My parents and I, and I got to bring along my friend Lori, drove, the summer of '76, from Michigan to Oregon, camping along the way. When we arrived at the Oregon Coast, Lori and I got to pitch our tent right on the beach (can't do that anymore in most places) and sleep with the roar of the ocean literally right out our screen door! It was incredible! I think we stayed up all night, just watching the waves! And I was hooked.
The next year our family moved to Eastern Oregon and we visited the coast often, usually ending up near the quaint town of Cannon Beach. Mike and I spent our first 'vacation' together there, on the coast, in a really sketchy, cheap hotel in Seaside with Mark & Kelly (remember the slanted shower and the broken chair?!)! Once we were married and had returned to the Northwest, we began a tradition of taking our girls there every summer for a week. One of our fondest memories is the vacation to Yachats, Oregon where everything seemingly went wrong...kids with the stomach flu, pulling up to our hotel to fire trucks putting out a fire, a flat tire...and one of the best trips ever, just the 4 of us, hanging out at the beach.
So, there is certainly something nostalgic that draws me back to the Oregon Coast...like the home I grew up in, in a way. But then there is the obvious...the beauty! People think of the beach and it is bikinis and sand castles and miles of crowded sandy beaches...and I love that too, sometimes...but the Oregon Coast is different. It is usually chillier than you expect for "the beach", no matter what time of year...and rugged...and fairly uncrowded, in places...and, well, relentlessly beautiful.
There is an artist/writer, Mary Anne Radmacher, who resides on the coast who wrote "I come to the sea to breathe"...and I think it's true. I feel more at ease there than almost anywhere else...something about the constant hum of the ocean...
Anyway, we just returned from a great family Thanksgiving in Prosser, Washington...had a really good time catching up with everyone and just hanging out with a great family...and we had a fun baby shower for Ashley while we were there (only 3 more months to go!)! Then we headed farther west to the beach for the week...took Mike's parents with us for a few days to enjoy some sunshine, dune-climbing (and, yes, at 74-years young, Mike's dad ran down the dunes with us!), puzzle-making and surfer-watching! Then, picked up Allison towards the end of the week and, well, we loved the chance to hang out with her.
So these are a few images I took with my iPhone (thankful for that little gadget in my life!)...on a particularly beautiful evening.
Now it's time to start thinking about Christmas! Getting the tree up this week, and the house decorated, gifts wrapped, goodies baking...and settling in for a homey holiday!
Thankful for all the friends and family we have in our lives...and all the blessings we enjoy.
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