Portland Trip aka A Preggo's Paradise

This past weekend, Ryan and I had the pleasure of escaping to Portland for what I like to think of as a mini babymoon {read: vacation before baby #2 makes his debut}.  Ever since our friends Jane {of In the Pink and & Green} and Cameron moved to Portland, I have been drooling over every picture she posts.  Since Jane and I are both pregnant...she's due December 4th...I thought, what better time to go visit than now?  They were so gracious in hosting us and showing us around town.  I ate to my heart's {and belly's!} content and it was wonderful to spend time with good friends.  

Get ready for picture overload...

Arriving at PDX airport...this shot is mandatory for the "fun" rug.

We got in around Friday noon, which meant it was time for lunch.  We checked out the food carts in downtown and the Güero Tortas did no disappoint.  I got the refrito torta with egg...yum!

We walked around downtown and checked out the Pearl district and Powell Bookstore...which is the largest independent bookstore in the world.  In a world of Amazon's, I have to say there is still nothing quite like browsing for books.  

Of course all of that walking made us work up an appetite, so we stopped for Stumptown coffee, which had the most delicious almond milk latte, and donuts at Blue Star.  I opted for the Lemon Poppy while Ryan went for the Real Maple & Bacon.  Their donuts are super light and fluffy...definitely the best we'd ever had.  

For dinner, we went to Double Dragon, which was this funky little Asian joint with moody lighting and hand-crafted cocktails.  Ryan got the ginger margarita, which is one of my favorite!  I was drooling watching him drink it.  I got their seasonal lemongrass and lobster soup with a side of their miso fries...DELISH!

Of course, we had to end the night on a sweet note, so it was off to Salt & Straw.  OH man!  Their flavors are out of this world!  They let you test any and all of their flavors which is especially amazing when they have seasonal flavors like Salted Caramel Thanksgiving Turkey and Hazelnut Rosemary Stuffing!  I ended up getting the Spiced Chèvre Pumpkin Pie and Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons, though if I went back, I would definitely get the Arbequina Olive Oil...so so tasty!

Saturday morning, we walked to brunch.  I could not get over the gorgeous colors and all of the tree lined streets!

We had brunch at Broder, a cute Scandinavian spot.  We started with the Danish pancakes, which had a side of lemon curd and lignonberry jam.  And then I had the delicata squash and chèvre baked scramble.  I am still dreaming of those pancakes!

The sign outside Broder was too good to pass up!

We got to check out Schoolhouse Electric...such a treat!

We also got to see Mt. Hood on our tour around Portland that afternoon.

Later, we stopped by the gorgeous rose gardens...did you know that Portland is known as the City of Roses?

Between shopping and sightseeing...we stopped for a quick bite at Oven and Shaker pizza and we ordered the spicy salami pizza...it comes with honey on it, yum!

Later that day, we had to refuel with macraons from Nuveri and coffee from Barista.  We were loving all the seasonal colors & flavors.

Yes, it's true we're 6 weeks apart...doesn't Jane look great??

Dinner with this handsome guy!

Blogger Husbands.

Our dinner was at Olympic Provisions which is in an industrial area.  They're known for their meats and this place did not disappoint!  The decor was super cool too.

Are you still with me?  Our last day, we went to Pine State Biscuits...I got the McIsley sandwich with a side of marionberry jam!  And of course, afterwards, I had to get one more coffee fill so we stopped at Pip's Original which served an amazing almond milk raw honey latte and the cutest mini donuts with nutella on them.  It was such a great way to end the weekend!

I am sure I put on 5+ pounds this weekend, which is a sure sign of success, don't you think?  Me and baby are pretty happy right about now!  ;)

Thanks again to Jane and Cameron for being such amazing hosts...I'm already daydreaming about my trip back to Portland!!

xo natasha