Back from the brink

We just got back from five fun-filled days in Lovely, Scenic La Grande. Okay, we really stayed in a "suburb" of La Grande, Lovely, Scenic Union, but it was close enough. It was our pal Bradley G.'s 50th birthday, so he had something painful planned for himself and Erick.

They headed out on a three-day hike to Le Gore Lake. Someone said it is the highest stocked lake in Oregon. Whatever that means. There was a lot of pre-hike whining and carrying on, mostly about how steep the trail was and how someone might just take a looooonnngg time getting to the top. I thought I'd get a Before picture:

Looking pretty perky, aren't they?? Did I mention that my husband forgot his hiking boots? Yikes.

So, Quinn and I filled our days with trips to his favorite places with our favorite people. First on the list was Catherine Creek, where the water was low enough to allow for toy cars to drive in. Needless to say, the water and dirt ended up disabling the Flower Power Bug for the rest of the trip, but it was worth it to have the Flower Power Water Bug for a morning.

It was kinda hot the entire weekend. So. Fudgesicles were called for frequently. And what makes a fudgesicle better? A friend to eat it with. For us, it was Freyja, my friend's 10-year old daughter.

And after fudgesicles, a little hugging. Or, this may have been before 'cause I don't see chocolate faces.
Quinn loved the twine Daddy got for camping. It ended up looped pretty much everywhere.

We met up with our friends Lynda and Conner at the library on Saturday. Quinn wanted to spend some time with His Fountains. We went to lunch and both boys had Cheddar Sun Chip Face the rest of the day.

Quinn and Freyja spent a lot of time together, and most of it was surprisingly quiet and whine-free.

The Boys got back a couple of hours early. Notice how perky they still look?? There goes my chance for an After picture; notice the two six packs of beer and lack of dirt, bandages or pain-ridden faces:

The ride home was somewhat painful for me. Had spent almost 24/7 with my sweet child and other people and kinda really, really needed some Alone Time. But we made it back and didn't find the dead plants we were expecting. All is right with the world!