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September fun started on the 1st with our second annual Dyer family reunion. Shannon & her family came up to camp with us a day early. It was Isabelle's first night camping in a tent and she loved it. She did take a spill in the gravel and ended up with a skinned forehead, elbow, and knee, poor sweetie. We had 21 family members from my sisters' and brothers' families. We start with a huge potluck in the meeting hall at Stub Stewart State Park just west of Portland. We visited, played games, had a ranger interpretive program and of course ate and drank. Most of us spent the night either camping or in the cute little cabins at the park. We had a great campfire with the requisite S'mores. The next morning we had lots of great food again, with a breakfast burrito buffet. Everyone helped make it a huge success but special kudos go to Erik for buying and marinading the wonderful chicken, Shannon for organizing the potluck meals, and Alta for making the reservations and collecting the money. One of the best parts of the reunion is for all the extended cousins to get to know each other better.
Have you ever had an adult slumber party? What fun. Chris & Tom and Donna & Matt from hood canal area came for 3 days and boy-o-howdy did we have a great time. We were worried at first because a big storm was fore casted but we didn't need to worry. That storm was almost perfectly timed to miss all our fun. We started on the deck for a BBQ. The next day we headed out sightseeing and waterfall walking. The weather was cool & cloudy which ended up to be perfect both for the people walking and Maya (M&M's dog) waiting in the car. More good food, good wine, good scotch and good friends. The women walked each morning to try to offset the indulgences..... at least we tried. We didn't want to say goodbye so we just said "see you in Tucson!".
Now we are looking forward to our Isabelle days, picking her up from pre-school a couple days a week and occasional days when her Mom is working off schedule. Not too many other plans except figuring our our new plants and how to feed and prune them and few other house projects. In October, Jan & Lonnie come to visit and I am excited to catch up with them.
That's all for now......
The weather this summer has been amazing. Days and days of sunny, warm weather, perfect for entertaining on the deck. One criteria that was very important in choosing a new place was an outdoor space for entertaining. We love the feel of our back yard with lots of green grass, mature trees and plantings. It feels like we live in a park when we are back there.
Kathy and Bill came to visit from Mukilteo. We had lots of warm afternoons and evenings on the deck. Then we took a drive up the gorge to Crown Point, the waterfalls and Bonneville Dam. Mostly we laughed as we always do with Kathy and Bill. Great fun.
Our five days with Isabelle was so much fun and Shannon & Christian enjoyed their anniversary get away in Ashland. We took Isabelle to the zoo, storeytime at the library, the park, and even hosted my neice Kelly for dinner one night. We were happily exhausted when Izzy's Mom & Dad returned. She was so excited to see them that she danced and squealed when they came through the door.
We had fun lunches with my Sister & husband, Gloria (our neighbor at the rv park), and Mary Wales & John from Desert Trails. All on the deck in the summer sun. Our friend Ken surprised Trina with a birthday dinner at their house.
Trina & Sue & I had our annual girls trip and spent a long weekend at the Oregon Gardens Resort. We stayed local to save money because we are planning a big 20th anniversary trip next year. The Resort had a girlfriends weekend special that included two nights in a cute room with a nice deck. The package included dinner, wine, a spa treatment for each of us, and entrance into the garden each day. We lucked out and there was a art fair at the city park in Silverton where I found some fun garden art and also enjoyed the music. Our friendship is a cherished part of my life and every year I look forward to time with these dear friends.
LeAnne and Ben came for a visit. Ben is at Pacific University in Forest Grove again this year. He is a sophmore and will be on the varsity tennis team again. Proud Grandma has to brag a bit..... he is in honor society and on the deans list. Pretty great. While LeAnne was here we had a family dinner with 3 of our 4 kids.
