Last blog of the holiday

We arrived in our hotel at Central Park not long before midnight on Saturday after an "interesting" taxi drive from JFK. Sunday morning was a slow start - especially for Jo, who didn't make it down for breakfast. Once she did get up, we grabbed coffees to go and crossed the road to Central Park to soak up the atmosphere:

Don't we look happy? Call it tired.

We had arranged to meet niece Meghan, now resident in Brooklyn, for brunch, so I asked for a recommendation from the concierge and he suggested http://www.sarabethsrestaurants.com/central-park-south/. Of course, it was peak time around noon on Sunday so we had to wait in line for half an hour, but it was worth it.

We felt it necessary to walk off some of the calories so we set off to do a full lap of Central Park - up the west side and down the east. We now know Central Park is 3 miles long so we reckon we probably walked 6.5 - 7 miles in all. We enjoyed it but not sure about Meghan - she's not a great one for exercise and we discovered afterwards that the whole park is smoke free, so she must have been gasping by the time we eventually left the park and headed for some cool beers!

Our first attempt at finding a suitable brewpub was (partially) unsuccessful but Meghan soon redeemed her direction finding ability by taking us to The Jeffrey,where we were delighted to find an inner city beer garden - and it was Happy Hour! It's a very New York setting with the fire escapes etc - think Ghostbusters etc:

In the evening, Jo and I decided to head for another brewpub, but, again, the information on the web was out of date and it was no longer there, so we trawled some more and then walked some more and ended up in the very place Jo,  Kelly and I were in back in 2004 - the Heartland. Strangely, they were stopping serving food at 9pm - it felt like we were back in Banchory again! We managed to grab something before they closed and then we walked just round the corner to the huge crowds and neon lights of Times Square where everything was open 24/7 - what a bizarre difference in just a few yards.

We had some free time on Monday morning and early afternoon and we headed initially back to Central Park and Strawberry Fields where the Imagine memorial is. After that we took the chance of taking the subway downtown to the shore at Battery Park and the site of the former World Trade Center, where we had been just weeks before 9/11 - and then again in 2004 when it was just a huge hole in the ground. Another tower has been erected but there's still some fairly substantial building work going round there before the site is finished.

The shore round Battery Park is lovely and we stopped and had a bite of lunch overlooking the water and the Statue of Liberty over on Ellis Island:

I'm finishing this off at Heathrow and should close with the traditional end of holiday family photo:

Coming to the end

We did actually finally see some rain on Wednesday but it was hardly anything. In fact, it was very nice when the temperature lowered a bit from the highs we experienced the last few weeks.

Cade was still being put through his paces at football camp on Wednesday and Scott took care of him all day. I took the opportunity of the cooler weather to go for a short bike ride up to see the Cathedral Hills trails - check my Cycling blog (http://bvetscycling.blogspot.com/) for a photo.

I'm losing count of the days, but Lucy, Jo, Braeden and I this last few days have been to Fort Vannoy Farm, done the Harry and David's factory tour, had a slightly boozy lunch at BricktownE brewpub in Medford and been on a trail hike to Rainie Falls. Great fun. Many of the photos have appeared on Facebook and there are a few on my Hill-walking (http://bvhill-walkers.blogspot.com/) blog as well, but here's a few more - firstly Fort Vannoy:

Zip slide

Then yesterday on our trip down the Rogue Valley:

Watch this short video of them coming down:

We stopped off for refreshments at nearby Galice before heading back to Grants Pass:

Finally, a photo of the weird site that greets you as you enter Grants Pass from the North/West:

The Caveman is the symbol of GP - why?

Tuesday's diary

We continue with our relaxing last week in Grants Pass. Cade had the orthodontist and then his football practice again today so Scott took care of him all day, whilst Lucy, Jo, Braeden and I drove down to Medford and went on the Harry and David's (http://www.harryanddavid.com/) factory tour - finally, after several years of promising that we would do it.

We stopped at a local brewpub (http://www.bricktownebeer.com/) for lunch. Very nice - especially the 13 glass sampler tray:

Still no sign of the regularly threatened storms. I think Jo and I are slightly disappointed - we were thinking back to Arkansas many years ago when we drove back from Memphis in the middle of a huge lightning storm.

Incidentally, I was quite shocked when I went to watch Cade's football practice. I had thought that Cade was a pretty reasonable size for somebody just turned 14, but he was completely dwarfed by his team-mates, many of them with facial hair and deep, dark voices:

It's a distant shot, I know, but that's Cade in blue, 5th from the right - almost the smallest in a group of about 40. The High School facilities are excellent, however - here's the football stadium:

Back in GP

So Sunday was a pretty quiet day after our trip to Portland. Cade and Scott went to the local stores and Braeden and I walked round to the local park to practise his soccer skills:

Notice he's practising with his (non-natural) right foot. Then it was his turn in goal:

After dinner on Sunday evening, Scott and Lucy arranged for us to have a S'mores evening:

Today (Monday) was a bit more active. Jo and I got up and headed down to Lower Table Rock for a walk - check the hill-walking blog (http://bvhill-walkers.blogspot.com/). Here's Jo on the way up:

We wandered home afterwards, following the Rogue River all the way. We stopped off at Ti'Lomikh Falls, a beautiful spot, to take a few photos:

Scott took me to watch a bit of Cade's football practice this afternoon then we went for an ice cream -  before dinner. For once we ate indoors as the skies were darkening a little. They have been forecasting storms here for over a week, but absolutely nothing happened until tonight - and even then it was only one peal of thunder and a few drops of rain, and then it was all gone.

