Family Vacation

This past Fourth of July was a bit melancholy for me... it was the first fourth in a long time (and one of only a handful in a lifetime) of not spending the holiday at the Lake. With four weeks to go before my due date, an hour long dirt road and the idea of being two+ hours away from a hospital, we opted to stay at home despite the chance of a five day weekend.

For the most part, the actual day was unremarkable. I took a nap in the morning while Oskar and Martin played. And we spent the afternoon at the playground like any normal weekend... we didn’t even BBQ and I couldn’t be bothered to go up on the roof to see the fireworks despite the clear night sky.

Thankfully, whatever the actual day lacked we more than made up for it the following weekend when we headed up to Timber Cove for a little get away…It was our first family vacation in over a year!  

Don’t get me wrong, we have taken our fair share of vacations, they however have always included some variation of the extended family.  Germany, Cape Cod, Pillsbury, Santa Cruz, even Timber Cove, we have been to a lot of fun places with those who we love. But it was really nice to have time with just the three of us.

We opted to head up to Timber Cove Saturday morning to avoid the Friday afternoon traffic and had a relaxed drive with no big plans or need to rush.  Our normal two hour drive got even a little longer thanks to Oskar’s current potty training… around the time we hit the coast (about 30 minutes from the house) was when Oskar realized that if he wanted to get out of the car all he had to say was “I need to go potty.”  As a result, we spent about 15 minutes pulled over to the side of the road while Oskar pooped with a view.

We spent that afternoon at the house, Martin doing some work while Oskar and I split our time between supervising Martin and playing in the dirt.  Oskar also took the opportunity to take a few hot laps around the deck, running through the house, along the deck and then back through the house.

With no electricity or water at the house yet, we spent the night at Fort Ross Lodge, our new go to spot until the house is ready.  It is perfect for our weekend needs, little kitchenette with sink and fridge, our own BBQ to make dinner on and a patio overlooking the ocean to enjoy a final beer (non-alcoholic for me) once Oskar goes down for the night. 

Sunday morning was even more relaxed than Saturday… we packed up the car and headed north for about 20 minutes to check out Two Fish Bakery in Stewart’s Point.  It was a pleasant surprise and someplace we will definitely go back to.  They had a great selection of breakfast treats (scones, breakfast burritos and quiches) as well as strong coffee for Martin and London Fog for me… and even better, they had a large deck on which to enjoy the scenery, food and meet the locals. 

We spent the rest of the morning at our house, Martin doing a few more odds and ends to get ready for the roof to go on. And then we began our drive home, stopping in Petaluma for a late brunch / lunch.

With just the three of us, no agenda and no need to show anyone around, it was a truly relaxing weekend.  And if this is what we have in store for us once the house is finally complete, I just got that much more excited!