We began Saturday morning with a trip to The Crepe Place – one of Andy and Nicole’s favorite morning haunts!

It was very tasty!

We spent the rest of the day visiting the church offices where Nicole works, exploring The KILNS bookstore, stopping at a Saturday Market, hitting a few thrift stores, and driving to the top of Pilot Butte.

Mom and Dad took Nicole and Andy out for dinner, so Joey, Naomi, Noelle, and I ordered a couple of humongous pizzas. Before digging in, though, Joey, Naomi, and I decided to go back to Pilot Butte and see if we could run all the way to the top. Last year when I was visiting Nicole and Andy I attempted the challenge and made it all of about 100 yards. Pathetic, I know, but hey, I’m a Kansas girl! I was determined to do better this year! Joey amazingly summitted with hardly a sign of expended energy. Naomi and I made it about half a mile before we had to slow down to a walk. After catching our breaths, we finished running to the top. (Next year, Lord-willing, I will make the run all the way up!) And then we went back to the house and made up for lost calories…

The trail is short, but steep (as I’m sure our calves will affirm tomorrow!).

Joey had a little trouble making it to the top, so his big sisters pitched in to help him out.

Then Joey had to return the favor when Nicole had a difficult time climbing the final big boulders at the top.

Andy, Dad, and Joey enjoy the view from their perch far above the plain.

I decided to zoom in for a close-up shot of one of the small cottages arrayed across the valley.

Noelle makes herself comfortable and is only disappointed that she neglected to bring along her book.

Nicole and Andy find other ways to while away the time at the top…

I was excited to meet up with my friend, Kelsey, and her sweet 7-week old daughter. She and Mom opted to walk along the river path rather than attempt to summit the rock, though!

It was necessary to make a brief stop on the way home in order to replenish some of the calories we worked off on the hike. Elizabeth was quite disinterested and preferred instead to take a nap!

Upon arrival back at Nicole and Andy’s place, chef Andy went to work and soon had a meal of sizzling fajitas ready to be consumed. Yum!

All of us girls headed to the quaint town of Sisters. Of course, we had to get a picture of the sisters next to the sign. Too bad we were missing a sister!

We enjoyed walking around and in and out of the various shops until mid-afternoon when we stopped for a late lunch.

Here’s a shot of the Three Sisters [mountains] that I captured on the drive home.

Andy, Nicole, Noelle, and Joey pose at the entrance to the “water park.”

It was a half-mile trek back through the canyon to the final destination point.

The swirling falls, surrounded by crags that served as a perfect launch pad for the cliffjumpers.

We got warmed up on the easier jump. Andy led the way and most of the rest of us followed. (Sorry, you’ll have to turn your head sideways to watch this clip…)

We were all impressed when Dad made the jump! And look at the beautiful form, to boot!

Andy, Noelle, Joey, and I made our way over to the falls and had a blast climbing up and jumping off the edge several times.

Noelle prepares for her entry into the rapids below.

It took her a while to work up the nerve, but Naomi eventually made the plunge. We were all so proud of her!

Next, Joey and I set our sights on the big jump on the other side of the river.

It was a good bit higher than the other cliffs, but oh, what an adrenaline rush! I’d say God definitely has the corner on creating the best water parks, don’t you think? Too bad He didn’t put a few in Kansas, though…

The river flowing down the mountain from Tumalo Falls.

Andy, Dad, Naomi, and Joey looking down over the falls from above.

The family enjoys the exhilarating view from the top.

Some of the more adventurous in the group decide to hike our way up the river to experience the falls up close.

Naomi, Joey, and Noelle exhibit the victorious feeling of arriving at the foot of the falls – almost there!

The falls are truly magnificent!

After a treacherous climb up the mossy side of the mountain, we all took a turn in the icy shower.

Dad and I wave in triumph before rushing back out!

We spent the afternoon swimming in the river (i.e. being carried swiftly downstream by the current while desperately attempting to dodge the large boulders strewn all across the bed of the river). No pictures from this…the camera would definitely not have survived the ordeal.

Then, after a scrumptious grilled feast enjoyed alfresco at Andy and Nicole’s home, we headed toward the Old Mill District for a walk along the river.

We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect end to our adventure-filled day!

