Go Outside

We had a small outing to the nearby city of Anacortes a couple of days ago.  My husband had a customer to go see so my son and I went with him to wander around.  There is a great waterfront park there so even though it was grey and misting a bit we decided to go throw some rocks in the water.   

We ended up meeting this guy

 There is a boat launch at the end of the beach and according to one of the fishermen I talked to this seal has been a local fixture for about 15 years.  He hangs around the waiting for the fishermen to come in and hand over their extra bait.  You might notice that one of his eyes has been damaged, the man I spoke to said it's been that way as long as he's been around.

Yesterday was bright and sunny so we stopped on the local rainbow bridge to take a couple photos of our picturesque little town.

Picturesque right?

Here's a photo of the rainbow bridge I took a couple summers ago from a neighbors boat, it's named for it's shape, not it's color

I really is nice around here.  I really should drag myself outside more often, but for today I have some embroidery to do.

Pumpkin Shopping

Gordon Skagit Farm is one of my favorite places to visit in the fall.  

We stopped by yesterday on our way back from town and it was the perfect time to go, the weather was chilly but not too cold and it wasn't too crowded (on weekends the place is packed, and I'm not a fan of crowds).  

They really go all out with the displays and there are so many different  pumpkin varieties to choose from.  Looking through the photos I took I'm noticing that they really don't do justice to the variety of pumpkins and squash they had available. 

Besides pumpkins, squash and apples they sell local honey, apple cider and gorgeous dried flower swags and wreaths.

We picked a bunch of yummy Jonagold apples. Great for pie!

I wanted to take that fabulous huge pumpkin painting home with me

We will definitely be stopping by there again soon.  You can never have too many pumpkins right?

I'm totally inspired by all the Halloweeney autumn goodness.

Stopping by this place every October has become a tradition for us.

What are your favorite fall activities?

Cannon Beach Ahhhhhhh

We just got back from 2 days in beautiful Cannon Beach, Oregon.
It's amazing how rejuvenating just a couple days of vacation can be.

It was sunny and warm and wonderful.

We walked on the beach

Built Sandcastles

Then stomped on them.

Ate good food, and rested.

How would you like live in a house with your own little path straight to the beach.

Beautiful!

(This is not where we stayed, it was just down the beach a bit from our beautiful hotel)

I can't tell you how badly I needed this trip. It was such a great way to shake off the winter blues.

Breathing Space

Just Past Pull & Be Damned is a little beach we like to visit. It's usually quiet, this weekend we were the only ones there.

At home I find it's hard to relax most of the time, it's difficult to sit still without thinking about something that needs to be done.

Here, we get a little reprieve from household duties.

There are interesting creatures to be found.

Treasures to collect.

And little boys can throw sticks and stones with reckless abandon.

There's Gold in That There River

Friday we decided to go to a river and pan for gold...yup...no kidding. My honeys brother has been trying to get us to go for some time.
I wasn't sure what to expect, but we ended up having a great time.

The spot we went to was about a half mile hike up a beautiful wooded path.




Even our 5 year old tried it.


Beauuutiful! And not a soul around.


I wonder what this building was used for.


The hike back up the path was also pretty.


This is what we came home with....I think maybe we will go buy that 900sq ft castle.


It's not a way to strike it rich (not that it's impossible, just unlikely). More like a fun activity to do while cooling off at the river.
I'm sure we will go again.

Cadillacs, Beaches, Impressionism and Stabbings

In the early afternoon on Saturday some friends came over to go see a small classic Cadillac show with us. I am not a car buff so I don't have any details about any of the cars, but I took a bunch of pictures.
My husband did a really nice chalk drawing on the sidewalk while we waited for our guests, it's taken from a painting by Edward Potthast called "At the Seashore".
Out of all the cars,I think this pretty shiny red one (which matches my toe nails by the way) may be my favorite.

This reallllly classic one is pretty snazzy too.

The underside is all exposed, with gears and chains...very steampunk.

This hearse was pretty interesting. It was in pristine condition.

After the car show we all went to the beach. It was the perfect day for it, warm with enough of a breeze so that it's not uncomfortable.

After the beach we came back to our house for a barbecue...that's where the stabbing comes in.
Nothing too horrendous, I just stabbed my hand while trying to separate frozen hamburger patties. I guess that's what I get for being lazy and not making fresh.
It was deep enough though, that I had to go to the ER to have it washed out and glued together. I took a picture with one of those hazardous waste symbols in the background, but I will leave it off for those that are not into blood and gore.

Was that a bit anticlimactic? Sorry.