Lincoln City, OR Family Trip: The Final Chapter

 

The next day we were off to the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

 

I really enjoyed this aquarium because a huge portion of it is outdoors.  Kind of surprising since it is Oregon and it rains a lot, but the day we went it was beautiful and sunny.

 

After the aquarium Ken and I explored an antique shop,candy shop and a Christmas ornament shop.

 

We all met up with the rest of the family for dinner at Mo's which is a casual restaurant that serves a lot of clam chowder and sea food.

 

 

 

You would have thought it was Disneyland by the line it took just to get inside.

Ken in his cool sunglasses.

This was one of the coolest things about the aquarium.  They have this massive tube that you can walk through that is completely surrounded by a shark tank. 

Another view of the tube.

There was even glass on the ground so you could look below.

Ken enjoying the aquarium.

As Ken and I went to go explore some fun places we stumbled across this Antique shop that just looked like a good time.  So we went in!

I had to take a picture of this.  It's a massive wooden carving with tons of horses.  Whoever made that wasted a lot of time.

Just kidding! It was actually very interesting and neat.

After the antique shop we went to this cute establishment. 

And this yummy candy shop.

Here's a street view of the line of shops.  I love how beach-y they all look! So unique!

Inside the candy shop they had all sorts of treats and goodies such as key lime truffles, "sea foam" which was honey comb encompassed with chocolate, sea salt carmel sticks, etc.

But the crowning jewel of all of the treats was the magnificent Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Carmel Apple.  Legends will be told of this apple one day. I can honestly say it was the BEST carmel apple I had ever consumed.  I talked about that apple so much that I'm sure Ken got sick about hearing about it.  With each bite I tried to figure out how to make a replica of it at home and folks, I think I know how to make it! I will be posting a recipe soon. 

After eating embarrassing amounts of treats we rolled on over to the Christmas Cottage.  And my heart fluttered as we entered.  It was dripping from ceiling to floor with unique ornaments.

I love Christmas ornaments.  I have fond memories of going to the store each year as a child and picking out a new one each year for the tree.  This was Heaven on Earth for me.

I didn't take a picture of but I ended up getting a S'mores ornament with him making a sand castle as something to remember the trip by. 

If you haven't heard of the S'mores line of ornaments than click hear to view some.  I collect them and think they are the cutest things.  They come in various themes.  

I'm also a sucker for anything Halloween.  I wanted to pack this tree up with me in my suitcase and take it home. 

Some ornaments hanging from the ceiling.

After having a wonderful time eating treats and looking at Christmas ornaments we went to Volta.  Volta sells glass blown items and teach glass blowing classes.

I told Ken before the trip that he should sign up for an instructional class and I could watch him but he didn't do it.  When we went inside and saw what he could have made and for what price he was totally bummed out.

It all ended okay though.  He ended up getting a glass float, a stand and a glass shade to over a hanging light. 

A view inside their store.

A gal working on a float.

Watching her make that was so cool.

Outside view of the warehouse where they make the items and teach the classes.

Ken outside the store with his goodies.

After exploring Volta we went to dinner with the family at Mo's.  Their clam chowder is famous and I can see why.  I had a bite of my husband's and it was delicious!

The kids coloring before dinner.

Ken and his Papa.

Mo's had these large windows so you could look at the ocean. 

Ken enjoying his soup.

Jen, Brian and their family.

A fuzzy view of the restaurant.  It had a very laid back, beach-y atmosphere. 

Outside of the restaurant there were lots of shops to look at.  We had been gone all day and were freezing so we ended up going home shortly after eating without looking at them.  Next time though!

I hope you enjoyed these installments of our Oregon trip! We had an amazing time exploring a new place, hanging out with family and relaxing.

If you are planning a vacation somewhere we highly recommend Lincoln City, OR!!!

Lincoln City, OR Family Trip: Part 3

 

On our trip I had researched a place called The Beach Dog Cafe to go for breakfast one morning.  I was sooo excited! It looked adorable and looked like the food was great.

 

We drove up to the restaurant and lo and behold the place was closed.  I could not have been more disappointed.

 

In the end we ended up going to a place called Pig 'N Pancake which is an Oregon chain.

 

The hash browns were divine!

 

That evening we also ended up doing a bonfire at the beach which was magical.  I love me the beach, s'mores and a fire, and when you combine the three it simply equals perfection.

 

 

 

Tanner at the Pig 'N Pancake for breakfast.

The kids having fun at breakfast.

Ken and his Mama.  I love Paige's face in this picture.

Some Pig 'N Pancake decor.

Paige wrote her name in the sand.

So did Caleb.

Tanner just liked playing in the sand.

The fire almost ready!

The guys putting together the seating.

Brian lifting a huge rock over to the site.  That just looks uncomfortable.

Jen and her Mama.

Ken and his Mama.

Almost ready for those s'mores!

Caleb wrote mine and Ken's name in the sand.  I love how he spelt my name.