Haha! Actually, we were part of the exclusive guest list for a surprise celebration honoring our friend, Julie, who turned very old this year. Thus, we were all instructed to arrive at the gathering looking “very, very old.” (However you don’t quite get the full effect of my outfit since you can’t see the pastel striped socks that overlap the bottom of my slightly-too-short sweatpants…)

Julie was quite surprised and more than a little amused by the eccentric-looking crew that greeted her at the bottom of the stairs!

However, she wasted no time donning the garb that was provided for her, and seemed quite comfortable making the transition to her new very old age. Ah, the things we have to look forward to in the years to come…

In other news, I have been debating whether or not to keep posting to this blog, since I’ve launched the Pajama School Blog and have been posting some things there that otherwise might have ended up on here. The issue is not yet settled decisively one way or another, so for now I’m planning to keep this blog going and I may even try to post more frequently than once a quarter!

My contribution was the flowers. There’s a little flower shop in town that does a “cash and carry” special every Friday. I love concocting reasons to stop in there and bring home a bouquet of fresh flowers!

Going in for the goal…

Joey and Ryan vie for the ball!

This is my favorite – nice air, huh?!

Part of Joey’s devoted fan club. We all had lots of fun watching Joey and cheering him and his team on to numerous victories.

Arrival at the coast!

The lush green backdrop against the ocean water was gorgeous!

Nicole and Andy take a romantic stroll along the beach…

Camp site #1. We didn’t have any reservations or specific agenda for our trip. We just headed North along the coast, stopping at little seaside towns when we felt like it and praying that the Lord would provide a place for us to camp each night.

Nicole cooked some beef the night before we left and we placed it on some foil and Andy cooked it over the fire for some delicious beef sandwiches. Yum!

Day Two. We stopped at Seal Rock State Recreation Site where we had a nice visit with the park ranger and explored some of the sites along the beach…there were dozens of seals frolicking in the waves just beneath the surface.

…hundreds of pelicans lined the ledges of the towering crags.

…and a dead shark graced the beach below. Ugh!

We continued our trek northward with a short stop at the Sea Lion Caves lookout point.

Andy’s brilliant idea of requesting scrap lumber from a lumber yard produced a trunkload of dry wood beams that were perfect for our remaining campfires. Andy bought a hatchet for the purpose and had nice-sized firewood in no time at all!

Camp site #2. We had a much more difficult time finding a vacant camp site the second night (due to the holiday weekend and beautiful weather), but entrusted our need to the Lord and eventually ended up at a nice campground, complete with hot showers!

Leftover chicken fajitas that Andy made earlier in the week served as our meal for the second night once we heated them over the makeshift grill. They were delicious!

It just wouldn’t be a camping trip without s’mores.

The third day, we stopped in a quaint village for a scrumptious feast at The Pizza Garden. The sun was warm and the views breathtaking as we enjoyed our alfresco lunch.

We stopped in Cannon Beach for a smoothie and to get a view of the famous Haystack Rock.

We rolled into Fort Stevens State Park in late afternoon and were thrilled to learn that they had just had a cancellation and had a spot available for us. The park resembled a small village with the massive amounts of people enjoying their Labor Day weekend at the campground. You know the expression, “they brought everything but the kitchen sink”? Well, these people brought everything including the kitchen sink. It was quite the sight! We enjoyed our relatively quiet corner at the edge of the last loop.

Fort Stevens is at the very tip of the Oregon coast where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean. In the background of this picture, you can just barely make out the 4+ mile Astoria-Megler bridge that spans the Columbia River from Oregon into Washington.

My new house…

We ended the evening by watching the sunset on the beach and then roasting hotdogs and chasing away raccoons back at our camp site. (Andy discovered a dual purpose for the 2x4s from the lumber yard. I won’t go into details, but I will say that one raccoon went to bed the next morning with a splitting headache…)

We drove through Astoria and across the afore-mentioned bridge into Washington, where we continued our journey along the Oregon coast and into Portland. Nicole and Andy were kind enough to let me visit Powell’s Books – the largest independent bookstore in the world. A booklover’s dream, to be sure! I managed to emerge with only one book in tow and Nicole and Andy survived the ordeal in good spirits.

Books lined shelf after shelf and shelves lined room after room in the multi-story book emporium. We stayed our final night in a hotel just across the river from the airport and I ended my two-week visit with an early morning flight home to rejoin the rest of my family. I had a marvelous time and am so grateful for Nicole and Andy’s hospitality and friendship. What a great end to the summer!

Upon arriving at the house, I was greeted by this cleverly designed scrabble-style message. It’s good to be back home and I look forward to jumping back into the swing of things this fall.