Everything & Anything about Nothing, Really

The vacation re-cap ... and while I don't usually post on the weekends, I'm making an exception to finally get this all written down.

I think I'll just hit the highlights, explain the pictures and give you a few links to some of the places we went and stayed.

• First night was spent in Hood River, Oregon. Beautiful area ... the Columbia river running along one side and Mount Hood (Pic.3) rising up on the other side. In all our years of coming through and staying here, we had never really tried driving up toward Mount Hood ... this time we did. A lovely drive through rolling hills of apple orchards.
• We then took the scenic waterfall highway which takes you by the likes of Multnomah Falls and several other waterfalls (always a must drive for Matt). Then onto Portland for a stop at the Portland Children's Museum (Pic.2), where they were featuring a Sesame Street exhibit. Ethan had a wonderful time and got out some of his energy.
• Then onto Gearhart, Oregon where we spent three nights at the historic Gearhart Ocean Inn. An adorable set of cottages located about two blocks from the ocean. There is are a few cute little shops, a grocery store and a cafe/bakery all less than a block away. The pictures I posted a few days ago were taken on the beach. And these are the houses (Pic.1) that line the beach. Must be rough to live there ... LOL!
• We spent those three days exploring different sites in Astoria, Seaside and Canon Beach. I think Canon Beach was by far my favorite, but they are all fun places. And being that it was the "off season" it was actually enjoyable to check out all the little shops that are usually packed full of people.
• Then we headed onto Salem to visit my best friend Jessie and her husband Tim. We've spent so much time at their house in the last two years I call it my home away from home. We spent the two days with them shopping, eating, playing at the park and just hanging out. Too short, but a wonderful time.
• And that was that ... oh, I left out the gambling ... between the Oregon Coast and Salem, there is a casino on the Indian Reservation. Well, anyone who know my well knows I really like slot machines. Not a crazy addiction or anything, but I love the entertainment of a good nickel machine (see I'm not a big spender!). So I talked Matt into swinging into the parking lot and dropping me off so I could play $10 and get my "fix." I had decided to go big on a quarter machine since time was of the essence (Ethan would only sleep for so long in a non-moving car). So I some how managed to sit down at a nickel machine when I was going for quarters. Anyway, I kept winning a little and then a little more ... finally when I was back down to $10 I cashed out and went to a quarter machine (blazing 7's to be exact - this machine holds signifigance for Matt & I ... but that's another story). When I had about 6 credits left I decided to "Max Bet" the rest of it and ended up hitting a $50 jackpot. I took the money and ran ... well almost, I stopped for a free soda before heading out the door with $40 more than I went in with!

So there you have it ... a fun time, glad to be back. I almost feel like we're back to our routine.

Yesterday's "healthy habits" stats:

• I did drink a LOT of water - and ZERO soda!!
• I had 4 servings of fruits & veggies ... really big for me
• I split a milkshake with Matt

Happy Weekend!