It Was Bound to Happen...

...The camera battery in our Canon Rebel finally died. And the battery charger? Packed in a box, somewhere crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Oops.

I may buy another battery charger at the camera shop here, if they have what I'm looking for. Or order one over the Internet.

In the meantime, it'll just be iPhone pics on the blog.

Today was a gorgeous day; we spent it driving around the area. No pictures (too bad), so let me just give you the recap.

We ate brunch at Sugarloaf, a cafe near our house. Espresso and Americano for Mike and I. OJ for the kids. Eggs benedict. Cheesy bacon and eggs with toast.

In the rental BMW and up the coast to Blythe. Not much to see there except some windmills and what looks like a popular area for pier fishing.

South and then west to the town of Morpeth. Pretty quiet for a Sunday afternoon. We parked and wandered around. Beautiful old clock tower. Lots of puddles for Ollie to stomp. Merrit chattering our ears off.

Back in the car for the gorgeous drive through the countryside to the coast again. Through our town of Whitley Bay. We weren't really ready to head home; the kids had caught a brief nap in the car and were revved up for more!

We drove down through the towns of Cullercoats and Tynemouth and North Shields. Finally found the Fish Quay. The fishmongers were closed, but most of the restaurants were open. Having not eaten since brunch, we were getting hungry so we went to Irvin's, which we'd heard was one of the best places to eat.

We shared four appetizers (small portions): grilled scallops, muscles in white wine/cream sauce, tuna tartare with wasabi, and a cheese board. Mike had a glass of merlot and the boys and I shared a large bottle of water. The sun was setting when we came out.

The golden hour was upon us. That brief moment of golden light that just makes everything look so vivid. We drove up and down the Tyne on small winding streets, just trying to capture glimpses of the light on the river, the fishing boats, and the riverside buildings and warehouses. It was stunning. Oh, to have had my camera. But as Merrit likes to say, "I took a picture of it with my eyes."