Visit with Youger Sister

My youngest sister & me visited her daughter’s family for the weekend so we all could attend the dance recital of her granddaughters ages 6 & 8.  My grandnieces were just as cute as could be and of course I am not the least bit prejudiced!  There were performers of all ages, some of whom looked a little bit lost or confused.  It was still a very good show and a most enjoyable evening.

 My sister and me left for her home in north central Washington.  She has a beautiful log house built on top of a mountain.  Several different times from my upstairs bedroom window I have viewed a nice fat doe grazing the yard and a turkey or two.  In the winter they will have a dozen or so turkeys and other wildlife around the house.  I so enjoy visiting here and my sister is a great hostess.

We visited the nearby Chief Joseph Dam and were given a very interesting tour.  There was a tremendous amount of water going over the spillway due to all the water coming down the Columbia.  It is a rarity for this dam for any water to be going over the spillway.  (But what awesome power!)  It is the second largest hydroelectric producer in the nation.   Our tour guide is showing us the Columbia water drainage  area.

My sister also has a 15 year old cat.  Opal, my dog, loves to chase kittys because they run so nicely.  However most cats including this one (as well as my sister) take a very dim view of this game.  So Opal has been banished to the upstairs rooms where she can roam free.  This is great as long as someone else is there to keep her company!!

Tomorrow we leave for the next leg of our summer travels and kitty can have his home in peace for another year.

Graduations & Travel

A couple weeks ago I attended the high school graduation ceremony of my youngest (of 4) grandsons.  This last Tuesday I attended the high school graduation ceremony of my youngest (of 5) granddaughters.  They were very nervous about the whole thing, but they both came through with grace and dignity. 

Of course they live at different ends of Western Washington and the ceremonies were 10 days apart.  But as I am a traveling grandma this only meant I had to get there at a specific time. 

So in between ceremonies I picked up my middle sister, Bobbi, who happens to live in the general area of one of them, and we spent a lovely 5 days at Birch Bay.  We visited Lynden and went through the Pioneer Museum.  Looking at some of the exhibits brought back memories of my farming days.  Plus they have a great buggy collection as well as other era exhibits.  If you happen to be in the area, it is well worth the time to go look.

We also went into Canada so we could visit Point Roberts, Washington!  The only access is through Canada or by boat.  We were recommended to a cozy store, vegetable, bakery, lunch place called Brewsters.  We had a great lunch of Carrot Cake & Ice Cream!!  And we bought 2 huge chocolate chip cookies ‘for the road’. 

We had a great time together and did and ate as we pleased.

My next stop was a week visit with my daughter and family.  They are all very tolerant of their strange (mother, mother-in-law, grandmother) as the case may be.  My daughter took me to the Chinese district where we checked out the son’s, (my grandson) apartment.  Looked pretty good.  After lunch at a Chinese restaurant we went to an Asian store that reminded me of an Ikea Store.  All kinds of vegetable, grocery, household, cooking & dish products were there.  Plus a food court.  Good thing we had already had lunch!

Alaska Delivery

 At the Yale tunnel Canada, Opal & me stopped to view the Fraser River canyon while on our way to make a delivery to Seward, Alaska.  Of, Guess What!

I saw a lot of beautiful country along the way.  
We visited with some of the Baja campers, and have seen a nice variety of wildlife.  
The highlight was a rare white, black bear!  Not an albino.  The Natives call it a Spirit Bear or Kermodei.

I also saw a red fox, wolf, elk, caribou, moose, and lots of black bear like this one.

 Lona is delighted to get the portables. And here is one on the job already!








We had a wonderful trip.  A few minor blurps, like almost running out of gas, (I bought a gas can and kept it full for the rest of the trip), and shaking the fenders off Wayne's quad trailer (which I had repaired in Seward AND again in Whitehorse!).  Opal was very glad when we arrived in Long Beach and didn't have to get in the car again for a few days!