A global pandemic + a record-hot Arizona summer = perfect timing for the Fullers to introduce a new baby. After a full six months of being housebound, baking in 100+ degree weather, living in isolation (save Cait and our moms who we could not have done without!), and transforming into a total germaphobe, I was beginning to feel crippled by my anxiety and decided we needed a change of scenery. We were craving cool, cool weather (can you blame us), views of the ocean, and a lot of privacy. Something like… the Oregon coast. Rach had visited her good friend in Oceanside last year and my mind kept going back to the images she sent me of wide, open beaches and her in sweaters and coats. It took a bit of finagling to get Jake to agree to my plan but in the end, we found ourselves squished into our packed-to-the-max Jeep (couldn’t go without three coolers of snacks or the baby bathtub) — me in the backseat with a 2-month old, Jake in front, ready to take on 22 hours at the wheel.

After three days on the road, we reached our first stop in Oregon: Depoe Bay. The house we rented was part of a smallish, yet beautiful master-planned community. With its Nantucket-style homes, quiet streets, and direct beach access, the neighborhood was right on the money. We spent most of our days walking in the (almost cold!) weather we had dreamed of for months… and that alone was worth the trip.

 

The beach in Depoe was a little more rough and windy than we expected, but we still ventured out a few times for buddy to have a look.

We didn’t try to squeeze in too many activities while in Depoe (we’ve learned our lesson when it comes to overplanning with a baby), but highlights included: our first meal in a restaurant since February (we went to Tidal Raves, which was fantastic, and Benny was an angel), a trip to Yachats which is an adorable town about an hour south of Depoe (got hooked on cider at Yachats Brewing and had the world’s largest Tillamook ice cream serving at Topper’s), and visited Cape Perpetua (just the lookout as I still don’t trust my klutzy self to hike with the little guy in a carrier).

Our itinerary was lighter than what Jake and I would have done in the past, but it was more than I expected to do given my anxieties over Covid. Let me tell you, it felt A-MA-ZING to live (even a little) again. I realized that yes, getting out into the world means assuming some risk, but the trade-off of me regaining some of my sanity and well-being was more than worth it.

We also saw a huge change in Benny during our trip (almost from the get-go), and I credit our little adventure with his biggest jump in development yet. It was a small miracle (and a huge relief) to witness a kid who had BARELY been sleeping during the day to all the sudden become a pro napper. He was also incredibly adaptable, letting us tote him around anywhere. (Though maybe that’s because he was busy catching up on 2 months worth of missed naps?!) Regardless, when he was awake, we noticed a big difference in his alertness, focus and tracking, smiling, ‘talking,’ and really, just his overall happiness. He also went from being a tummy time flop (literally couldn’t get his head off the ground) to favorite – he loves being on his belly so much that he learned to roll just to be able to get there himself.

I’ll just top off my proud-mom-moment with a few pics of the prodigal son. (Hah!)

And then a few last shots of Depoe:

Onto our next destination! Rachel’s friend Susan was wonderful enough to open up her home in Oceanside to us. One word: VIEWS. Views, views, views, from every single window in the house.

It was magical to enjoy this gorgeous scene from the house (and its many decks and balconies); it was also amazing to experience it up close. The beach in Oceanside was MUCH different to that in Depoe. Wide and flat, it was so much more conducive to long walks with the stroller. It was also the perfect place to take a ‘few’ family photos for our future Christmas card. (A likely excuse… I’ll have 5 more tripod shoots by then.)

Uh, side note – notice Benny asleep in every photo? He slept the ENTIRE time. If that’s not a miracle, I don’t know what is.

Susan’s house wasn’t terribly far from Cannon Beach, which we decided to check out at the weekend. Problem was, it was Labor Day weekend, so it was way more crowded than I would have liked… but it was still very much worth the drive to see the super charming town and the famous Haystack Rock.

If I thought going to a restaurant was a treat, seeing friends after 6 months without was…. pretty indescribable. Thank you, thank you to Mr. Ballgame and his hot new wife for getting Covid-tested for us just so we could squeeze you tight. <3 Cheers to the boys….

The night after our little rendezvous on the beach brought heavy, heavy winds… and the start of the fires. We didn’t really take note of (or at least place much stock in) the changes to the air quality the following day, but in hindsight, we missed some big clues that the situation was going to get ugly. Here’s a photo that we took in Pacific City the day after Labor Day — no edits:

Creepy. I also think back to our last excursion in Oceanside – a short trip to Bayocean Peninsula – and how eery that felt. Rach had told me visiting this area was a must-do as it was the epitome of the wide, solitary beach that I was looking for out of this trip, so we made it a priority to go on our last night in town. It was just as she described it, but the increasingly thick layer of smoke in the air made us feel a little unsettled. (It didn’t help that you had to walk about 10 minutes through tall grass just to reach the beach, that we were the only ones there, and that the sun was quickly setting.)  We managed to snag a few photos and hightail it out of there before we found ourselves in a scene from Dateline, Secrets Uncovered. (Still would highly recommend visiting – just under different circumstances!)

