We took our annual summer trip to Oregon in the first week of July (I know, I'm a little slow at getting things posted) and while it was near 100 degrees in Portland, Eugene, and Corvalis, it topped out in the low 60's with nearly 30mph winds at the beach for all eight days of our vacation. It seems like the bad weather that has plagued our vacations all year has no intentions of giving us a break!
We still had a great time at the beach house with my sister and her family. We filled our time playing monopoly with the kids and in the evening we engaged in some really competitive games of Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, and Farkle.
We took a day to drive down to Florence and we were considering riding on a dune buggy, but with the wind blowing so hard, we figured we'd all just end up eating sand for 45 minutes. Instead, Patrick took Alden on some go-carts and bumper boats, which I think he enjoyed more anyway.
After that, we took our family on a little train and were promised a fun ride through an enchanted forest with lots of animals and a little town. The kids were not disappointed, but Patrick and I laughed the entire time at the ridiculous stuffed dogs, alligators, and a family of skunks on a log... not quite what we had expected, but I guess it wasn't really made to amuse those over the age of four! Here's Tula gleefully taking in the sites...
We also had the opportunity to celebrate Tanya's birthday on the second day of our trip. We went out to a fun restaurant in Newport, and later that day her girls helped me make a cake for her as a surprise. Her daughter Lydia also gave her a nice present of dead crab legs and other miscellaneous body parts that she collected at the beach the previous day. I'm sure it was a wonderful surprise when Lydia brought it to her in bed that morning.
Here are some other pictures from our trip...Lydia:
Emma:
Eila:
