Camping at South Beach:Day 2

 

As expected, the first night in the yurt did not provide great sleep. 

It was a bit cold and then because there is a skylight in the roof of the yurt, the sun woke us up around 5 am 

Still, nothing could deter the kids and their love of camping! Our camping neighbors had a racoon on their table the night before. We saw several squirrels, birds and naughty crows. In the night, the raccoons (most likely) tried to get into our cooler (there were little muddy hand prints all over) and made a hole in our bag containing toothbrushes and toothpaste. One of the crows also stole our avocado.

Ma-kun had to work on Friday, the children and I explored the trail right behind the yurt. It was magical- little hobbit-like tunnels framed in thick green foliage.

The kids were obsessed with cooking things in the fire. They tried anything they could find, including bagels. The fire is just magical for them! We ended up having pouring rain and so inside the yurt we played a game of charades and I read aloud to everyone.

Amazingly, by the time Ma-kun finished working we had beautiful blue skies again! We thought of going to the aquarium, but instead went to see the tidepools and lighthouse at Yaquina Head.

In the Autumn we have seen several whales from this view.

What a serene little world inside the tidepools filled with sea anemone, crabs and mussels.

We also saw a group of adorable seals nearby.

Explorers mode!

One more view before we go...

After all of that exploring and climbing, our hungry party of six headed for Mo's restaurant (which is a classic choice on the Oregon Coast)

Fish and chips, chili, corn dogs and garlic toast.

We were nearly bursting, but ordered one famous marion berry cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

It was perfectly delicious.

I was getting ideas for more flower boxes Ma-kun could make...

One more round of smores on Friday night! We would sleep a little better the second night with the help of some eye masks and everyone was tired out after all the adventuring. 

ZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The children were so sorry to leave. On the other hand, I was ready to go from the first night! Dirty feet, hard beds, no kitchen sink, walking to the bathroom, all of these things make me so grateful for my own imperfect but cozy home! 

Camping at South Beach: Day 1

Thursday was the national holiday "Juneteenth". At the last minute, Ma-kun found a yurt campsite open for the 19th and 20th so we decided to reserve them! 

We didn't have much time to rush, shop for groceries and pack up the car. The kids were so excited, this would be only the second time we have ever taken them camping.

The drive of 1.5 hours went by quickly and all the kids were getting along. 

The first stop was the beach! We played here with a bright blue sky. It is usually quite foggy at the coast, we were lucky! Though it was a bit windy.

Arriving at the camp ground, we saw that it was filled with other kids and families. It was packed! There was a nice playground right in the middle of the campground to occupy the kids.

They were so excited about bunk beds. I was thinking how bad we would sleep that night 😆

Evie quickly found the best reading spot.

Hot dogs for dinner.

The event they were most excited for: the campfire and roasting marshmallows!

 

Enchanted Forest Recital

 

Saturday arrived with much anticipation: our last big event before we all breathe a collective sigh and relax for summer. I had volunteered again to work backstage with Clara's class. The performance happened to coincide with a day of protest and unfortunately the protest would be happening right near the performance center at the same time as the performance! Carefully checking the route to avoid the protest, we headed downtown only to end up right in the middle of the march with five minutes to get there!! "Don't worry", Masa said as I watched hundreds and hundreds of sign carrying pedestrians pass us by and block us from crossing the road. I felt a rising panic in my throat until at last a man in the demonstration helped us stop traffic and cross the road! It was stressful to say the least. 

Sweet Dove

Clara did a beautiful job! She was so mature and respectful backstage. It was a bit chaotic and exhausting to volunteer, but I was very happy to support her through it.

As requested by Clara, we headed to frozen yogurt to celebrate! Once at home I developed a terrible migraine. It was an intense day!

It's a lovely feeling to know we have no responsibilities or obligations for the week ahead.