For some reason I had too many pictures in one post, so hopefully this fixed the issue.

Family Reunion in Bend, OR. Aug '07

Break from conference in Welches, OR Jon-Melinda-Rachelle-Travis (co-worker) Aug '07

Can you guess what 1985 movie this house was in? A childhood favorite starring Corey Feldman, Sean Astin, Jeff Cohen, and others... Yes Goonies!!! Astoria, OR Aug '07

We got to get our fill of Texas when Pastor Ion and his wife were in town. Portland, OR Aug '07

Max looking up at master climbing rocks. Tillamook, OR Aug '07

Beach near Tillamook, OR Aug '07

Has it been that long?

Well... I didn't realize it has been so long since I last logged on and put one of these message thingys up. Not that I haven't been on a computer everyday or anything. So what has happened since then? Well, to start off Melinda and I are pregnant!!! Just Kidding... But seriously though... I was out in San Francisco a week for training, then my family came up for a small reunion in Bend, OR. Then Melinda and I went down to Welches, OR for a conference. That place is spectacular. Work has been daunting trying to set everything up, learn my routes, names of all my contacts. And of course deal with all the issues that have been ignored since the last rep. Enough about work though, I actually enjoy it. I've always enjoyed being so busy that it stresses me out. Kind of weird, huh? I have included a lot of pics this time around, just in case it's another 2 months before I get on here again. Some of these are from Texas before we left for Washington. We have a few from Las Vegas/Hoover Dam where Melinda and I spent our anniversary back in May.(It was work related, otherwise we would have gone to Florida) A few from our stop in Colorado on the move to WA. We got to spend a couple days where I used to live and met up with old friends. And then a few here since the move. We are going to Hawaii next week for Melinda's birthday. That should be a lot of fun. All I'm bringing are swim trunks, a few t-shirts, and some sunblock. As luck would have it, my mom recently moved within an hour and a half so she gets to watch Max while we're gone. She's down in Tillamook, right on the coast. I've included some shots of the beach when we went down there last weekend. Enjoy cause it may be a while...

Hoover Dam May '07

Ceasar's Palace May '07

Found this looking for more pics. This was in WA before we moved up. June '07

Melinda-Jon-Heather @ 'Going away Party'- June '07

Cottonwood Lake, CO June '07

Jon-Barbara-Melinda @ Copper Mnt SDA Church June '07

John-Ben-Jon-Max in Silverthorne, CO June '07

Rangely, CO June '07

Friends from Texas in Tacoma? Jon-Melinda-Danae-Damon July '07

Another Sunset from our patio, NOT color enhanced... July '07

Some hike near a falls... Max and this boy who really enjoyed playing with the dog. July '07

I was walking in San Francisco and while waiting to cross the street found myself looking at the ground. I thought that it would be a good picture, and my wife agreed!!! Aug '07

Pittock Mansion that overlooks Portland, OR... see next shot. Aug '07

View of Portland from Pittock Mansion

Week Two

Week two has ended and we have really started to settle in. We had a bit more of this Northwest rain they speak of. It rains for a while and then the sun breaks out, then it rains again for a couple hours and then the sun comes out for 20 minutes. Really weird... But good for those who like change. This past week was also my first week at work and it went well. I am getting antsy to start the actually routes I will drive, but need to be patient. I might as well enjoy the training period before I start working really hard. Friday evening as the rain dispersed we were left with a beautiful sunset from our balcony. On Saturday after church we were invited over to eat at a member's home. It was a great lunch and I got to share my testimony and we all talked for quite some time. Deep down inside I wanted to go on a hike with Melinda and Maxie, b/c the weather was awesome and you have to take advantage of every opportunity you get up here. So we left their house and went to Battle Ground Lake State park, about 10 miles from our home. It reminded me of a summer camp with the small lake in the center of camp. We hiked around the lake on this mossy trail and would stop from time to time to let Max swim. He had a blast. Then we saw the Wooly Mammoth Tree. Kind of strange looking huh? Well I am off to play some ultimate frisbee with the young adults. Seize the day and all...

The First Visit

These are from when we first came out to the Portland area searching for a place to live and checking out the scenery. We cut it close looking for a new home. We had 3 days out of the 4 we were there to find a place, and we settled on Whipple Creek on Day 3 at 3pm. Yes Whipple Creek, don't ask me what a Whipple is. The top picture was taken from our little balcony at unit S-81. It has plenty of room for Max to run around, and they are very 'dog friendly'. Our relocation agent Kris gave us a list of things to do, but since we only had 29 hours before we were to leave 'item number 8- Sunset at Seaside, OR' was what we decided to try. The sunset picture was actually taken by me. Hard to believe you say? I guess being married to such a talented photographer is rubbing off. (Check out some of her pics on her blog. melindaholland.blogspot.com- website to follow) If you are wondering what melinda is pointing at in the sky it's nothing. Just Superman!!! (He's really way up there, kind of hard to see.) All we had heard regarding Portland was Rain, Rain, Rain. So when we came to visit what did we get? Sun, Sun, Sun. You can see some clouds on the coast, but inland towards Portland was beautiful the whole time we were there. It has rained since we've moved here, but at least it's not Texas. Enjoy with a cup of monkey joe!

Columbia River Gorge

Max and I at the top of Horsetail Falls.

Here is beautiful Multnomah Falls.

Melinda and Max exploring some rock formations.

On the trail to Multnomah Falls and then onto Horsetail Falls...

The Move to Washington- First Entry

So we have been telling everyone that we are moving to Portland, OR, which technically isn't a lie. Ridgefield, WA is just a stone's through away from the Washington-Oregon state line. Now I won't dive into a lesson in geography here, but if you look at a map that puts us just 18 miles north of Portland. My territory for work has me going from Salem, OR up to Tacoma, WA and even East to Bend, OR. We are very excited and have been here at the new place 6 days. Today was the first day it rained. We went on a hike yesterday after Church and saw some spectactular waterfalls. The larger one is Multnomah Falls off the Columbia Gorge in Oregon. The smaller one Max (the dog) and I are standing on is Horsetail Falls. All in all we had a 5-6 mile hike. This area is really green and beautiful. The nights are cool and the days warm, but not excessivley hot like Texas. Enjoy the pics and I will be experimenting with the blog so things may be different next time on here. God Bless