First we went to dinner at Gustav's, a German restaurant in Clackamas, Oregon. They have great beer and Swiss Cheese fondue. Yum! We got lucky. Because of the yucky weather everyone stayed home so there was no waiting for a table.
After dinner we went up to the Grotto on Sandy Blvd. We got there a little early so we waited outside in the freezing weather. We were too lazy to walk back to the car. Luckily it wasn't raining or windy, just cold. Usually there are 5 choral performances at the Grotto everyday but due to the weather the choirs cancelled so we didn't get to see a show. Instead we wandered the grounds and looked at all the lights and listened to the recorded stories.
I'd never been to the Grotto before though I should have been long ago. I was raised Catholic so I'm not sure why I never went. It's a beautiful park area with lots of trees and landscaping.
There is a huge rock cliff with a cave carved out of it. 
The chapel was dressed up with pretty lights and an organist was playing inside where it was warm and toasty. In the summer's they hold Mass outside in the courtyard. How fun would that be?! They even had a petting zoo with 3 little warm rabbits, many goats, a lama, a donkey and a miniature horse. As soon as I bought the cone of grain to feed the animals the goats were right up with me, even jumping up on me. The lama said "feed me, feed me, feed me, Dont pet me!, feed me...." They were awful cute though! Too bad I didn't take pictures, huh?
We wandered through the grounds until we found our way to the coffee shop to warm up a bit.
After leaving the Grotto we stopped at Home Depot to look at formica chips (romantic, isn't it?) and then at Coldstone for some yummy ice cream (my favorite).
Then it was back home to the baby and our daily lives. Hey, atleast we got out for one day, right?
Sounds like so much fun! I've always wanted to go to the Grotto at Christmas time. And I LOVE Gustavs. That sounds so good right now!
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