Roses and Multnomah Falls

After breakfast and a quick dip in the pool, we headed up to Washington park to the rose garden up there. We had been here before when we first came out to Portland and Washington when we were looking at places to live at the end of dental school. We had a lot of fun then, and decided that it was worth another look. 

They have these beautiful roses growing from

the tennis courts up by the gardens

Thomas beneath one of the rose arches

Roses!

With the boys

'Crimson Glory'

A couple of thorns amongst the roses!

"Of all flowers, methinks a rose is best"

William Shakespeare

We didn't stay at the rose gardens for too long because two of our children were not behaving very well (the two that didn't appear in many pictures!) Zach was mad because he wanted to push the stroller around and we wouldn't let him run into the roses. Olivia was just slightly off this morning and woke up in a weepy and dramatic mood and managed to stay that way. I think that they have been having too may late nights recently.

After leaving the gardens we made our way out to Multnomah Falls on the Columbia River gorge. We drove past a ton of other falls on our way out there, but the Multnomah Falls definitely seemed the most impressive, being the second tallest year round waterfall in the nation. 

The Columbia River

Vista House which was built as a look out point

over the Columbia River Gorge

When we arrived at the falls I was honestly doubting whether or not we would really be able to make it to the top. My friend Johanna had told me that it was only a mile hike up there, but that it was pretty steep. We stopped another guy who had a child in a stroller and he said that he had managed to push his kid all the way to the top. He said that it was definitely a work out, but it was paved the whole way. The only problem was that Spense said he looked in slightly better shape than him, and we would be pushing two kids, because there was no way that the Olivia was going to make the climb. We decided to give it a shot anyway. 

Multnomah Falls

More of the falls

This was taken just after we crossed the

bridge that you can see in the picture above

After getting to switchback 4 of 11 I turned to Spense and told him that if he wanted to go on ahead we would just sit and wait for him, but he was determined that we would all do it together. Thomas complained for the first little while, but then I think he decided to suck it up and get on with it when he realized that we really wanted to do this. As he complained I took the opportunity to talk to him about those pioneer children who had walked to Zion, and how they often didn't have shoes, but rags wrapped around their feet. I'm sure that he didn't really want to hear me telling him that he really didn't have it that bad, but I think that it made him think a little. 

Spense walked ahead of me the whole time and had the camera wrapped around him so I don't have any pictures of him pushing Zach and Olivia up the hill, but he was a star and he was quite sweaty by the time we made it. We were all proud of our accomplishment. 

The top of the falls

Right where the water plunges over into the falls

He made it right to the top and I was so

proud of him

We all made it and some of us didn't

want a picture to remember it!

I was worried about Spense bringing the stroller down with two kids in it since it was a pretty steep grade, so I carried Zach down to the bottom. I think that Spense wanted me to put him back in though when he commented how pushing only one kid didn't look as impressive as pushing two. When we reached the bottom and changed out of our sweaty clothes we enjoyed an ice cream before our drive home. We arrived home tired and ready for bed, except I first had to go to the store to buy Father's Day dinner.

Zach was all about the ice cream

Enjoying ice cream