Sept 14th

Well hello long lost friends and family. Where have all of you been? haha. I know it might seem like I dropped off the face of the earth but not so, I'm back. I did go home for about a week for some much needed rest, which also meant I didn't get to see everyone that I would have liked too. My apologies. The stream survey kicked my hiney and I was glad to go home for a while. Byron and I are now both in Sitka and getting ready to leave tomorrow morning for the final brown bear hunt. Grocery shopping, cleaning and packing the boat were today's activities. All done in the pouring rain. Much, much different weather than at home. In fact, Byron got me out on the golf course while I was home and I only made it officially 7 holes, had to take a break, then I golfed a little bit more but it was stinking hot. Guess I'm a pansy but what can I say? I've gotten used to Alaska weather which is quite a bit milder than what Oregon has been having lately. Nothing mild about it today though and Minnie said they had 3" in 24 hrs several days ago. Good grief. The hunters are in town and will be boarding the boat in the morning. I will make breakfast for them and we will get on our way. Hoping for a successful hunting trip and looking forward to seeing some more Alaskan sights while we are out. It's wonderful to have Byron with me again and he can't wait to fish for halibut and throw out some crab and shrimp pots. We should be in some great areas to bring home the goodies. I loved seeing the family and made me realize just how much I missed all of them. Maddy informed me that she doesn't want me to leave and go anywhere for the next 5 years. She wants me to just stay home. That warmed my heart, it's not practical but it still made me feel good. Especially since Byron is taking me on a little vacation for a week after we get home, don't think I told her about that! :-) Anyways, I don't have plans to be gone during the summer like that again, way too long to be away while all the kids are all out of school. Missed some great play days with them. Sure loved the hugs I got from all of the grandkids though. Even got some mushy kisses from Asher which was a wonderful surprise. He has gotten so big and is absolutely adorable. Well, all the grandkids are adorable, he just happens to be the baby right now. Alex has started 6th grade and seems to really be enjoying middle school, answer to prayers right there. Such a hard time for kids that age. Maddy, the big 8th grader said she would be a "good" big sister to Alex at school, that remains to be seen. hahaha. Maddy has started cheer again, can't wait to see some of her competitions. Got to watch one of Alex's soccer games too. And little Miss Peyton started 2nd grade in a new (to her) school. First day not so good, everything was much better after that. Proud of the little one, takes a lot of moxie to make a move like that and be successful. She's a smart one and has lots of charm, should be a piece of cake for her. She and I got to bake together while I was home, that was a ton of fun. Then there's Ryder who started preschool with his momma today and got to wear pajama's to "school". What a deal. He's a quick learner and will certainly do well with whatever lessons she has planned for him. Not sure if Asher will be much help though. Sorry about that guys but a grandma has to brag every now and then. Going to sign off for the evening. Glad I'm getting back to business with all of you and will keep you informed on how things go. G'night......dj