It Wasn't Disappointing....

On Monday to Wednesday, Sept 30 to Oct 2, Angie and I enjoyed a perfect getaway to the Washington coast. 

DRIVING GRAM G...

After a 2 hour drive along the Columbia River we headed up to the north end of Long Beach Peninsula.
                                                    A beautiful, blue sky, mild temperature, good day in the woods and at the beach....

Not a good day at the beach for everyone....

BBQ ribs and fixins dinner for two at a peninsula golf course...Monday night special...

Made up for the soggy nacho platter we had for lunch in a different establishment....they did not charge us for them....

Then back to the town of Long Beach to check in

AND



catch the most magnificent, long lasting sunset I have ever seen....

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Tuesday AM it was off to explore..... 

CAPE DISAPPOINTMENT STATE PARK

Cape Disappointment earned its name when Captain John Meares failed to cross the [Columbia] river bar in 1788. The feat was accomplished in 1792 by American Captain Robert Gray. The Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived at Cape Disappointment in 1805.

First stop....North Head lighthouse...

about 1/3 mile hike from the parking lot

Pacific coastline with mouth of Columbia River to upper left....

A World War II bunker guarding the coastline...

wooden 

water tower

There were a fair number of people checking things out....
including this hairy alien....."Live long and prosper, Earthling".

Next....the main event.....

CAPE DISAPPOINTMENT LIGHTHOUSE....

(AND CLIMB....)

The trail is around 4 miles....half of them up hill...

Some downhill trails, a little tree hugging,


Dead Man's Cove.....
Angie's favorite spot




                                                           











Lighthouses, Bunkers and Hobbits, Oh My!!

I can't believe I hiked the whole thing... UP and down...

LONG BEACH, WASHINGTON

How to go WACO......

                                                 







Wednesday morning,
Time to head home....

How often does 
one see this?








Goodbye to the .... Land of the monkey tail (monkey puzzle) tree.....
Gram G's favorite tree....



Araucaria araucana (commonly called the monkey puzzle tree, monkey tail tree, piñonero, or Chilean pine) is an evergreen tree growing to 1–1.5 m (3–5 ft) in diameter and 30–40 m (100–130 ft) in height. It is native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina.

And thrives in the PNW temperate rain forest climate.....
It is an endangered species.....

Its spine-like needles acted as protection from ancient grazing animals now long extinct. It can live for 1,000 years and grows to 50m high with a trunk diameter of over 3m. Its large seeds, pinones, take two years to mature.














It changes to a cone shape as it matures....

monkey tail wood earrings 

       I need to take my baby out to the peninsula so she can admire her role models....Monki is 5 years old and has been with me since she was a twig.   She seems to think she is a bush...also needs a larger environment to reach her full potential....probably not in my lifetime...

"Oh, the monkey tail tree, monkey tail tree.
Have you seen the monkey tail tree?
It's as strange as strange can be.
Tell me, tell me, what do you see?
Way up high in the monkey tail tree?
Tell me, tell me, will you please?
How many monkeys in the monkey tail tree?"

I'm not telling.  You'll have to hear my song to find out!!!!

This has been a good 10 "it wasn't disappointing" days in the life of Grandma G.

"I [Jesus] am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)

Many Faces of Fall.....

Monday, Sept. 23, I was privileged to have a brunch visit with my dear friend who is home for awhile from Papua New Guinea.  I made an egg bake and while we ate, visited for over 4 hours.

Late afternoon brought on an almost 3 mile walk and then initial plans with Angie for a soon 2 days adventure!

 Wednesday was a great day after a very rainy Tuesday for a 3 mile hike...walk....it seemed to be a workout....at twice around the park it was a mere 2.94 miles....a little more effort and finally 3.03 miles.  And a tired body

A little touch of spring in the fall....



 Angie and talked more about plans for a couple day get away....

Thursday was Red Hat Ladies' outing.  I really wasn't wanting to go, but my "thrive" plan includes almost daily socializing....with a large mouthful of thick sandwich....

   A three dimensional painting..              What's behind the red door?    

We went to 
"The Poor Farm" in Portland.  

Many years ago unfortunate people went there for work and housing.

Now remodeled into a resort complex of motel, restaurants, veggie garden, winery, glass blower and spa. 








 I was glad I went.

For a rainy, chilly Friday.....

Squash soup!  Sauteed onions and garlic, basil, potatoes blended smooth.

