June 18 - Our Northwest Visit

Since my posts have been sparse the past few weeks, I really should bring the record up-to-date. My last post really wasn't very informative... maybe this will help.

We spent a total of just over a month in the Northwest, weaving ourselves into the life-fabric of our "west-coast" family. Our daughter and son-in-law, our two grand-sons, our son and daughter-in-law, and all kind of extended family, friends, pets, and more... they all reside out here in the great Northwest.  And we love these Northwest visits almost as much as we love our nomadic lifestyle these days. We get involved with home improvement projects, repairs, kid-sitting, running errands, more kid-sitting, taking kids to school, picking kids up from school, parties, shopping, and so many other things it just boggles my mind.  We wouldn't have it any other way. 

Some years we only get out here for a month... one time in a year.  The last 12 months we've been here twice... last fall and now this spring. The gap between visits was much less and felt about right, as we pretty much just picked up right where we left off last fall. If there was some way to arrange our travels to improve the family-balance we're looking for... hmmm.  We'll have to work on that.

We ended this visit without any idea when we'd be back. We're only loosely planned out through the summer... into the fall.  But after 5 years on the road we're ready to mix things up a little... to change the annual travel circuit we've been running between the Northwest, the Midwest, and Texas. Just don't know yet what it'll be, but something's going to change. I'll advise you, dear Journal, as soon as I know.

We left the Portland-Vancouver area on Thursday June 14 and dieseled 200 miles north to an RV park in Bothell, WA... in the Seattle metroplex. There we spent our last weekend out here with son and daughter-in-law JT and Kaytlyn. We worked on a few home improvement projects... adding stairs to their outside deck... straightening and squaring an old sagging lawn-gear shed... touching-up a few spots the previous owner missed when painting the house a few years ago... you know, stuff like that. We also shared a few dinners, had some good conversation and laughs, and bonded with these two as a couple... something we really hadn't had an opportunity to do before.

It was a busy but very enjoyable month. But the time has come to hit the road again.