So Melanie and I are on flying back from Portland as I write this. We’ve been thinking a lot lately about where our next home would be and we’ve kicked around Portland quite a bit. Melanie had been to Portland before but not I.

I distinctly remember riding to the rental car pavilion on my first trip to Denver. Seeing the Rockies for the first time is an amazing thing, something I’d guess that most people don’t soon forget. I won’t. I was amazed by them and knew right away that Denver was going to be home. While there wasn’t any one thing in Portland that was that amazing right off the bat (Mt. Hood is amazing when you can see it – I had no idea it would *feel* so huge) I knew Portland would be our new home. We recently went to Bosie, Idaho to give it a try and conversely I knew pretty much right away it wasn’t going to be our new home…

Why Portland? Well if you’ve been there you know, it’s beautiful. I had no idea it was going to be so green and forested, at times I thought I was in Hawaii! Ok, maybe it’s not that lush but it’s pretty close. You’ve got mountains (granted they aren’t the Rockies but they are really beautiful), you’ve got the city and culture, and you’ve got the best part, the coast. Since I’m from the South (the Atlanta, GA area) I’m used to the beach being within driving distance. I’m used to the pretty sandy beaches of the east coast where you actually get in the water. I’ve never seen northern beaches (not on either coast) and never really understood what makes them so great. I understand now. They are just geourgous. You really have to be there to appreciate it. Needless to say I can wait to spend countless hours walking, lying, relaxing, and most importantly playing with Sierra and Ellie (our dogs) on them!

While we’re not sure when yet (it’s 99% that’s its only a matter of when) we can’t wait to move there. So if you know something about Portland that we need to know please let us know, we’d really appreciate it.