No, we didn't skip her birthday this year...  This is the first time I haven't posted about Amelia' birthday right away, but I think it's somewhat understandable, since it was all in the midst of total chaos for us as a family.  Although I did not capture the pictures I'd hoped for, I do want to record the event, since this is the closest thing I do to scrapbooking or keeping a baby book.  Life is so full, and I want to remember these times.
Amelia turned five!  Her two requests for her birthday were a crown and gluten-free chocolate cupcakes.  We made those things happen, and quite a lot more!  In addition to a tiny party at her grandparents' house, we wanted to take a day in Portland to do all of her favorite things, just as we had done the three birthdays before.  It seemed especially important since we don't know when we'll be in Portland again for her birthday.
We started the day with friends at Slappy Cakes, where you can make your own breakfast right at the table.  Our other child guest was Chloe, our former neighbor, and she and Amelia had a blast.

 Waiting for the party to start, Amelia all dressed up in her crown, and she has a big fluffy tutu under her dress.  She loved the amount of attention her crown generated, and had lots of opportunities throughout the day to announce her birthday and soak up all the attention and good wishes.

 We ordered some bottles of gluten-free pancake batter and plenty of toppings, and then Amelia and her buddy both made pancakes and commissioned some special ones, like this kitty cat.  After lots of pancakes and syrup, the staff also came out with a gluten free banana fritter, which she dug into, and this is sort of where all that left her:

 She recovered and let the sweets work their loopy magic on her and Chloe-- their antics were really hysterical!

 This is my favorite picture from the day, with Chloe laughing so hard at her shenanigans!

 That was fun, and we had a great time with our neighbors.  Next, it was off for our birthday tradition-- this was Amelia's fourth year to ride the sky tram on her birthday.

 While we were riding up to the top where OHSU is situated, our tram conductor radioed to the staff at the entrance that there was a little birthday princess on her way.  They met us with stickers and a little pair of binoculars!  That was so sweet.  We walked up to the park area up there, where a farmer's market was being held.  Amelia sampled everything and received plenty of birthday greetings.  A few days before her birthday, she had befriended someone in a bookstore.  This lady found out that Amelia's birthday was coming up, and pulled two dollars out of her purse and gave them to Amelia to buy herself a gift with!  So Amelia spent that money on a fresh-squeezed orange juice.  It was a hot day, so we soaked our feet in a fountain and rested.

 We basically spent the rest of the day visiting fountains all over Portland-- I think five, total.  We also went to Finnegan's toy store for Amelia to play for a while.

 After so many little stops, it was finally time to meet our friend Elie for our main gift to Amelia: a Moroccan dinner! Amelia has always loved experiences more than things.  We have tried many times to think of toys or presents she would actually play with, but it always ends up being a bust.  What she loves is stories, food, going new places, and learning things about other parts of the world.  Could we have a child more compatible for the life we've been living?!  So she had been really looking forward to eating Moroccan food, getting her hands washed with orange flower scented water, sitting on poufs around little tables, etc.  It was dark, so I didn't get many good pictures, but this is a sweet one with Elie.

Amelia's birthday is my favorite holiday of the year.  She is such an interesting little person, and I love to just take the time to delight her and do all of the things I know she likes.  It was a long day, but it was also great to make time in that crazy week to spend our energies on her, and Jeff and I had a blast too!

When you don't make any plans on a gorgeous day...

... you might as well just get everyone dressed and out the door.
We planned to wander around a little and just see what happened.
First, there was music!

Baby squashes and tiny flowering plants.

Then we really got things going when we decided to walk the path around the wall of the city. The weather was incredible, and Autumn is in full blast here.

While I was getting completely caught up in all the foliage and colors, Jeff and Amelia decided this was just the right moment to take care of the "ants in their pants."

Then we started something we just couldn't stop... taking pictures of ourselves and each other!

We took our time just loving all of the views and beautiful architecture around us.

And found the perfect architectural accent for posing little girls on.

And then Jeff got in on the action.

And inevitably, things really started getting silly!

Jeff made sure I got in on the photo fun too.

Then it was back to walking and looking and loving it all.

Amelia was more than willing to do a little more posing...But once we crossed the bridge and went back through the wall, we were more than ready for lunch.

