Arrive in the Northwest

Left Sac midday yesterday. Wound up camping in remote spot without much for facilities. First night in tent on whole trip so far, (except for the night the girls slept in the yard at grammy's house).

We toured Redwoods National Park today. Took a little of the coastal drive. Went to Trees of Mystery, and we went to the tree you can drive your car through. On the way up to Oregon, we found a nice crystal clear river with swimming available; spent some time there and then headed on up to Grant's Pass, Oregon where we got a room for the night.

Gene

And So We Did

Well, after a week and a half at mom's house, it is time to move on and give the fam here some breathing room; we are nearly four weeks into our vacation, and many places still remain on our to see and to do lists.

Went to Old Sacramento on Saturday. After visiting some of the shops, the girls took a riverboat cruise. (I stayed on land and fed the parking meters.) We all ate at Joe's Crab Shack when they got back from the cruise. Alie tried a steamed muscle after much coaxing that it would taste very similar to steamed clams, which she loves. My aunt Debbie's granddaughter Scout was made to do a hula dance as people sang "Happy Birthday." The day was very hot, over 100 degrees, so we made good time to get into the swimming pool back at the ranch. Then we watched an old movie on mom's new HD projector---nice.

Jessica needed to buy something in Old Sac, so she added a "Felix the Cat" stretchy toy to her growing collection of animals. All dogs 'til yesterday. There's Poncho, Leanne, Tooter, Macaroni, Brake, and others whose names are hard to spell or pronounce...She started this trip with only two dogs. Now she has eight dogs and one cat.

Sharon, Alie, Jess, and myself should be making our way to Redwoods National Park in the course of today.

Gene

Cosumne Preserve

Cosumne Wildlife Preserve...

Bunnies, lizards, mice, owls, and other animals and birds. It took us awhile to find but we got there a little bit before sunset and enjoyed scouting the trail a little bit. The Button Bushes gave off a very fragrant aroma.

The water was way down--gone. There wasn't the amazing gathering of birds that are common in the spring, but it made for a nice outing.

I didn't post yesterday, so to recount the day: some of us went over to Aunt Debbie's where Kelsie, Samantha, and Scout rode horses, and Jess got to ride a little herself; later, we all took mom out to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, for we felt she needed a little break from all the hard work she is putting in to make us feel at home; then I watched Jessica while the others went to a concert in Sacramento; some famous girl with a Disney channel show and some American Idol guy named David...From the report I heard, I am glad I didn't go, (the music was good, but the screaming was too crazy). Jess and I swam in the pool and watched tv.

Gene

Great Shot of the Three Girls

This photo was taken at the Bill Pickett Rodeo on Sunday afternoon.

After Sharon and I spent a few days alone, we felt it right to get back with the rest of the crew. We are back in Wilton now at my mom's house; it's much warmer here than it was on the coast. The swimming pool felt awesome this afternoon.

Gene

Still Roughing It

Finding out the value of Facebook when it comes to keeping in touch. Seeing photos of our "old" camping buddies back in Maine is making us look forward to the latter part of this summer. We look forward to sitting around some campfires back there and catching up. For almost five years now, there is a group of four + families, who have made quite a tradition out of frequent summer campfires at various locations around Maine and New Hampshire, and this summer one of the families is absent.

Just got a report that the girls are doing great at Grammy and Grampy's house. Alie is reading a lot, and Jessica is using her manners. Today, they are helping Grammy get beans out of the garden for canning.

Sharon and I left "River Beach" early this morning and went fishing on a good sized boat. Well, I fished. Sharon was smart enough to stay inside and rest. Let me just say it was a little too wavy to get any good pictures or video, so I am using a picture I took yesterday of the fun we had in a Walgreens.

Gene

Roughing It

After the rodeo Sunday afternoon, we let the kids go back to the ranch with grammy and grampy. Before we parted ways, Alie had to make sure we were "roughing it"--not doing anything fun. They are swimming, reading books, and relaxing. Sounds good to me. Sharon and I are out roughing it in Carmel and Monterey for a few days. Camped at a little place called River Beach, (the name of our cottage at the resort). Sharon woke up feeling cold, so she started the fire, (there is a little button on the side). Had to act fast to keep the crows and jays from eating our food this morning, (the staff puts a basket of food on the porch around 8:30am).

Spent a part of the day in thrift stores and grocery stores trying to find a good deal on clothes and food; what a drag if you ask me. Not much else worth mentioning today. Sharon thought we should do something fun while we are on this little mini-vacation, so she planned for us to go fishing early tomorrow morning. I talked to the fishing guide, and he says we are probably going to catch rock fish. In my opinion, there aren't many fish uglier than a rockfish. We can hardly wait for these few mundane and challenging days to be over so we can get back to the girls and resume our summer journey as a cohesive unit.

By the way, thanks Mom and John...

Gene

Bill Pickett Rodeo

Howdy Pardners!

Sharon, Jess, and Alie all saw their first rodeo on Sunday. Sharon says it was a moving experience. It was the Bill Pickett Invitational in the Bay area, and it really was a good rodeo. Kelsie rode in the opening procession on a friend's horse.

Her friend, Sonia, is the one riding in the barrel race in the photo. My mom made the shirt Sonia is wearing. Everyone is calling it "The Money Shirt." Sonia won first prize in two events on Saturday, and it seemed like everybody was commenting on the good luck of the shirt. Apparently there are at least four orders for my mom to make "money shirts." Guess she'll have her work cut out for her once we get out of the spare room where she does her sewing.

My mom has a webpage for her western shirts, which I will provide a link to as soon as I know it is operational. Here is a link to that webpage: http://jodanncreations.shutterfly.com/

Please check it out, and order a western shirt if it will fit in your wardrobe.

Gene