Muir to Love.: Our Little House by the Ocean

The Oregon Coast is a very special place to my family. Not only is this where my parents spent their honeymoon, but our family has been making the little trek there for over 20 YEARS! It is fun to see the traditions that stand the trials of time, and collect new ones each and every year. We stay in a condo near Lincoln City and New Port called the Inn at Otter Crest, but to little Madison Wiberg it was always the "little house by the ocean."

It is my family's happy place.

I missed out on the past couple of years...growing up and getting married will do that to you. And my dream is to be able to bring my husband (in case you haven't been following he is still working in Texas, and they were moved into hotels so I had to leave him behind to get us moved into our new place...after a little trip to the coast of course). But someday his summer job and our schooling will line up just right to allow us to experience this special place together.

The one good thing about Kirby not being there was that we had room from Aunt Myndie to come with us! I don't know how we used to fit all of my mom's family, but it has been done!

I have been to several tropical beaches, beaches where it feels like you are swimming in bath water it is so warm, beaches where you just walk around in a swimsuit and soak up the sun until you need to cool off and play in the waves...and this is not that kind of vacation.

Here we wear jackets, can't feel our feet after a little bit of wading in the water, and curling up in a blanket on the balcony with a cup of hot chocolate is the perfect evening get away. And to me, there is nothing more peaceful and comforting than a week on the Oregon Coast in our Little House by the Ocean.

A Blast from the Past

Before I show you the pics from this year let's embrace the awkward phases of my childhood at the coast. I got tired of digging through all the pictures we had...but you get the idea.

This is Dad and Mandy on the loft in the condo.

And this is Dad dangling me from the loft in the condo.

And this, my friends, is my favorite sweatshirt of all time.

And this is the rope swing in our forest.

And the famous picture.

And now the awkward phases begin...

We still take time to get our favorite ice-cream cones every time we go.

PS: This is my mom and my aunt, Myndie, that came with us this year!

My dad will always be the pro though...

In case you were starting to think we never took Bailey...she just wasn't born or was too teeny weeny until now! Look at that cutie.

Newport

Now to the Present.

Newport...oh how I love you and your stinky chum buckets.

One of my favorite stops on our long list of Oregon Coast Must-dos.

From the dock overlooking the howling sea-lions, the fishers going about their daily business, the fresh fish and chips, and the adorable shops lining the streets.

Thank you once again for keeping us constantly entertained.

This young chap is my good friend Terry. He sits here and draws the most amazing scenes with nothing but a black and red pen on rocks that he finds on the coast. I am a regular customer of his, and he never disappoints!

Salt water taffy is a must...I am just so proud of myself for making it this long without stealing one of the candies I picked out for Kirby!

Jessica decided to pose with each of the pirates we ran into...and there were quite a lot.

When you order popcorn shrimp, and they catch the little guys in their backyard, you know it will be good.

Our beach

I view this staircase, and this beach as ours. The only access to it is from our condo, so we never have to worry about a large crowd keeping us company. This is the first beach I ever stepped on, the first beach I collected sea-shells on, and the beach that made me fall in love with the ocean.

It has everything you could ever need for an ocean adventure...complete with access into the Devils Punch Bowl at low tide.

So the next two pictures are from the inside of the punch bowl...

And this is it from above!

So we have kind of adopted another beach over the past couple of visits. Just a quick walk from the condo, past it's little duck pond, and through my forrest (yes I am taking ownership of the forest as well) and you will find Moe's, the only place I eat clam chowder and the first restaurant I remember eating at, and the staircase down to the new addition to our beach.

We LOVE it at this beach. It has such a different feel than it's neighboring beach and we love to get the different vibes. Plus my sisters love the surfers ;)

Oh and of course the sand castles, sometimes it is my dad building by himself and us being impressed (as you probably saw above), sometimes it is the girls, but this year Mom bought some fancy tools and a how-to book so we tried some new techniques...and Bailey built her own next door.

Lincoln City

One of our favorite of the fancier restaurants is Kyllo's in Lincoln City, which means that it is close to the Outlets (a back to school shopping tradition) and my mom's favorite beach. So it's a must stop.

Oh and the wall...this year I tried to write something special for Kirby...but I over estimated my height and had some trouble getting my head in those arrows...but you get the point.

Depot Bay

Something we always look forward to about the coast is the sighting of our good friends, the local whales. They always like to put on a good show for us. We watch them from our balcony, from the beach, from restaurants, and of course the wall at Depot Bay. This guy in the picture below was even closer to us than he was to the whale watching boat! I have some pretty awesome videos of him showing off for us, but I thought I would spare you the lengthy videos.

Our newest tradition - The Christmas Cottage - was instantly a hit with the whole family. Plus the fact that I bought us some new stockings, in August, at the coast, will make Christmas even more special.

And of course a stop at our favorite bakery for pizza and some sweet treats.

This tradition goes back as far as I can remember...this little ice-cream shop better know how special it is! (Recognize this from the old pictures?)

And the classic picture somehow always happens too..

The Last Night

On our last day we made sure to go out with a bang...breakfast at the wildflower cafe, a trip to 4 different beaches, our favorite gift shop on the edge of a cliff, and a fire on a foggy beach.

Family Frisbee

Oh and a Bigfoot sighting...

And another Bigfoot sighting...

And a Shout out to my Boo!

Kirby is still working his booty off day in and day out. I cannot express how much I appreciate his hard work and the constant sacrifices he makes. I really am the luckiest girl alive!

I miss this blue eyed boy so much...the only way I have stayed sane is through constant snap chats, and phone calls...plus I may or may not be sleeping with a piles of pillow on his side of the bed.

So here's to you bun, thank you for all you do...I'm all about you!