Strong garlic flavor, tamed by sour cream and grated cheese!

YUM!!

Celebrating Gram G's first great grandchild's 3rd Birthday!

Four generations...Great Gram G, Grandma Deb, Dad Zach, little Rosie....

Arriving home late Saturday evening to remains of a brief but powerful hail storm.  

The week was punctuated with giving piano lessons, plans for a surprise adventure, daily chores, making potato salad and banana bread and appreciation of shaping my life here in the lovely Pacific Northwest.

I received some happy surprise news this evening.  But that is for a later date!


This has been a good 7 "many faces of fall" days in the life of Grandma G....

"Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land."
(Proverbs 25:25)

Once In a Lifetime Day....

I'm not into numbers and days and what mystical meaning they might have, but a few days ago I came quite close.....

9-19-19

On that day many quests I've invested time in produced results...

A devotional of mine was accepted for possible publication....

      

I recorded an original song for a songwriting contest...

I played piano and  lead 3 worship songs for a  ladies' Bible study for the first time....

A friend who has been living overseas and is in town for awhile contacted me to get togeher soon...

I was called in early afternoon to substitute at the local music academy for 5 hours....yay!  some money.....

     So whether forwards or backwards the day was 91919!

A mighty good day it was!! 

And it all started, 9/18, the evening before.....
(also the date of my fall onto my forehead and concussion, 2018)

Angie and I went out to celebrate National Cheeseburger day!

Then she took me to downtown Vancouver to see the new Waterfront....I had no idea that it was a complex of new apartments and storefronts along the Columbia River, close to the I-5 bridge between Vancouver and Portland....

We marveled at the light show of clouds and sunset after a mostly rainy day....

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Today is International Hobbit Day in honor of 
Bilbo and Frodo Baggins' Birthdays of Sept. 21

Happy forever B-day, Frodo!!

"A rabbit lay here...."

So, my friends, as summer officially comes to a close, don't give up on your dreams and the efforts you have put in, even after a long time!

This has been a good 17 "once in a lifetime" days in the life of Grandma G.

"Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us." 
 (Isaiah 26:12)

Enjoy the Journey......

Seven years ago on August 25, 2012 I arrived here in Vancouver, WA to start my new life as a Pacific Northwest mountain mama.

(niece, Vicki, senior sisters,
Kate, Georgia, Betty)

Here is a post from Friday, August 24, 2012.

 I have heard that it is not the destination but the journey that is important.

In my case it is the journey and the destination.

The destination came first and then the journey became the means to get there.

Today in Golden, Canada we came upon this affirmation to 

ENJOY THE JOURNEY

That is what we have been doing for 11 days.

Today was the 2nd to the last day of THE JOURNEY.

We passed into British Columbia,

Drove 540 miles through beautiful, though rugged mountains.

We stopped at Merritt and were helped by very friendly folks.

Tonight we are staying in Hope.

Tomorrow we will finish THE JOURNEY when we arrive in

Vancouver, WA!

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A few days ago I had a nice blog prepared featuring snippets of The Three Senior Sisters, and a Niece, Great Cross Country Road Trip. I had several pictures and quotes programmed in.  I was almost done while I was busily typing and pressing buttons with my right little finger when....

little finger became over zealous and pressed a wrong button...everything disappeared, never to be seen again.  Since the time was close to midnight, I gave a sigh, (or maybe a bad word) and went to bed.   I exclaimed to myself, "Who cares anyway? It just takes up a lot of time." 

But now I've decided to enjoy the journey, even if there are some rock slides. 

Here's a few snippets of that momentous trip.

After  several months of preparations the 3 senior sisters left Park Falls for their Cross Country Adventure....departing at 3PM, Tuesday August 14, 2012. 

The geographical center of North America

Rugby, North Dakota

A Red Bus ride through the mountains of Glacier National Park 

A bridge made of Burly Pine in Banff, Canada 

A visit to beautiful Lake Louise, Canada

Arriving at my new home state.... 

and home city of VANCOUVER

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My new home August 2012

My new home landscaped....August 2019

    

Now with a satisfying summer quickly over it is time to enjoy the journey into autumn.  There are no exciting trips planned or family gatherings, but I look forward to exploring and developing some personal dreams.  And managing everyday needs....

This has been a good 14 "enjoy the journey" days in the life of Grandma G.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.  Acknowledge him in all your ways and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:1)