Cool view of the fire.

Gettin' those s'mores ready!

Roasting the marshmallows.

Almost ready to eat!

Another view of the fire and marshmallows.

When it got dark the fire looked so neat.

Everybody started to get a little chilly.

Ken chowing down on a s'more.  I also have to mention that we didn't just have your regular ol' Hershey bars.  In addition to that, we had Ghirardelli chocolate squares, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Kit Kat Bars, etc. I never want a Hershey s'more again!

I used the flash on this picture and I'm pretty sure I blinded everybody.

Lincoln City, OR Family Trip: Part 2

The morning of the second day Ken thought it would be fun to go pick sea shells on the beach at 6 AM.

 

Needless to say, the thought of waking up that early on vacation was not very appealing.

 

But we did it.

 

And I'm so glad we did!

 

We didn't score a lot of good sea shells, but being on the beach as the sun was rising was very peaceful.

 

Moral of the story? If you get the chance to go to the beach, suck it up and wake up early to explore.  You won't regret it.  Trust me.

 

 

 

Beautiful.

There was an island out in the ocean.  How cool is that!

The hubby.

I LOVE this picture.  The pockets of water in the hill laden sand were so cool to look at.  I also love the clouds in the water showing through.

This picture is one of my favorites.  I guess I'm a sucker for reflections because the clouds are sooo neat in the water!

This pocket of water was so deep! Over night, the ocean created this huge "lake" of sorts when the tide had come in.  You could have seriously swam in it.

Another view of the "lake".

Little bird feet in the sand.  Adorable.

Birds at the beach.  I also really loved the style of houses there.  All of them were beach-y looking and unique.

The waves and Ken.

My shadow and the waves.

I grew up in California and miss the fog.  Seeing it at the beach made me feel at home now that I live in Utah and we have fog once every 4 years. 

Lincoln City, OR Family Trip: Part 1

 

Recently I went on a family trip with my husband's family to Lincoln City, OR.

 

And I have fallen in love with Oregon's coast!

 

It is lovely!

 

This girl does NOT like the heat and so going on this trip was all sorts of fun for me.  I enjoy bundling up, the cold, fog, etc.  I was not built for Summer.  I was built for cold.

 

I hope you enjoy these installments of our trip!

 

 

 

First picture of the trip.  We drove in on a Sunday and walked down to the beach to explore.

I love seeing footprints in the sand.

Walking down.

I was in awe of how nature could make these consistent ripples in the sand. 

Tanner playing in the sand.

I love that my husband is growing out his beard.  He loves the show "Duck Dynasty" and I think he was inspired.

I love the way the clouds reflect in the water on the sand.

The ocean.  Beautiful.

Some spectacular cliffs.

The house we stayed at.

Our view from the house down to the beach.

Chocolate Strawberry Nutella Cake

Recipe from The Pioneer Woman

This cake is off the chain!

The recipe is from The Pioneer Woman and this girl sure knows what she's doing.  It is as delicious as it is impressive. 

It is filled with dense chocolate cake, fluffy whipped cream, delicious Nutella and strawberries.  In the culinary world, this hits a home run. 

I can't wait to make it the next time we have guests over.  Actually, who needs to have people over to make this? Make it for fun one night and ENJOY!

Happy baking!

Chocolate Strawberry Nutella Cake:
For the cake -
2 sticks butter
4 T. (heaping) cocoa powder
1 cup boiling water
2 c. flour
2 c. sugar
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 eggs
1 t. baking soda
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 c. Nutella

For the strawberries-
2 pints strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla

For the whipped cream-
2 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 2 round baking pans with parchment, then spray the parchment with baking spray.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the cocoa and stir it until smooth.  Pour in boiling water, let mixture bubble up for about 20 seconds, then turn off and set aside.

In a bowl, mix together buttermilk, baking soda, eggs and vanilla.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sugar, flour and salt.  Stir in the hot chocolate mixture, stirring gently until it's halfway combined and less hot.  Pour in the buttermilk mixture and continue stirring till it's all combined. 

Pour batter evenly among pans and bake 17-20 minutes (I had to bake mine MUCH longer so keep that in mind and keep an eye on it till it's done).  Let cool completely. 

Meanwhile, prepare the strawberries by stirring them with the sugar and vanilla.  Let that sit for 15 minutes, then drain the excess juice off.

Whip the cream with the powdered sugar.

To assemble, lay one cake on a platter and using an offset spatula (if you have one) smear half the Nutella on top.  Layer with half whipped cream and then top with half the strawberries.  Repeat process.  Enjoy immediately.  This cake does not do well after 20 minutes sitting out.  My tip is to make it RIGHT before you serve it.  If there are leftovers then put it in the fridge as soon as possible and it should stay good for a day. 

* Cooks note - when putting the Nutella and whipped cream on the first layer don't spread it to the edges because when you put the second layer on it will smash everything out the sides, and we don't want that!