It all started August 2 when we finally got on the road and headed for Spokane, WA. We left in the afternoon on a Sunday and drove for about 8 hours to our hotel. In the morning, we were on the road again and 6 hours later found ourselves at our destination at a place about an hour and change from Portland, OR called Rockaway Beach. Dan's parents rented a beach house for this vacation as all of our Christmas gifts this past Christmas, and what a beach house it was!! It was literally right on the beach. The room that Dan and I slept in, we could see and hear the ocean all night long as we were laying in bed. It was so awesome! This house had 5 large bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.
Dan and I arrived Monday evening and ate Tacos for dinner. We toured the house and then the beach. The next day it was overcasted, so no one thought to wear sunscreen. We went out to Cannon Beach that was just north of us and hung out there for most of the day. Almost everyone got sunburnt. Chris (Dan's oldest sister, Pam's husband) had to leave that night to go back to work. He is an ER Doctor, so his hours are quite demanding. Wednesday we woke up, had breakfast and Jackie's husband David came to join us for a day. We all went the opposite way (south) from Rockaway Beach and went to the Cheese Factory! There we toured around and afterwards got ice cream.
Then we went to a small light house. We got to go inside too! Close by was a tree called "The Octopus Tree". It was much bigger in real life. The view right across from the tree was so beautiful.
We then headed into town (Ocean View, I think) and we shopped around there with everyone for awhile. Then everyone headed back for the house, but Dan and I Stayed back and we rented a bike car thingy (I don't know what they're called). We rode around for about 10 minutes before I was absolutely exhausted! I know I'm out of shape. We rented this thing for a whole hour! So about half way through, we went back and traded in
for something a little easier to ride. It was a lot of fun! On our way home, Dan and I noticed a helicopter tour on the side of the road, for $39.99! That's not a bad price! So when we got back to the house, we looked it up online and called them up. Turns out that's the price for a 5 minute tour. Which still would have been super cool, but we thought maybe another time.
Thursday was our last full day there. In the morning after breakfast we went to a beach about 5 minutes north and found a whole bunch of star fish!
We also found a little crab hiding under a rock. It was such a cool place! We decided that we all wanted to come back that same day when the tide was out to see even more. We went back to the house and just relaxed. We flew a couple kites with the kids on the beach and Dan and I were brave enough to go into the really cold water. It was such a blast! Later on after we played a couple games and ate dinner, we ended up going back to the starfish beach and it started raining while we were there. We didn't really see anything new, other than this baby bird. We first saw him when Dan noticed this seagull pecking at something. So we went over there and scared off the seagull and this little bird didn't fly away from us. We aren't sure what kind of bird he is, but I don't think he lasted too much longer after I got this video. So sad.
We went back home to Rockaway Beach and showered then shortly after went to bed for the last time there. We all decided that we are going to try to do this every year from now on because everyone had such a fun time! I can't wait for next year!
Last night was nice. After I got home from work, Dan and I went out to the new mall just north of the city, Cross Iron Mills. I've never seen a mall like it! Very decorative and interesting. The stores there were pretty good too. Each one had their own style. We walked around there and ate at the food court. We didn't buy anything though. This was more of a curiosity trip. We then headed straight from there to Elliston Park to go see the Global Fest Fireworks! I love these fireworks. We try to go at least once every year. This year we saw China! They have won the competition before, so we expected something spectacular, and that's just what we saw. Well done China! I actually really enjoyed it how the music that they were playing was all from China. No American tunes, but I did recognize a couple. I brought my camera just incase, but I was just too enthralled in the performance, I didn't want to be interrupted with that. Plus, seeing it on camera doesn't even do the actual performance justice. I really recommend Global Fest Fireworks every year if you want to experience something that not very many people in the world get to. Just make sure you get your tickets months in advance, because they are cheaper that way.
