Toad's Treasures Lifestyle Family Blog by Emily Ashby: 72 Hour Oregon Check

{72 hours}

Even though I grew up in the great NW I've forgotten a few things. Maybe its all of the brain frying that came with having kids or all of the Diet Coke I've downed over the years, but I have definitely been reminded about my Oregon roots these past few days! There may be a "Heat Dome" across the East and a "Dry Spell" across the West, but if you want to cool off hop on a plane to the great Pacific Northwest!

So, here's my list.

My list of how you know you've been in Oregon for 72 hrs. These are not all-inclusive, and are in no particular order. Grab your cozy socks, cocoa, and you may just have a grin on your face by the end of this post.

{The List}
I know I've been in Oregon for 72 hours when...

3 PM is a great time to take picture without direct sun.

There are dewdrops on flower pedals...that last all day.

You go to bed with grass and wake up to mushrooms...and these aren't the kind you can eat! :)

After its been raining all day the blueberry farmer next door still has the sprinklers running. Oh, and your Dad tries to kill of the blackberry bushes that have overtaken the chicken coop over the years...as pictured (My mom is still trying to figure out how to work out this one.)

This bowl of freshly picked berries sits on the counter, uneaten.

The U-pick strawberries from Fordyce Farm are the best ones I've ever eaten in my life. Small, but ever so sweet. (They are Hood Berries and they are so sweet that most canneries won't take them, and their shelf life is so short (1-3 days) that most markets won't sell them. Thus, you must pick and then shortly thereafter eat them! I'm drooling just thinking about them.)

And jam has already been made with them...without sugar...and its the best stuff ever.

Berry loving babies look like this...

and couldn't be cuter! (Tanya and Travis' baby Charolette.)

Boot like these...

plus watermelon rinds...

make for great reunions.

And finally, the last thing on my list.

I get super domestic. Don't ask me why. Maybe I don't have all of usual stuff to do, or I can't let a single berry go to waste. Whatever the reason you'd better believe more great treat ideas coming soon! (Check out our new homemade push-up pops Aidan's holding!)