Spring Break on the Coast - Day Four

"Beyond the fog lies clarity."

Another week of ignoring my blog. There is just not enough time. I will get through the rest of this trip eventually. This morning was my absolute favorite on the beach. The storm had moved out. It was WARM, there was no wind, and a beautiful fog hovered along the beach.

The only way I could keep Jonah from photobombing EVERY SINGLE PHOTO was to promise him he could get in the shot if we were allowed one photo without a blurry twelve year old flying into the background.

Perhaps my favorite photo of the day. Cute couple disappearing into the fog. There might be some kind of symbolism there, but I'm functioning on a half bowl of Cocoa Puffs rather than my regular bowl of oatmeal this morning so my writing skills are suffering.

Tidepooling. One of our very favorite things to do on the coast. This beach was particularly perfect for tide pooling. And low tide came at a very convenient time on this trip. 11:00 a.m. Which meant we didn't have to set our alarms to go find a starfish.

This beautiful girl seemed to be pondering a lot this morning. Just kind of in her own world as she wandered the beach and looked for agates.

The kids were a little disappointed when the aquarium in Newport was closed on the day we were heading down the coast. No matter, we ended up with an aquarium in our backyard for the remainder of the trip. We all got brave and touched a sea anemone. Nothing like having those little feelers suction cup to your finger.

Jessica began to shed some of her many jackets this warm morning. I looked over to realize that she and Taylor were wearing some of the most delicious colors. So I had to take a photo, or two, or five hundred.

I may be biased, and I may have mentioned this a time, or two, or five hundred, but this is one stinking cute couple!

This, my friends, is my free-spirited Sabrina, taking a break from her pondering to take a goofy jog across the beach. This girl is a hoot! And this fog was so luscious!

Here is Jonah striking a bigfoot pose as he ponders over the question of whether to drench himself in ocean water this fine morning.

Back to pondering. I would have liked to have been in her mind this morning. This mind that is always working, always thinking deep thoughts, always creating.

Just kidding, maybe this is my favorite photo.

This was our seventh time visiting the Oregon Coast, and why in the world have I never thought to supply my kids with galoshes on these trips? Thank heavens for the owner of our beach house who supplied them for us. It makes combing Oregon's cold beaches so much more pleasant, and it makes for such darling photos. First item on the list for our next beach trip, darling galoshes!

Thinking about it.

And there goes his last pair of dry jeans. But with that face, I wasn't going to stop him. Thank heavens for a dryer at the beach house!

Oh, or maybe this is my favorite photo. I am suddenly reminded of my little girl, looking for the perfect skipping rock to throw into the ocean. When did she grow up? And how was I unable to stop her?

Okay, this is my favorite photo. The fog starting to burn off, leaving a mystical haze. Though the surroundings were hazy, my thoughts were crystal clear as I did some pondering of my own. The ocean does that to you. I was glad that we had taken our little family and separated ourselves from the world. As we roamed God's creations, I was reminded once again that this little family of mine and that God who created this beach are all that really matter. It was a magical morning, our little family, with the entire beach to ourselves. We walked and walked and walked for hours.

Wet up to his waist. Happy up to his eyeballs.

Let's pause for some gorgeous selfies.

In the afternoon, we drove up to Shore Acres State Park to see the botanical gardens and the sea lions. I forgot that it was March. Very little foliage in the gardens and zero sea lions in the little cove. But we had the cove to ourselves which was lovely. I seem to either take a thousand pictures or zero pictures. I took zero pictures of this adventure. Good thing Jess had her camera.

This was my final shot of the day. Cape Arago Lighthouse. One of the few Oregon Coast lighthouses that I haven't seen. I can mark him off the list now. It was a delightful day!

Spring Break on the Coast - Day Three

"The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man."

As we walked our Bandon beach on Wednesday morning, Neil made an interesting statement. He said, "The beaches of the Oregon Coast are an introvert's paradise." 

It was funny that he should say that as I had just purchased this book from Powell's to act as my beach read.

