Friday, September 29, 2006
Saturday, September 16, 2006
It has been a whirlwind month already. With my parents coming out the first weekend, work for 4 days, then TJ and Alex coming for a week, it has been a good start to September.
Quentin had his first soccer game on Saturday September 9th, actually it was a soccer jamboree (4 games in one day). Quentin did very well and scored the only goal
in the second game. He also got to play goalie in the third game. To see his pictures, click on “Quentin's Soccer 2006” on the right side. Shortly after Q was done playing, TJ, Alex and Ava arrived from Denver. Ava did very well for her first big
road trip (her first birthday was on September 1st).
Wasting no time we started out on Sunday with a trip to the OMSI. The OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) is incredible. Most of the displays are hands on and
are as much fun for adults as kids.
Monday, Quentin went to school and we went to the Ape Caves. We were so impressed
the first time we saw them; we had to return to do it again. This time however, was after Labor Day so there weren’t as many people. In fact, we only saw one other couple the entire time we were down there. With tripod in hand, we made our way down
the 1 mile long Lava tube. We made it home just in time to pick Quentin up from school.
Tuesday we then decided to go take the tour of the waterfalls in the Columbia Gorge. Again a favorite for Jennifer and I, these spectacular waterfalls leave you
breathless every time you see them. This was our 6th trip to them. Again, we made it home just in time to pick Quentin up from School. Tuesday evening we rented a minivan. Wednesday, our plan was to drive to Seaside, down through Tillamook and end up in
Newport, OR. The minivan would be necessary because Quentin would finally be going with us.
Wednesday morning we departed nice and early. The 2.5 hour drive from Portland to
Seaside was uneventful. Upon arrival in Seaside, we choose to eat at Normas Cafe, once again, a favorite for Jennifer and I. After eating, we made our way to “The Candyman” where Quentin got to choose from the 170 flavors or Salt Water Taffy. We
then took a stroll down the main street and did some window shopping.
After the quick stop in Seaside, we loaded up the van and headed to Tillamook. Jennifer, Qunetin and I have been through there before, but did not have the chance
to stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory last time. This time around, we knew we had to. Once there, you can do the self guided tour ending up in the cheese tasting room. After cheese tasting you can get fresh cheese to go and ice cream cones. We couldn’t resist.
We then piled into the van for the 1 hour trip to Newport. We finally arrived in Newport around 5pm and it couldn't have been better timing. We had all had enough of the car and decided to check out the accommodations at the Waves Hotel. We unloaded the car, got the little one’s rested,
and took a stroll on the beach. Alex and Ava got to finally touch the Pacific Ocean for the first time. From there we headed to the Rogue Brewery for some dinner.
The following day (Thursday) we went to the highly recommend Oregon Coast Aquarium. Indeed it was a treat. This is where the original “Willy” was housed from the movie
Free Willy. After his release into the wild, they turned his tank into a shark pool with a glass tunnel you can walk through. Pretty impressive little aquarium. We took a stroll over to a old light house and tour on our way back to Portland.
Friday we decided to go to Silver Falls Park. Again, highly recommend it consists of
a 8 mile trial with 10 water falls along the way, several of them you can walk behind. We decided to do the abbreviated tour due to time. We hiked down and saw 6 of the ten all in a 4.5 mile loop. Ava enjoyed the trip in the new Kelty kid carrier
they got her. Quentin, again, was in school.
We wrapped up the week long adventure with an anniversary dinner for Teej and Alex (4 years on Aug 2, congrats) at Beaches restaurant. We thank TJ and Alex for the
time they spent out here, we had a blast.
It was a good week with lots of new Oregon to see. We will keep exploring the land and make a list of the best places to go, that way when you come out, we know where we will take you.
Quentin had his first soccer game on Saturday September 9th, actually it was a soccer jamboree (4 games in one day). Quentin did very well and scored the only goal
in the second game. He also got to play goalie in the third game. To see his pictures, click on “Quentin's Soccer 2006” on the right side. Shortly after Q was done playing, TJ, Alex and Ava arrived from Denver. Ava did very well for her first big
road trip (her first birthday was on September 1st).
Wasting no time we started out on Sunday with a trip to the OMSI. The OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) is incredible. Most of the displays are hands on and
are as much fun for adults as kids.
Monday, Quentin went to school and we went to the Ape Caves. We were so impressed
the first time we saw them; we had to return to do it again. This time however, was after Labor Day so there weren’t as many people. In fact, we only saw one other couple the entire time we were down there. With tripod in hand, we made our way down
the 1 mile long Lava tube. We made it home just in time to pick Quentin up from school.
Tuesday we then decided to go take the tour of the waterfalls in the Columbia Gorge. Again a favorite for Jennifer and I, these spectacular waterfalls leave you
breathless every time you see them. This was our 6th trip to them. Again, we made it home just in time to pick Quentin up from School. Tuesday evening we rented a minivan. Wednesday, our plan was to drive to Seaside, down through Tillamook and end up in
Newport, OR. The minivan would be necessary because Quentin would finally be going with us.
