Wish You Were Here

Well, I kind of mean that title. It is so nice to spend some time with Thomas and Callie, just the three of us. I do wish you all were here sometimes. I think you would love to see the things we are seeing and would enjoy my company tremendously. Hahaha.

I have a piece of bad news. I can't get another cable for my camera because it is a proprietary cable and I have to get it directly from Olympus (or an underground source). SO, I am posting only pictures from my camera phone until we get back.

To update you, I spent absolutely all day yesterday thinking it was Tuesday. To my dismay, it was not. I think I posted last on Monday, but I am not sure so I will start with Tuesday's events anyway.

Tuesday, we went to Vacaville to the outlets for a short time (kind of like going to San Marcos), bought Callie some of her very own Skechers (pictured below) and then we headed to Placerville to see my Aunt Theresa and Uncle Dick. They seemed to be doing well and we really enjoyed our visit with them and introducing them to Callie in person. She had a great time and they got a kick out of her. I have a funny video from a restaurant that I will post when we get back. Basically, Callie played the maracas while their in-house guitar player serenaded her. It was hilarious!

Wednesday, we started making the trek up the coast. For those of you that have not been up Hwy 101 in California, you travel through the Redwoods first and then you hit the beautiful coastal area. When you travel through the Redwoods, you see the Giant Sequoias. We took a lot of pictures with the digital camera, but here is an example of what we saw...

Yes, the previous picture was of us driving through a tree - in our Nitro! That is a real, living sequoia. Amazing.

Last night, we stayed in Eureka, CA, where we found a place call the Eagle House Inn. I stayed there about seven years ago with the singing group, but it was being remodeled at the time and they were still working on the downstairs ballroom and restaurant. At that time, we heard from some people in a restaurant that it was haunted and I wouldn't be surprised if it was. It has been in business for 100 years and is a Victorian style hotel. It is absolutely beautiful and all of the rooms are different and hold many different fantastic antiques. Below is a picture of Thomas and Callie in the sitting area of our room.

That was taken this morning before we left. So, after that point, we gorged ourselves on crepes and we started up the coast and saw some fantastic views. I failed to remember the gas pumping law in Oregon - which is basically that you can't pump your own gas. An attendant has to do it for you. Gas here is only $2.80 - $2.90, which shocked us! It was more than that in Amarillo. Usually, when we come out here, it is at least $.50 more expensive per gallon than in Fort Worth. That has been great because I budgeted for more gas than we are actually using.

This is a picture of Callie with Cowlie (her stuffed animal from BB&B). She has become more and more attached to Cowlie, especially during this trip.

Here are some other pictures from today (I took a lot with the video camera and digital camera as well). The first is the sunset on the Oregon Coast.

This is of an actual, working lighthouse. (That is why you see a dot of light.) We were on a huge cliff overlooking the water, lighthouse and beautiful view of the Pacific.

Finally, we decided to stop in Newport, OR. We didn't book any hotel arrangements, but we desperately wanted to find something affordable with an ocean view. At first, we tried the chains, but we weren't happy with the "partial" ocean views or the prices. We are all about bargains and found a hotel called the "Hallmark Resort." We found out an ocean view King room, non-smoking was $119, which was great (compared to everywhere else). So, imagine our amazement when we walked into the room. This is a picture (description below).

It may not look like much, but let me tell you that this is one of the nicest rooms I have ever stayed in for this price. In the lower left hand corner, you can only see a bit of it, but it is a jacuzzi tub! You can see that it has a nice bedroom area and beyond that, a sitting area with a gas fireplace, two comfy chairs, a table and a fold out couch. There is also a kitchenette with a dishwasher, refrigerator, etc. THEN, beyond that, is a private balcony that overlooks the beach and the ocean. IT IS FANTASTIC! This is the kind of place that you find only once in a blue moon. If you are ever in Newport, this is where you should stay.

So, we are having a great trip and we miss you all. Will post more tomorrow (as if this wasn't long enough)!