Few more pics of the boys in our favorite spot at Susan’s, taking in the views. (Yea, that vast white background below is actually the gorgeous beach scene… I just have yet to learn how to mesh dual exposures.)

We had planned on leisurely departing Susan’s house on Wednesday afternoon but that quickly changed as the skies went from gray to red and the smell of smoke started to seep into the house. The fires all the sudden got very real. We said a quick prayer for those in Oceanside and all along the coast, and hit the road to go inland before I got any more panicked about Benny’s tiny lungs. The skies started to clear after about 25 minutes of driving, and by the time we got to Hood River, we were looking at glorious blue overhead again.

We had reserved a room at Sakura Ridge for a few nights, and I don’t think I could have been more excited. Not only is the lodge part of a working farm with sheep, goats, and alpacas, but it’s also an organic pear orchard. Throw in the fact that it’s absolutely GORGEOUS and meticulously maintained, and I was in heaven. We had planned on visiting a few wineries the next day, along with some fruit stands and u-pick locales, a lavender farm, and a cider tasting room — does it get any more perfect? Sadly, we woke up on Thursday morning to the news that the innkeepers had decided to close in light of the fires and any potential damage, so our plans will have to wait until our next visit. But – we did have one really beautiful night at the lodge. I took as many photos in that one short, sweet night as I did the previous two weeks of the trip. We will be back to finish our stay!!

Thank you to our hero Jake for indulging us in this trip and making the long drive safely. Next time we fly!

For years Jake and I have talked about spending our 10th wedding anniversary in Paris. It was one of the five cities we visited on our mini tour of Europe a year into our marriage, and it seemed like a fitting place to return to mark a decade together. But life gets in the way, as does the oppressive Arizona summer, and it just made more sense (don’t you hate that phrase) to escape the heat for a longer period of time and be able to include James (are we crazy or what) by taking a road trip to Chicago instead. That trip to Paris will still happen (talkin’ to you Jake) but for now, our trip back home was exactly what we needed, and we did get to plan a celebratory weekend escape, though no passports were needed.

I’d been curious about Charleston for a while and even though I had heard it can be overcrowded with tourists, its short distance from Chicago lured me in. What I forgot to check: the weather. Never, ever – let me say it again, ever – in my life did I think any place on this planet could rival Hong Kong in terms of insane humidity (I mean, Jake spent summers there with icy cold packs affixed to his body) but Charleston comes close. Needless to say, the sheer discomfort knocked a good chunk of points off his overall rating of the city; it just left me wondering what it’s like in the spring. 🙂

We stayed at this airbnb which didn’t quite rank as my favorite rental this summer (that honor still goes to our place in Tofino), but it definitely wasn’t the worst. (I’ve been banned from using the site for a while, for my repeated poor lack of judgement when it comes to my picks.) The unit itself was perfect – spacious, newly-renovated, private – but the location was ‘meh’ at best. Yes, it was close to King Street, but with that came a lot of street noise at night. (If you’re now thinking, back sweat + lack of sleep = one very raw deal for Jake, you’d be right.)

The area we stayed in is called Cannonborough Elliotborough (how’s that for a name), which we were told is ‘up and coming’ and is now home to some cool little shops, a beautiful new B&B, and some of the most highly recommended restaurants on upper King Street. But for my taste, I would explore options in the French Quarter next time (or this one, just north of there) or better yet – I’d stay on one of the islands and and just make the short 10-15 minute trek into the city when not on the beach.

We loved Sullivan’s Island (though admittedly, we kept going back and didn’t see the other islands to compare!) and our time there was absolutely the highlight of our trip.

As much of our first night was spent on the beach, we woke up Saturday morning ready to explore more of the city (albeit in short bursts, given the heat). But with heavy rain in the forecast from morning to night, we decided to try and flee the wet weather and head to Savannah for the day. The drive is an easy two hours on the nose – worth it to be able to check another US city off my list.

Savannah is known for its gorgeous historic homes and plethora of cobblestoned squares. We didn’t have much of a plan other than to traipse through as many of the squares as possible before the rain came down (so much for our escape). We parked near the edge of Forsyth Park and walked north along Bull Street through several squares before we had to duck into a CVS to buy a pair of umbrellas.

