Another Great Weekend with the Fam....

Last weekend, Julie and I took the kids to Sahalie Falls just up the McKenzie River. We've taken Nathan up there a few times before, but this was really Noelle's first trip.

There's some great hiking there, and it's all pretty easy hiking too, which makes it perfect for the kids. The trail goes about a half-mile upriver, crosses it, then comes about three quarters of a mile down the opposite side before crossing back over in a loop. To the right is a picture I took from the backside of the trail. You can see a man standing at the top of the falls. You can walk to the top and just sit there, literally two feet from the water as it cascades over the edge.

In fact, in the picture to the left, you can see Nathan's smiling face with the top of the waterfall directly behind him.

I was so proud of little Noelle! She has just turned two and she pretty much walked the entire trail without any complaints. In fact, she only complained if we tried to carry her! That was, by far, the most Noelle has ever walked at a time. She's a born hiker!

Noelle enjoyed the flowers, too. A funny thing about Noelle, though, we discovered this weekend that she hasn't quite figured out the concept of "smelling the flowers" yet. As you can see just below, when you ask her to "smell" the flowers, she tries to eat them!

The trail was so wonderful! The flowers were out in bloom. And after only about an eighth of a mile up the trail, we suddenly caught the smell of wild huckleberries! They were everywhere, and the smell was as sweet as could be.

It was truly a delightful day.

What a blessing it is to be able to spend quality time with my family AND enjoy the beautiful Pacific Northwest!