This is how we do the beach.

This is how we do the beach.

• 6.24.2014

It's so hard to slow down and take a break sometimes, but I know it's good for me. So this time of year, when we have things to celebrate and nice weather and sometimes time off from school or work, we love to get away for a minibreak!

This year marks 10 years of dating my husband. We're so used to celebrating June 14 as our "anniversary" that I'm sure we'll never forget it, even though now we also have a wedding anniversary. For most of the past 10 years (9 anniversaries), we've celebrated by getting away for a weekend or night (granted, early anniversary trips when we were 18 or 19 or however old were in comparison not quite as, er, luxurious as they are now!).

Seems like I always have similar sentiments about our anniversary getaways, too. (2013: funny old pics, vacation pics from Bend, Oregon. 2012: funny old pics, vacation pics from Long Beach, Washington.)

This year we said, let's go somewhere new. We always go to Seaside, let's find a new town to go to. (Verified after this trip: you can seriously run out of things to do in Seaside over 2-3 days. Although that can be a good thing on a relaxing, not-much-to-do trip!) But, I found a good hotel deal for Seaside first and figured, take some stress away and just buy this one rather than continuing to shop around. So we stayed at a simple hotel in Seaside and drove up and down the coast a little to explore and try some new food and beaches.

I just love the drive from the Portland area to the northern Oregon coast. It's pretty much a straight shot on a smooth, 2-3 lane highway, but it's just beautiful going through the coast range. We stopped for a mini-hike at this amazing place on our way!

My IG

We did drive to a few other towns on the northern coast, got to visit some beaches we don't always see. It's just incredible how many miles of lovely sandy playgrounds there are on our coast. Like, anywhere you go, it's a great place to hang out!

We were so lucky to have the blue sky, too!

Our hotel was right on the Seaside Promenade, a historic 1.5 mile long pedestrian route and a great place to walk in the mornings and to and from dinner and the beach. (You might recognize it from my post last week--I got a chance to wear a halter dress I recently made!)

I know it's kinda nerdy, but I love bringing our own food and coffee from home when we can. I brought our French press, electric kettle, ground coffee, and some easy-to-prepare breakfast foods so we could enjoy breakfast in our room. There was a kitchenette, so washing a few dishes and keeping food cold was easy. I won't like, the main reason I like to do this is because it's dang expensive to go out to eat for 3 meals/day for a whole trip, but I defend my practice for other reasons, too, aside from my thriftiness. Such as, 1) Can have whatever the heck we want, and don't have to potentially be stuck with foods that don't make me feel my best, 2) Don't have to talk to any other people first thing in the morning, and 3) Can hang out in my pajamas and relax while eating, just like I like to do at home on my favorite quiet weekend mornings.

We ate our simple, quality breakfasts in the morning light of the window overlooking the ocean and watching the waves. Pretty perfect vacation mornings to me!

My IG

On Tuesday afternoon (a Tuesday! When I'm normally hurrying to wrap up my day at work!) we hung out in the partial sun and ate a sweet young coconut on the beach. (Because who cares it wasn't a tropical place? It was fun and delicious.) We goofed around in the sand and did yoga and gymnastics!

Want to see one of the proudest moments of my life? ;)
No, seriously, though, this was amazing. #neverbeenabletodothisbefore #workingonstrength

So nice that it was warm enough for frolicking in the (usually freezing) ocean! Literally, frolicking!

As hard as it is to leave my routine, it always feels so good to spend some time unwinding and enjoy a slower pace in a calm, uncomplicated place. So grateful we had the opportunity last weekend. Even just looking through these pictures has made me extra happy!