The trip did not start out auspiciously. We had been ramping up the kids for our trip for days. Finally, Sunday arrived. Everything we could possibly need is in the car. We timed everything perfectly so that both kids would sleep within 15 minutes or so of setting off. Kids are strapped in their seats. I take out the instructions for the house we are staying in to plug the driving directions into my phone. "That's weird," I say to Matt. Isn't today June 30th? Yes it is. "Huh. Our check-in instructions say July 1st-4th." I called the owner of the house, who, nearly as flustered as I was, assured us that we had in fact booked for the 1st through 4th. A quick look back at our emails confirmed that I had totally misremembered the dates. (In my defense, we were originally hoping to rent from the 30th, and the email header remained the 30th, but her house wasn't available until the 1st.) In any event, Grady cried. I cried. And then Matt had the brilliant idea to get ice cream and all was saved. Ice cream is truly magical.
And messy.
 |
| Her clothes could not be saved. |
The NEXT day went off without a hitch. The rental house we were staying in was perfect for us. When we arrived, Grady said "This is a special place. I think we're going to be really happy here." The best part about it for Grady was the bunk bed! Super cool!
We planned to stay in Newport because that's where the Oregon Coast Aquarium is.
We went last year as well. It is a great aquarium, with seals, sea lions, octopus, rays, sharks, and all sorts of other underwater creatures. We went twice in the three days we were there - both times right at opening when there weren't many people there at all.
 |
| Run of the place |
The kids enjoyed looking at the otters quite a bit- the otters, in turn, enjoyed being looked at and put on quite a show.
My favorite was the octopus. No kids in this video, but worth watching nonetheless.
Both kids also really enjoyed this tank.
Nope, you're not missing anything. Nothing's in there. Every once in a while a bird would swim down. It was just a nice, quiet spot that they enjoyed.
Other highlights of the trip included a visit to downtown Newport. Newport village is part tourist mecca, part working fisherman's village. It ends up being an odd combination of burly men driving forklifts full of fish and kids eating ice cream, but it works. Here we are enjoying the views.
 |
| "I'm never gonna let you take my picture!" |
 |
| photo crasher |
Speaking of views - here's the view during an early morning walk with Ms. Clara. Not too shabby.
The one real downside of the trip was that the weather, though sunny and in the 60s, was almost unbearably windy. The mornings weren't bad, but come afternoon, you couldn't walk in one direction without feeling badly beaten at the end. We made a few afternoon attempts to get to the beach - which was just across the street and down a long flight of steps - but neither the kids nor the adults could stand it for more than a few minutes. Finally, on our last day, we went in the morning before the wind got completely out of hand. You can still hear it bearing down in the videos.
 |
| Thousand yard stare |
 |
| Boy, stick, and ocean - what more do you need? |
 |
| Our adventurer |
 |
| Small boy, big ocean |
 |
| Yes, by golly, we will use these beach toys |
Here is one attempt at ocean landing -
And our fearless baby.
All in all, it was a really fun trip. Both kids were incredibly well behaved, and even slept - which is never a sure thing when traveling.
I will try to get through some more photos and post later in the week. Thanks for your patience!
