Everything nice.: My first day back!

My flight from Denver to Portland on Wednesday night was delayed unfortunately, so we got back home to Salem at about 1:30 am. I "oohed" and "ahhed" over my parents remodeled bathroom and kitchen and chatted with my parents a little longer before heading to bed, so even though I was exhausted I got a second wind and was up til 4 am. AKA 6 am Illinois time. Yikes. My parents had to work (poor parents) and I woke up on Thursday around 9:30 to a couple of the remodel guys traipsing around the house. They only had door pulls and knobs to put on at this point, but I thought I should get out of the way, so I texted my friend Erica, whom I had made plans with to go to French Press for breakfast that morning.

She picked me up and we caught up over delicious breakfast crêpes and a latte. This little café opened up a few years back in a building that had been many things before, nothing that really had staying power. We have a lot of local coffee shops around, and they all do well, but I think having a specialty, like French Press coffee by the pitcher and made-to-order crépes both sweet and savory, really made this place stand out. It also helps that the inside is decorated really cute and the atmosphere is warm and inviting.

After talking up a storm and stuffing ourselves to the brim, I went with her to feed her animals, and we checked on her brother's adorable little chihuahua mix, King! I was his new best friend for the day :) I realllllly got my animal fix when we played with the kittens her brother is fostering as well from the Humane Society. If I didn't have to fly back to Illinois, I probably would have adopted the little cream one on the spot! SO. CUTE.

Erica and I went downtown so she could look for some business-y clothes for her grad program (congrats again, love! :]), and I of course scoped some things out at the Nordstrom Sale. It was so nice to see Salem again and our cute little downtown area, and even better to catch up with Erica! She has been one of my best friends since we got to know each other in jazz choir during high school, and I always miss her terribly when I'm not in Oregon!

A few hours later she dropped me off, and since the remodel guys were gone and the door to the bathroom was finally put back up, I got to wash the plane off of me and take a shower in my parents' new bathroom. Ahhhh-mazing. The shower head has three different settings that are all awesome, and the curtain rod is curved so it feels like you have more room. So awesome. I'll post pictures of the finished product later once we get everything put away :)

Since I got about 4.5 hours of sleep, I parked it in our family room for the rest of the day and watched some trashy tv and hung out with my parents when they got home from work. Seriously, a great day. I am so happy to be back for a bit! And in only a couple days my sis and bro-in-law will be back, and a few days after that, Nick will be home! Woohoo!

Some pictures from the day: