My Huds buds showed up on Monday afternoon to visit for a few days. Sonja and Ella hadn't been here in over five years and Garrett never had. I was so excited!
Garrett enjoyed playing tetherball.
Ella arranged all the flowers she found and put the bouquet in the kitchen.
Isn't this cowboy cute?
Silas and Natie came over for part of the evening, which meant that for the first time in over 25 years of friendship, I was able to take a picture of my whole family and Sonja's whole family together. So special!
And a silly face pose, of course.
As those who've been pregnant know, jumping on a trampoline can be a little risky after having babies. But I love my littlest Huds buds and granted their request to bounce them. Twice. Not for very long on either count, but that's all the risk I was willing to take.
Ella spent some time reading one of our I Spy books with Uncle Tim first thing on Tuesday morning.
She later called me into my room, super excited about all the little rainbows on my walls and ceiling in the mornings. She thought it was cool that she could get a rainbow on her arm, so I took a picture.
She, of course, wanted to take a picture of me with a rainbow on my arm. Do I get bonus points for getting two rainbows at once?
We loaded up Sonja's kids and my two youngest mid-morning and hit the road for a little getaway to Lincoln City.
The facial expressions on her kids' faces as we crested a hill and they saw an ocean for the first time was priceless! We found a picnic table at a beach access point to eat lunch at while enjoying this view.
We headed to Road's End for a few hours of fun on the beach after lunch. It was an afternoon of blue skies, wind, shells, rocks, sand projects, and lots of smiles. I snapped a quick picture with my kids before they got to busy playing.
It was so neat to see Sonja walk her kids out for their first step into ocean water!
Naomi and Tyler got to work right away on rerouting some water and building a moat.
Garrett built a castle.
Ella discovered writing in the sand.
Tyler drew a gigantic face and posed in front of it.
Sand patterns always intrigue me, so I took a picture of one random section of the beach.
Couldn't resist an opportunity to make a W out of rocks while the kids played.
I saw a ladybug as we were getting ready to leave and Ella was thrilled to have it climb on her arm.
It was time for dinner and Sonja wanted to try fish and chips from Barnacle Bill's, but found out they only sell it in the summer. She snagged some smoked salmon instead and shared it with all of us, then we headed to J's Fish and Chips, per the recommendation of Barnacle Bill's. We loaded up on takeout, then drove to the place we were staying for dinner, showers, and just hanging out together. Part of the evening included the following conversation.
N (as we pass in one room) - I forgot my toothbrush.
B - Seriously? You're thirteen. Thirteen! You know how to pack. I asked you repeatedly if you had everything you needed. (Repeat various forms of these frustrated statements.)
:: Five minute break ::
B (unpacking in another room with Sonja) - You've got to be kidding me.
S - What?
B - My toothbrush isn't here.
S (smirking, pointing her finger at me) - You're almost forty-five. Forty-five! (pause) Do I get to tell her?
B (laughing as I call Naomi into the room) - No, but you can be a witness.
I admitted to Naomi that I'd done the same thing I was annoyed with her about, Sonja told her I was eating humble pie, and we all had a good laugh. Then off I went to Chester's, the closest store, to buy toothbrushes. Parenting is humbling.
As Sonja got her kids to bed, I walked with mine down to see the sunset. Naomi and Tyler found spots to sit right away and I had to take a picture of them.
Waiting for the final dip below the horizon.
I love sunsets. I love the beach. I love sunsets at the beach.
Goofy faces before heading back.
Tyler eased into Wednesday by grabbing a library book he's brought along as soon as he woke up.
Once everyone was ready for the day, we went out to do some touristy shopping. First stop was Prehistoric, a store Sonja had found out about and thought the kids would enjoy looking through because of all the dinosaur stuff. I'm not personally interested in dinosaurs, but a friend's daughter is obsessed. I took a few pictures for her, including this one with me in it. I mean, it's not every day you get to take a picture with a dinosaur.
Wednesday afternoon we headed back to the sand, this time at Gleneden Beach. I asked Naomi to take a picture of the moms, friends for more than half our lives.
There was a big hole someone else had dug out earlier and the kids were playing in it, so I asked them to all get in it for a picture.
I walked back to our spot in the sand for a bit and discovered Naomi and Tyler had found beach lockers to store their shades and shoes in.
Tyler and Ella called me over at one point to see how they'd buried Naomi.
Then Naomi buried Tyler and I needed documentation.
Resiliency is the word that comes to mind when I look at beach scenes like this one. Roots exposed by harsh conditions. Branches pointing the direction constant wind forces them to. And still growing.
The littles linked up with Naomi to stand in the surf while Tyler kept throwing rocks out into the waves.
That evening everyone showered and ate dinner while I hopped online for a meeting, then we all gathered at the table for chocolate sampling. I'd purchased three unusual flavors - Pigs N' Taters, Chicken & Waffles, PB&J Sandwich - at Candyland earlier in the day, so we each tried a square from each bar.
I wouldn't buy any of the bars again for their flavor, but they provided some edible entertainment to our evening. And Hammond's definitely has some tasty flavors on their website!
Because three squares of funky chocolate wasn't enough treats for the night, I blitzed over to Side Door Cafe before they closed to pick up two slices of coconut cream pie. I haven't eaten there in several years and Sonja never has, but we were given money specifically for treating ourselves to this particular type of pie.
Pie went in the fridge for later, I finally showered, and we all hung out for a couple hours. The kids watched a video.
The boys did back flips off the couch.
Then Sonja's kids went to bed, my kids hung out in another room, and the moms spent a couple more hours eating coconut cream pie and chatting about life.
We packed up our things on Thursday morning, but weren't quite ready to leave town. Spending some time at Regatta Grounds was perfect. A gorgeous view, as evidenced by this less than stellar picture I took from inside the car as we descended into the park, cool metal sculpture, awesome wood playground, instrument platform, and ADA accessible activities.
I asked the three younger kids to stand in that arched doorway, but they wanted to sit on the shady bench inside. They'd cooperated with other picture requests, so I deferred to their preference, even though it makes them nearly impossible to see. At least we'll remember what the playground looked like!
It was finally time to head home, so we packed the kids back in the car and drove off. Sonja's crew stuck around long enough for the kids to jump on the trampoline while the adults moved her stuff to her vehicle and my stuff inside. Then they finished the trek back to their home and our visit was over.
I always love spending time with Sonja and this trip was significant in a variety of ways, so I'm incredibly grateful it all worked out. I'll be thinking back on all the little details as I burn this Sea Love candle Sonja got for me at Salt before we left the beach. It's like she knows I like lemon flavors and scents or something.
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