The Oregon Coast ~ Devil’s Punchbowl and Cape Foulweather
The Oregon Coast ~ Cape Creek Bridge
At the trail head for the Heceta Head Lighthouse is a lovely view of the Cape Creek Bridge and Tunnel.
I am sure he was getting sick of me snapping pictures of him, but there are only so many “scenic” pictures I can take and I wasn’t use to not having our children around to photograph!
The Oregon Coast ~ Heceta Head Lighthouse
The Oregon Coast ~ The Sea Lion Caves
One of our stops along the Oregon Coast was the Sea Lion Caves just north of Florence.
The caves were discovered in 1880 by a local resident who allegedly was marooned in the main cavern by storms and had to shoot and eat sea lion to survive. The man eventually bought the land from the State of Oregon, which probably saved the resource because there was a bounty on sea lions at the time…
Most of the animals are of the variety called Steller Sea Lions, a non-migratory breed that lives in the area year-round. The pups, usually born in late spring and early summer, weigh 40 to 50 pounds at birth and the males can grown to 12 feet and 1,500 pounds. The females are slimmer and average 8 and 9 feet in length and perhaps 700 pounds.
The Steller Sea Lion usually resides on offshore islands – the caves are its only known mainland habitat on the West Coast – and the world population is estimated at 250,000. An estimated 200 usually reside in the caves, but that number can fluctuate with weather conditions and season.
Can you tell how windy it was outside! 😉
A sweet woman was willing to take a picture of the two of us to add to our Our Wedding Anniversary Memory Book
We then headed just up the road and stopped at another view point to see if we could spot the Sea Lions. There were hundreds!!
The Oregon Coast ~ Evacuation Instructions
Speaking of Tsunami Hazard Zones, here was a sweatshirt I wanted to buy for Hubby. He laughed when I pointed it out, but wouldn’t let me, so I settled for just taking a picture of it instead…
The Oregon Coast ~ The Perfect Wave
Since we didn’t know where, or if, we were going anywhere for our anniversary till the week before, most of the nicer hotels along the coastline had been already booked for the weekend. So, we started looking into vacation rentals. We ended up finding a place called “The Perfect Wave” on the Oregon Coast, and it really was PERFECT!
After we had made our reservations Hubby started having second thoughts since the condo was in a “Tsunami Hazard Zone“ (as is most everywhere on the beach!) and there had just been a Tsunami warning for the Pacific Coast line! He asked if the room should be called “The Perfect Storm” instead! 😉 I am not kidding when I tell you that he had every possible evacuation route figured out before we left and even had all the roads leading inland from the condo memorized. It was so funny! He even tested the route on foot when we arrived to see just how long it would take to get to safe ground… basically too long. The weather was also suppose to be awful, but I was sure we would at least have a little bit of nice weather. We did, everything was perfect!! However, Hubby and I both jumped up in the middle of the night when we heard the sound of Thunder (which at first sounded like a really big wave crashing on the beach!) but it was followed by a short rain storm and not a tsunami.
The Living Room
The Gas Fireplace was great for the chilly nights too!
It was such a great place to stay. If only they allowed more than four people at this particular condo, I am sure we would already be planning our next visit with our children!
My Daybook ~ October 5th
FOR TODAY: October 5, 2009
Outside my Window… it is so quiet compared to the last few days of hearing the waves crashing on the beach just outside our window!
I am thinking… about how fast 10 years went by and so thankful for the wonderful family God has blessed us with in that time. (Last year I posted a few Wedding Memories on our Anniversary.)
I am thankful… for our amazing friends, one of which (actually we had four friends offer!) volunteered to watch all five of our children so that Hubby and I could go on a little vacation to celebrate our 10th Anniversary! It was the very first time we have gone anywhere overnight together (other than to the hospital 😉 ) without any of our children. Yes, I cried when we left them, but they did just fine and we had such a relaxing weekend! I am also thankful for the beautiful weather we had (for the most part) despite the tsunami warning earlier in the week and the forecast for rain!!
