adventure time

My brother Doug and I made an epic trip, with my Mumsie in tow, out to Portland OR, to visit our youngest brother, Nelson. Visiting Nelson's home and gardens in the industrial section of Portland has been on Mumsie's bucket list. We went up and over St. Johns Bridge (of Wildwood fame) many times on our adventures.

We spent time at Sauvie Island Wildlife Area, spotting all sorts of birds, (thanks Doug, for your encyclopedic knowledge) including nesting osprey. We soaked in the lush, green beauty at Hoyt Arboretum,  (coming from spring starved New England!). We ate fabulous food and visited with dear friends.

But the highlight of the trip was an afternoon at the Portland Museum of Art, where we viewed Animating Life, an exhibit showing the work of Laika Studios.

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Here are tiny bits of costumes from Kubo and the Two Strings.

These trees, made of corrugated cardboard, were crafted when the film was just at the imagining stage. (I was reminded of the days when we would sit at our dining room table as kids, up to our armpits in glue and scissors and crayons.)

Here, Nelson chats with my Mumsie about a set from ParaNorman.

And here he is with the giant skeleton, which is 12 feet tall.

Seeing the exhibit was especially wonderful because we were able to wander around on a day when the museum was closed to the public. (Attendance for this exhibit has smashed the records kept at the museum.)  

I remain in awe of my brother's vision, creativity and hard work.

Back at Nelson's place, we often sat on his deck, with a view of both Mt Hood and Mt St Helen's. We watched ships and boats and paddlers go up and down the Willamette River. Scrub-jays would scold us until we set nuts out on the railing for them to steal. Some of us watched the sunrise with a mug of coffee, some watched the sunset with a glass of wine, some did both! 

What a treat it was to have a few days with my Mumsie, and brothers Doug and Nelson. Big thanks go out to my Mumsie's travel arrangement generosity and Nelson's warm hospitality. xo