Nan's Park

"Nan's Park" (AKA Friendship Park) underwent a major renovation recently.  We met some friends there today to check it out.  All in all - very fun!  The kids highly approve.

First Day of School!

Arrived home last night, and these guys are all ready for their first day of school!  (I'm sure the jet lag will kick in by lunchtime.....Good luck to their teachers!!)  Bree is off to 4th grade, and Aiden starts his final year at Crisafulli -- 5th grade.

We'll Miss These Girls!

.....and their chickens.  Tonight was our last night before we head home to the East Coast.  We wrapped up our amazing family vacation with a lovely dinner at Kelly & Michael's house. Until next year.....  We'll miss you all!  xoxo

Crater Lake, Oregon

We got LUCKY!  Look at these views!  Evidently it was the first time in 5 days that the lake wasn't obscured by smoke.  Boy did we ever time this trip right....  The views from the rim of the caldera are breathtaking.

Junior photographer.

So clear and blue.

Some fun facts about Crater Lake.

Headed to the Inn for a warm beverage.

Picturesque spot for a picnic lunch before we begin the journey back to Bend.

3 generations of Gouldson gents.

 All the ladies. 

Nan, Pop and all their grands.

Brrrrr!!!!

COLD morning!  Even in the comfort of our RV....  So glad we're not tent camping on this trip.  

We arrived in Crater Lake last night.  Hoping to get lucky and actually see the lake.  This has been on Sean's bucket list for quite some time.  From what we've been hearing, views of the lake have obscured with smoke from the fires for much of the past week....

Fire Danger

Portions of our drive today were quite hazy with smoke from the forest fires raging in California and Oregon.

Jedediah Smith Redwoods

Our final day in the Redwoods didn't disappoint.  Today we started our journey North again, and spent several hours exploring the Jedediah Smith Redwoods.

Our Lush Campsite

Technically this was Nan & Pop's site.  You can see our RV peeking through the woods ahead.  The Giebelhaus gang was on the other side of Nan & Pop.  Sweet spot.

Prairie Creek Redwoods

First Stop.  Big Tree.

Tiny tree huggers.

Lunch and snuggle break.

Nature's playground.

One of the coolest things about these uprooted redwoods is that, unlike trees on the east coast, they don't rot and aren't ridden with insects.  Makes them very inviting to play on / in.

New growth trees growing out of fallen trees.