Anniversary Weekend

Yet another Central Washington anniversary weekend.  As usual we held off on deciding where to go, depending on the weather.  We were hoping for a Victoria trip but the Pacific low pressure system would have none of that.  So it was back to our tried and true Leavenworth, Chelan, Pateros, Wenatchee destination.  We left early Saturday morning and spent a few hours in Leavenworth before heading for Chelan to check out the fire damage.  We stumbled upon a trail that meandered through the burned riverside acreage.  We were amazed at how close the fire came to large residential areas.  We spent the night at our familiar Pateros Lakeshore Inn.  The morning sun on the lake and pouring in the room is one of our favorite parts about it.  We spent a couple of hours enjoying the warmth of the 80 degree wind, knowing we would shortly go back to the low sixties.  On our way home we stopped in Wenatchee to walk four miles on the loop trail.  We came home in time to watch most of the Seahawks/Packers game:(

A visit from the granddaughters

A summer is not complete without Ada and Ruby spending a few days with Papa and Farmor.  Since school starts late this year, I had a few weeks before responsibilities started.  Esther has been slaving away for most of August.  I drove down to Portland to rendezvous with Jenny Tuesday morning and brought them back on Friday morning.  Esther tried to make the most of the evenings with the girls.  Wednesday I spent most of the day in Southworth, at the beach and in the yard, enjoying one of the last beautiful days of summer.  On Thursday I took the girls to the Point Defiance Zoo.  The girls really enjoyed it and we spent the whole day there.  My favorite was the polar bear feeding inches from our heads (separated by glass of course).  Ada's favorite was the snow leopard cubs and Ruby's was the elephant.  The girls spent the nights in their 'new bedroom'.  I set up bunk beds in one of the basement rooms.  They were tickled to take ownership of the room and help do some decorating.  We enjoyed their company and were missing them as soon as they left.  Ada stated that it needs to be a summer tradition to spend time in Southworth.  I think it already is.