Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Birthday Wishes And Lemonade

There are times when life rolls us a lemon, we usually manage to make lemonade as the saying goes. Several weeks ago we were given the sad news that our oldest son Nathan and his wife have separated and and asked to move back home to Menagerie Manor.  Separation and divorce are never a fun event especially when there is a child involved.  Thankfully the Little Terrorist #2 is only three years old and does not realize what is going on yet.  But my grandchildren are geniuses and I would imagine he knows more then we give him credit for.  For some time now, our good friend Andrea who is going through a divorce has been living with us and was staying in the guest room upstairs which just happened to be Nathan's old room.  So with some moving around Andrea is now in the guest room on the main floor and Nathan is back in his childhood room.  All this chaos came right when we were ramping up for MeMa's big birthday get-a-way.  Our other daughter-in-law Jill suggested that we rent a beach house large enough to handle the entire family + dogs of course.  So last Friday we all landed in Lincoln City, five adults, two excited Little Terrorists and four barking dogs.  The house we rented was very nice, old but nice and it was built on a bluff right above the beach with easy access to the beach.
The whole beach side of the home was glass from floor to ceiling.
Whilst our two son's went into town for some brother time, the rest of the tribe headed for the beach. There is nothing like marital troubles to turn a normally cheerful young man into a hard to deal with cloud of gloom.  So when the younger son volunteered to drive his brother into town we thought the moodiness would change.....it didn't!
From left - Little Terrorist #2 Brooklyn, Boston Terrier Popeye, Little Terrorist #1 Taeya, DL Jill, Chihuahua Ninja, Dachshund Sophie, MeMa, Corgi Miss Betty

Our first morning jaunt to the sand was a little cool but it was perfect weather for sand castle construction.  About an hour on the beach the sun warmed us up in no time, so jackets came off and the Little Terrorists were in the water in no time.

Brooklyn gathering equipment for some heavy construction


A damn was soon built giving Miss Betty ample supply of fresh drinking water from the fresh water inlet.


Nothing like a good old splash in the waves


Little Ninja soon tired of the cold and spent the rest of the outing as my papoose


Sand and fresh air calls for a fare amount of naps in the sunshine

Sunday afternoon everyone left for Portland leaving an exhausted MeMa  and myself with an extra day and a half to ourselves.
Before they all headed back to Portland we treated everyone to a hearty lunch at "Mo's".  So with bellies full the back seat was soon fast asleep.

Monday morning stroll on the beach




We could not have asked for better weather and gorgeous sunsets

8 comments:

  1. Really sorry to hear about Nathan. And yes, I agree that Little Terrorist #2 probably is quite aware that something is not right.

    I'm glad you all got to spend time together, even if it wasn't the best.
    We currently have boy 2 and 3 living at home, so I know how it is. For just a moment we thought our time had come for just the two of us again.

    Belated Happy Birthday to MeMa!

    I hope everything works out for the best.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Linda and yes I am begining to think that this is becoming the norm, kids moving back home. It is a good thing it's a big house.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Doc...I regret the divorces happening in your life...having been divorced a long time ago your son has my sympathy and empathy...it's difficult I know. The beach get away looks fantastic...excellent photos of the event. Happy belated birthday to MeMa...what a treat that you had a day and a half to yourselves!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Theanne,
    Very few things in life remain the same. One of those few is my love and devotion to my wife. I always thought it would be the same for our son's so the best thing we can do for him now is to just be there when he needs a hug.

    ReplyDelete
  5. So sorry about your sons marital problems.I hope he can shake his gloom and get back focused on happier things soon.
    The Birthday Getaway looked like a wonderful time!You have lots of great photos!Loved the ones of the family passed out! That is always a sign that lots of fun was had!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Melodie,
    Thanks, we really did have a good time and the weather was perfect even for Oregon.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm catching up on my blog reading. Sorry for such a late comment but looks like an awesome outing at the beach!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Holly,
    Coastal air so invigorating

    ReplyDelete