New Years Getaway - Day 2 - 2020

It was very peaceful staying on Mitchell Bay. Jacob made us breakfast and after getting ready we headed out to enjoy the sun on this very cold day.

There are so many deer roaming around everywhere on the island. We saw most of them grazing on peoples yards. 

We bundled up and went on a hike at Lime Kiln Point State Park.

Again, the views didn't disappoint.

That there in the distance is Canada. We were hoping to see at least a seal but no such luck.

See that house up there on that hill? Just awesome! I would love to have that view. Plus, no immediate neighbors. Must be nice.

I hope Riley remembers all this beauty and how blessed he is to have these experiences in such a gorgeous state.

After our hike we stopped at Roche Harbor again to eat at the Lime Kiln Cafe.

Got fish n chips. Tasty!

After lunch we went bowling for a bit. Then we made our way back to the cabin for our last night there.

*****

It was a very nice stay at the cabin in Snug Harbor on Mitchell Bay. It would be nice to stay there during the summer and enjoy kayaking around the bay. Who knows, maybe one day we'll get to do that.

The next morning we packed up our things and headed to the ferry terminal. I brought along an Apologetics book. It's very interesting. You should pick it up even though it's geared for college students. I'm sure you'll learn new things from this book. 

Once we were back on the mainland we stopped to eat at Mama Wing (Chinese Food) in Anacortes for lunch. Everything was delicious especially those chicken lollipops. They offer two different sauces to dip them in. Gosh, seeing this is making me crave some.

We drove across Deception Pass. Another pretty area. There's always so many people parked on the side of the road taking pictures.

This type of view is so beautiful to me. I love seeing rock formations and/or cresting hills along the water. It is such a beautiful scene and when it's cloudy or stormy it is even more beautiful. I can't say enough good things about cloudy weather and scenery like this.

We made it home in the late afternoon ... back to our cats that were waiting for us. 

Every new year I must say the same thing. I am grateful and thankful for the life God has blessed me with. For all the blessings He has bestowed upon me and my family even grateful for trials as they help us grow stronger in faith. But, still God continues to love and bless us as imperfect as we are.

New Years Eve Getaway 2019 - Friday Harbor

For New Years we tend to stay home and go to bed at our usual time ... although I usually go to sleep later than Jacob. I wanted to do something different. I wanted to stay along the water somewhere in WA. Jacob came across some cute rustic cabins located on the W side of the San Juan Islands.

We woke up at 4:00 am and were on the road by 5:20 am. It's always so hard to wake up so early but once up the anticipation of the trip made things easier and fun.

We boarded the Anacortes ferry at 8:30 am. It was cold and it wouldn't be WA weather without rain. 

We stayed in the car for a bit while we ate our croissants. It's now been close to three years since this trip ... Riley looks so little.

We braved the weather and went outside. Oh, it's always freezing but I find it exhilarating. I believe Jacob stayed inside. He can't take it, it's a bit of a bummer sometimes. I'm glad Riley was a trooper and hung out with me for a while. 

Winter is San Juan Islands off season which means there weren't many people out and about and most of their restaurants and shops are closed for the season.

Thankfully this bookstore was open.

Look how cool this bookstore is. Books were everywhere .... there were shelves and shelves of books. I love the wood burning hearth. I would love to have one in my future home library.

Jacob even found a book he was interested in. He's definitely become a reader in his middle age years. I'm glad too because now we can do reading time together although he doesn't read for long periods of time like I usually do. He'll get drowsy and ends up taking a nap. It's no wonder it takes him a very long time to finish reading a book, lol. 

After the bookstore we had lunch then we headed over to Roche Harbor. It is so pretty! I mean, anywhere along the Puget Sound and San Juan Islands is simply gorgeous.

A bit of history.

When we were done sightseeing we headed to our cabin at the Snug Harbor Resort on peaceful Mitchell Bay.

We stayed in this first cabin.

It was too cold to go kayaking so we stayed inside getting warm by the fireplace.

Naturally, we watched The Goonies, a childhood favorite.

We brought enough food for our short stay.

The three books I picked up at the bookstore. So far I've only read the small one, Garden Poems. Unfortunately it wasn't a great book. I found it mostly dull and liked about a handful of poems. Gave it 1 star.

Relaxing while snacking.

We always try to incorporate some math during downtime for Riley on our trips, to help him stay on top of it. 

It's a very peaceful place especially during the off season since the cabin resort was mostly empty. Given that it was New Year's Eve I don't remember hearing any fireworks going off at midnight. I kinda missed that. We would have definitely heard fireworks back at our place.

Our first day in Friday Harbor was relaxed, happy and cozy. I did miss my cat Sophie and wish I could have brought her with us. She would have loved all the wonderful smells of nature.