and then I dropped him off at the train station. We had a great weekend, but I know he was ready to come home to you and I am excited to see you soon, too. What kind of adventure should we have the next time I come to visit?

Here's our yummy lunch: roast chicken, salad, and a little cheese fondue

Here's our lunch 10 minutes later!

Love,

Mommy