From the school room… Now that we are home from our little Getaway I am all ready to get back on schedule and start “G” week with the Girls! I do still need to stop by the library sometime today to pick up all the books I reserved online, as well as a few supplies for their craft (they’ll be making the Flower Fairy Garden from The Flower Fairies Activity Book
Living the Liturgical year at Home… Today is the feast of St. Faustina. Since the girls recently studied her for Little Flowers, I think today would be a perfect opportunity to review that meeting with them. The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is also this week. Last year we celebrated with some of our friends, and this year, since I have another Little Flowers meeting scheduled and the virtue happens to be “Joy”, I plan to discuss the rosary with the girls, especially the JOYful Mysteries and make Rosary Boxes.
I am creating… a list of things I would like to make out of Softies: Simple Instructions for 25 Plush Pals
and The Mother of the Little Flower: Zelie Martin (1831-1877)
.I am wearing… my new sweater vest over a violet maternity shirt. It is cold this morning! (Also, I didn’t end up getting that dress I linked to last week… It was a little too short and clingy, even in a larger size.)
I am hoping… that I can finish this post without losing it again! Blogger ate my first draft…
I am hearing… my children getting up and dressed for the day.
Around the house… I need a dishwasher!!! After using one to wash our dishes at the condo this weekend I realized just what I am missing!
One of my favorite things… hearing my children cry “Momma!” and running and jumping into my arms after being gone for a couple days! Oh, how I missed them!!
A Few Plans For This Week… lots of school, grocery shopping and our 3rd Little Flowers meeting.
A picture thought I am sharing:
To see more Daybook’s visit Peggy!
Celebrating the Feast of Saint Thérèse ~ 2009
“By inviting us to venerate the mortal remains of the martyrs and saints, the Church does not forget that, in the end, these are indeed just human bones, but they are bones that belonged to individuals touched by the transcendent power of God. The relics of the saints are traces of that invisible but real presence which sheds light upon the shadows of the world and reveals the Kingdom of Heaven in our midst. They cry out with us and for us ‘Maranatha!’ – ‘Come Lord Jesus!’”
(Pope Benedict XVI, Address to Young People at Cologne, 2005).
and Miracle of St. Thérèse
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about St. Thérèse
Some pictures on Facebook…
A Novena to Saint Therese beginning on her Feast Day
Start with:
Saint Therese, flower of Carmel, you said you would spend your heaven doing good upon the earth. Your trust in God was complete. Listen to my prayer; bring before God my special intention…
Pray for me that I may have something of your confidence in the loving promises of our God. Pray that I may live my life in union with God’s plan for me, and one day see the Face of God who you so ardently loved.
Saint Therese, you kept your word to love God and to trust the world to that loving providence. Pray for us that we may be faithful to our commitment to love. May our lives, like yours, be able to touch the world and bring it to peace.
DAY ONE
Loving God, you blessed St. Therese with a capacity for a great love. Help us to believe in your unconditional love for each of us.
DAY TWO
Loving God, you loved St. Therese’s complete trust in your care. Help us to rely on your providential care for us in each circumstance of our lives.
DAY THREE
Loving God, you graced St. Therese with a capacity to see your hand in the ordinary routine of each day. Help us to be aware of your presence in the everyday events of our lives.
DAY FOUR
Loving God, you taught St. Therese how to find a direct way to you through the “little way” of humility and simplicity. Grant that we may never miss the grace there is in humble service to others in family and neighborhood.
DAY FIVE
Loving God, you graced St. Therese with the gift of forgiving others even when she felt hurt and betrayed. Help us to be able to forgive others who have wounded us, especially…
DAY SIX
Loving God, St. Therese experienced each day as a gift from You, as a time for loving and through others. May we, too, see each new day as a single moment of saying yes to Your will in our lives.
DAY SEVEN
Loving God, St. Therese offered to You her frailty and powerlessness. Help us to see in our weakness and our diminishments an opportunity for letting Your light and Your strength be all we need.
DAY EIGHT
Loving God, You shepherded St. Therese with a gracious love and made her a tower of strength to people who had lost faith in You. Help us to be unafraid to pray with confidence for the many in our culture who do not believe they can be loved.
DAY NINE
Loving God, St. Therese never doubted that her life had meaning. Help us to understand our possibilities for loving and blessing our children, our elderly parents, our neighbours in need, and for priests throughout the world.
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