Wednesday Gratitude #7 at Heart and Home

It's that time again! Wednesday Gratitude is the time to share whatever makes you happy and makes your heart sing! Thanks for joining, please remember to link back to Heart and Home in your post, and leave me a comment! I'll be by for a visit asap, I love reading about all of your favorite things!

                          

“Appreciation can make a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary.” -Margaret Cousins


My husband and I spent last weekend celebrating our 22nd anniversary. We left early in the morning with vague plans to "head north".  It was pouring rain, but we didn't let the weather dampen our spirits. We drove and drove for hours, through some truly magnificent country side. The hills were lush and green from all the rain, the trees bursting with spring blossoms.  We passed cows, horses, sheep, and baby lambs dotting the landscape, and row upon row of pruned grape vines. We headed for the coast, and arrived just as the rain began to subside.

 I am so thankful for the time we spent together, exploring a beautiful area that we weren't very familiar with. I am so happy to have had three full days alone with my husband! We rarely have that much time alone together anymore. We have a fairly busy life, so three days, with no responsibilities and no solid plans, were a real blessing! We took advantage of every second.

After a fairly long drive, we wound up in Mendocino. I fell in love it with that place! I can imagine living a very fullfilling life there, immersed in the artist's community that thrives in that area.

Mendocino and the surrounding communities are somewhat remote, surrounded by green rolling hills, forests, and bordered by the Pacific ocean.  The cliffs and pounding surf are impressive and dramatic! But one of the beaches in the area really made my heart pound faster! To get there we first had to take a walk down this path:

The fields surrounding us were windswept and showing the first colorful signs of spring.

At first glance, the beach looks like it is covered in black rocky sand. But, a closer look reveals the most wonderful surprise!

SEA GLASS!! Everywhere I looked, seaglass!  Do you know how happy that made me?!!  I couldn't believe my luck. I had heard about this beach, but didn't realize we would be staying nearby, and that I would be able to spend as much time as I wanted there.

I had such a lovely time, poking around the stones, picking out my favorite colors, and collecting just the right pieces for my collection. I hunted for hours, down in the sand on my knees. I was one very happy girl!

I tried to be selective, and to leave a little glass behind for the other seaglass lovers! I only took what my pockets could carry. I didn't want to be greedy!

We also spent some time exploring the tide pools, which were swarming with marine life.

Later that night, I felt very content. I had spent a wonderful day in the fresh air, surrounded by nature.

And I had found two pieces of RED glass, a few more pieces of dark blue, and a lot of aquamarine, my sea glass treasures washed smooth by the ocean. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect way to spend an afternoon! I am very thankful for the simple joy I felt hunting for sea glass along the Mendocino coast. 

And, I am very thankful for 22 years spent with RW.

Thanks for stopping by! I love it when you visit, and especially love it when you leave a comment! Come back again, soon! I hope you'll join Heart and Home next week, for Wednesday Gratitude #8!

Until next time

XO

Heidi

I'm also linking to Outdoor Wednesday, at A Southern Daydreamer. Thank you, Susan!