Monday, August 14, 2006

Back to Reality

It's nice to be home again - I just wish there wasn't so much work to do! Melanie and Geoff managed the house fine while we were away, but just not quite the way I like it. Not complaining though, really. All my yard and garden could be brown and dead, but they're not. But some of my new plants haven't received quite enough water and need a little bit of extra care to bring them back. And my rose garden is thriving - I really emphasized the need for watering them well every day which Melanie followed through on. So not only are the bushes beautiful, but the weeds are huge as well, lol! Gotta get some more mulch on parts of the garden.


We had a fantastic vacation, leaving Thursday evening the third of August just to get out of town. Drove as far as The Dalles, Oregon, and parked in KMart's parking lot to snooze. In the morning, we ate a quick breakfast in the trailer and drove to Ocean Park, Washington, where Gary's family has a reunion every year.

We arrived early in the afternoon, leveled the trailer and set up our camp. A few hours later, Gary's Boise family arrived. Dad was determined to come to the beach, working with the physical therapists to regain enough strength to sit up for the long 10-11 hour drive. He needed help from his sons to get him from the car into his wheelchair and from wheelchair into bed and back again in the morning, but he was there for the reunion with a grin from ear to ear. Way to go, Dad!!


On Saturday, Gary took some of our kids and some cousins down to Cape Disappointment and North Head Lighthouse. I stayed back at camp for some quiet time putzing around the trailer and actually stitching a little bit. The wind was blowing quite a bit and a cold wind, any wind actually, does bad things to my ears and leaves me with a dreadful headache. DH took some great photos though.




This picture of our kids with some of their cousins tells you at a glance why we have an annual family reunion. Spending a couple of days together, hanging out at the pool, eating, playing on the beach, sleeping, driving go carts, playing arcade games, walking around the resort and talking makes strong family bonds even between second and third cousins. We're very blessed.

I'll be adding to the saga of the Paulson Vacation soon, including my visit to The Twining Thread in Newport! Thanks everyone for stopping by and for all your notes wishing us a great time!

9 comments:

Myrna said...

Sounds like a great time! Glad you are home safely...

Singular Stitches said...

What a lovely vacation you all had! It's so nice to be able to go as a big group.

Wendy said...

What a wonderful vacation for the entire family! The pictures look lovely.

Shelleen said...

what a great vacation you had.

Karoline said...

Lovely photo's Von, glad to hear you had a good time

Trixie said...

Welcome back and thank you SO much on the info. It was sweet of you to answer me. Thanks much!!

Anonymous said...

Large family reunions can be a true blessing, especially for the children. I'm glad you had such a wonderful time. :)

Lelia said...

Welcome Back! Looks like (pictures) & sounds like (by your posts) you all had a smashing good trip!

Cathy B said...

Glad you had such a great time. Can't wait to hear about your visit to the Twining Thread - it looks like a great needlework store from their website!