Last week, we were invited over to a friend’s property to pick marionberries. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity. My mind was immediately flooded with all the marionberry possibilities: pies, jams, cobblers, oh yeah!

My friend and I picked berries while the kids played. I’m not talking about ordinary berries here…these marionberries were ginormous! Many of them were 1 1/2 inches or more in length!

After we picked all the ripe berries, we turned our attention to feeding the resident llamas some lettuce from the garden. Llamas are silly creatures and just looking at them makes me giggle. I almost feel sorry for llamas because it’s difficult to take them seriously…they’re kind of like the class clowns of the animal kingdom. I mean no disrespect to the llama lovers out there; I just happen to think they’re funny.

Anyway, it was a fine morning of picking marionberries in the summer sun with the added bonus of seeing some of the goofiest animals God ever created. I love Oregon!

Stay tuned for marionberry recipes…

Tags: Life in Oregon, llamas, marionberries, marionberry, Oregon berries

Last night I got together with some girlfriends for an outing on the lake. Here’s how one of these outings works: We meet at the Captain’s house, pile into her boat, slowly make our way across the lake while eating dinner (more on that part later), then we dock in town, get out of the boat, meander through the cute shops and restaurants, then pile back into the boat for the trek back to the Captain’s house. Last night there were 9 of us…often there’s 10 but one is on vacation. As you can imagine, there’s lots of laughter and general goofiness. This is a diverse group of personalities and perspectives but it works and I love them all dearly.

Now back to the food. There’s one thing you have to understand about this group: We Love Good Food! Our gatherings are always complimented by a wonderful potpourri of flavors. This is exactly what a potluck was meant to be…quality food that not only tastes good but is good for you. Last night we had: Chinese Chicken Salad, Spinach Strawberry Salad, Lemon Shrimp & Jicama Salad, Tomato Basil Mozzarella Kabobs, Feta Dip with Fresh Veggies, Thai Salad Rolls with Peanut Sauce, Fresh Melon, Fresh Guacamole with Chips, Chocolate Covered Strawberries, and still warm Fudge Brownies. Yumm!

One of the highlights of the evening was when the Captain put on her Girlie Mix of tunes she’d put together just for this outing. She had collected a song for each of us with our name in it…9 songs in all. There was a song about Wendy. A song about Amy. Two songs about Lisa. A song about Shannon. A song about Cheryl. A song about Rose. A song about Debra. And I’d never heard it before but there was even a song with my name in it…Andrea. I couldn’t believe it! The Captain outdid herself! It was a super creative idea and one that I’m sure we’ll be talking about for a long time!

The sun had already set by the time we got back into the boat for our trip back to the Captain’s house. It was a warm night and the breeze off the lake felt good. It was a wonderful evening spent with a special group of friends, and through them, God has richly blessed my life. We laugh together. Sometimes we cry together. I am thankful for them.

I’m linked to:
Finer Things Friday
Just For The Joy Of It

Tags: Girls' Night Out, Life in Oregon

There are many day-trip destinations in Oregon (the Coast, Columbia Gorge, Mt. Hood, etc.), and King Estate Winery is among them. Located southwest of Eugene near the rural community of Lorane, the beautiful European-style winery was founded in 1991 by the King family. With a little over 1,000 certified organic acres, the estate produces Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines. Thirty of these acres are used for growing fruit, vegetables and flowers that the estate restaurant and catering venues utilize, while some of the produce is also contributed to hunger relief organizations in the area (very cool!).

Each day the estate provides afternoon tours of the wine production facility (wheelchair accessible), as well as wine tasting and fine dining. The restaurant offers lunch and dinner daily, and brunch on the weekends. They even have a kid’s menu for the little ones (bonus!). We sat outside on the gorgeous patio for lunch, which overlooks the vineyard property and valley. Unable to decide on a single glass of wine (they all looked good!), I decided to order the Signature Wine Flight, a sampling of King Estate Signature wines (Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Vin Gris, Pinot Noir). The wines were a delicious compliment to my meal of roasted smoked chicken, local mushrooms, roasted fingerling potatoes and braised greens (YUMM!).