Neil is right. Those who frequent the Caribbean may be disappointed in the beaches of the northwest. Oregon's beaches are for those who love the ocean but prefer never to swim in it, who don't mind putting on a hoodie and a pair of galoshes to enjoy the beach rather than a swimsuit, who kind of like the fact that they may not encounter another living soul as they beachcomb. 

The Oregon Coast beaches are chilly, and windy, and rustic, and breathtakingly beautiful.

We bundled up for our stroll along the beach this particular morning. It was a stormy day, and the beach was extra windy and extra cold. As usual, Neil was the only one who bundled up sufficiently with his winter coat, beanie, and winter gloves. The rest of us were still slightly chilly.

This couple was ready to go explore the beach without the company of hyper little brothers and doting parents, so this shot was taken, and then they quickly disappeared.

This is the fog horn that sits perched on the edge of a jetty. Our beach shack was just down the way, so we were awoken every morning by the sound of its faithful warning. There is something wonderful about the sounds that accompany the sea. They are sounds so unfamiliar to me and so pleasant.

This young lady had one real goal in mind. That was to collect as many beautiful shells and rocks as the sea would allow her. She was disappointed at the lack of sand dollars but thrilled by the abundance of agates and sea glass.

And this little turkey cannot stay out of the water! The water and air was frigid, and he was in jeans, but it wasn't longer than ten minutes before he was up to his thighs in cold salty ocean water. Galoshes seem futile if you're going to frolic in the waves. You could hear the water sloshing around in his boots the rest of the morning, and he emptied a small pond of sea water out of each boot when we got home.

Looking for ocean treasures.

The beach in Bandon is much rockier than the beaches up north which is why it may now be my new favorite Oregon Coast beach. There is something pleasing about those large dark rocks juxtaposed against the sandy beaches and blue ocean. And it makes for much better tide pooling.

There's Jonah taunting the waves again.

It makes me feel a little nervous inside to think of what kind of force was necessary to wedge this large tree into this rock. The ocean is a powerful thing. I feel respect and awe whenever I visit this part of God's creations.

When we couldn't feel our fingers anymore and our noses were sufficiently red and glasses seasprayed to the point of losing transparency, we decided to head back to the shack, where Sabrina began to clean and sort through her ocean spoils.

The sea was generous in its offerings this brisk morning.

Meanwhile, Jessica snacked on what was left of our Blue Star donuts.

I love this artwork done by the children of the owner of the beach shack. You can tell this family loves little Bandon. How nice that they are willing to share their shack with others.

Eventually everyone wanted a snack, so we broke out the cheese and crackers, Tillamook cheese of course. When in Oregon, eat nothing but Tillamook. I think that's some kind of unwritten rule. 

This was our only source of heat in the shack, much to Jonah's inexpressible glee. "Hey Dad, should we get a fire going?" were the words constantly hanging from his lips. Who says the Watsons don't camp?

Vacations on the coast offer much needed down time.

I loved this little porch room that was stocked with galoshes for everyone and plenty of firewood to keep the fire stoked at all times.

After sufficient vegetating had transpired, we decided we wanted dinner. This is when we discovered that the sleepy coastal town of Bandon shuts down at about 4:00 during the off season. Luckily, there was a pizza joint open, where we met a delightful gentleman who lives in the area and happened to be a member of the LDS church. He told us all about the great people in the little branch here in Bandon and snickered at the fact that I was photographing our food. I forget that that's not normal for most people.

After dinner, we took a scenic drive so as to enjoy the view of the beaches we had combed that morning from atop the Bandon cliffs.

This may be my favorite photo of the day. This is my Jonah. A boy with a newly acquired stick, exploring the cliff with feverish abandon. 

This is probably my second favorite photo. A boy and his dad, overlooking the sea with all of its wonders.

I'll leave you with a few final shots from that evening in Bandon.

I fell in love with this lighthouse nearly 19 years ago when Neil and I visited the coast for the first time. How lovely that our house was nestled just across the beach from it.