4th of July

I came home from D.C. on the 30, and headed to the Lake to be with my family the next morning. We had a nice, quiet 4th of July week. Due to fire hazards, we didn't set off any fireworks, but others camping nearby provided an illegal show. It was beautiful and loud, but you always worry about the possibility of a forest fire. Either way, it was good to spend some time with family and friends, sun and water, and no agenda.

DAR Continental Congress

I left on the redeye, June 23 for Washington DC. The Daughters of the American Revolution Continental Congress was scheduled for the end of the week, and I had the opportunity to be a page. Pages dress in white and work as volunteers in a variety of ways during Congress. I have been a page at our State Conference for the last three years, but paging at Congress is bigger.

This year was an election year, with a new President General and Executive Board being chosen. Over the course of Congress, more than 3800 people attended various functions, and there were more than 250 pages from around the world on hand. You get the idea that it takes many hands to make everything run smoothly.

The official Congress hotel was the J.W. Marriott on Pennsylvania Ave. That meant about a 15 minute walk to Constitution Hall and Memorial Continental Hall. These two buildings were built a hundred years ago, and later were "joined" by the administration building. The DAR National Headquarters sits on a city block that is entirely owned by the DAR. It's pretty amazing that the founders and early members had the foresight to purchase the land, build the buildings and keep it in working order for so long.

It was such a busy week that I didn't do much sightseeing. The Washington Monument is surrounded by scaffolding due to earthquake damage. I think it looks pretty cool.

But we did tour the National Cathedral. It's really beautiful.

The Moon Rock Window

It was a great week. I met lots of people and had lots of fun. And came home very tired on June 30.

Summer Berries

Oregon has had an unusual spring and summer in terms of weather. It was incredibly warm and dry for several weeks when it should have been cool and wet. Any time the weather patterns change there's the opportunity for some interesting occurrences. This year crops are coming on early and fast.

On Saturday, June 1 my mother, aunt and I picked strawberries. I don't ever remember picking that soon in the summer. Last year, we picked strawberries on June 20. In 2010, we picked on June 24.

Picking berries in 2010. No pictures of strawberries this year!

Today, my mother, sister, niece and I picked raspberries. Thirty pounds of raspberries that will be eaten fresh and frozen for winter consumption. It's really nice to have "fresh" fruit during those long, cold, winter months.

Father's Day Weekend

My last day of the school year was Wednesday, so on Thursday I headed to the lake with my parents for the weekend. We did some fishing, and some visiting. We also took a boat ride when my sister arrived with the kiddos. It was a good three days of sun and water and no cell service! Happy Father's Day Dad!

Rodeo!

It was a beautiful weekend for a rodeo. We made our annual pilgrimage to the Sisters Rodeo.

Erin's Shower

Today was Erin's bridal shower. I think we all had a good time. A huge ~THANK YOU~ to Mary for her hospitality!

Memorial Day at the Beach

We had a great weekend at the beach with friends and family. On Friday we had dinner at Rogue Ales in Old Town. It was fun to spend some time with adults, eat well and share a drink or two.

The weather in May can be unpredictable, and we had a bit of everything. Saturday was beautiful and some of us walked on the beach.

My sister and her family showed up on Saturday evening after dinner. The kids love "pwaygrowns", so most of us followed them down to watch them climb and slide. 

Then we hung out by the fire until the rain started. Unfortunately, it didn't really let up all night or the next morning. We headed into Newport for breakfast, and around noon we took the kids to the Hatfield Marine Science Center. They loved the tide pool touch tanks. Of course, they love to play in water so that was to be expected. After lunch, they headed home and we spent the rest of the day relaxing.

The rain continued on Sunday, so we headed home. It was a good weekend with some much needed rest and relaxation.