Skip to main content

Oregon Coast Trip

Our new annual theme of a quick trip somewhere exciting and new with our friends, ventured us to the Oregon coast for a few days over spring break. We rented a vacation home, right on the beach, so the thrill of listening to the waves crash the shoreline every night was divine. We enjoyed a beautiful day of weather, perfect for our whale watching excursion, and fun, affordable places to stop along the way. It was definitely a trip well spent, relaxing, and one I'd recommend!



Sunbathing seals


The boys

The girls. :)

View from the vacation rental 

Waves crashing the shoreline
Our first day we did a whale watching trip out of Depoe Bay. The trip itself was quite fun, but a bit nerve-wrecking getting out of the harbor. The harbor is pretty small and the passageway to the open ocean was narrow. The waves were quite insane and a bit rocky as the 30 foot fishing vessel felt like a roller coaster, hitting those waves head on. The open water wasn't much better, as the boat swayed to and fro. I felt bad for a couple and their small boys, who ended up getting sea sick. The boys were scared beyond belief and cried most of the trip. I was surprised how well Madelynne took the boat ride, as she sat there on the way out, not really frightened at all, and ended up falling asleep in Brad's arms out at sea.
But the trip didn't disappoint and we saw five or so gray whales. It was exciting. 

View of the harbor entrance

Harbor seal that greeted us on the way back in

The opposite side of the harbor

Ready for her first whale watching adventure

Capsizing swells. 

There she blows!

Swells again!

Gray whale 

Gray whale 

Spouts

The next few days were spent exploring Newport and Florence. We ventured to the Sea Lion Caves and the Oregon Coast Aquarium, ending the long day, wet, rainy Saturday in Pacific City at the Pelican Brew Pub (boys request). Saturday was jam packed and fun, enjoying a marine/coastal themed trip with our fearsome crew. :)
Deep Sea Divers and Explorers!


Our favorite spot at the aquarium

catch of the day

Moody lighthouse from the Sea Lion Caves

Watching the sharks and sting rays


Deep blue sea!

Fascinated

Right above

Smiling rays

Waiting and Watching

Sea Lions
Jelly's 
Brew sampler

The trek home was up the Oregon Coast, stopping in Tillamook to tour the cheese factory, stopping at Canon Beach and Ecola State Park to revel in Goonies film sites, and enjoy the trip home. The trip was fun and eventful, and always not enough time. 
Indian Beach, OR

Steve and Nikki


Ecola State Park, OR


"Hey, you guys!"


She loves to pose

Running

Cheese samples


Window

Astoria, OR-Brew pub

Everything is "Can I kiss it?"


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

For the future's not ours to see...

There is so much going on in our world today that is negative. I get irritated with watching the news and seeing such drama the media portrays. I never really paid that much attention to it until I had Madelynne and then everything changed about my perception of the world. It is scary, out there, when all you want to do is shelter and protect your little one. Maybe I am coming to the terms with growing older and realizing that life on this great planet is limited and to make the most of it. Being a SAH mom has really caused me to think and reflect on so many different things. It hasn’t always been sweet, happy thoughts, either. I know a few weeks ago I was really concerned for the end of the world and for my daughter and future generations that have to endure such drastic changes that will continue to occur over time. I find myself getting caught up with questions about my faith and my journey as a Christian and feeling lost and not knowing who to turn to or talk to about such conflict

Just B

In teaching poetry and preparing my kiddos this week for their poetry presentations, we watched a few spoken word poets via pre-selected versions on YouTube. One video that stood out the most was from the 2012 TED talks from spoken word poet, Sarah Kay. The poem is a perfect depiction of having a child and advice that a mother wants to carry on to her daughter...If you have an opportunity, I'd check it out on YouTube and just watch the "If I should have a daughter" or the title of the poem is "B". Sifting through the poem, I extracted a few of my favorite quotes and a few recent pictures of Madelynne to accompany them. Enjoy.  "...Because there’s nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it’s sent away" (Sarah Kay, TED Talks, 2012).  “...Remember, your Mama is a worrier, and your Papa is a warrior, and you are the girl with small hands and big eyes who never stops asking f

Final Summer Adventure: Iceland 2019

Instagram definitely has a way of enticing the hungriest of the wanderers to explore the various bucket list places. Iceland has been one of those for me since I watched an enticing video from a friend and was immediately set on going there. When, how, and what we would do was all under speculation, but once I set it on my vision/prayer board and started planning, the dream became a reality and here we are, in 2019, recapping a family adventure that was well worth the expense. A few notes about our trip before I take you on a picturesque journey of some of our favorite stops. If you’re planning your own Icelandic adventure, do note that gas is not cheap. It is the one thing that put us over budget, and something we didn’t plan enough for. So while cheap flights look appealing, do your research! Food is also equally expensive, however, we did budget for that! We even had a bag left over at the end of our trip, which we happily donated to the Kuku Campers reuse shelf.  Being