Summer Sizzle 2015

The last couple weeks of June the Parsons enjoyed the beauty of the Snake River's Powder River Arm just east of Richland, OR.  We stayed at Holcomb Park and were VERY thankful for the 50 amp hook up for the RV...very toasty days!  

As we had been told by other friends, the reservoir was like fishing in a hatchery much of the time.  The crappie were medium sized but PLENTIFUL!  We spent a couple hours daily at the fish cleaning station!

Mid-way through the trip, we experienced another adventure.  Now if you take a REALLY good look at this photo, you will see that Ken is standing in a puddle.  Hmmm...any ideas why?  Here's a hint:  He is soaked up to his neck!   The short story is we were just arriving back at the dock after our morning excursion.  Joanne was first out of the boat and standing on the dock holding the rope with the bow of the boat.  As Ken exited the boat his footing was NOT in the normal position for this maneuver.  Thus, the  stern of the boat pushed away from the dock while he had one foot on land and one foot in the boat.  It seemed like a slow motion KER SPLASH!!!  Actually he was in water over his head but quickly grabbed the float cushion I flung at him and the side of the boat.  As you can see...a couple minutes later he was laughing here!  

However, within a couple hours the reality of the situation was becoming more evident.  He had a humongous knot on the back of his left leg (same one as the knee replacement).  The pain from the swelling was becoming unbearable!   There was no way he could even sit in the car to get to medical attention.  Therefore, by mid-afternoon he takes a 40 mile ride in the ambulance from the river into Baker City!  (It just so happened that the ambulance driver and nurse who accompanied him in the ambulance were folks we had met here while fishing a year ago!  Small world!)  After medical evaluation it was determined that he has a gigantic hematoma that has significant swelling; it will take a long long long time to go away.  His entire leg is now...shall we say VERY colorful! Therefore, sitting with his leg elevated will be the story for many many days.  

Just prior to leaving the area we took a drive north to Halfway, OR and then up to the town of Cornucopia in the Eagle Cap Wilderness, site of a significant gold mining operation years back.  This  location was definitely different than those we experience in  Nevada and Arizona.  It's a beautiful location!

We returned to La Grande just in time to celebrate my sister's birthday.  (Since she is 2 years older than me this must be at least a 39th don't you think???  :-)  We also enjoyed a visit at the farm for several days with our dear friend Vonda.  

The beauty of nature has been especially notable this summer on the farm.  We have these gorgeous yellow butterflies that entertain us daily.  

Likewise the birds are magnificent!  Jon's wife Stephanie took this photo of a greater horned owl in our front tree a couple days ago.  We have many quail...including about 20 babies that have just hatched.  The hummingbirds and gold finches also visit daily.

Ken's birthday was celebrated with a visit from Jon's family who spent a few days in the Parsons Garden Inn.  It is always fun to see what one more year has made in the lives of the grandsons!   Below you'll see a couple of Ken's birthday presents that gave everyone some great chuckles...even Ken!

Of course having a birthday at this season means the entire country also celebrates on this weekend.  Indeed we are thankful for the heritage we have in the United States of America!