Nice Weekend

Jim and I had a great weekend. We dropped off Nat at Grandma and Grandpa's yesterday morning, and headed out on back roads toward the coast. We stopped and had lunch at a cute Italian restaurant in Carlton, out in the wine country. The sandwiches were made on homemade bread! Yum!

We drove up the coast, and hit sections of it that we hadn't visited in years or at all. We stopped for a walk on the beach north of Rockaway Beach. Jim found a perfect sand dollar for Nat.

Next we walked down the main street of Manzanita. What a cool little town. I cannot believe we have not been there. We scoped out some cool places to stay next time!

We headed farther north to Oswald Beach, which is a prime surfing spot. It was awesome watching the surfers catching waves. Can't imagine that cold water! They were all wearing wet suits! Definitely a party spot... Jim and I felt kinda old ;) Definitely a heart tug every time we saw a young couple with a toddler. That was us... dragging Natalie everywhere with us. We were not surfers, but we sure did drag Nat along on some big hikes and to the beach a lot. What incredible memories we have of that time in our lives.

We checked into the Nehalem River Inn late afternoon. What a charming little place! They upgraded us to a suite since it was our anniversary. It was so cozy! The perfect place to relax. And dinner there... JUST incredible. I was in heaven (isn't it sad how excited I get about good food??!!). Corn soup with basil oil. Antipasti plate with a new fave: dates stuffed with blue cheese! New York Steaks with a balsamic reduction, wild mushroom risotto and asparagus. And for dessert, Peach Brioche Bread Pudding with berry preserves. The wine was fabulous. We managed to polish off almost an entire bottle of a local Pinot Noir. I would go back there in a heartbeat. GREAT place! The service was impeccable too. I just love finding places like this!

After dinner we snuggled in for a movie. We watched La vie en Rose. Have to admit that I slept through part of it, but what I saw was really well-acted. All of that fresh air really did a number on my eyes... just couldn't keep up with the subtitles.

This morning after sleeping in and having a lazy morning, we headed back into Manzanita for breakfast at the Big Wave Cafe. We grabbed a mocha at a local espresso bar and then headed south. We stopped at this waterfall:

Munson Falls is south of Tillamook. It was just a short hike, and surprisingly big! Can't believe we have never stopped there. We were surprised at all of the downed trees from the winter's big storms. Part of the trail was closed down.

We took different back roads home... through a really remote area along the Nestucca River. Just gorgeous! Once again, the trees damaged in the wind storm were just unreal. 

What a relaxing and wonderful weekend. We need to do that more often. It was so great to spend one-on-one time with Jim. What can I say... I'm still head-over-heels even after 18 years :)