Spring break could be considered a great success if success is defined by the amount of
torture parents can inflict on their ungrateful children. For four full days the children were fully
prevented from holing up in their bedrooms, escaping with their friends, and media time was
painfully monitored. In four days Tony and I were able to complete 4 consistent mornings of
scripture study ( thanks to being trapped in the car), physical activity (2 hikes in 2 days) and
several educational opportunities (tide pools, space AND air museum). We also did a lot of
flirting, hand holding and kissing, not even once detracted by a disagreement or marital
discord. Furthermore, eating out was kept to a dual visit to Muchas Gracias burritos and
Macdonald’s on the way home! Parents were the winners this time.
We made it to the beach on Sunday just in time for sunset and the sky was stunning. Monday was rainy, but we were off to the Drift Creek suspensión bridge after breakfast. The kids made excellent efforts to be miserable, but ultimately loved finding slugs, newts and mushrooms as well as hiking and climbing, At the grocery store after the hike, we all tried to find a food we’d never tried. It made for an eclectic and happy lunch. Later Tony made a delicious salmon, and we baked up potatoes and asparagus. We snugggled in our cozy house for puzzles and movies and were so disappointed the hot tub was out of order.
Tuesday we went to Pacific City to climb the dunes. We found starfish and sea anemones in the tide pools. After all that work, we were excited for our ice cream in Tillamook. Tillamook was a big disappointment. It’s been commercialized, doesn’t sell cheese curds and the ice cream lines was so long we gave up and bought pints and cones from the Fred Meyer.
It was raining pretty hard most of the time, but Tony and I enjoyed several beautiful runs on the beach. No kids joined us. Same for a wonderful afternoon exploring the tide pools. That was a win for the kids. On Wednesday we spent the day at the museums and Tony was like a little boy at Christmas. We finished the visit with an IMAX movie about fighter pilot training in Las Vegas. Tony ate it up. That night Tony took the boys to a basketball game and Eliza and I went shopping. This was the kid’s happiest part.
Thursday we had another parent success. The kids wanted to hurry home, but the parents were able to stall with a beautiful visit on Historic Hwy 30. In all the years we’ve visited Portland we’ve never stopped by the Vista point or seen all 5 famous waterfalls. It was stunningly beautiful, made even more enjoyable because the kids were so annoyed with our dallying.
On one of our very first trips to the beach when the kids were small, I carefully selected 7 round stones which I stacked on top of each other in a perfectly balanced, symmetrical cairn. I’ve kept them on the shelf in my bathroom for years. It was meant to represent our family. This year I found 5 new rocks for my cairn. I carefully found 5 different shapes: oval, triangle, rectangle, circle, heart. This is such a better representation of my family, They don’t fit molds, they aren’t the same shape as we are, and they are each very unique. I’m going to replace my cairn in the bathroom with the new rocks to remind me to embrace the individuality of my kids, in all aspects of their life, including their journey to come to Jesus Christ.
We made it to the beach on Sunday just in time for sunset and the sky was stunning. Monday was rainy, but we were off to the Drift Creek suspensión bridge after breakfast. The kids made excellent efforts to be miserable, but ultimately loved finding slugs, newts and mushrooms as well as hiking and climbing, At the grocery store after the hike, we all tried to find a food we’d never tried. It made for an eclectic and happy lunch. Later Tony made a delicious salmon, and we baked up potatoes and asparagus. We snugggled in our cozy house for puzzles and movies and were so disappointed the hot tub was out of order.
Tuesday we went to Pacific City to climb the dunes. We found starfish and sea anemones in the tide pools. After all that work, we were excited for our ice cream in Tillamook. Tillamook was a big disappointment. It’s been commercialized, doesn’t sell cheese curds and the ice cream lines was so long we gave up and bought pints and cones from the Fred Meyer.
It was raining pretty hard most of the time, but Tony and I enjoyed several beautiful runs on the beach. No kids joined us. Same for a wonderful afternoon exploring the tide pools. That was a win for the kids. On Wednesday we spent the day at the museums and Tony was like a little boy at Christmas. We finished the visit with an IMAX movie about fighter pilot training in Las Vegas. Tony ate it up. That night Tony took the boys to a basketball game and Eliza and I went shopping. This was the kid’s happiest part.
Thursday we had another parent success. The kids wanted to hurry home, but the parents were able to stall with a beautiful visit on Historic Hwy 30. In all the years we’ve visited Portland we’ve never stopped by the Vista point or seen all 5 famous waterfalls. It was stunningly beautiful, made even more enjoyable because the kids were so annoyed with our dallying.
On one of our very first trips to the beach when the kids were small, I carefully selected 7 round stones which I stacked on top of each other in a perfectly balanced, symmetrical cairn. I’ve kept them on the shelf in my bathroom for years. It was meant to represent our family. This year I found 5 new rocks for my cairn. I carefully found 5 different shapes: oval, triangle, rectangle, circle, heart. This is such a better representation of my family, They don’t fit molds, they aren’t the same shape as we are, and they are each very unique. I’m going to replace my cairn in the bathroom with the new rocks to remind me to embrace the individuality of my kids, in all aspects of their life, including their journey to come to Jesus Christ.
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