This week was the relaxing one that we really needed after all the work it took to get on the road. We expected it to rain the whole time, given we are in the Pacific Northwest in December, but we got some really nice days; so, lucky us!
The Week
The pups really enjoyed having the beach close by. When we lived in San Diego, beach day was a regular occurrence. LA doesn't have dog-friendly beaches so we lost that when we left San Diego. I mean look at that puppers! Emma was in pure heaven.
What started out as a healthy eating week tanked when we got some cheese and wine to go from Blue Heron. I mean, we need to taste it to be able to report on it, ya know? My waistline will understand...I hope.
I also drove an hour away to the nearest Toyota so they could check on our car. Turns out a rock kicked up and got stuck in the radiator grill, keeping it open and making the car think there was engine trouble. Sounds exactly like something that would happen to me. Stinks I had to drive so far to find this out (couldn't have happened while we were in LA????). Though it was amazing that it wasn't any more complicated than that, especially given the fact that we are about to start a mega road trip.
The Weekend
Scenic Overlooks and Bridges to Somewhere
The views on the West Coast really never cease to amaze me. I can take about a million pictures of the same thing and it never feels like enough. I'll spare posting them all here but will continue to upload pictures to Instagram so make sure you are following there too!
The other thing you may or may not know about me is, I can't pass up a good bridge! While in Astoria we found an amazing bridge that brings you over to Washington, which we found out when our car proudly yelled "WELCOME TO WASHINGTON" at us. The dogs were happy they got to pee in a new state, and I was more than thrilled to not only make the trip twice but to also find an amazing place called Dismal Nitch which is quite honestly my favorite name for a place, maybe in the history of places. We shall see what else we come up with on our travels.
We also saw Elk, what!?! Elk! Pretty sure this is the first Elk I have seen in my life. All hanging out having a regular old Elk party on the side of the road. Sure, sure for those of you that see Elk all the time, this might be nothing. But, since I still get excited when I see squirrels, well that's probably all I need to say about that.
Geeking Out Over the Goonies
You guys! NO ONE TOLD ME THE GOONIES WAS FILMED NEAR HERE! Thank you to Vikki who told Eric this week! Saturday it rained pretty bad so we drove up to Astoria to do some sightseeing and saw the house that was in the Goonies as well as the rock, the jail, and a couple of other famous places. Check out our Instagram post for some more pics!
Lighthouses and Hikes
Sunday was less rainy so we decided to bring the dogs on a hike. They loved the mud. Me, not so much, but I survived.
We got to see a really cool lighthouse at Cape Meares. Lighthouses always remind me of my dad so that was sure to put a smile on my face and mostly made up for the mud. Annnnndddd the welcome sign had a slight American Horror Story 1984 vibe which only made it that much better.
What Has Been Hard So Far
So far, the hardest thing has been planning meals! We are so used to having a grocery store one block away. The closest chain grocery store where we can order food online and pick it up is about 20 minutes away. We are not good at this. How bad can it be you ask? Well, today our lunch was cheese, grapes and ice cream. We will work on this.
Huge shout out to The Beach Bite who makes an incredible halibut fish and chips and saved us from starving this evening.
What Has Been Easy So Far
My main concern with going on this trip was worrying that we wouldn't feel at home in the rentals we stayed in. I can tell you so far, that is 100%, not the case. Even the dogs settled in way faster than we thought they would. We do feel at home, and given this is our life for the next 12 months, I'm happy to report that that is no longer a concern of mine.
The Week Ahead
We will be sad to leave the vacation rental we are in. It has been so great being so close to the ocean. There are also a bunch of hikes we wish we could have gone on but couldn't because of the rain. We will be back Oregon Coast!
This week also makes me sad. Five years ago we started the tradition of doing NYE in a new time zone each year with our closest friends. And, for the past 3 years, this has meant a big international trip. COVID has made 2020 terrible for so many more significant reasons but this is just one more hit. The good news is, we will still be seeing our friends. We are all getting COVID tests this week and heading to NOLA where we can still be safe and spend a lot of time playing games and celebrating all the wonderful things I know 2021 has in store.
And yes, don't you worry, we will be stopping by the Tillamook Creamery on our way out tomorrow for some take out ice cream!
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