My little family and I were able to head that way right before school started and it was a wonderful trip. Still, it started off with a bit of a hitch. I forgot my phone. Then, after Jess dropped me off and was on his way to long term parking, a large screw found it’s way into his tire. As he parked he could hear the thwap, thwap, thwap and showed up to security somewhat frustrated and exclaimed sarcastically that the trip was off to a good start.
This however was the last of our difficulties and we had such a great time. We were upgraded to a mini van and my kids were amazed by how much space there was! We hit the ground running and went to Multnomah Falls. Wow!
We skipped rocks on the river.
Then we decided to drive along the old highway and found another awesome waterfall. In the photo below can you spot Jess with the boys? The waterfall was huge! And the natural basalt formations behind the falls, they were hexagonal in shape and so cool.
Ollie wanted a optical illusion photo. He was thirsty!
The next day we ventured to the beach. Cannon beach and Haystack Rock did not disappoint.
We saw starfish and sea anemone.
We also saw lots of cool birds including the Tufted Puffin. Jess played with the boys in the chilly water. They ran from the waves and had a great time.
We visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Ian, being the cheese loving boy that he is, totally loved sampling the cheese. We bought ice cream here too and the large bunch of napkins in my hands should give you a clue of how messy it was with the kids. That was my third bunch of napkins. Still, worth it.
The next day we headed to Rockaway Beach. Lots of kite flying here and wave chasing.
Ian got soaked and was loving that Dad was with us 24/7.
After stopping there we went berry picking. We were there at the end of blueberry season, the peak of blackberry season, and the beginning of raspberry season. We picked many of each.
Ian ate most of what he and Jess picked. Look at that berry mouth!
Jess and Ollie were the master pickers. These blackberries were huge and delicious.
The next day we visited an awesome Japanese garden in Portland. It was beautiful and we tried channeling the zen, even when our kids were not as peaceful as many people would have liked.
We stopped at the temple. The visitors center had some cool activities for the kids.
That evening we were able to visit with some good friends who live near Portland. The kids loved playing and Jess and I loved chatting. We went back the next evening and my kids were so excited. Their hospitality went above and beyond.
Our last stop was at the OMSI, the Oregon Museum if Science and Innovation. We were there for three hours and could have stayed for three more.
It was a great trip!
And since we had had so much time to prep mentally for fixing a flat tire when we got to the airport, that went pretty smoothly too. The kids were troopers.
That same day Jess got new tires and I got my battery replaced (it had died the day before). We were so proud of our efficiency. And we were ready to go back to work and school the next day.
And might I just add that not having a phone for five days was a-okay.
No comments:
Post a Comment