Wednesday morning we departed nice and early. The 2.5 hour drive from Portland to
Seaside was uneventful. Upon arrival in Seaside, we choose to eat at Normas Cafe, once again, a favorite for Jennifer and I. After eating, we made our way to “The Candyman” where Quentin got to choose from the 170 flavors or Salt Water Taffy. We
then took a stroll down the main street and did some window shopping.
After the quick stop in Seaside, we loaded up the van and headed to Tillamook. Jennifer, Qunetin and I have been through there before, but did not have the chance
to stop at the Tillamook Cheese Factory last time. This time around, we knew we had to. Once there, you can do the self guided tour ending up in the cheese tasting room. After cheese tasting you can get fresh cheese to go and ice cream cones. We couldn’t resist.
We then piled into the van for the 1 hour trip to Newport. We finally arrived in Newport around 5pm and it couldn't have been better timing. We had all had enough of the car and decided to check out the accommodations at the Waves Hotel. We unloaded the car, got the little one’s rested,
and took a stroll on the beach. Alex and Ava got to finally touch the Pacific Ocean for the first time. From there we headed to the Rogue Brewery for some dinner.
The following day (Thursday) we went to the highly recommend Oregon Coast Aquarium. Indeed it was a treat. This is where the original “Willy” was housed from the movie
Free Willy. After his release into the wild, they turned his tank into a shark pool with a glass tunnel you can walk through. Pretty impressive little aquarium. We took a stroll over to a old light house and tour on our way back to Portland.
Friday we decided to go to Silver Falls Park. Again, highly recommend it consists of
a 8 mile trial with 10 water falls along the way, several of them you can walk behind. We decided to do the abbreviated tour due to time. We hiked down and saw 6 of the ten all in a 4.5 mile loop. Ava enjoyed the trip in the new Kelty kid carrier
they got her. Quentin, again, was in school.
We wrapped up the week long adventure with an anniversary dinner for Teej and Alex (4 years on Aug 2, congrats) at Beaches restaurant. We thank TJ and Alex for the
time they spent out here, we had a blast.
It was a good week with lots of new Oregon to see. We will keep exploring the land and make a list of the best places to go, that way when you come out, we know where we will take you.
Monday, September 04, 2006
This month has flown by. We can't believe it is September already. Not much has happened this last month other than Quentin starting soccer. Now that Labor day is over, Quentin will be going back to school. He is looking forward to that.
Over labor day, my parents came out for three days. I had to plan something that none of us have seen or done, just to mix things up a little. It started off on
Saturday with a trip to the Ape Caves. The Ape Caves are a 12,000 lf lava tube that was caused from an eruption of Mt. St. Helens 1900 years ago. It was discovered in the late 70's by a group of boyscouts, the Ape troop, hence the name. You can go one of two routes, the easy or the difficult. We chose the easy wich takes you in about
1 mile. The temp inside is 42*F year round, a little on the chilly side. It was amazing. On the way back from the caves we pulled to the side of the road and picked marion berries. They are like a cross between rasberries and blackberries. They grow
everywhere and are considered a "weed" to most the natives. We pciked close to 3 lbs and Jennifer made a incredible pie out of them.
The following day I made reservations for a whale watching cruise which departs
from Anacortes, WA. Little did I know it was 40 miles from the Canada border. We left at 4am and it took us 4 hours to get there. Once there we had to picked either heavy coat or suit, Quentin picked the suit. They then loaded you onto their custom
built aluminium boat wich will do around 35-40 knots, it moves you right along. We got front seats and were skimming across the water in no time. We went through the San Juan islands and eventually caught up with three pods of Orcas. We watched them for about 35 minutes and then headed back in. We were out on the boat for about 4 hours.
After that we headed to the property Jennifer and I are buying, took a look around and headed home. We walked in the door about 8:30pm. A LONG DAY!
All in all we had a fun three days. We got to see something new and that's what makes it a good adventure.
Over labor day, my parents came out for three days. I had to plan something that none of us have seen or done, just to mix things up a little. It started off on
Saturday with a trip to the Ape Caves. The Ape Caves are a 12,000 lf lava tube that was caused from an eruption of Mt. St. Helens 1900 years ago. It was discovered in the late 70's by a group of boyscouts, the Ape troop, hence the name. You can go one of two routes, the easy or the difficult. We chose the easy wich takes you in about
1 mile. The temp inside is 42*F year round, a little on the chilly side. It was amazing. On the way back from the caves we pulled to the side of the road and picked marion berries. They are like a cross between rasberries and blackberries. They grow
everywhere and are considered a "weed" to most the natives. We pciked close to 3 lbs and Jennifer made a incredible pie out of them.
The following day I made reservations for a whale watching cruise which departs
from Anacortes, WA. Little did I know it was 40 miles from the Canada border. We left at 4am and it took us 4 hours to get there. Once there we had to picked either heavy coat or suit, Quentin picked the suit. They then loaded you onto their custom
built aluminium boat wich will do around 35-40 knots, it moves you right along. We got front seats and were skimming across the water in no time. We went through the San Juan islands and eventually caught up with three pods of Orcas. We watched them for about 35 minutes and then headed back in. We were out on the boat for about 4 hours.
After that we headed to the property Jennifer and I are buying, took a look around and headed home. We walked in the door about 8:30pm. A LONG DAY!
All in all we had a fun three days. We got to see something new and that's what makes it a good adventure.
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