Summer Reflections

 

When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'.

 

I’ve learned a few things this year. Maybe I should say I’ve confirmed a few things. Having a home base is very different than not having a home base.  Or, should I call it our summer place?  Is it good? The answer to that might be a strong maybe. It just depends on what the purpose of it is. In the past we’ve had this little place that we would usually pull our motorhome into and settle at for maybe a month or so but not a long period like this year. There wasn’t much work to do in the past so it was just a time to practically do nothing. A month isn’t a long time.  It felt good to have our own dirt  ... really, really good. This year it’s been a lot different.

We also had a constant visitor in the past but that was before Uncle Sam had other ideas.  This year not so much until recently.  Our granddaughter, Sandi, has been spending some time with us ... which we like.  She's such a doll to have around.  We have talks.  She goes on walks with me, goes swimming and tries to win at bingo!  We also have great neighbors with the deer and the birds.   We don’t see a lot of our two-legged neighbors except on the weekends.  Then, they come in groups.  We used to like weekends best.  Now we like the quiet weekdays but September is coming.  When September shows up it starts getting pretty quiet just about every place.

Lee and Sabrina spent some time with us last  weekend.  We sure enjoyed their visit.  They were amazed at all the changes.  Justin arrives tomorrow.  In preparation for his homecoming he has already given his mom a list of foods he wants and mentioned he wants a barbecue with us. That’s our boy!!!!

We’ve been doing one heck of a lot of work that we didn't have to do before.  All work and no play makes Jeri a very dull girl. Half of me has a tremendous hitch itch and the other half wants to nest.  I'm not so sure I like the fight within.  In the winter things aren't so quiet and we have lots of company most places we go.  I do miss the camaraderie of our RV friends and being on the road.  You know the saying .. I’m just crying in my beer … but, oops, I don’t drink beer!  Sandi would tell me I'm having a pity party.

It may be too quiet here but being in an RV park during the summer can really be just the opposite.  It's a zoo.  You find many young families with tents, trailers and pop-ups. I’m not against that.  I think every family should spend time outdoors and camp with their kids.   It’s just that I don’t necessarily want to have my motorhome parked next to them.  The problem is the parks are full during the summer with people.  Actually it’s not just the parks.  It’s the neighborhoods, the fairs, the beaches and just about every place else is full too.

I’m blaming the little outing we took to the coast as being responsible for my hitch itch.  However, it really started before that … thus, the trip to the coast.   We have a little shindig planned here right after Labor Day.  When I originally started this blog over a week ago, we were thinking we'd pull out shortly after that.  However, family happenings sometimes change things and they have done just that.  We will share with you the changes in a few days.

I also originally wrote we didn't know where we would head but now I'm going to say we do kinda know where we'll end up this winter but just don't know quite how we'll get there.  We’ll be back to our little summer hideaway next year and maybe get a chance to look at nesting differently.

‘Tis life on the road.

Blackberries, Raspberries & Birthdays

The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly and lie about your age.

Happy Birthday, Tammi

Today is another birthday. We certainly have a lot of them between July and September. Even though we’ve already had the party, today is the BIG day for Tammi. So, Happy Birthday!

Honest now ... no more birthdays for a little over a month ... honest.

We’ve not really had what you could call “hot” weather until the first weekend in August. Then on Saturday it soared to 102!  That set a new record for this day.   It seems that August usually brings in hot weather in Southern Washington.  Those three-digit temperatures never last long and for that we're thankful.  Homes with air  conditioning are more the exception than the rule in this area.

 

Right on schedule that’s when the temperature started to rise.  We were dreading it because it meant not only the heat but also the lake areas would be swarming with people.  There would probably be more guests in our area than people who actually belong here. 

Sandi stayed with us four whole nights.  Between swimming in the pool and helping Papa with all his work, we did find time to take a good walk each morning, go swimming, play bingo and eat lots.

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She's learning to take a picture of everything .... just like me!

Lots of greenery and lots of deer to see.

We made another trip to the storage shed to pick up four more boxes.  I’ll certainly be glad when we get finished going through all the boxes and get that cleaned out.  It’s much more work than I would have thought.  However, the fun part is getting to look at all the pictures I still have.

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We loaded a couple buckets in the car and stopped at one of our favorite places to pick wild blackberries.  The bushes were loaded with the berries.  This is definitely the right time of year for them..

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After cleaning the berries they were put into little freezer bags and stuffed in the freezer.  I had to be a little creative in getting them all in.  Thank goodness we hadn't been shopping for groceries or they never would have made it.  We also had some raspberries so we cleaned and froze those too.  We’re thinking we might go pick some of the blueberries off of Lee’s vines next!!  I could almost make a fruit pizza with all of this.

On Saturday evenings there are usually two events.  One is an outdoor movie.  Folks bring their folding chairs and congregate at the Papa Bear Theater area.  Popcorn is free and so is the movie.  If the movie isn’t to your liking, there is always the bingo game.  Sandi was more interested in the bingo than the movie.  We planned on arriving early to stake claim to a good table and seats.  We figured we'd eat dinner at the little camp kitchen while guarding our seats and table.  That’s what we did.  However, as usual …..  it was fun but we didn’t win a thing. 

 

It’s certainly not been the lazy, hazy days of of summer.  It’s been warm and it’s been busy.

‘Tis life on the road.

Finally on the Road to Sequim

 

“I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine.”

