Instead of chronicling my travel, I thought I could tell you what I do in the meantime. I know, snore. If you expecting another Jesus statue, so sorry. Once we have more of the house projects completed, I will get right on it.
So, last weekend I made raspberry jam. Do you know how easy it was to make this stuff? It is literally just pectin, sugar and raspberries. Why did I used to buy this stuff when I can make it with love in my very own kitchen? The only reason I can find is that the raspberries do splatter, so I looked like I had gotten in a knife fight. How did I possibly get raspberries on my upper arm? That is the price to pay for homemade fresh jam I suppose. It also helped my street cred, so I am not mad at it.
In addition to making more jam this weekend, I think I will attempt to put some of these smoothie packets together. I have seen many of these step by step, but I like this one because it has you freeze the yogurt and include it in the bag. Many of the others require you have fresh yogurt which usually ends up in the back of my fridge with at least 2 months of mold. Nothing better than cleaning rotten milk products out of something. It makes your house smell AMAZING.
I was able to get a flat of raspberries last weekend for $27 at Lolich's Family Farm and a half flat of blueberries, but I cannot remember how much. What was interesting was that the flat boxes were marked with "Gonzales Farms in Cornelius, OR." It kind of sucks, because either they were re-purposing some crates or my raspberries and blueberries came from an entirely different place. I don't know why this bugged me, but I kind of want to be able to say that the berries I use come from the area I live in. I may go to one of the other MANY farm stores in the area to get more local fruit.
We are so lucky to live on the verge of farm land and have access to so many farm stores. I often have to remind myself why I am OK with living in Beaverton. Being a Portlander my entire life, having a Beaverton address is still tough. These are the reasons to live in Beaverton:
1. Good schools. Our elementary school is ranked a 9 on Great Schools. They are also building a brand new high school really close to us.
2. Affordable. I should say - affordable at the time I bought. The house is worth at least $50,00 more than I paid for it two years ago.
3. Murrayhill/Progress Ridge shopping centers. Nothing better than having lunch at a french bakery, getting your nails done and then seeing a movie at a theater with armchairs.
4. Convenience. Everything that I need on a regular basis is close to the house, including the daycare that I love.
5. Proximity to wine country. This is two fold: I like to get my drink on and when hubby gets a full time job in the wine industry, it will be an easy commute.
6. Safety. I have never felt scared for myself, family or property in Beaverton. When I lived in Portland, the chances were higher for criminal activity, especially when I lived downtown. The only exception was when I lived in Forest Heights (which was an alternate universe that is meant for another blog another day)
The reasons why Beaverton sucks:
1. No easy access to a highway. I have to travel at least 15 mins to get to the nearest freeway.
2. The restaurants suck. You can't swing a purse in Portland without hitting an AMAZING farm to table restaurant. There are only chains or OK local restaurants in my area.
3. Reinforcement of my inferiority complex. When I tell people I live in Beaverton, there is usually a mix of disgust and pity unless the person lives there too (see above good list, especially #5).
As you can see, the good list outweighs the bad list by a LONG shot. However, I still cringe when I have to say where I live. I am still working through the steps to Acceptance. I will let you know when I get there.
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