Southern Visit

No, not that southern. We went down south to Springfield, OR for a visit with the Belmont-Smith family last week before the fall sports and school activities kick into gear.

We started with a day camp for the kids at a park near the Belmont-Smith house, a yoga/strength training Wii session with Tina, then a bike ride thru the out-skirts of Springfield, ending the day with a run thru the sprinkler and splashes on the slip and slide. The weather cooperated nicely and the kids all enjoyed fun times out doors.

We set off the next morning for Ben Irving Reservoir just south east of Roseburg, OR for a day of skiing and tubing on the lake. The weather was great once again, and we had the whole lake to ourselves for the water sports. Maggie and Lanna tried their hand at tubing, enjoying the bumps and splashes, and then moved on to knee boarding after watching Cousin Jo.

It didn’t take the girls long to figure out how to manipulate the board to move from side to side, and Lanna eventually made it over the big wake. The determination on her face was priceless as she pulled and leaned to get the board over. The ride on the smooth water outside the wake was great, but then she realized she had to get back to the other side. No problem though, she did it with flying colors.

Mom took a try at slalom skiing, something she hasn’t done in probably 15 years or more. It took a try or two to get up, but she made it up and around the lake without a wipe out. Halfway through her turn her legs and arm muscles began to burn, and she wondered why she thought this was a good idea.


After Maggie, Lanna and Jo took turns on the tube, it was mom and dad’s turn. Tina asked if we wanted a kid’s ride or an adult ride, and of course mom said an adult ride. Lanna asked why they did not get an adult ride. Little did she or mom know what an adult ride would entail? After being whipped around and thrown over wake created “bumps” she could hold on for only so long before being catapulted into the lake about 20 yards, spread eagle as she crashed into the lake. Lanna then quipped to Maggie and Jo, “That’s why we don’t get adult rides.” Dan managed to hang on to the tube longer during his ride, and was eventually “spilled”, but had much more class on his turn.

After decontaminating with showers for everyone, we spent the night relaxing in Roseburg and then headed to Wildlife Safari in Winston, OR, the next day. The drive through park was fun for the kids, seeing many different animals up close. The ostriches and rheas are quite inquisitive and come right up to the cars. Much to the chagrin of Tina and Jill, we did not open our windows to allow them to “sample” the visitors. After watching on ostrich attack the passenger window, we did not feel brave enough to expose our selves to the flesh ripping beaks of the large birds.

We finished off the day with a trip to the local indoor pool in Springfield, complete with hydro-tube and diving boards. The kids had a great time jumping off the high dive and bombing down the tube. It became apparent that two people going down the tube tandem would gain more speed and shoot around the turns. Lanna became everyone’s favorite partner, and she could barely get out of the water before someone in our group would ask if she wanted to go down again. Ever the thrill seeker, Lanna never missed an opportunity.

The start of school is less than a week away and the girls are eager for it to start. Dan, however, has different sentiments. The trip to Springfield was a great way to wind up the summer, letting the cousins enjoy a carefree visit, and the adults time to decompress before the hectic schedule of fall begins. Fall soccer practice has started and the start of season jamboree is just two weeks away. Goodbye summer….Hello fall.