Much too soon, the kids were getting squirrely so it was time to hit the road. Next time I visit King Estate Winery, I’d like to go on the wine tour again (it’s been about 10 years), then relax and leisurely sip a glass of wine in the Wine Bar courtyard (sans the kiddos). I must say, I LOVE living in Oregon!

Tags: Chardonnay, Eugene, King Estate Winery, Oregon, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, winery

Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Oregon

So what do you do when you live in Oregon, it’s summertime and you’ve got relatives visiting? You head to the beach. I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t take advantage of this often enough, considering we only live an hour or so from the coast. I really have no good excuses. Even the fact that I’ve got a busy life (but who doesn’t?) sounds lame when you take into account that the driving time between my home and a scenic masterpiece  is about the length of a Top Chef show. So right now I pledge to take more outings to the beach with my family. Period. Life’s just too short not to.

The Oregon coast is a totally different experience than, say, a beach in Southern California. Sure, people surf and play in the water here but it’s cold water and the weather at the beach usually isn’t hot. But on those rare occassions when it is warm and sunny, it’s amazing!  

Dead jellyfish

Our day trip started off with blue sky and very few clouds early in the afternoon then turned to cloudy skies shortly thereafter. The kids didn’t mind, though; they were quite content building sandcastles and looking at the dead jellyfish that had strangely drifted ashore (I’ve never seen dead jellyfish before). Anyway, after several hours of sandcastle building and dead jellyfish gazing, it was time to make a few stops in town before starting the return trip home.

Saltwater taffy from Bruce's Candy Kitchen

Although I’ve never been a huge fan of saltwater taffy, how could I not take my kids to the candy store before leaving the quaint beach community of Cannon Beach? Besides, I’m all about supporting local business. The saltwater taffy that I bought at Bruce’s Candy Kitchen was probably the best I’ve ever had. It was soft, chewy and sweet (not stale and rock hard like other taffies I’ve sampled in the past). I didn’t try all of Bruce’s taffy flavors, just some of the fruity ones: blueberry, marionberry, watermelon, orange, green apple. I enjoyed each of the flavors. Bruce’s even has an open kitchen so you can watch the candy makers pulling the taffy. The candy store was filled with all kinds of sweet treats and knick knacks but I stuck to the saltwater taffy and a few old-fashioned candy trinkets for the munchkins.

Cherry turnover from Cannon Beach Bakery

Next was a stop at the Cannon Beach Bakery for a loaf of Haystack Bread, a French-like loaf of bread shaped somewhat like Cannon Beach’s famous Haystack Rock. The kids also wanted another treat so we got a cupcake and a cherry turnover. Normally I don’t let my kids go hog wild on sugar but it was a special day…we were at the beach! Child #1 thoroughly enjoyed his cherry turnover and was patient enough to let me take a picture of it. However, Child #2 inhaled his cupcake before I could even get my camera out of the bag.  Oh well, he liked the cupcake and that’s all that matters. 

Smoked fish from Ecola Seafoods

The last thing I had to do before leaving town was to stop at Ecola Seafoods for some smoked fish and a bowl of clam chowder. The cold case was filled with all kinds of fresh and smoked seafoods but I decided to buy my favorites: smoked Albacore tuna and smoked salmon.  In the photo, the big hunk of fish on the left is not a chunk of driftwood but actually a delicious piece of smoked Albacore tuna. Smoked tuna is a little drier than smoked salmon but every bit as delicious.

Our ride home was uneventful and we made it home safely shortly after Husband got home from work. The kids are already asking when we can go to the beach again, and I’m already daydreaming about my next tasting of saltwater taffy and smoked fish (not together, though). It looks like we may have a free day in a few weeks….

Tags: Bruce's Candy Kitchen, Cannon Beach, Cannon Beach Bakery, Ecola Seafoods, Oregon coast, saltwater taffy, smoked albacore tuna, smoked salmon