Kathy's Day Off

 My #2 son and his wife offered to take me downtown today to visit the Portland Art Museum, something I have been wanting to do for AGES.  The weather turned out much nicer than predicted so it couldn't have been more perfect for roaming around in downtown Portland.  The pot of tuberous begonias above is a birthday gift I will be giving to a sweet friend tomorrow.  I put it at the top of this post because that contented look is just exactly how this day felt!

 This is the first time I really made an effort to use the camera in my big-girl phone.  I got the plaque in each photo, thinking I could enlarge and read the artist when I got home.  That part didn't work out so I'm not able to give credit where credit is due but will still share a few of the things that caught my eye.

 I was surprised they allowed pictures to be taken but it was okay as long as you didn't use flash.

 I recognized Ganesha the Hindu Elephant God from Cathy's travel blog "theXtraSuitcase" and was surprised to learn he rides around on a giant rat.

 A Wedding Ring quilt made from automobile license plates, among other things.

 I would totally wear the Native American woman's dress and cape on the left!  The one on the right is actually a man's and it is called a long shirt.

This is the part where you can point your finger at your monitor and laugh at me.  At some point the smart phone outsmarted me and I started taking videos instead of pictures.  No, I didn't tip over, I just turned the camera.  8+)  

When we finished at the art museum they very graciously offered to take me to The Button Emporium & Ribbonry, another destination on my bucket list.  Oh my.  I could spend half a day in there.  The buttons were all sold as singles and I prefer the "poke sacks" but they had an amazing assortment of trims and ribbons. I speed-shopped since I knew the kids were indulging me but I did manage to gather up this pretty little assortment of trims for my inspiration kits.  The proprietors are delightful!

We finished off our trip with a stop at the highly popular Tasty N Alder.  We actually stopped there, put our name on the waiting list and then went to the Button Emporium.  It was worth the wait with delish Bloody Marys and a very unique menu.  I was trying to take a picture of my Bloody Mary and ended up with the video above. They serve family style and bring out the dishes as they are prepared so we ordered several things and shared.  The blueberry french toast is A-MAZING and that is coming from someone who isn't very fond of fruit!
What a treat of a day!  Thank you Andy and Alissa!