the goose loves tuesday's ten (#17)

We spent one whole half of one whole day in the car this weekend, driving to Spokane for my cousin's wedding. It was a grand family affair, and reuniting with all the close and extended family members was awesome. Having a few drinks didn't hurt either. Here's my ten favorite moments/photos of the weekend.

1. We drove my parents and brother from Portland to Spokane (about 6 hours) on Friday, just in time to shower and change for the rehearsal dinner. Here's Billy and Liam, post-dinner, enjoying beers at the Blue Spark, one of the only bar open past 10pm. [Fun fact: from their website, I learned their motto is "no crap on tap."] Good beer, but weird dance/music/stage/white trash vibe.

2. We rented bikes from the hotel Saturday morning (yay for winning the one with the unadjustable-and-way-too-low bike seat!) and rode the mile to the wedding reception site to check it out. The groom requested a "water feature" for the ceremony so they were wed in front of a waterfall.

3. After a cloudy morning, the fog burned off San Francisco-style and the sun came out for the afternoon ceremony. Here's the wedding party (and officiant) all lined up!

Adorable flower girls.

4. And the bride! My cousin Alison, escorted by Uncle Jim. So gorgeous.

And the photographer, about to fall into the pond.

5. Here's the Spokane Dempseys. Uncle Jim is my dad's brother, so they have the same last name as us; when they moved to Spokane years ago, we were differentiated by our cities. Allison's three sisters and one brother were the majority of the wedding party, and they were adorable!

6. Allison married Timmy / Jian Liu, who she met in China when she studied and taught English there, so the reception was decorated with chinese lanterns and symbols. Love the red!

And the first dance...

7. The reception room had this great balcony overlooking some area of Spokane (generally just grass) but it was great for some sun and fresh air. We took the opportunity to update some family photos.

 I should probably lighten these up...

Family of 6!

8. The former bride and groom, happy to make way for the newest married couple in the family!

9. Lucy power! The cutest little flower girl, my cousins' cousin on the other side, was also named Lucy.

10.  We left my parents in Seattle with Monika, and drove back to Portland with Liam. We had rented a car to avoid car trouble in our somewhat-unreliable Expolorer, only to encounter an awful screeching noise from the back right tire, about an hour outside of Pasco.

Twenty minutes later, the Enterprise in Pasco switched us out for this hot ride. Catastrophe averted, and Liam got to the airport with plenty of time to spare.

the goose loves tuesday's ten (times 2.5!) (#16)

Welcome to the biggest Tuesday post yet, folks. Ten times two-point-five (25 for you math-challenged readers) - the same number I turned last Wednesday. That's a whole lot of photos.

 

1. It's fun to see your birthday on everything - receipts, calendars, emails, etc...

2. The best way to start your birthday is with pancakes and good friends. Here's the good friends part.

3. Oh and having your husband there is fun too.

4. Go to Slappy Cakes, where you make your own pancakes, including batter and toppings of your choice. Choose the buttermilk batter, chocolate chips, and bacon bits, for the most delicious combination.

5. The pancakes go on the griddle in the middle of the table!

6. Make an L for Lucia (even though it doesn't come out the right direction when you flip it) and a birthday balloon.

7. Ready, flip!

8. After breakfast, some shopping downtown, and a post office trip to mail some father's day packages, it's time for lunch. A po' boy for me and jambalaya for Billy.

9. After you spent all morning eating, you should spend the afternoon exercising. Driving over the St. John's bridge for a hike is a good idea.

10. Bringing the dog is more fun.

Especially when he's cute and finds a stick to carry all the way back to the car.

11. Now that you've burned off all those breakfast and lunch calories, it's time to fill up again. It's fun to try the local brewery tasting room under the St. John's bridge. The best way to figure out which beer you like is to get one of each. These, Mom, are actually 4 oz each!

12. It's even more fun when the curls your hairdresser made the night before are still kinda there, even after you hiked!

13. I don't advise your husband to try to drink all the tasters at once, though.

14. Then you go home and shower so that you can make your dinner reservation on time. Once you get there, try the Manhattan.

15. If only your curls stayed in after the shower. At least there's a great view of downtown Portland behind you!

16. Bonus points if the color scheme of your restaurant is your favorite color.

17. Order the economically gastronomic entrees on the prie fixe menu - crusted halibut (I think) and seared beef tenderloin (I think).

Trade halfway through with your husband so you each can taste some.

18. Do the same for dessert, and try to get decent pictures, even though it's gotten very dark.

19. To continue the birthday celebration, have a bunch of people over for a Friday night BBQ! Make purple velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting for extra special deliciousness.

20. Pull all your chairs outside so the guests can enjoy the warm (for once!) evening.

Then set off the party poppers that Carolyn brings over!

21. Continue the party the next night with a little bar-hopping on Saturday night. Bonus points for cool bars with awesome outside patios that have swings at tables.

And extra bonus points for bars with skee ball in the basement and funky lighting that messes with your photos.

22. Then walk down to Fire on the Mountain for delicious wings and other assorted fried foods.

23. Order boneless "wings" (chicken tenders), because they're way better than the ones with bones.

And also enjoy a mountain of tater tots.

24. Laugh at the boys for getting messy and barely making it through their super-spicy bone-ful wings.

25. Finish off the night at a local brewery/tap spot, with outdoor tables and a great view of Portland's Naked Bike Ride.

You get a picture of the beer, but I'll save your eyes from a picture of the naked bums. Nobody wants to see that much skin and fat propped up on bikes.

26. Job well done on birthday festivities, until next year! Thank you, dear friends and family, for celebrating with me! Here's to another three sets of 25 years, at least!