Almost Home!

Technically I am home but I wanted you all to see my last stop. After a long, boring drive on I-5 south I visited the kids and of course Little Dude. She's growing like a weed and getting very excited about her 3rd birthday party-we're going bowling! That's another blog next month. 

I love the looks and expressions

And here, she's going in for the kill-a big lick!

We can't leave momma out

Momma loves me best

All that licking and laughing leaves me thirsty....

A lesson in Crabbing

This was our 2nd day brunch-english muffins with crab, pesto and provolone followed by a fresh blackberry cobbler-oh! heavenly!

First, you have to have the equipment and mentors. My mentors are the Thompsons. They know I love crab and were willing to show me the ropes-actually, I didn't have to do any of the icky parts-Gary works the traps, kills the crab and Cecile cooks them. Then my job is to pick-and come up with some ideas for eating crab in many varieties. Oh, tough job! Especially the tasting part...

Gary is checking the traps-we didn't have a boat so he tried off the dock. Early morning catches were the best.

Hard to see, but he's throwing the babies/females back.

And here is the all-important job of picking.

Crab and  crackers for the first night

That's a "yum".

Friends visit at Winchester Bay

Ray and I met Bob and Dianna Pepper in 1999, when we all worked at Yellowstone Nat'l Park. It was kind of Camelot-we were all excited about starting a new lifestyle-that of the full-timer. We kept in touch over the years, visiting them when we headed north, and they met us once on their way to AZ. The last few years were difficult-Ray's passing, then Dianna's mom passed away so this was a special treat. They drove from Tillamook (3 hours!) to have an early dinner with me. They're special people and have invited me to visit them next winter in AZ. I'm really blessed.

Dianna still likes her coffee

And, of course, I got Bob to show me why my oven pilot wasn't working.

Welcome to Winchester Bay-I took this from up on the Umpqua Lighthouse. Is it Winchester Bay or Brigadoon?

I knew about the fishing here but not the dune buggying. I think it's as popular as fishing-or more! I'm on the wait list for a ride-we'll see.

The dunes are beautiful and I want to see them up close and personal.

This is called the crab dock on the map. Late afternoon there were quite a few folks putting their pots in to soak.

oops! I need a class on how to edit 

The Reunion-Power of 3!

One of the many lookouts in the Aruga State Park. If this were whale watching season, I'd want to be here.

The rocks are washed smooth by the pelting waves

It was a cold and foggy day, worth the time and effort to go to Arago State Park. We're a bit wind blown.

A year ago, my friends and I flew to NY to board a ship for a 12-day cruise to New England and Canada. We stayed in NY for the weekend prior to the cruise. Needless to say, what played in NY stayed in NY. Everybody has busy schedules so this was the first real opportunity to have a reunion. Teresa and Debby live in WA, I live in CA and we met in Coos Bay, OR! Yes, you can really make it happen! We had a ball, and started throwing ideas around for our next reunion...

Here we are in Bandon-the Cranberry Festival is next week but the town is charming and not too crowded. We were told this store had a ton of samples-and they were right! Teresa is on the left, Debby right.

So, this is a weird shot but we had done the typical pose. Can you guess what we're doing?

We're at a little jewelry shop that had two of the most beautiful Huskies-Crystal and Jade. The owner let them out for us to hug and pet. We spent lots of time and $$$ in there.

My kids will croak when they see me letting a dog give me a kiss!

Coos Bay-Mills Casino RV Park.

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Debby is trying to decide what's for breakfast and Fanny's Kitchen

So is Teresa! They don't always sit around with their tongues out-I think they were really hungry that day.

Pete and Sandy were heading for the Cranberry Festival. We started talking to them while waiting in line at the pancake house. The hostess thought since we were having such a good time they put us all together! They steered us toward the baked pancakes-yum-delish!