Life (and Loomis) recently took us to Eureka, CA. Daddy can't always drag the family along, but sometimes, if it's not too terribly far, he invites us to come along. He says he likes us with him, but sometimes, after miles and miles of driving and carsick babies, I have to wonder?
Eureka just happens to be on the northern coastline. Once you've stepped foot in the ocean, it has a certain magnetism that draws you back again and again.
So where the story takes us, we go and enjoy it, or make the best of it anyway.
I love this quote. It's what we do. Have the best time of our lives over and over again. whether we are sitting on a beautiful sandy shore, opening a new Loomis branch, or even doing dishes.
It makes all the difference to have a committed partner by your side. One who is closer to you because of their closeness to God.
Rick happened to turn 40 while we were away.
We celebrated this awesome guy by dining out at Shamus T Bones. A very awesome western BBQ right on the bay.
We've been to Trinidad, CA before, but it is always a wonderful experience. Such a beautiful little coastal town.
Of course, I can never resist photographing every church and lighthouse we pass. And FYI....I'm only posting a few of those pictures I snapped.
We are struggling to believe that this girl is a senior this fall! Where does time go?
Kalli loves the ocean. She want to live by it one day. She especially loved the Oregon coast where the weather is a bit cooler and there is more rain. Not that the coastline in Cali is too warm. I think the highest it reached was 74, and that briefly.
Kammy enjoyed herself as well, but says she prefers Idaho, even if you can't play on the beach.
Kaite and Kaderick would have literally stayed on the sand 24/7. Sand is the best entertainment ever!
Kaderick did amazingly well with the climate and the sand, but had a really bad reaction to orange juice and was sick the last day or so and much of the trip home. He is just now starting to get back to his normal self.
These two photos were taken at Patrick's Point State Park on Agate Beach. A very lovely spot where we picnicked and collected small agates.
Our second Saturday there, we traveled a short distance to the tiny town of Loleta and toured the old cheese factory. Of course, we came away with plenty of samples.
From there, we went to the most awesome little country town of Ferndale, CA. A place where Kammy said she MIGHT be willing to live. Kaite loved it! There were lots of horses, and of course some very sweet giftshops.
Kaderick was tickled pink (can a boy be tickled pink?) to get a whole bubble gum ice-cream cone all to himself. Much of our dining out while traveling with daddy is done "on the cheap." We will eat in or sometimes the girls and I will scavenge tripadvisor.com for the best places to eat and then find the menu online and choose ahead of time a few meals we can share. This helps us know a dollar amount to expect, and sharing prevents overeating and waste.
Eureka proper, is a rather nasty, bummy, town with high crime rates, but we did enjoy the architecture in olde towne, and the local park with large beautiful redwood trees.
The younger kids spent a lot of time playing play-dough in the condo rented for us, and Kammy became very adept at fashioning play-dough clothing fashions for her small dolls.
Many supper hours found us eating on the beach and enjoying the sunset.
Kade always tried to hear the sea roar in the tiny shells he found.
We kept busy. We had lots of good and some boring study/reading materials.
Daddy had fun driving a $80,000 car which the man who rented to us owned.
We even put some of those luscious California strawberries to good use and canned a bunch of jam!
One of the fun things we did, was to eat in an original logging camp restaurant on the little island of Samoa. It was fun family style food on very old dishes.
It was fun and relaxing mostly. We were forced to put the house remodel on hold, but that may have been good for us. Now that we are home, we must hit it hard (and already have begun to do so). School will be starting soon, and piano lessons and driving lessons and on and on life goes.
Sneak peek of what's happening in the kitchen....
I love before and afters!