Adventures in Newport-land.

So much has changed in the last few weeks and Sebastian has truly been a trooper. It seems only fitting that I share with you all some of the fun we have been stirring up for him. We are still settling in and unpacking those boxes, so the house photos will have to wait... In the meantime, here's what's up:

I decided to tackle this recipe from happyfoody.com. I used the grain blade on my vitamix to reduce the oats to a warm powder and then soaked it in almond milk in the fridge overnight. On Saturday morning I added the rest of the ingredients and made a couple of pancakes. Honestly, they were good, but the consistency was a little spongy (does that word look really weird to anyone else?). Ben thought it only natural to try the batter out on the waffle iron... and OH MY! It was heaven. That tiny crispy edge of waffle was just what that batter needed. I spread a bit of peanut butter over our waffles, chopped some banana over the top & added a drizzle of pure maple syrup... ahhhhhh, perfection. The pancakes weren't a total loss, though. Sebastian was giddy to receive the plate below and is now adamant that more "boy waffles" arrive on his plate in the future.

So Sunday rolled around and I woke up with the urge to explore. Ben didn't want to go, so I strapped Baz into his stroller and took him out for a mama date. We enjoyed breakfast at Cafe Stephanie in Nye Beach, just a short walk from our place. We then walked across town just to acquaint ourselves with this town so new to us. We found the toy store, much to Sebastian's delight. He scored himself a new toy car (Blue VW bug w/bright flowers and rainbows... damn hippie!) and we found our way back to the beach for some play time.

I swear this kid is growing like a weed!

After soaking in more than enough warmth at the beach, we walked a few blocks over to the playground. One subtle thing that I love about this part of Oregon vs. California or Utah? The lawns are covered in these tiny daisies vs. dandelions. I love dandelions, but these are just so sweet:

Sebastian had a blast chasing the other kids and scaring the crap out of me. He now climbs UP the slide. Yikes! We love that the playground is close to the house meaning that we can go daily in the nice weather months (btw: we have only seen rain 3 times in 2 weeks. So much for all of that rain warning!)...

But what sweetens the deal even more? The walk to and from the playground. A beautiful, 5 acre midtown forest walk!

Here I am soaking in the greenery and sunshine. What could be better than fresh air, beautiful surroundings and time spent with my beloved boy? Nothing. Not one thing.

Settling in.

Soooo...

the journey continues. We decided to move to Oregon!!! I visited California for a week and then made it back to Salt Lake City soon after the last post and did much in the way of packing our stuff and selling some off. Sadly, we are renting and were unable to bring the chickens with us, but will revisit that project when we manifest OUR HOUSE (I know! I am so excited to see that happen!!!) in the near future! The last couple of months have been a whirlwind of emotions, lack of personal space + movement and I needed to save all of the energy I had... but:

We made it to Newport on May 2nd after a fairly uneventful move (which was only possible with the help of my rad dad who flew to SLC and then drove the moving truck for us and flew back to California!). We are unpacking in between the usual. You know?: eating, sleeping, taking walks on the beach... I decided to take my time pulling out the camera in an effort to really just be here now. We are finally beginning to feel settled. Found a much needed playground just a few blocks away today, so the routine that Sebastian loves can and will continue. Starting to feel the urge to dig out that camera and share a bit of visual love with you all. I'm thinking I need another week to complete most of the box emptying and then the photos will flow. Can't wait!