The best part about all that rain...

The best part about all that winter rain: WATERFALLS. We spent Wednesday April 27th hiking Silver Falls State Park.

And, then we went to the Woodburn Outlets :-) for some post hike shopping.

What happens when...

What happens when you give your undergrads an unlimited supply of straws and tape... and 15 minutes to build a structure. This.

Ah, the Oregon Coast

Monday April 25 we woke up to grey, rainy Oregon skies in Corvallis. I had planned for us to go to the Oregon coast, but I wasn't sure the kids were going to have any fun if the weather was bad. I had been given some advice to "just go... the weather may not cooperate during their visit but just try to get it in and maybe there will be enough of a break in the clouds to actually see something". With that in mind, I hit the road with my sister, my niece and nephew. We went to Newport and started the day with lunch at Rogue Brewery - my favorite place to eat in Oregon.

We did Hatfield Marine Science Center. It is like the aquarium, but with a strong emphasis on education and it's free (well, we made a donation, but in theory, it is free). We happened to be there when they were feeding everything... including the octopus. They feed him by putting his food inside a PVC toy (which he has to open - It helps keep their hunting instinct high).

Then we headed to the historic bayfront area of Newport. We were hoping to see seals and sea lions. There were a few, way out in the harbor. (But it worked out: we got to see more when we went to Crescent City on our way to the Redwoods)

Then we decided we had to see the actual Pacific ocean, not just the bay. As expected it was windy and cold so we only stayed long enough to write our names in the sand and take a few photos.

We got some ice cream at the Newport Candy Shoppe. And, since Curtis is studying lighthouses in school, we went to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse and natural area. They charged us $7 to get into the park at 4:00 in the afternoon. The lighthouse closed at 4 (which we didn't know until the went in the visitor's center).

We found a "seal" (statue) at the visitor's center.  He got his picture taken... a lot.

About the time we got out to the end of the rock, the rain hit.... it was that cold, blowing, stinging rain... not the funnest part of the day.

Once we made it back to the car, I asked what the plan was. Curtis said, in a very sweet voice from the backseat, (as we are all drying off and taking off soaked jackets) "let's not do that again". We waited on the rain to stop and we went down to the tidepools and snapped some great photos (and mostly tried to dry out before driving back to Corvallis).

We made the trek back to Corvallis, got out of our wet clothes, and ordered some pizza while we huddled under blankets. It was a good day.

Easter with friends AND family

I had family with me on Easter... that hasn't happened in a while.

We went to my friend Betsy's house and enjoyed easter with her family. Her dad cooked brisket and the kids had an easter egg hunt. Betsy is a photography genius and started snapping photos. Enjoy.

Betsy's niece Katie "helping" my niece Desiree get an egg that was hidden up high...

Desiree and Curtis went for the same egg... so Curtis sat on her head and as she fell to the ground, he snatched it and ran.

Victory.

Even though it was raining, we had a blast. There is nothing like family.

I had a great time with family in town. I am also woefully behind on work. Between the trip to Fresno and the fact that today and tomorrow are CDE days on campus, I am swimming in tasks that need to be done.. I promise: coming soon I will have pictures (and maybe even video) of our trip to the Oregon coast, Silver Falls, Crater Lake and Redwood National Park.

Oregon Garden...in April

No two days are the same in one garden.  ~Hugh Johnson

One of my first weekend adventures after arriving in Oregon was to visit the Oregon Garden.(Read that post here). This past weekend (after I got back from Fresno, but before the family arrived Saturday night) I made a second visit, this time with my new friend Jennifer. I have been told I need to see the garden during all seasons (I skipped winter - too wet and too cold for me). I plan to go back sometime in the next 6 weeks. This past weekend the garden was at the point where bulbs were up and crabapples and flowering cherry trees were blooming, but most things were just starting to leaf out. It warrants a return visit. I snapped some photos.

I was completely obsessed by the snake skin pattern on the blooms. I have never seen anything like it.

There were hellebores everywhere.

 A happy little bear-shaped shrub to mark the entry to the Children's garden.

I am a sucker for a fern... I just love the way they unfurl....

  Obsessed I tell you. If you click on this one and make it larger, you will see the pattern. Love it.

Afterwards, we had lunch at the Creekside Cafe in Silverton, OR, and stopped by The Chocolate Box for a snack. I had a peanut butter cake ball (delicious), but it wasn't as cute as these little guys... so I took their picture.