Regardless of the rain (which to be honest, I consider a treat!) we loved walking through the quaint streets taking in the unique Savannah architecture and abundance of Spanish moss. A quick stop off for lunch, a stroll down retailer-laden Broughton street, and a quick peek at River Street rounded off our day…. until I broached the subject of adding one more stop before heading back to Charleston. Surprising, Jake was totally game for heading to the Wormsloe Historic Site to see the amazing live-oak lined entrance that ambles on for over a mile and a half. (Note, it was $10 a head to get into the plantation – or even just to take a photo!- when we were there.)

Exhausted after our road trip, we skipped out on Charleston’s booming food scene (on a Saturday night no less!) and got a bottle of wine and takeout from Five Loaves Cafe. We’d be a total disappointment to all the foodies out there, but it hit the spot.

The next morning we finally set out to explore the city, heading south on King Street, then cutting east to Bay Street and the Waterfront Park, then back west along Broad:

Everyone talks about Rainbow Row, which is alright, but I thought Elliot Street was where it’s at:

From there, Bay Street turned to Battery, and we found ourselves right along the water, with beautiful historic homes directly opposite us.

After walking along the water for a while and then heading back north to wind through the smaller streets South of Broad, we made our way back to air-con and a cold shower before having a quick drink at the Stars rooftop, and then making a last trip to Sullivan’s Island.

Happy 10th <3

 

After a few months of baking in 110-degree temps, our pure desperation to get out of the Arizona heat led us to do the unthinkable: make the 30-hour drive back home to relish what was left of the Chicago summer. (Flying was not an option with James – there’s no way our pest can pass as a service dog.)

All in all, the drive was completely doable (and kind of fun when you play passenger the whole time) and the trip itself was just what we needed. Gorgeous weather, beautiful scenery, amazing food (à la mom), wonderful times with our family and friends, a weekend trip to Charleston, a few days in the office and the city, and an overall escape from chores, lists, grocery stores, and the gym did us good.

Just a few scenes from our stop-offs in Santa Fe, Colorado, and Nebraska:

Not included is Iowa, which I had never driven through before but found to be so picturesque. The perfect rolling hills of crops and barns had me wanting to dig out my camera from the packing rubble but alas, Culver’s was calling our names and there wasn’t time to spare. Next time 🙂

I always love going in to the office in Chicago and this time was extra special, having the boy and the beast along to enjoy the glorious city nights.

He legit thought this was the ocean. (Look how high that water is!)

Some of our favorite nights were spent in this little oasis:

The look on Jig’s face says it all.

We loved our evening walks and on our last, I convinced (a slightly hungover) Jake and (good boy) James to humor me and take a family photo. (Thanks dad for the photo, soon to be appearing in our holiday card if my matching sweaters and fake pine tree idea is vetoed.)

Classic James having to get in on the action. Til next summer!

I’ve made some incredible memories vacationing with my sister over the past few years. She never fails to find new (and somewhat obscure) destinations, and this year was no exception. With a few months off from teaching in Hong Kong for the summer, she headed stateside, with plans to bop between the US and Canada for a month. Together, we’d meet in Seattle for a short jaunt to Mount Rainier, then make our way over to Victoria, BC as a gateway to our main destination, Tofino.

The trip was intended to give us a good dose of what we don’t get often: fresh air, cool temps, water, pines – the things people who don’t live in the desert or the jungle may take for granted. 🙂

First stop, Rainier…

What we didn’t expect from Mount Rainier: much of the park is still snow-covered in June. The areas near the base of the mountains (we entered near Longmire) were snow-free, but they also don’t offer the stunning views that the Paradise area does at its higher elevation. While we spent the first day driving the winding roads near the entrance of the park and stopping off at dozens of lookouts along the way, we made the 45-minute drive to Paradise on day two, expecting to spend the full day tackling the many trails up at the top. Little did we know there was one open trail, and being able to finish even that would be a challenge in gym shoes as it was half snow-packed. I had pictured wildflowers and green grass (guess those are reserved for July/August), and instead we got a much different (yet still pretty!) scene:

Something else that surprised us: we stayed just outside the park in Ashford, and my what a tiny town that is.  Charming, and we loved our stay, but it was slim pickins’ in the food department and we ended up raiding the general store for most of our meals. The cabin where we stayed was adorable and private, accessible by a gravel drive that led up into the woods. (Next time we’d opt for the larger cabins with full kitchens and hot tubs!)

Two nights in Rainier given the snowy conditions was plenty – we were ready to start our adventure in Canada. There are a few different ways to get to Victoria from Seattle – accessing a ferry from Port Angeles, hopping on the Clipper from Seattle, or flying. We opted for the latter (though next time I’d take the Clipper) and wound up in Victoria with just enough time to explore the city and grab some real (not general store-sourced) food. The city is larger than we expected (maybe that’s because we were coming from Ashford?) and it has some gorgeous architecture (aka the Parliament building below), international flare (hello Irish pubs and Chinatown),  tchotchke shopping, (this was my personal fav), and beautiful coastal views. It also has the famed Butchart Gardens but dear sister didn’t want to take the long bus ride or pay the $35 to get in, so that was a no go.

