Happy 35th Birthday, Sylvia

With Sylvia's 35th birthday rapidly approaching, Michael and she made reservations at the Ocean Rogue Inn in Rockaway Beach. Michael and Sylvia both have spent a lot of time in the Newport, Oregon area and decided this year they would scout out the Northern Oregon Coast.

After Michael and Sylvia got off from work, they drove from their home in The Dalles to spend Thursday night, the 10th of March, with us. That allowed us a great opportunity to visit with them and for them to have a sleep-over before continuing on to the coast. Arriving in Tigard, they came by and picked me up so we could enjoy something to eat and drink at McMenamins Greeway Pub. Rocke was tied up in a meeting and was not able to join us.

On Friday morning, they drove out to the Oregon Coast. Even though it was March, we were getting snow at home and there was even a threat of snow out on the Oregon Coast, so it was going to be an interesting drive for them. Once they reached the coast, we heard from them saying that they had arrived and it was snowing and had been snowing for quite sometime. In fact, it snowed on them all day Friday out on the coast. Hard to believe it's March and snow in Portland and on the Oregon Coast!

One of the first things Michael and Sylvia did after arriving at the coast was to locate the Ocean Rogue Inn. When it was time to check in, they would know right where to go. With their lodging found, they were able to start playing and exploring. They started the drive around the Three Capes Scenic Loop. The three capes are Cape Kiwanda, Cape Meares, and Cape Lookout. Their goal was to reach Cape Meares, but with almost three inches of snow and still snowing, some portions of the road were shut down. They would not reach Cape Meares that day, so they decided to find a place to have some lunch. They drove into Pacific City and had lunch at "The Pelican Pub & Brewery". After lunch, they went back to the Ocean Rogue Inn to check in, explore the area around the lodge, walk on the beach and relax before dinner. They went into Garibaldi to enjoy dinner at the "Pirates's Cove" restaurant.

Saturday morning turned out to be a beautiful day and there was no snow. They decided to try the drive back to Cape Meares to check out the lighthouse. After exploring the lighthouse, they travelled to the Tillamook Air Museum, where they saw one of America's finest collection of over 30 War Birds including our P-38 Lightning, P-47 Thunderbolt, F4U-Corsair, P51-Mustang, PBY Catalina, B-25 Mitchell Bomber, and SBD Dauntless dive bomber. After exploring the museum, they drove into Tillamook to tour the Tillamook Cheese Factory. After the tour, they had lunch at the cafe and purchased some cheese and a few other items before leaving. After lunch, they headed back to the lodge to relax and enjoy a walk on the beach before dinner. Dinner that evening was at Sharky's Restaurant in Rockaway Beach. Sylvia said their clam chowder is excellent.

Sunday, the 12th of March was Sylvia's birthday and they decided to travel back to Portland and spend her birthday with us. Before leaving the coast, they stopped by Mo's Restaurant in Cannon Beach. Rocke and I always make it a point to stop at this great restaurant before coming back to "the valley".

Michael and Sylvia arrived back at our place early afternoon on Sunday. Sylvia wanted to see "Eight Below" for her birthday. so we all headed out to the movie theatre. What an awesome movie and a good choice. We all enjoyed the movie!

Back home, I had made a birthday dinner for Sylvia, consisting of a Mexican Casserole, Salad and Sylvia's favorite "Better Then Sex" birthday cake. Michael and Sylvia spent the night and returned to The Dalles on Monday morning. Sylvia was another year older and enjoyed another great birthday celebration.