Which, unfortunately, took multiple attempts at different restaurants. Luckily, we still had our camera.

And, three hours after we left our home to "wander around a little," we ended up eating bratwurst and kraut right under the clock tower.

Time very well spent.
Happy Weekend!

A-Marketing We Go...

I decided to bring my camera along with me this morning to the open market. I am definitely living out my ideal grocery shopping scenario. We have a tiny fridge-- think of a big dorm-sized one-- so I can't keep many perishables on hand. We have one rack in the pantry where I keep coconut milk, nuts, etc., but otherwise all of our food is either on the counter or in the fridge-- which means I need to keep buying small amounts almost every day.

All week long, there are green grocers with their tents set up in the city square. These items are bought from a big market in Nuremburg in the wee hours of the morning, and many of these are imported from other countries. These stalls are convenient, but I try to wait for the actual farmers to come on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

The daily vendors. They are becoming familiar with me, and today one of them taught me the word for "basket," very patiently writing it down when it was clear that I was not quite getting the pronunciation.

My first shopping day is Wednesday, when I go to buy produce, wild vension, and whatever seasonal items show up in various booths-- this week it was mixed wild mushrooms and wild cranberries. There is a spice vendor there as well as a Turkish man with all sorts of olives, cheeses, hummus, etc.

Fridays are the biggest market day. There are lots of meat vendors, along with breads booths, fish mongers, and farmers. This probably doesn't look too appetizing to you, but this marinated turkey is wunderbar.

Bread cart. I love the old-timey look!

My favorite is the rotisserie truck! You can buy whole roasted hens and geese. I do plan on picking up a goose one of these days, but I usually buy two small chickens-- one to pick apart with Amelia for lunch (she gets out of school early on Fridays,) and the other to use the meat and bones for chicken stock and soups during the week. I tend to be kind of shy with the camera, but asking this man if I could take his pictures warmed him right up, and in turn, he asked me some questions about living here. I love making relationships with the vendors, it makes the whole process of shopping so enjoyable!

Roast Geese.

Why so nervous?

There is also the Herb Lady, who makes beautiful wreaths and little woodsy decorations.


She speaks English pretty well and makes really good pestos and chutneys, and goes to great trouble to explain things to me. She told me today that there will be a festival coming up that the churches celebrate, kind of like Thanksgiving, in honor of the harvest. This explains one of the fancier displays today.

And maybe the presence of a basket weaver...

...And a clog maker...?

It's really nice to see everyone out and about, enjoying the beautiful Fall weather. There was a large group of people from a nearby elderly home.

And look who I ran into! It's Ingrid!

(She tells me she'll be at the upcoming flohmarkt, so stay tuned for that shopping fun!)

This is what I came home with today, minus the meats.

Anyway, I'd say Friday is my biggest shopping day. Many of the farmers return on Saturday as well, so it's nice to walk around and look as a family, but not needing to do much actual purchasing. Every other week or so, I go to a big grocery store to buy some dry goods and such. Then most days, I realize that I am missing one or two items and I go to a little grocery about four stores away on our street. There are little shops nearby that are a mix between a deli and a butcher shop, called a Metzgerei, where I buy meat if I need some for dinner that night. All in all, I get by without really going to a real grocery store for a long time! Food goes through our kitchen quickly, but it is very easy to restock. And I must mention that our food budget is about the same here as it was in Portland!

In light of all of the food allergies I have had to juggle for Jeff and Amelia, and some nagging health issues, our family is transitioning to a grain-free lifestyle. I took a picture today to turn in to a contest on a website that has been fun and inspiring for me, detailing what our family eats in a typical week (delicious-looking child not included.)

Not pictured, but written in: 1 Kilo Fresh Turkey, 1 Kilo Wild Venison, 2 Rotisserie Chickens, and 4 Dozen Pastured Eggs.

Although it could be difficult to make such a big switch, the setup here is so ideal, it has actually simplified my life quite a bit. We basically eat meat, eggs, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds and butter. And I enjoy some other dairy. We are all pretty happy with this, and of course feeling good too! I love doing all of the marketing, and look forward to my shopping days very much.

Thanks for coming along with me today!