Hi folks! Sandi 2L here with another installment of my summer recap from the northwest. I wanted to write and post some pictures about my favorite activity in the summer - Aunt Camp! It all started about 3 years ago when sister Cyndi went back to work full time with State Farm. Kyle and Jake were used to Mom being home for them in the summer, but this summer began a new era for the Langstons. Kyle had taken a position at their local Boy Scout's camp as a counselor and so Jake, (then 10 years old) was left home for the summer by himself. Cyndi and Dave enrolled him in every camp they could find to keep him busy and having a fun summer - basketball camp, church camp, band camp, Boy Scout's camp...I offered to have Jake and a buddy for a week and the first installment of Aunt Camp was launched. We've been enjoying our vacation together every summer since! (Last year Jake and Kyle invented the Winter Installment of Aunt Camp! I'm trying to keep up!) I try to pick a theme and give them an agenda and all the things that a real camp would offer. We have so much fun! Now, these three years later - we've built some traditions.

Kyle joined Jake this summer and we started out at the beach. The beautiful Oregon coast is just an hour and a half west of Portland. We rent a very small house at the beach with Cyndi and Dave and Uncle Doug and Aunt Cecile and we all pile in. It's nothing fancy, but is right on the beach and a friend rents it cheap, so after several years, it's become our beachhouse, too!
We ate seafood, played on the beach, watched movies and played games. This year I organized an Amazing Race that was my favorite thing to do. The Red team was Cyndi, Cecile and Kyle and the Yellow team was Doug, Dave and Jake. We used digital cameras, cell phones and the internet to pull it off. The winning team had to buy ice cream at the Tillamook Ice Creamery at the end where we laughed and went over our pictures. How am I going to top that one for next year?!

Finding the next clue after hiking to a waterfall. The Red Team with Cecile, Cyndi and Kyle.

The two boys and I left the beach and went to the raceway where the Langston boys got their Driver's Licenses! Look out everyone!

Kyle getting ready for his next race!

Jake having way too much fun!

Next we headed east to the mountain. Portland is about an hour away from Mt. Hood. In the winter we ski and snowboard down the slopes. In the summer one resort uses the ski lift to bring folks to the top of the mountain where you can hike, mountain bike on the 40 miles of trails, or - like we did - take the Alpine slide. You ride the chair to the top with your "sled", hop on the track and using the brake, of course, fly down the side of the mountain on the track. Needless to say it was a hit. Klye though, being over six feet tall, leaned the wrong way at one turn and flew out of his sled getting a little road rash. Jake, never took a break until Auntie made him stop for a picnic lunch. Steve's son Matthew joined us, but was afraid of the big slide, so we did another one for smaller campers.

Riding the chair to the top with the peak of Mt. Hood in the background. Who's afraid of heights? Not these dare devils.

Can you see Jake coming down the slide to get a sense of how big it is! What a blast!

Here's Matty flying down his slide. Next year we're all going on the big one with Kyle and Jake!

The week flew by and ended with Uncle Steve and his three boys, Cyndi and Dave with their "campers" and me meeting for pizzia at our favorite joint called Flying Pie Pizzeria where they have great pizza and entertain you by throwing the dough. I had to dash off to work a graveyard shift and the week came to a close. Another successful year!

I'm already planning next year. Kyle and Jake are going to help me brainstorm this Christmas vacation. We hope to get up to Mt. Hood for some snowboarding during their Christmas break from school. This next year we plan to add a more nephews. (So many boys in this family...) Let's see...Kyle (age 17) and my brother Mike's oldest boy Jordan (16) will be the camp counselors to Jake and Mike's stepson Quinton (both age 13); Steve's youngest son Matthew, Mike's other stepson Leland and our niece Carrie's (Shirley's daughter) son Austin, (all age 11) as camp attendees. (Whew! Did you keep up with that?) I will be the Camp Director of course, complete with megaphone and whistle! I can't wait!! Let me know if anyone from St. Louis wants to join in - there is always room enough for more!

Well, I hope I didn't bore you with our family photos. I love the Pacific Northwest!

Look forward to the next installment of hiking the Columbia Gorge, poking around in Seattle and mopedding over San Juan Island with our Arizona visitors, Nate (Kaye's oldest) and his sweet and lovely bride, Danielle, this last September!

Hope you all have a great Thanksgiving being together with family and making memories!

Signing off for now,

Sandi