...Tumbleweed

The 13th annual Tumbleweed Folk Music Festival has come and gone once again. My sister Arlene and I have not missed a year yet. How much of the festival we've seen has changed from year to year--when we moved Katie to college we only made it back in time for the evening concert. Other years we have gotten a motel room and were there for both days from beginning to end. This year we spent all day Saturday and part of Sunday, and thanks to a helpful neighbor didn't need to rush back to potty the ol' dog. (The Saturday night concert was rained out so we ended up going home early after all.)
Good music and dancing, yummy food from our favorite booths, sweet smelling soap from a couple of vendors, hanging out with my sister--another fun Labor Day weekend of being hippies in the park. :-) Summer is officially over...

...just the girls

This weekend four of us--two sisters and two sisters-in-law--will be getting together. We're going to wander through antique stores, art galleries, fruit stands, and maybe even a winery or two. We're going to eat good food, catch up on life's happenings, and celebrate each other. Life is good. :-)

...laughter

We went to our favorite little place on Hawthorne Street,ate delicious happy hour food (sweet potato fries, yum!),met Zachary,walked along the street admiring the beautiful flowers,and laughed.

...some sister time

My sister Arlene is here from Boise. We're headed to Portland for the weekend, with plans to go to Trader Joe's, Penzey's Spices, and Saturday Market. We get to hang out with Katie, and meet the new man in her life. :-)

Arlene is the cook in the family. Hands down, no doubt about it, she can cook. I, on the other hand, go for simple fair. I always get a tad nervous about what to fix when she comes to my house. This is what we had tonight. Pico de gallo (avocado, onion, cilantro, tomato, and lime juice), and black beans with onions and pepper jack cheese. No need to be nervous--Arlene agreed, it was delish.

After dinner we sat at the computer and looked at maps of southern France and Italy. We are going in 2012! We used to say "someday we'll travel to Europe together." We finally realized that "someday" would never come unless we started putting money aside. Three years ago we opened a savings account together and have faithfully put a little in each month. It's amazing how just a little grows when it's left alone.

I am so excited to see Katie. It's been toooo long! But she's out of school now and only working two jobs, so she has some time off. Nate, on the other hand, got a call that he was leaving for Alaska earlier than expected. He flew out this morning. :-( He thought he wasn't leaving until Saturday and would get to spend some time with us too. I am going to miss that kid. He won't be back until late October.

So...a road trip with my big sister...just like the good ol' days when our kids were young. Except now we can go where WE want to go and not worry about entertaining anyone else!