Ed's Birthday

So today is Ed's birthday so we took off to Cottage Grove to pick him up for the party at the La Petite Domicile en Viel.



On the way there I added another drive through to my list. This one is the Cafe Alantro and it is a WiFi Hotspot as well as a coffee kiosk.




So guess who dropped in to Cottage along with us. It's Jill-baby - yahoo! Boy was Ed ever surprised.



I got them to pose for a picture outside of Ed's room along with Scrabble Queen.



At the party Ed enjoyed opening his gifts and salivating over the German Chocolate cake Scrabble Queen whipped up for the occasion.



After opening the gifts he read the birthday cards.



After a wonderful meal he settled into the easy chair for conversation and watching so old home movies.



As you can see Scrabble Queen is already for harvest time with fall leaves on the mantle.



I think Jill-baby was up passed her bedtime last night because she crashed after lunch - but only a 5 minute power nap.



Then Gail our wonderful neighbor dropped by to give Ed another present and a Happy Birthday Wish.



Outside the weather went from cloudy to sunshine...



... to stormy (with Thunder and Lightning) to sunny and warm etc.

No Scrabble Tonight

Quote of the Day

"If you don't like the weather drive five miles in any direction and the weather will be different" ~ Isaac Viel Editor-In-Chief of The Torch Campus Newspaper for Lane County Community College

So we are on our way back home from the Vince Gill concert and we pass through Grants Pass and down to Gold Beach for a night.


Then on to Coos Bay and here we are at the Mill Casino RV park looking toward the bay.


On the way home we stopped at an overlook on highway 101 overlooking the Pacific and the triangle oyster beds at Winchester Bay


The view here is just spectacular. If you click on the picture you can even see the Umpqua lighthouse near the center of the image.


I really like the stone wall at this spot.


Again the lighthouse can be seen over this woman's head.


We went to the Sportsmen's Cannery for some canned salmon.


I took some pictures at the shipyard next to the cannery. Here is a Coast Guard boat getting an overhaul.


This boat looks beyond hope of a simple overhaul.

The Atlas actually looks better than the last time we were here.


There is still plenty of work left on the Atlas.


Now there are also working boats at Winchester Bay - here are a few.


In my picture taking I found this heart shaped rock and got a shot and the rock for my garden art collection.



Salty Sam stands silently outside the cafe we went to for lunch.

While dining I got this picture through the window of a seagull sitting...


... and flying away.


I think someone must have fallen out... Rub-a-dub-dub three ooops! 2 men in a tub.

Lamp post at the docks.


A rock with barnacles, some seaweed and some fall leaves.

I just love this sailboat - it's a kind of watery RV I think.

A primered replica boat in the background between two docked boats.

From there it was home and mowing the grass.

Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen 327 - The Contender a lowly 283

Quote of the Day ~

"Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the actions stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living." ~ Anais Nin

But then I regress

I never finished my blog about the Short Blond Girl's visit to Oregon from way back East, so here it is.

Michelle takes after her dad in the love of photography but the interesting thing I saw after viewing her pictures is that we took almost the same pictures. This one is a good example. She is taking a picture of me taking a picture of her.


We decided to take a trip to the King Estate Winery just as we did with her parents on their marvelous visit. Here we see a Yellow Lotus and an Audi TT next to a wine vat.


Then looking down the drive a couple on a Harley pulled into the lot.

Isaac showed Michelle around the campus of the vineyard.

Then I got a picture of the main building from below.

We next went to the Sweet Cheeks Winery just up the road.



Here is their logo and some of the Sweet Cheeks award winning wines.

They had a professional band playing some great music in their courtyard.


The also had a a cool bubbling fountain and the courtyard was great for purchased wine and cheese or you could even bring your own picnic.

Next we stopped at the Saginaw Winery where I got this shot of a birdhouse.

Unlike King Estate and Sweet Cheeks the Saginaw winery is very rustic, small and a working vineyard and sheep ranch. The tasting room is in an old converted barn.

It is very rustic but the wines I am told are some of the best in Oregon.

Not quite the patio at Sweet Cheeks but I really like this place.


A side trip to Westfir and the Covered Bridge there. This is a shot of a nearby railroad bridge through the window of the covered bridge.

Meanwhile Michelle was snapping away in the bridge.

...and snapping


... and snapping

...and snapping .

Isaac was busy walking the Railroad tracks taking even more pictures.

Isaac also offered some photography hints to this police officer and his K-9 companion

From Westfir we took off for another of our favorites - Salt Creek Falls. Salt Creek Falls is a spectacular site and the second highest falls in Oregon. It is the most powerful waterfall in Southern Oregon with an average yearly flow of about 50,000 gallons per minute (enough water to supply all the water needs of a community of about 180,000 people).

Isaac and Michelle hiked to the bottom of the falls to take a few pictures and I got this one of them returning.


Now this is a very steep cliff. It takes about four seconds for the interior of the water column to fall the 286 feet to the bottom on the falls.

I wasn't thinking of water falling as Michelle climbed to the top of a stone post to get a shot of the falls.


Then she leaned a little farther out. *whew*


Finally safe she got another shot of me taking a picture of both her and Isaac.

She also got several shots of this and other motorcycles for Jason.

Next we went to Waldo Lake where I got this picture of balanced (man made) rocks on the shore.


I really like this one of Isaac and Sharyn. I told her I thought she must truly be thinking Isaac walks on water.



Finally, Michelle was caught taking a picture of Isaac taking a picture of Waldo lake.

... and I got one last picture of Michelle standing on a rock in the lake. It was a great visit and wonderful seeing Michelle we do miss seeing her parents and think of all of them including Jason and Nicole and Bryan and Sarah and the children.

Scrabble Score Scrabble Queen 357 - The Contender 412

Quote of the Day ~

“Even though we've changed and we're all finding our own place in the world, we all know that when the tears fall or the smile spreads across our face, we'll come to each other because no matter where this crazy world takes us, nothing will ever change so much to the point where we're not all still friends.” ~ Unattributed