Pacific Northwest

A few weeks ago my best friend and I had the privilege of going to Portland and Seattle. Before I get to all the details of that, I have to take a minute to brag on the big man upstairs for how it all worked out that I was able to go.

I am the worst procrastinator I know, so naturally, I put off buying my plane tickets for way too long. Partly because I was waiting to hear back from Aleah on whether or not her mom was able to get me a discount on flights, (she works for American Airlines) and partly because I had been working really hard on saving my money for the last few months, and I wasn't too crazy about having to drop close to $500 for these tickets. So I told God that He was going to have to provide a way for me to be able to go, if I was supposed to go. I told Him that half of $500 would be ideal/doable for me. That was how much I was willing to pay.

It came to be close to two and a half weeks before we were supposed to leave for the trip, and I was talking to God about it, and since it was so close to time to leave, I figured I should go ahead and let Aleah know that I probably couldn't go. (Which, again, I did have the money for it, but I really didn't want to touch my savings.) But He told me, just wait, trust me. And I was still waiting to hear if Aleah's mom could get me some sort of discount. So I waited. But time was ticking.

The exact same day, only hours later, I received a text from Aleah while I was at work, letting me know that her mom's discount couldn't apply to me since I wasn't a family member. And I thought, "Well, crap. Looks like I'm not going." But before I could respond, she sent me another text saying that if I was okay with it, her mom could put me on the standby passenger list, and I would only have to pay for the taxes that would have been on a regular ticket. And I said, "oh how much would that be?" She told me it would be $236, roundtrip. 

Honestly, I just laughed. Because of course. It only makes sense that when God tells us to trust Him, He provides. He is a good Father. He doesn't tease us and He isn't cruel. He wants to do kind things for us, because He is kind. And I ended up only paying $200 flat, so that's cool.

We made it to Portland! Honestly, I'm still not sure what I thought about it. It was definitely a very cool city, with interesting character. Several people we met told us that most people usually prefer one city over the other when it comes to Seattle and Portland. It's not that I didn't like Portland, I did, I loved it! But Seattle definitely won my heart. It very much felt like it's own city, isolated from the rest of the world, and it was so unique. Portland kind of felt like Chicago (which is not a bad thing). Seattle felt like Seattle. 

The coffee in both places was wonderful. While I didn't take photos of every place we went to, I did take quite a few! Some places we went to that I didn't get photos of were the Ace Hotel/Stumptown, Powell's bookstore, and we also checked out Imogene + Willie. 

One of our first stops was Heart coffee in Portland. It was so gorgeous inside!

We walked to Blue Star Donuts for breakfast after. Voodoo donuts was on our list, but we didn't go for some reason! Our friends, Maddie + Joe, told us we had to try Pip's before we left, and thank God we did. They serve donut holes in different flavors, each of them made fresh upon ordering them. They had a nutella + sea salt donut that was the taste of heaven. *side note: the price listed on anything in Portland is exactly what you pay, and it's pretty wonderful.*

*most beautiful couple award* Maddie + Joe in their studio downtown. They were kind enough to let us stay with them in their cute, newlywed apartment. I adore them.

#FPandLeenonthatNWscene

No explanation needed here, am I right?

One place at the top of Aleah's list (of places to visit) was called 'Workshop.' It was the cutest boutique I think I've ever been to! I think, overall, I took more photos at their store than I did of the rest of Portland. It was just so cute!

Friday morning, our sweet friend Rachel and her friend Aaron drove from Seattle to pick us up and take us to Cannon Beach and Astoria, home of the Goonies! Both places have been on my bucket list for a very long time. It was surreal, taking it all in, that I was finally there. I loved being there the most. It didn't feel real.

Rachel trying to be all touchy and cute, and me pretending I'm not uncomfortable. (which is basically our friendship all the time)

"Beautiful things don't ask for attention."

Street 14 Coffee in Astoria, Oregon

The coffee shop was attached to a hotel lobby. Aaron was lounging and the light was gorgeous, so.

We snuck down beneath the town's pier. The ladder that lead below was halfway broken and mildly scary.

*iPhone photo, but it's too cute to not post*

The town was full of adorable coastal homes. I want to live in one, I think.

Supposedly, the owner of the Goonies house is not pleased when people try to approach the house. Our friend Joe told us that when he visited last fall, the owner had no problem letting him explore around the house, but the talk of the town was that once the movie's 30th anniversary happened (scary that it came out that long ago) the owner dealt with thousands of visitor's a day. I can understand how frustrating and annoying that would be. All though, I must say, you bought the Goonie house.. so.

We went to Oddfellows Cafe for brunch, and it was delicious. The atmosphere was really beautiful, too. It felt like we went back in time to a speakeasy. But it was brunch. 

Snoqualmie Falls, 40 minutes outside of town. It was breathtaking.

I didn't get as many photos of Seattle as I probably should have, but I loved being present and taking in the city. I need to go back soon, please.

The funny thing about flying standby is that you are not guaranteed a seat, therefore, being stuck in the airport all day, waiting for a flight that ISN'T full, is a very real possibility. 18 hours, folks. Yes, it is laughable, but 18 hours. 

I wouldn't change a thing.