Beach Day 5

We headed into Newport on Thursday, hoping to tour the Yaquina Head Lighthouse. Sadly the tours were all full, so we couldn't see inside. BUT... we made the best of it and headed south to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse, the same one we visited last year. The kids had fun touring it again, and we were glad to see that.

Matthew in from of the Lighthouse we DIDN'T get to see. Sigh...

But we DID see the Oscar Meier Weiner Mobile! :)

A fun time at the lighthouse indeed. 

We got back to Lincoln City and hit the beach for the afternoon. The kids had so much fun playing together, and Doug and I got some time to watch them and relax a bit! 

Lots of little fishies in the water. Evelyn just had to go put them back into the ocean. Sweet girl!

This pesky little seagull tried to take our snacks... we caught him just in the nick of time!

The kids chasing the other sea gulls away!

After dinner we went back to the beach one last time. The kids wanted to wear their bathing suits... it was a good idea since they got soaked once again! :)

Daddy showing off his rock skipping skills!

The quintessential beach shot for sure!

Sunset.. our last night.

We sadly headed home the next morning, but on the drive we recounted all the cool things we had done during the week and thanked God for such a special time at a special place. We are already looking forward to next year!!

Beach Day 4

We woke up to cloudy skies and rain on Wednesday. We took the opportunity to go swimming in the morning and had a blast playing in the water. No pictures.. but we enjoyed our time. After that we got cleaned up and headed out to our favorite lunch spot.. Mo's!

My pretty girl...

Matthew's beloved Bear strapped in for safety! :)

We did a little shopping at the outlet mall and while there the sun came out! We headed back to the condo and headed down to the beach. It was super windy and the kids weren't really enjoying that so we didn't stay too long!

Not sure about the wind....

Getting personal pizzas (Mini Murphs) at Papa Murphy's is something the kids look forward to doing at the beach. We enjoy watching them make their creations!

They enjoyed eating them, too!!

We didn't get much play time during the day, so after bath the kids got a little crazy. I love seeing them having so much fun!!

Doug asked Evelyn if she would like to learn how to play chess while we were at the beach. She actually was asked by her kindergarten teacher to join the chess team at school, knowing that she really might be good at the game once she learned it. She was excited to play and did very well for her first time. Doug is such a great teacher.. that was a big part of her success!!

Matthew had fun playing with all the pieces!! :)

I. Love. Them. 

Sunset, day 4

Beach Day 3

Doug's sister Debbie lives in Cannon Beach, so we decided to take a road trip from Lincoln City to spend the day with her. Although it was a long drive, it was totally worth it to see her and spend time with her.

We picked her up and headed to Ecola State park for a picnic.

My man can build a fine fire! :)

Roasting hot dogs

Yummy s'mores for dessert!

We headed back down to town and walked to a quiet inlet on the beach. The kids had a blast playing in the warmer water and we enjoyed catching up with Debbie. 

After time in the sand, we headed into downtown to find some taffy... one thing the kids just HAD to do while on vacation!

They love love love spending time with their Aunt.. she's pretty awesome!

We not only found taffy, but got to watch them making it too. So fun!

Debbie has a cat named Jewels. My kids LOVE cats and really wanted to play with her. After some quiet and calm introductions, Jewels did let them pet her and play with her just a bit. They loved their time with her!

We headed home that afternoon, tired but happy from a fun day with Debbie. Both kids fell asleep on the way home, but still slept well that night.

Sunset, day 3

Beach Day 2

Day two was our first full day. We had a blast doing all sorts of things on the beach. I don't think we came in other than to eat and go to the bathroom. It was such a beautiful day!

 Pop Tarts for breakfast... they look forward to this ALL year, as we don't have them any other time! :)

 Love these three!!

 I just love how he eats a muffin.. :)

 I love that they love to play with each other and have so much fun together!

 Silly kids! 

This year we did a couple of new things. One was fly kites. The kids took to it well and loved it! Matthew's kite didn't work well at all, but he was SUCH a good sport about it and just kept trying. Doug brought a spare one that worked great so he ended up with a good kite to fly.

 She's a pro! 

Another thing new we did was go to some tide pools about a mile down the beach. It was a good walk for the kids but they agreed that it was totally worth it. 

 Booted up and ready to go!

 So... I didn't grow up climbing on rocks, in the ocean or anywhere. I will do it now and am fine, but I am a bit concerned about my kids doing it.. This face would describe my feelings about that. Thankfully Doug is quite experienced in both tide pool hunting and calming me down.. haha.. so it was a very fun time for all of us. Most of the time!

 Impromtu hand holding is my favorite!

 We once again ended our day down in the river. They didn't get as wet as the night before, but still I am glad I brought a towel down to the beach with us this time! 

Sunset. Day 2.