Beer cooler at the wedding

 

Paul and Donna

The wedding we attended on July 26th 

At the wedding

Paul W(the groom), me, and Paul S 

A weekend on the west side of the mountains

Friday, July 25th, we headed back to Circle 8 square dance ranch and danced that evening. Saturday morning we went to the home of our friends Paul and Carol.

From there we headed to another friend's wedding. Back in 1980, Paul Samuels, Paul Watson, and I took the computer programming class at Clover Park Vocational Technical school. From that 18 month course, the three of us have remained friends. Although, I do admit I probably would have lost contact with Paul Watson if not for Paul Samuels. On Saturday Paul Watson married Donna. They met at Washington Mutual where they both work more than 6 years ago. The wedding was held at their home. Their home is on the highway that heads to Northwest Trek (sort of near Puyallup). The weather cooperated with some sun, but it wasn't too hot either. The ceremony was very nice and was followed by a catered BBQ.

That evening the four of us(Paul, Carol, Bob, and I) took a walk out at Owens Beach at Pt. Defiance. It had been a long time since we had been in that area of Tacoma. Sunday the four of us did a hike to Lake Ollalie which is located off milepost 45 on I-90. It was pretty, but wet as it sprinkled on and off for most of the hike. Paul has this fancy GPS thing and it said that we walked almost 3 miles each way.

Old Folks

This is how some folks have to change boots after hiking, using a chair??? 

Oregon Gardens

Silverton, Oregon 

Oregon Gardens

 

Fountain at Oregon Gardens

 

Oregon Gardens

 

Oregon Garden

Plants on the roof of shed 

Mural in Silverton, Oregon

 

Salem, Oregon

We drove to Salem, Oregon this past week to attend the Oregon summer square dance festival. We drove along the Columbia Gorge on Wednesday. We had planned to spend the night at an Oregon state park near Hood River. Unfortunately, there was a fire near the Dalles and they routed us off the freeway. So, we had to drive eastbound and cross over the Columbia River and continue westbound on the Washington side.

Thursday morning we had breakfast at Skamania Lodge where I had just been with my friends for a 'girls' weekend the end of June.

We continued Rickreal, Oregon, which is a little west of Salem. We dropped the fifth wheel and drove down to Eugene to see my mom and dad. We had a nice visit and dinner.

On Friday, we played tourist. We drove east to the small town of Silverton, Oregon. We had lunch then headed to the Oregon Gardens. These gardens are beautiful. They were started in 2001 and it's amazing what they have done with the land. They are in the process of building a resort which will open in September. So, Mom, if you're reading this get dad to take you to the gardens. It would be a nice outing. They even have a tram, so you can ride the tram and get on and off it at the different stops.

Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday morning we square danced. Sunday after the dancing we headed back to Circle 8 where we spent the night. After cleaning the trailer, we packed up the truck and headed back to Wenatchee.

Osprey returning to nest

Taken near Cle Elum, Washington 

Hudson, picture taken by Toddi

 

Picture taken by Toddi

Dad, mom, sister-in-law, Nancy, holding Hudson, and brother, Steve 

East Wenatchee fire

Across the river from us. Picture taken from our home. 

Fire picture taken by Toddi

 

Moving day for Brian and Toddi

We've been busy for the last couple of weeks - but don't I always say that? Over the 4th of July we headed to Circle 8 square dance ranch for a full weekend of dancing. We were there from July 2nd to the 6th.

Friday, the 11th, we headed to Everett. Bob had a doctor's appointment, and we also managed to squeeze in several other items as well. We went shopping at the commissary, had lunch with Cody (grandson), shopped at Alderwood Mall, and then had dinner at the Red Umbrella coffee shop in Everett. Our neighbor from when we lived in our first house in Everett was playing there from 6 to 8 in the evening. So, we watched him perform for an hour while we had dinner, then headed back over the pass to Wenatchee.

Saturday morning we went to Toddi and Brian's new house in East Wenatchee to help them do a little cleaning. Then, it was back to our house for me to watch Hudson for the day. Bob along with Toddi's brother and family helped them move from Entiat to East Wenatchee. I delivered pizza about 4:00 and then also helped them unload the truck. It was HOT! After unloading the truck, Bob, Hudson, and I came back to our home to hang out. Meanwhile Toddi and Brian made another run to load the rental truck and bring it down to their new home. Toddi picked up Hudson about 10:00p.m. So, it was a long day for everyone. We went over this morning to help out for a couple of hours. But, we bailed out since they were so pooped from yesterday's efforts that we weren't getting much done. Brian's dad, Mike, was arriving from Alaska this afternoon, so now he can help them!

We're headed to Oregon the middle of next week to attend the Oregon summer square dance festival and see my mom and dad. Bob continues to work on the sprinkler system for the yead. Right now he has the valve box and filters on the island in the kitchen and is laying out how he will hook it all up. Very soon I hope. I'm tired of the dirt out in the yard.

Buddy and Bob

Getting a good brushing with purple brush. We're at Circle 8 - you can see the trees in the background.