Our family reunion is just around the corner and we had planned to pull out Monday about noon.  How’s that for being early.  The reunion isn’t scheduled until the weekend but we figured it would be a great opportunity to spend a little more time around Sequim (skwim) and Port Angeles.  We didn’t quite leave as early as planned but we were pretty close.

Family reunion time ~~

The first thing we had to take care of was the latch to the back gate in the Jeep.  It stopped working a few weeks ago and as usual, we procrastinated with getting it fixed. Now we were down to the wire and the earliest appointment we could schedule was departure day. Thank goodness it was an easy fix.  We were finished with the appointment and on our way back to the cabin to load and pick up Duchess within an hour.

Michael and Sandi were going with us.  They loaded their sleeping bags, clothes, snacks and electronic gadgets on board.   We were finally ready to hit the road for the approximate 185 mile trip north.  It really felt good to be on the road again.

This was Sequim Lavender Festival time.  I’ve always wanted to attend the Lavender Festival in Sequim.  The problem is it was scheduled the same exact weekend as the reunion.   This festival is supposed to be the largest lavender festival in America.  Is it?  I have no clue but I’d still like to check it out.

The drive north on Highway 101 around the Hood Canal is one of my favorite drives.  Maybe it’s because I’ve been doing that since I was a small kid or maybe it’s because of the awesome scenery. The road wraps around the Hood Canal for about 50 miles.  It’s a little windy but it sure is pretty.  Depending on the tide you pass by many fishing boats, clam diggers, folks crabbing on the docks and even an oyster farm.  Of course, that’s not quite all because if you’re into casinos, there are a few of those too.

We rarely make this drive without stopping at Potlatch State Park.  It is on the south end of the Canal and is split on both sides of Hwy 101.  On the left side of the road (heading north) are the camping sites.  On the right side are the picnic tables, the beach and the restrooms.  It's a beautiful place to stop.  We exercised our legs and even Duchess got out for a walk.  We didn’t stay long and was soon on the road again.

Sandi and Terry with Duchess at Potlatch State Park

With the Lavender Festival getting ready to open, most hotels and RV parks in Sequim and Port Angeles are booked solid.  We were lucky in that the Elks RV park was only about half full.  It might have something to do with the fact that they don’t take reservations and we were a few days early.  If you’re looking for a park host job, we were told they need one.  It would certainly be a good place to spend the summer if you’re in the area

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Front side at Elks

Ten more sites at Elks

I really like the Elks in Sequim.  The only downside is that there is no RV dump.  The parking is on grass and you don’t feel like you’re elbow to elbow with another RV.  This time we picked the end spot so our site feels huge.  It also meant we needed to cancel a reservation we had previously made at a membership park.  The Elks park is closer to town and closer to the places we might want to go.  The first morning  we were off to the Visitor’s Center.  Well, three of us were off.  Michael decided to sleep in. Duchess kept him company.

And, of course, I made Sandi pose for me.

Sequim is a beautiful town with a population of just under 7,000.  It boasts that it has 300 sunny days and less than 17 inches of rain.  Sequim sits in the shadow of the rain forest.  The tall, tall mountains hold back many of those rain clouds.  Thus, the reason for very little rain.  The town has become a mecca for retirees during the summer.  Well, really during every season.  Their highest recorded temperature of 99 degrees was recorded in 1941 so it just doesn’t get real hot during the summer.  Most of the homes don’t even have air conditioning.

Farm land and snow peaked mountains.

Lavender is everywhere.

The town is surrounded by mountains, several bays and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It’s in a gorgeous location. Am I a little prejudice about this town? You bet I am. My grandparents lived here and my mom went to school here. It’s also a place where I have many memories of time spent on the local beaches and eating more than my share of clams after we dug them.

On our way back from the Visitor’s Center, we made a quick stop at the Marilyn Nelson park.  Sandi walked down to the beach with me.  This a very small park with just a boat launch and a place for a few vehicles to leave their cars.  It’s one place that’s not packed with people.

~~ Sandi at the beach

Soon we were back at the RV with ideas of other places we needed to visit on our first full day but first we had to get Michael up.  The day was still young and we had places to go.

‘Tis life on the road and it sure feels good to have great internet again.

Skating and Laser Tag

I had to stop driving for a while - the tires were getting dizzy.

It’s really nice when I get sent pictures that I can post.  It usually means that I don’t have to fiddle with my own. It’s kind of like being on vacation.  These may not be about our RVing adventures but many times my blogs aren’t just about that either. We have a Valentine Baby.  Actually, she really isn’t a baby anymore.  It’s our youngest grandchild and she turned 15 yesterday on Valentine’s Day.  I guess that tells you the age of our children.  Believe me the age of our children has nothing to do with our age.  If this rate continues, it won’t be long until they’ll be older than us.  You know the Jack Benny thing ….  they keep aging but we certainly don’t.  We just keep getting better. 

Sandi in her Blue Angels shirt

One of things we sent Sandi was a shirt from the Navy base in El Centro.  This is where the Blue Angels practice during the winter season.  Check her out.  Isn’t she a real beauty?  Her future dream is to follow in the steps of her much older cousin (19 year old, Justin) and have a career in the Navy.

Here’s another photo of her day with Mom.  First of all they went ice skating and then they fought out their frustrations with each other by playing laser tag.

Sandi and Michael ice skating.  Did Mom ice skate too?  I have no clue.

Tammi and Sandi -- the laser duo.

Micheal took the picture of Tammi and Sandi. Sandi obviously didn’t do as good a job taking a picture of Michael and Mom.  It was so totally out of focus.