Washington Trip part 3.....

There were sights that I never dreamed existed as we ventured out each day to 

see what there was to see.....

One of our adventures lead us up a narrow road to the top of a mountain to look down over the 

land below...it was breathtaking! I've seen pictures like this but never experienced anything like it before. 

 

They had birds (yes, really) that didn't look like any around our area of the world~

 

But not matter where we ventured off too...one of our favorite place to hang out

was the beach...cloudy, foggy, wet and cold...it was a peaceful, relaxing place to walk, think or just sit and 

listen to the water rush in...

As we walked along the beach we kept seeing these little bubbles rise to the top of the mud and

then pop...they were clams! Deron's dad dug as quick as he could to see if we

could see one, but no matter how fast he dug...the clam dug down faster (needless to say, we never

saw one except in a bowl of chowder)!

Deron and I ventured out on the Jetti one afternoon as we watched the tide come in. We were WAY back from the end, closer to the shore (no where near where we were going to get trapped and taken out into the ocean) and felt confident that we would not be splashed by the waves coming in and hitting the sides of the rocks....but we were close enough that we wanted to film them coming in 

so that we could show the kids how amazing it was to watch them hit the rocks and splash. Deron got out his Ipad ready to film...I pulled out my camera ready to snap the pictures as the waves came closer and closer to the rocks...about the time we started to watch this big wave come barrelling in....we realized JUST how big it was, but  a moment too late...it came up RIGHT OVER THE TOP OF US, drenching our bodies, our electronics and everything in between...I've never felt so soaked 

(unless I purposefully jumped into the water)!

We were really afraid that the camera as well as the Ipad were ruined, lucky for us...they weren't....somehow they managed to survive!

Strangely enough, when my hair dried...I had gone GREY! The salt from the ocean had stuck to the hairspray in my hair and I looked like I had highlighted my hair with a lustrous grey color

 (trust me, that would never happen!)...

I was a little concerned the maybe the ocean water had possibly stripped my "color" from my hair

so as soon as we got back to the resort I showered to wash it out...you know, I had to 

make sure that I REALLY wasn't grey!

...to be continued~

Washington Trip part 2

One of the days in Washington we actually drove AWAY from the beach and into the mountains. We drove around this gorgeous lake, through thickets of trees and down narrow roads...TALK ABOUT GORGEOUS!

The lake (sorry, I don't remember the name of it) was crystal clear and reflected the mountains almost like a mirror. It was a sight for beholding, thats for sure!!

The tree's in this part of Washington are as thick as I've ever seen. If you ventured out into them I am sure there would be no returning, you would be lost for sure! The trees are gorgeous and majestic ..a beautiful, captivating sight!

We visited the rainforest where the ferns grew large and like weeds. The trees grew out of dead stumps and the sound of birds could be heard in the distance...it was surreal!

We visited the World's Largest Spruce Tree....IT WAS GIGANTIC!! The pictures don't do it justice!!

There was a group of 6 people taking their picture when we first got there and the tree made their group look tiny. Its not only big around, but so very tall!!

Moss hung from the trees in a very eerie, mysterious way...but yet so cool! I guess for people who get to see tree's like this all the time, its just the norm...but for those of us who have NEVER seen it, it was a creative wonder!

Deron and I hanging out in in the trees~

AND yes, this beautiful state even has spiders...LARGE CREEPY spiders with webs that stretched across large areas...this one was up in a tree stretched from branch to branch, but the most common place I saw them was on the Blackberry Bushes.........which terrified me.

We went to an old homestead (I failed to read all the information so I know nothing about it other than it was cool) where this OLD COOL truck was hosting a mountain of vines. I LOVED it and really wanted to bring it home (as is) for a cool vintage souvenir. I could totally picture that sitting in my front yard and have place all picked out for it!! NOW to just get the state of Washington to see fit to ship it off from their place to mine.

Blackberries grew plentiful...there wasn't a place you looked that you couldn't spot some of these yummy bushes. We stopped and picked some to eat..but also to freeze and take home. I FOR ONE picked very few because the spiders were so thick on the bushes that I decided it just wasn't worth it. Celeste (Deron's sweet niece)  was with us and was out picking some berries and stuck her hand right in a web only to have the spider come scurrying toward her arm...that was it, I was done after that. NO BERRY is worth fighting a spider for! Deron's mom and dad literally picked buckets full of berries...the spiders didn't seem to bother them at all..they wanted berries AND they got them (which I was glad for because they shared their glorious finds!)

As we were walking along a path I saw this long squishy thing and stopped to look at it...A SLUG??? Yep, a creepy, slimy LARGE slug (in comparison to the very small ones that tend to hang out in my garden). We put the battery up next to it so you could see just how large it was. I guess they are everywhere back there, luckily we only saw the one (good thing we have a picture to prove they DO EXIST).