PS – Victoria is a haven for rose-lovers.

Fishermans’ Wharf was a whimsical little stop off close to our B&B. While pretty touristy, we were surprised to see there were some beautiful private little homes at the end of each of those piers!

If anyone loves a good coastal walk, it’s me. The one we stumbled upon through Holland Point Park ended up being one of my favorite things we did in Victoria. (Yes, I’m a nerd like that.)

Again, two nights in Victoria were just enough for us, and we were eager for the main event: Tofino. There’s no quick way to get to this small town midway up the Pacific coast of Vancouver Island – we had to rent a car and make the five-hour drive there from Victoria. While I admittedly put up a stink about the drive prior to the trip, it wound up being a highlight, with tons of different stop-offs along the way to break up the journey.  We visited the Damali winery and lavender farm (highly recommend, though there are many a winery to choose from along the way), got fresh meat and cheese from an artisanal deli, walked through the immense Douglas firs at Cathedral Grove (felt like walking into a Christmas candle), stopped off at the Old Country Market in Coombs to see the goats on the roof (and ended up buying everything from hats to fresh raspberries), and pulled over to as many lookouts as we could because the views were that breathtaking.

By the time we got to our Airbnb right in the middle of town, we were in love. From the beauty of the island to the vibe of the town to the quality of our accommodation, this part of the trip far exceeded expectations. View from our private balcony:

We quickly hit the town (i.e. walked across the street) for drinks and food at Shelter. All of the food we had in Tofino was excellent – super fresh and flavorful seafood wins me over every time. After diner we took one of our bottles of lavender-infused wine from Damali and headed to one of the beaches just outside town for sunset. Note: the sun sets in this part of the world late – close to 10 pm – so you can really maximize your days. (Or be like us and occasionally fall asleep with the sun still up.)

The next morning, we suited up (literally) for the event we’d been most excited for – bear watching. Along with about 10 other passengers, we loaded up in our Zodiac (us subtly pushing our way to the front… the Niedospial way) and set out on the calm waters of the Clayoqout Sound.

We did our tour with Adventure Tofino Wildlife Tours and they were awesome. Not enough good things to say about this company. Before getting to the main attraction, we stopped to see a resting bald eagle and a big group of seals. (Urm, think they noticed us?!)

After that, we spotted him: our first bear. We ended up seeing a total of 5, including a female and her two cubs, but this guy was our favorite. We sat with him for about 20 minutes as he lifted rocks along the shoreline looking for food, yet he barely seemed to notice us until the end.

Seeing bears in their natural habitat was pretty exhilarating, but I’ll tell ya, I couldn’t get enough of the views! Even if we hadn’t seen a single creature on our tour, I would’ve been happy just cruising along taking in the scenery. The Zodiacs are surprisingly comfortable and our ghost-buster suits did wonders for keeping us warm. (It’s chilly out there in the mornings!)

After our tour the sun came out and we decided to get a mini hike in. Destination of choice: the lookout along Cox Bay Beach. We found this one off Pinterest (of course) but I don’t think its very well known… there isn’t even a trailhead. We made a guess as to where to start, and went with it. After questioning our route about a million times and narrowly avoiding a snake, we made it to the top. (I make this sound like quite the trek but in reality it probably only takes 10-15 minutes one way.) Worth the confusion:

The next morning found us back in our red jumpsuits for tour #2 with Adventure Tofino: whale-watching. I’ll admit I was a little less excited for this one given that you rarely get to see much of the whale, but I changed my mind as we got going. Rather than sticking to the calm waters of the sound, we ventured further out into open waters and (again, being in the front), riding those choppy waves was pretty thrilling. We also got to see a ton of wildlife, including sea otters, sea lions, seals, puffins, and of course, about 5 whales.

(Look closely in the kelp – see the four sea otters?!)

The big one was a complete ass.

Not the most amazing photo as to be expected, but look how close we got! We accidentally came up on this guy and he surfaced to let us know he was there… at which point we had to slowly back the boat up.

Both the bear and the whale tours were incredible, and I wouldn’t be able to choose between them – I’d recommend doing the pair to anyone.

Didn’t get our only non-selfie together until our last night. Go figure.

After our time was (sadly) up in Tofino, we drove to Nanaimo, where we hopped a ferry to Vancouver. I wish I had more to share about that seemingly amazing city, but after downing an absolutely delish $14 sushi meal (yep, for two) and attempting to get dessert at Granville Island, it started to pour and we took it as a sign to rest our tired bones before going our respective ways.

Another amazing trip with Rachie in the books 🙂