Vacation from Cooking

Missy Tippens

We just got back from vacation over the weekend, and I've hardly cooked a thing--nothing worth posting about.

While on vacation, we usually do breakfast and lunch in our condo. Then we eat out for dinner most nights. We have our favorite places but also love try new restaurants.

Since I didn't have any recipes to share this week, I thought I'd just share some photos of gorgeous Orange Beach, Alabama.

My daughter's boyfriend got to join us this year! It was so nice to get to know him better. And he didn't run away screaming, so that's always a relief! :)

Like usual (since Orange Beach is on central time), I woke early enough most days to watch the sunrise. I love that peaceful time on the balcony with my coffee and Bible app!

And here's the pier looking the other direction from our balcony.

There's nothing like getting away for a week, putting your toes in the sand under a nice beach umbrella, and reading book after book.

Ahhhh.

But all good things must come to an end. I guess that means I need to start cooking again... eventually. ;)  Maybe I'll have something new to share next week.

www.missytippens.com

A Week by the Sea

On Monday, Jan shared some of her beautiful mountain views. It was almost enough to convince me.
But I'm a coastal girl at heart. I can't be too many miles inland before the yearning for the ocean takes over.

My youngest daughter lives in Portland, ME, so the older daughter and I decided to go visit her for a week. We rented a cottage about a block from the beach. This is my idea of heaven.


Crossing the Piscataqua Bridge is a magical moment. Halfway across you leave New Hampshire behind and enter Maine.

A little bit down the road, you see this sign. Well, this is what you see now. For decades, the sign read Maine the Way Life Should Be. That sign was replaced with this Welcome Home sign. There was so much outrage over the loss of the original sign, that the bottom part was added last February.

The trip up on Friday was long, and as we arrived in Maine, fog shrouded everything. We were tired and hungry so we settled into our Air BnB and headed down to the waterfront in Portland for a late dinner.

Both my daughter and I chose the seafood scampi - shrimp, scallops, and lobster in a lemon garlic sauce over pasta.

The next morning, the fog had lifted, so this was my view when I took Fenway out walking.

The view off the Eastern Promenade in Portland. That's Casco Bay.

We picked up the younger daughter and took her cat to the vet for his checkup before heading down to York Beach.

Part of the reason I chose York was because we're allowed to take Fenway walking on Long Sands Beach before 8AM and after 6 PM. That was definitely my favorite part of the trip, so here are some photos.

Long Sands Beach

Sunset looking away from the beach.

We had dinner a couple of times at this delicious restaurant called Stone's Throw which was literally a stone's throw from the beach. These two photos are the view from our table.

We also stayed close by the Nubble Lighthouse so it was a lovely spot to just hang out with Fen and soak in the beauty.

Fenway likes the lighthouse.

Another restaurant. More lobster.

And finally, here are a few videos to help bring the beach to you.

We also brought two cats and Fenway. It had the potential for disaster, but everyone got along well.

Of course, by the time you're reading this, I'll be in Times Square for RWA19 - far far from the lovely beaches of Maine.

Where do you prefer to go for vacation - city, mountains, ocean, or some place else?