An Adventurous Refuge

Building a house twice (more on this soon), isn't the most relaxing of endeavors. Needless to say, it can be just slightly stressful at times and if one wants to keep ones head on straight, one needs to escape to a place where one can forget, even if only for a shred of time, the special and unique challenges that come with bringing your dream home to life.

Richmond Beach Saltwater Park is such the place for me and it has been these last 3 1/2 years. It is about a 5 minute drive from where I live now and I go there at least 3 times a week...always with a special certain someone (below) in tow. No matter the weather, we go!

The other day was just gorgeous and I thought we'd take the long way down to the beach (which is my friends favorite way) and in the distance, I noticed an amazing cloud formation towering over Puget Sound just to the south of us, it was magnificent! (my friend wasn't to impressed)

The beautiful cloud started to change shape by the second and I was mesmerized by how it was actually growing...how much bigger could this thing get?!?

Then all of a sudden, it was not only changing in size, but also color! One minute it was a white puffy marshmallow cotton ball and the next second...a smooth gray slab of softness that reminded me of tumbled rocks that have been washed smooth by the sea.

I was determined to make it down to the beach, especially since we were half way there and my friend was insisting we continue, so down we went! We headed towards the bridge that towers over the train tracks (you can see it peaking through the trees - below) and drops you right onto the beach. I thought...that big ominous cloud formation won't head this way....it's just going to hover magestically over the water putting on a show on for us.

We toodled over the bridge, down the ramp to the beach, and no sooner had we touched the sand when all of a sudden, I turned my head...and the chase was on! The massive cloud had snuck up on us so fast that it was all we could do to turn around, head back up the ramp, and try to get back up the hill to the car as quickly as possible (with a few important sniffing stops along the way of course), avoiding the humongus drops as best we could (ha!) and hoping that there wasn't going to be any thunder or lightning to add to the whole drama.

We were overtaken! But...we reached the top of the hill, a little soggy yes (good thing my little friend had her lovely pink sweater on), and with hearts pumping, but smiling ear to ear...because not once, during the whole adventure, did I think of the wrong shower valves that had been placed in the walls behind our beautiful new subway tile, nor the four holes that were drilled into our marble floor that were supposed to be in the *other* bathroom, as well as all the other little fussy things that just seem to be part of the building process. Not once.

Yes...this is indeed my refuge...my adventurous refuge...from the storm.