by Angela V 
As the end of the summer quickly approaches and back-to-school is closer than ever we are still trying to squeeze in some family fun while the weather is still warm. This week we decided to take a last minute trip to Oregon and ended up spending four days in Portland. We live in Vancouver, BC so we are not too far. It took us about 6 hours to drive there, including several pit stops.
This was our first family trip as a family of four, traveling with two kids for the first time. I remember the days of going on vacation and packing a bag for just myself! Nowadays I end up packing clothing, toiletries and everything we need for two children and myself, thankfully my husband still packs his own bag!
Being on the road was easy. Both of my kids (almost 4 years old and 8 month old) love car rides and they actually sleep when we go on long trips. What we found a bit challenging was nap time and bed time. Sharing a room and getting both kids to sleep at the same time was hard! At home they have an early bed time and we have a routine but they ended up finally going to sleep at 10pm. They kept waking each other up, specially on the first night when the hotel and everything was new!
Other than sleep things were pretty easy and we had a great vacation. Portland has a lot of fantastic places to visit and we had a chance to go to the Oregon Zoo, Children’s Science Centre and hit some great touristic spots. We did a bus tour of the city as well and on our way back home stopped in Seattle for a day to visit the Museum of Flight, a bit hit with our pre-schooler. We had a lot of fun with the kids, ate some delicious food, explored some new places and enjoying some time off before the routine of school/work starts again.
Do you have any trips or outings left to do on your summer bucket list?
KINDER® photo-strip app: If you are looking for a fun way to share your summer smiles photos then be sure to check out the fun KINDER® photo-strip app. Go to KINDER® on Facebook to create your own and be sure to tag #kindersmiles to any photo-strip so you can see your smile in the app’s gallery view. Fun way to share your photos! Check out our photo-strip below:
Disclosure: I’m part of theKinder® Mom program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own
29 Comments on “Enjoying the Last Weeks of the Summer – Visiting Portland”
Lovely photos!
i’m not ready for summer to end
^ yes! I don’t want it to end! 🙁 Looks like a fun trip!
Oregon a perfect road trip destination from Vancouver. It’s not super far and different enough from Vancouver that the kids really feel like they are on vacation! I hope you do a post on all the food you ate in Portland!!
I should eh Jeannie! So many wonderful restaurants! Our favourite area for food was Alberta St.
You totally have to do a Portland food blog post. Did you get to explore the farmer’s market or check out all the awesome food trucks?!? I am so itching to go back to Portland after reading your post!
yes, it can be very difficult getting children to sleep when you’re away from home and the normal routine. Luckily yours are both good travellers, one of my daughters has 2 small children and both get car sick they’ve recently discovered!
The look on your little guys face with the astronaut is priceless!
Those last summer escapes are usually the most memorable
We are spending the last bit of summer with as much outdoor water play and painting as possible…
My little girl loves to spend hours pouring water all over, creating then splashing in puddles, and going nuts with paint!
Lovely Photos. It seems like summer ended for us 2 weeks ago. Nothing but rainy, drizzle and fog.
It sounds like it was an enjoyable trip for all of you. I love the picture of you, your pre-schooler and the astronaut gear. Your son couldn’t look more pleased if he tried.
can’t believe the summer just flew by. Looks like you guys had a wonderful trip!
Great photos~ looks like you have a lot of fun!
each day when the sun is shining and you don’t have inclement weather , get out there even if is for a short while
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By the look on his face,,,,hes sure enjoying his self
Winter is slow setting in here still +5 overnight
Thanks for some great ideas for visiting Washington and Oregon…I too live in Vancouver!
Its been such a long winter,i’m ready for summer to begin
Looks like you have a lot of fun!
Love the photos and also your dress
May 19th and I went shopping with a winter coat…..boohoo we need heat
Had our first snow-fall last night,im going to miss you Summer.
Oh Summer i am so going to miss you,grrrrr i hated to see the winter wind blow in
I hate winter all ready…………yuck
I’ve never really thought of a vacation in Portland but there’s great things to do
I read this because in Victoria we’re always looking for places that aren’t too far to go. This would be ideal… not sure why we haven’t thought of it before. Seattle we loved, especially my wife as she is a big fan of blown glass and the Chihuly Gardens are there.
Nice pics! Would love to visit Portland one day.