Sandy and the Tram

The kids were off of school today because the teachers had to finish up 3rd quarter grades.  We decided to head to the city of Sandy, Oregon, to explore.  The big draw for us to Sandy was . . .   
We have heard great things about Joe's Donut Shop.  Supposedly, everyone that skis at Mt. Hood stops here on their way home for some delicious sugary goodness.  We decided to see if Joe's really deserves a 5 star rating from us on Yelp.  Ian ordered the cinnamon sugar and old fashioned, Nyah decided on the cronut and a blueberry fritter, and Carson stuck with his favorites the applesauce and chocolate glazed.  We sat down at a table to enjoy the tasty treats and noticed a sign on our table that read, "These are the most famous donuts in the world because they are the best in the world!"

Ian bit into his cinnamon sugar donut, moaned, and said, "These taste just like the donuts at the Red Barn!"  The Red Barn makes cinnamon donuts in Santaquin, Utah, and they are Ian's absolute favorite donuts in the whole world.   Sixty seconds later, he bit into his old fashioned donut, moaned again, and said, "So moist and soft." Personally, I don't appreciate the word "moist," especially when describing a donut, but this was a huge compliment coming from Ian.

The kids' verdict is that Joe's Donut Shop is indeed a 5 star business.  We will make the drive to Sandy often just for these tasty treats.

After we consumed our donuts, we wandered through the parking lot and noticed a beautiful park just steps away.  It is called Meinig Memorial Park and is filled with pine trees, steams, and wooden structures for the kids to play on.  Most of the kids we saw playing there were between 3 and 5 years old, but that didn't stop the elderly Heber kids from having a blast.

During our time at the park we took some Senior photos of Ian. (He cracks me up!)

Some Senior photos of Carson. (He yelled about getting this picture taken but smiled for the camera.)

And some family photos for our wall at home. (Really?!)

Can you guess who the baby of the family is?!

The trails that run through the park are absolutely gorgeous.  I would highly recommend this park as a place for a family picnic or even a double date for a couple of the kids pictured above.

We still had some hours left in the day, so we decided to head into Portland to ride the Tram.  The OHSU Tram runs between the South Waterfront district and the OHSU campus.  Ian dreams of going to OHSU someday to earn a Nursing degree and thought it would be a good idea for us all to check it out.  It cost us each $4.50 for the 4 minute Tram ride, but it was totally worth it.  The views of the city from the Tram are breathtaking.



Ian made a wish and threw a penny into the fountain at OHSU for good luck in his future endeavors at the school.


It was a great day!  We are excited for Aaron to get home from his week in Dublin, so we can give him his apple fritter from Joe's Donut Shop.  It may or may not be here for him when he gets back.