Good ole' friends

Good ole Friends are like this beautiful waterfall in Oregon...it remains beautiful and majestic even when it's not in my view.  

I have only ever been to this waterfall a handful of times....  But every time I go back  I get to see this beautiful work of nature!  And guess what?  

It is exactly and as lovely as I remembered it!

A long time ago, I mean a really long time ago I went on a mission to Australia!  Along my journey I met two of the loveliest people I ever will meet.  One, a sassy Aussie from Melbourne and the other a charismatic, adventure planning girl from Shelly Idaho with a Southern Drawl that would put anyone from Georgia to shame.  We all served together in the deaf program, we all worked hard and we all laughed probably a little more then we should admit.  Quiet Dignity has never been my strong suit.  Although I have had the opportunity of meeting up with Deb (who now lives in Oregon) I have not seen Miss Kelli for over 20 years.  Seriously when did I get so old that I could say I haven't seen someone in over 20 years?  

That hurt just typing it out.

We all three got together this year when Kelli flew in from Aussie Land....  it was like time had never passed!  For some reason I spoke in an English accent the whole time we were together with a little Aussie mixed in.  Deb still talked like she was from Georgia and Kelli, well.... every time she talks something absolutely freaking, hilarious comes out.  

We had an adventurous few days together, eating, biking, belly dancing (you read that right), hiking and more.  

Our day into Portland was fantastic and part of that had to do with this exquisite place pictured below.

This sweet shop is a must "stop-at-place" for me any time I am in Portland!

Can you say caramel fudge syrup? 

 I can, I did...

 and then.........

 I embraced it over vanilla ice cream. 

 I bought two jars as I was leaving so that I could share with my baby birds aka..(sweet addict children) and then...........

 at airport security I remembered I only had a carry on.

Does 3.5 oz mean anything to you?  

Sure, it does to me too, that's why my shampoo, my lotion, my everything liquid was in a ziplock bag perfectly measured out.  

Do you know they don't like you when you argue with security guards?

Did you know that 3 oz of liquid applies to caramel?    Do you know that as I type this, I still don't know how to spell caramel (and when spell check brought it up - once I picked caramal and once I picked caramel, just so whoever read this thought I knew something important).

As the security guard was prying my caramel fudge from my He-Man (maybe She-Ra) grip,  I felt like bursting into tears.   He will always remain a villain (Skeletor) in my mind.    I loathed and despised this security man who stole the "goodness" that is caramel fudge syrup from me.  However, I decided to do the most compassionate thing and tell him,  "that if he threw it away, he would be giving up one of the good things life has to offer".  I told him to hide it in his bag and run home without looking back.  Give the goodness to his family and reap the rewards of  knowing that he was probably going to be the most popular dad and husband in the world.  He looked at me like I was the weirdest, psycho in the world, but that is just because he didn't know the value of what he had just taken away from me.  

After the indulging came the bike riding.  Burning off calories feels so good in the city!

I failed to mention that our first morning at Deb's house was an adventure in itself.  The dreaded gopher that is currently ruining Deb's backyard was spotted and these two girls thought they could smash it with a shovel.  I sat back with my camera and decided I would let them try.  

Kellie is a belly dancer in Australia and you can even youtube her, she's downright awesome.  She taught us the history of bellydancing.  Did you know it was meant to be a dance by women for women.  I don't know how it went from that to what it is today but...

although, not pictured, 

I shimmied, I shook it and I felt like a royal idiot.  

Shh! 

 Don't tell anyone that three returned missionaries skipped Sunday School and went hiking!  We climbed on this huge stump and sang in harmony a  beautiful hymn, does that count for blessings? 

 I hiked in wedges, it was a bit shady in parts but eventually I came out all right.  

Part of me truly thinks that church should be on a mountain somewhere.

If you can't see Kelli she is that leaf in the middle, who knew she could match her shirt perfectly to the foliage.  

All good things must come to an end and so did this trip full of too many laughs to count.  

Good thing that in 20 years we can meet up again and all the fun will return, just like when I get the chance to return again to this beautiful waterfall.