Old Friends. Not necessarily OLD friends

On Saturday, Dad, Marek, Suzie, Al & I headed over to Spirit Mountain Casino to meet Bill & Bobbie Grebe for lunch. They are staying at the coast for 2 weeks so we met in the middle and checked out the new buffet. We have known the Grebes for over 40 years...they were neighbors when we moved to California in 1965. It was great to catch up with all their news. Bill & Bobbie have the kind of retirement we all hope to enjoy. They have traveled all over the world, built thier dream house, have healthy happy kids & grandkids and make a point of staying connected to the people they care about. I love being with friends that no matter how long you go between visits, you pick up right where you left off. It was a lovely day!

Hellgate is Heaven

Last Saturday, Al & I met Don & Cheri Suklis at 5:30 a.m. for a trip to Grants Pass. Starbucks in hand, we headed south on I-5 toward Hellgate Canyon and a 4 hour jetboat excursion. We boarded out boat and began our sight-seeing jouney down river. Along the way we saw a bald eagle, nesting osprey, turkey vultures, many Great Blue Heron and Canada Geese that like the weather so much that they've stopped migrating back to Canada. The scenery was lovely and the canyon itself, amzing. This is the place where the movie "The River Wild" was filmed. I think Meryl Streep & Kevin Bacon were in it. Anyway, after we toured the canyon, we were let off the boat at the OK Corral. This beautiful lodge was the location of our Champagne Brunch. Excellent food and drink in a really pretty setting. After brunch we boarded our boat for the trip upstream and that's when the excitement began. These boats travel at 55 mph, draft only 6" of water and are remarkably maneuverable. We did 360 turns, wake jumping and boat drenching stops. It was so much fun! We laughed ourselves silly and have vowed to go again soon. If you're in the Grants Pass area and have the time, indulge yourself with a fun adventure.

Happy 4th of July Weekend

Bocce Ball, a car show in the park, The Garlinger boys, a carousel ride, and a picnic @Dad's. Hope your weekend was wonderful!

Fore!

What a fun way to spend a lovely summer evening. Jana, AJ and Maryanne played the front 9 at our McNary course. JJ had a meeting in Portland so he couldn't join them. Ordinarily the four kids play on Tuesday evenings right after work. I love that they enjoy hanging out together.