Blackberries, green, lush lands and a gorgeous drive made for a very thrilling day in Washington~

...To BE continued~

I'm an ocean girl at heart....Washington trip part 1

Deron's parents invited us to go spend 10 days with them in "Ocean Shores" Washington last month. IT WAS AN AMAZING TRIP! They have a time share in a darling little resort that is just 3 blocks from the beach. I LOVE the OCEAN! Its one of my very favorite places to be. I was so excited to see new country and time on the beach. I had never been to the ocean in Washington and had no idea how different it would look AND FEEL from the beaches of California...I pictured myself laying on the beach in my cute new bathing suit with a book and a towel, enjoying the afternoon air blow off the ocean water....REALITY CHECK....the beach in Washington is COLD...COAT weather cold! Its gorgeous, but most (if not all) days are very foggy (a wet drippy fog) and chilly to the point that sweaters and jackets are required. There was NEVER a soul on the beach wearing a bathing suit, let alone laying on a towel collecting the rays...BECAUSE THERE WERE NONE! BUT...it was gorgeous none-the-less!! We spent hours walking the beaches, looking for shells and enjoying the sounds of the water crashing to the shore!

The pelicans were amazing to me. For as big as they are, they are very graceful and it was fun to watch them dive in the water for fish. I honestly just wanted to walk out on the jetti and pet them...but figured they weren't going to sit and let me get that close...afterall, this wasn't a petting zoo~

The seagulls were hunkered down trying to stay warm too as their next meal would be brought by strangers (who were not supposed to feed them...ha ha ha...signs were everywhere telling the tourist to NOT feed the birds) or by the ocean as it brought in crabs and other sea creatures for them to devoir.

There was ONE day at the beginning of our trip that the sun was high in the sky and the fog wasn't visible. We felt like we were in heaven. It was 80+ degrees and we soaked up the sun along the beach. We walked a 2 mile stretch that went way out into the ocean hoping to see whales and seals feeding (as thats what we were told happened out there) BUT...the whales must have been feeding elsewhere because they were nowhere to be seen, although, we did happen to capture a sneak peak at a few seals playing in the ocean.

I loved how this log was buried by the sand and as the tide came in it completely disappeared...once again being buried in the ocean only to be seen again when the tide receded. The ocean amazes me. We sat and just watched the water for hours...its almost captivating.

The jetti was this long barrier of rocks that went out into the ocean....people can walk clear out to the end of it but its not a wise thing to do. Its been told that one time a group of people walked out to the end (don't know how they did because the rocks are so large and very hard to climb on) and the tide came in before they were able to come back in. They were stranded as the ocean was covering the rocks and had to be rescued. As tempting as it was, we stuck closer to the inland.

 The ocean has my heart and always will. Its such a relaxing place to be, cold or sunshine, Washington or California (or EVEN HAWAII), I could spend hours and days there! Our trip was fantastic and full of sightseeing, beautiful things...

....to be continued~

Color makes the world a prettier place....

One of my very most favorite things to see is a gorgeous SUNRISE or SUNSET...either one just puts me in an "Ahhhhhhhh" state of mind! Coming home from the city a few weeks ago, I couldn't help stopping and snapping a picture of the sun setting in the west over the mountains. It was so much prettier before I was able to capture this picture...there just wasn't any place to pull over when it was at its finest, but this was still a gorgeous picture.

Thats one thing I miss during the winter months...the sunrises and sunsets. I don't know if we even have pretty sunsets then because I don't venture out to look, its too cold!!! . I wished that this time of year could last a whole lot longer~

"You are so beautiful to me...."

A new school year marks another NEW beginning... a new closet full of clothes, a new grade, new friends, new looks, new classes and a NEW school picture. We haven't bought the pictures the kids have taken at school for years. Its not because we don't like them...because they are usually fine...its just that I like pictures that capture my children's personalities, their attitudes and MANY looks....not just the standard "mug shot" that they get with the school photographer. A few weeks back Halle and I ventured to the "upper country" where the fields are plentiful, the land is lush and and air is clear...and spent the afternoon snapping some fabulous pictures. We had a great afternoon, the only thing better would have been if we had packed a lunch so we could have stayed longer.

Halle is 15 and starting her sophomore year. She's full of life, loves school, her drama class and her many friends. She's a sweetheart and is growing up too quick for my liking. She's the last of my little "chickidee's" left at home and I dread the day she flies the coop! I adore her and love having her here and watching her grow and develop into a special young lady.

Halle is full of life, loves to giggle (which is often quite infectious) and has a corky, crazy, fun way about her. She likes who she is, she doesn't care what others think and she is a doll through and through!!

These pictures are some of my favorites!! She is so photogenic and we had a great day playing with my camera! I could have just taken picture after picture for hours and hours (oh wait...I did...we took over 500 pics). It was a very fun mom and daughter day in the mountains!

I love her soloum look as much as her smile...Halle makes me laugh, she makes me smile, and she just makes me glad to be her mom! Love you my beautiful girl!!!