Road Trip to Oregon

What a week!  Looking back, we sure did cram a lot into 8 days but it was so worth it.  Oregon is such a wonderful place and I’m already dreaming about our next vacation there, maybe in the Fall for some Christmas shopping…adults only?  We’ll have to see.  We’ve never done a road trip before with our whole family, in fact, my husband and I have never gone on one together either.

We hit the road Friday afternoon and drove until we ended up in Portland, Oregon, where we spent the next two nights.  Being right downtown made it really easy to get around, especially with two little girls.  We were able to park our vehicle and take transit everywhere we needed to go for free!  We spent some time at the Portland Saturday Market by the waterfront.  There was definitely something for everyone, anything from carnivorous plants to handcrafted jewelry to recycled clothing.  We visited Powell’s Bookswhich seriously blew my mind.  We didn’t even realize that the store is 3 or 4 stories, just the first floor alone had more books than I’ve ever seen in a single book store.  Powell’s was conveniently across the road from Anthropologie so while my husband kept the girls busy, I ran across the road to browse through my favourite store.  Anthropologie never lets a girl down.  I’ve been to a handful now and the Portland location is one of the nicest I’ve visited.  We ate dinner at the charming and haunted Old Town Pizza.  The looks on my girls faces while we ate were priceless and I think it was a highlight for them.  They’ve told almost everyone about Nina the ghost.  At one time, Old Town Pizza was the place to be and was visited regularly by Willem Dafoe and more recently The Jay Leno Show and Rachel Ray.  Just to make them feel a little less afraid, I made sure to ask the waitress if she’d ever seen Nina.  The girls were relieved to hear her say no.  I’d love to go back to Portland to do a lot more shopping and to explore the Pittock Mansion and other historical homes in the area, hopefully sooner than later.

We took a scenic drive along the Oregon coast, we spent the next two nights in Florence.  After some swimming at the pool and a good night’s sleep, we drove out to Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.  We rented a dune buggy from Spinreel, complete with helmets a safety orientation and a map. After signing away our first borns, we took the buggy out for the afternoon.  My husband chauffeured us to the beach and then back up to the dunes to rip around in the sand.  The girls screamed with glee.  All the fun ended far too soon.  If you haven’t seen the Oregon dunes before, I’d have to say it’s worth the trip to seen them for yourself.  They are unbelievably beautiful and a definite must-see.

The girls were begging to spend some more time at the beach so we moved a little closer to Lincoln City.  Our motel was perched upon a cliff and the view was phenomenal.  Although the sun was shining, the wind was cold but that didn’t stop the girls from running along the beach and playing in the sand.  They love the beach so much and for the rest of our stay in Oregon, the beach kept them occupied, leaving us to relax.  Pure bliss.

For the last leg of our trip, we met up with Lily’s family and two other families for three nights of fun.  Lily found an amazing beachfront home.  Everything about it was stunning, the decor, the views, the weather and of course, the company.  “Our” house was the one on the far left.  A quick stroll brought us to a pristine beach where we spent most of the day.  There were plenty of quaint little shops around town and the moms managed to sneak away for an afternoon of shopping.  We made a stop at the Rag and Bone Thrift Shop. The Pacific Crest Cottage, and The Yankee Trader are both filled to the brim with amazing treasures and inspiration.  A good mix of new and old, antiques and crafts.  You could go around each store 4 times and notice new things each time.

It’s so good to be home but I can’t wait to go back.