On Friday morning we left for southern Oregon to visit my dad and stepmom. It was about a twenty four hour visit and we fit a lot into that time. As soon as we arrived, Bracken (so happy to be out of his car seat and free from the confines of the car) went running all around the place. We could hardly get him to come inside to eat a meal, he was so ecstatic to be running wild and free around the farm. There was so much he wanted to see and do. Tractor rides with grandpa have become a tradition every time we visit and Bracken requested that.

My dad also mentioned the zipline on the phone to me and I envisioned a high zipline in my mind and said something along the lines of “Dad, are you trying to give me a heart attack?” I brought the helmet along and felt a bit tentative, but when we got there I saw that the zipline was down low, with children in mind. (Low enough that I wasn’t able to do it when I tried, my knees touched the ground. My dad was able to when he really held his knees up, what a great workout.) The first few times I held on to Bracken while we got the hang of it, but he was soon ready for me to let go. We took turns catching him at the end. He loved it so much he wanted to go again and again. Now I can see a new tradition has been born and he will definitely want to do that each time we visit.

Bracken got to feed the alpacas out of his hand, another highlight of the trip. (Even though he was disappointed he couldn’t ride them.) I went to admire the garlic in their garden and exclaimed that some of the overwintering kale was taller than Bracken, so he stood next to it to show me. I like seeing the things they are up to around their farm. My stepmom showed Bracken how to use the laser pointer on the ground to play with the cats. Bracken enjoyed that immensely. We felt spoiled with delicious food and one of my favorite parts of the trip was a Friday night dance party around the living room. Oh, that beautiful pond was across the street from their house. As you can see, Bracken got extra silly for group pictures and when my dad offered to take one of the three of us before we left, goofster closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep. We headed back home on Saturday, a mini family vacation it was. I’m always amazed at how much the climate can change in Oregon within a few hours’ (or more like three and a half to four) drive. It’s fun getting to see another area of the state, I think Oregon is so beautiful.