Mini Vacation

So I have to play a bit of catch up again.  The past month we went on a mini vacation and I just haven't posted about it.  We drove from San Diego, CA to Salem, OR in the new convertible.  Darby went to a pet sitter and had a blast.  At first she didn't want to come back home.  Should I be insulted or relieved?  I'll take relieved.   The cats and bird had a friend stop by twice a day to take care of them.

Just a few highlights of the trip.

We went to the Charles Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, CA.  Did the happy Snoopy dance over this.

We also went to visit the old Nike Missile site near San Francisco.  Jim's the history buff so we did do some exploring and he regaled me with the history.

We got a number of really good shots of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Beautiful!

We managed to check out a few wineries.  Which was for my benefit to be sure.  Sadly wine tastings weren't like what I was used to.  They poured the wine, told me what it was and that was it.  I'm used to getting a bit more information on wine than that.  Sigh.

We also saw the USS LCS 102.  Jim's love of history prevailed once again.  Since he is assigned to the LCS community he thought it would be neat to see one of the originals.  It was!  Although it's a different type of ship it's very interesting.  Jim even chatted with the 'crew'.  The captain actually served onboard one of the original LCS.  How cool is that?

We made our way to Salem, OR and stayed with our friends, Jeff and Ruth. They took us to Powell's Books in Portland, OR.  This is a book lover's paradise.  I have to admit I was a bit overwhelmed.  The place is huge and I never go in saying there's a certain book I want.  I'm a wanderer and pick whatever grabs my fancy in the moment.

I did finally find a few books I wanted.  As did Jim.  Bonus?  We bought Cards Against Humanity and played into the night with our friends.

We were also able to get a tour of PT 658.  Noticing a theme here?  This time we were able to tour with our friends Jeff and Ruth.  Jeff actually organized this outing.

And of course we stopped to check out Ruth's college that she works at.  Willemette University.  What a beautiful campus!

All in all, it was a great trip.  Wish we had more time to explore Oregon and see friends who are now living there.  Next time.  I promise!