Colton + Ashley's 2017 in Review
Ashley has been fortunate that her job has sent her on a few trips this year. Colton was able to tag along to Seattle, WA in April, and we made a weekend of it. We spent our time visiting the Seattle library (of course, Colton loves the architecture), coffee tasting at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery, and walking around the city.
As we reflect back on 2017, we have seen God work in multiple ways this past year. In January, we found City Bible Church, which we now call home, and have gotten involved in a few different young married connect groups. Additionally, in June, God provided us a new (very affordable) place to live that is within walking/biking distance from both our jobs, Colton’s school, and downtown Portland. The kitchen is literally the size of a coat closet, but aside from that, we love where we live! Around the same time (September) that Colton started grad school, at the University of Oregon (Architecture), Ashley started interviewing for new jobs as her current position was coming to a close. The Lord blessed Ashley with the only job she really wanted! She is now the Fiscal Coordinator for the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health, with the hopes that she can find her niche in the finance world.
In addition to these larger “life events” we visited many coffee shops (check out Barista and Black Rock Coffee if you’re in Portland); started biking more frequently as it is the quickest mode of transportation in our area; took a few trips to the Oregon Coast – once to celebrate our 3 years of marriage and another time before Colton started school; and had visits from our family and friends where we got to become “tourists” and show them all we love about beautiful Portland. Lastly, one of our favorite highlights of the year was adopting our sweet kitten, Jericho. Again, God provided us with just what we needed. He has already brought so much joy into our lives with his cuteness, cuddles, and playfulness.
We kicked off the new year by visiting the Draper, UT Tree of Life with Colton’s family while we were home for Christmas 2016. There are over 1,000 strands of lights used to create this beautiful tree. It was a fun low-key night spent with some of our favorite people. Christmas 2017 will again be spent in Utah visiting both our families and friends.
The last trip Ashley was able to take with her job was attending the National Cannabis Summit in Denver, CO at the end of August. This summit gave an unbiased look at the different policies surrounding legalizing cannabis and the direction our nation is headed. Ashley’s main priority during this trip was to get up early and walk to different coffee shops before the summit workshops.
We were able to get away for a bit in July and explore Minneapolis, MN before heading to Wisconsin. The highlights of our trip included: eating at Hell’s Kitchen where they had a 35-foot-long Bloody Mary Bar; seeing St. Paul’s Cathedral; trying new coffee shops (of course!); taking fun photos at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden; shopping at the Mall of America; eating the best hot dogs of our life at The Wienery; exploring the city by foot; and visiting with Colton’s friend from undergrad.
After a few days in Minneapolis, we made our way over to Rhinelander, WI. This trip is memorable for multiple reasons: It was Colton’s first time meeting Ashley’s Grandma, Joyce, and the first time in many years that the entire family on Ashley’s mom’s side was together. We were all there together to celebrate Joyce’s 80th birthday on August 4th. We spent the week in an Airbnb cabin eating yummy food, playing countless rounds of cards, taking family photos, and celebrating Joyce (as well as Penny, Colton, and Ashley’s July/August birthdays).
The second work-related trip Ashley got to take was in March, to Providence, RI, the farthest East Ashley has been. She is now one state closer to checking 50 states off her list before she turns 50. Fun fact: her number is currently at: 26 and Colton’s is at: 24.
We often reflect on our lives at the end of each year and we are constantly amazed at how every year is filled with more and more of the Lord’s blessings. With Him, life is good! Merry Christmas!
