Monday, February 4, 2008

I go to the sea to Breathe

It's been years, at least 1, maybe two, since we've been to the ocean: to camp, to walk, to BREATHE!! It's been a long time, too long, if you're a beach/ocean addict, like me. Must walk on the beach at least every couple of months, must smell the ocean, must sit and stare at the ocean and be hypnotized by it, must hear the waves crashing, must feel the sand underfoot, must hear the gulls screeching. Must remember who created such a wonder and praise His name and remember it is He who controls the ocean and what am I to fear in the world. It's been too long...but the pregnancy that kept us home bound resulted in three healthy wonderful babies so the time spent in caring and helping our daughter was worth the sacrifice. But this weekend was a even more special given the long time away from the beach and that it was a gift from our children in appreciation for what we do for them.
We stayed in Newport, specifically at a bed and breakfast called the Tyee Lodge. "Tyee", an Indian word for salmon and we fittingly stayed in the Chinook room. We toured the Oregon Coast aquarium on Saturday. One, at least this one, could spend hours there and we did. They had a photography show going on there as well. Scot Blackman's photos were displayed from the last 10 years. Wow! Inspiration and ideas for future shots to look for. I used to love to photograph scenery, especially the beach, but now my photos are full of little faces. We read all the signs, watched a crab take over another's shell, and, of course, made a stop in the gift shop for grandmunchkins for "educational stuff" which we found in abundance.


The tide pools are full of color and you are encouraged to gently touch the life there. There are some great "natural" tidepools I've been too around the coast but not as full as these.

The passages of the deep. These are fairly new. They replaced Keiko's tank. Well worth it. Full of sharks, salmon, halibut, to name a few. Did you know halibut swim like a "normal" fish when they are born with an eye on either side of their head but an eye on one side migrates to join the eye on the other side and the halibut tilts and eventually swims flat/horizontal? It becomes black on the top and white on the underside for camoflauge. We saw the otters playing, the seals swimming, the jelly fish....


And then there was our room. WOW! When we weren't at the aquarium or old town, we were relaxing in a spectacular room with a view and a fireplace and comfy chairs. It was hard to drag myself from the room for anything. Just look at the view! And given that the weather was dreary and rainy...why go out? If I'd only had my espresso machine....


My spot, my heaven on earth for the weekend. Sitting in this chair with a warm fire and the view in front of me, working on the "monkey on my back". (hope to post pictures of this monkey as complete tomorrow!) It wasn't quite so bothersome with a fire and a view and a comfy chair but I would have liked to have been knitting or crocheting. I am so thankful for the kids and the blessing of this weekend. They gave my hubby and I time to reconnect. We've needed that for some time and they even thought to plan to care for our youngest so it was just us two, something that we haven't had since well before my back surgery almost two years ago.




1 comment:

  1. Wow! What a nice getaway. I love the ocean too and have been missing it. I've been to Newport but haven't stayed there.

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