Cousin Reunion

Fletcher and Gertrude Skillern's grandaughters headed out to Black Butte for the first annual cousin reunion this past weekend. We all had a great time staying at the Anderson family's "Lodge". Cocktail hour started early and continued well into the night! Many Gin and Tonics were consumed. Could it be genetic that we all like that drink??
Tricia and Betsey waking up slowly on Friday morning.
Paula, Jane Hastings (old family friend), and I enjoyed some great golf. Here is a great view from the Big Meadow course of Three Fingered Jack in the central Cascades.
Golf on Saturday was so peaceful and the Glaze Meadow course was so pretty that Paula and I had to sit and enjoy a beer afterwards.
Meredy and Tricia being girlie on the deck.
The whole crew. Six cousins, and somehow two cousin in-laws and a second cousin were thrown in - plus Jane (taking the pics). Pretty easy to tell who the first cousins are.

Newport Oregon

Finally some pictures of Josh and I's trip to Newport Beach Oregon the first weekend of August! We stayed at the Elizabeth Street Inn again, good cookies! And I had to include a picture of Tommy welcoming us home! The weather was very cloudy but we still had lots of fun!

Backpacking to Castle Peak

Here are some pics from our intense 15 mile backpacking trip to Castle Peak in the White Clouds


Testing out the off-roading skills of the new Escape!


This is looking across the lake to where we camped next to the side of Castle Peak. If you look closely you can see our tents.


Another pic of the side of Castle Peak showing both lakes near our camp from a higher point.


Uncle Steve fishing at the upper lake. The fishing was great, combined we caught around 35 fish.


Here is one of the trout I caught. Lindy was mad that I wouldn't cook one up for her.


Lindy at the lake getting ready to hike back out.


Hiking out of Chamberlain Basin. Here you can get a great look at the front of Castle Peak standing 11,815 feet high.

A final group pic looking towards Sun Valley before heading down the last 4.5 miles to the cars.

Almost made it home in one piece....

Josh's summer of rafting is over (which means school is around the corner!). On his last day he had an injury when his oar hit a rock and hit him in the head...... well, that is what he wants me to say anyway! He was too late getting into the doctor for stiches but he did have to get a couple shots and is on anitbiotics.

Aaron and Molly Murphy- Spokane/CDA

A few pictures from Molly's wedding in Spokane and the Michalak's boat in CDA!

Beach Trip

I had a great beach trip to Suzy's house on the Long Beach Peninsula. Friends Gayle and Karen joined us. We started with a walk on the beach Tuesday afternoon that ended at a wine bar of course!
The pelicans were busy fishing and fun to watch. They look like they fly in slow motion. It was fitting then that we ended the day with dinner at a restaurant named "Pelicano". Great salmon and crab cakes!
Wednesday began with a 9 hole round at the Peninsula Golf Course. It was great quirky beach golf with lots of roll and crazy bounces.
Checking to see if the green is clear!
We got pretty excited because the old guys in front of us said we "hit a pretty good ball".
One thing that is always great about the beach in the summer is the beautiful flowers everywhere. They really thrive in the ocean air.
After golf and a walk around Long Beach we headed down to Waikiki Beach to enjoy the view towards Cape Disappointment. Pretty nice beach day. We ended the day with more great food at "The Depot" in Seaview.

Our last stop before we returned to Vancouver on Thursday was the harbor in Ilwaco where we browsed through a few galleries.

Josh's 10 Year

A couple of pics of Josh at his 10 year high school reunion.....