A couple of photos I omitted to post from last week:

Just to show that Jo finally did get her new swimsuit wet.

We had to drop off Cade's football registration form at GP High School., so I took the opportunity to take this photo of him in reception with the Caveman mascot.

Weekend adventures

We've been up in Portland the last couple of days - Scott drove us all up there. We left fairly early on Friday morning and our first pit stop was for breakfast and coffee at Bronx Bagels - about an hour up the road:

Further up the road there was a pee stop at the Blue Star Memorial Highway rest station:

One of the targeted destinations was a little nearer Portland again - the outlets shopping centre, where Cade was planning to spend some of his birthday money. Braeden was a beneficiary too with brand new footwear, displayed here at the entrance to Portland Zoo, where we spent the afternoon:

The zoo was good - it was like walking in a park, with plenty of shade. Lucy took a similar photo to the following one of the boys comparing themselves to various bear sizes:

It's a bit like a poster for a movie, I think.

Our hotel - the Fairfield Inn & Suites - was out near the airport, so we checked in and Braeden and I jumped in the pool for 10 minutes before we all headed off to a local brewpub - the Laurelwood - for dinner.

On Saturday morning, we headed for OMSI (http://www.omsi.edu/), an interactive science and technology museum, where the adults received an education - and were occasionally completely baffled.

After a couple of hours there, we walked along the banks of the Willamette river for lunch at yet another brewpub - the Hair of the Dog - posing first of all for a few photos:

Portland's a pretty funky city, but I still couldn't explain these shoes hanging by a string from the overpass above our heads:

Then it was back down the road, with just one stop for Starbucks.

Another milestone!

Well over 200,000 reads for this blog now!

This week has been football week for Cade so we've been at Delsie Drive most of the time. Jo has been out for early morning walks the last 3 days and I went for longish cycles on Monday and Wednesday - 24 and 30 miles respectively (details and photos on my cycling blog - http://bvetscycling.blogspot.com/).

Today (Thursday) we're planning to get the boys out of the house - probably down to one of the local golf driving ranges.

There are, of course, some photos on my other blogs - Cycling, Ale Adventures and Hill-walkers - but all I have to offer today is one of Jo's efforts from last night. She went with Lucy to drop Cade off at his football practice and took a photo of him through the car windscreen. Apparently, Cade was swinging his bag and when Jo came back, she excitedly showed me the magic moment she thought she'd caught on camera. She peered at the screen and saw Cade was in a circle, which Jo assumed was the whirling of the bag in motion. I took one look and told her it was Lucy's necklace that hangs from her dash mirror!:

Still, it's not bad, is it? Kind of Cade's "Abbey Road" moment.

Scott and Lucy finish work today and have all next week off, so we might be getting out and about a bit.

Tuesday morning

The adults are up - the Lesinas have gone to work and I've had breakfast and showered. Jo has taken it upon herself to go for a walk - she got a bit stir crazy staying at home all day yesterday. I hope she can find her way back. No sense of direction and no phone either - what are the odds?

We're under instructions to ensure that the boys get out of the house today - even if just to take the dogs for a walk. It won't be much because Cade's football season started last night - two sessions - 5-6 pm then 7-8pm - and he's got that every day this week, so he's going to be pretty tired come the weekend.

I went for a longish bike ride yesterday morning (see http://bvetscycling.blogspot.co.uk/) so I had enough exercise for one day and spent most of the rest of the day reading my book (over 600 pages so far - just 200 to go), although I did spend a bit of time in the pool - and Braeden joined me. I made the mistake of applying the wrong sun protection, however. It was a spray-on water-resistant, lotion and it ran in to my eyes and I just couldn't get rid of it. Eventually I had to resort to using some of Cade's eye drops.

We watched Gordon Ramsay's Hell Hotel last night - it featured a local lodge - http://www.applegateriverlodge.com/. It was filmed last year and the family that own it didn't come out too well. The old man was a stoner and didn't give a damn. We weren't sure Gordon solved all the underlying issues there - and we certainly won't be rushing off to stay there, despite its beautiful setting.

Temperatures forecast to be a bit lower today - low 90's. There's still a bit of smoke in the sky but it seems to be staying higher in the atmosphere this year as we can neither taste nor smell it - it looks just like a bit of haziness so far.

Cade 14!

The day guests have gone now - Grandparents Bill & Karen, Aunt Laramie & cousins Davis & Lincoln, plus 2 slightly later guests - Scott's cousin Dusty and her partner Cody.

Nice afternoon - and a tad cooler too, with a hint of smoke in the upper atmosphere. We had chilli hot dogs, followed, of course, by cake and ice cream. Lucy presented the cake and Cade had to blow out his candles - a little sheepishly as everyone watched, but cousin Lincoln was more forthcoming:

Lucy took the cake away for cutting up, watched carefully by Chris, Cody & Dusty:

Eve of Cade's birthday

It's still Saturday night here on the West Coast. We've already had 2 of Lucy's G & T's - with cucumber - and Scott has fired up the barbie - tri-tip steaks tonight.

So Jo and I did get up and climb up Upper Table Rock this morning - and very nice it was too. There's some details and photos - mostly of me - on my hill-walking blog (http://bvhill-walkers.blogspot.com/) and some on Facebook too, but here's another couple of Jo:

We then had lunch at Kobe's Sushi Buffet - an all you can eat affair. The sushi comes round in little boats but there's also separate places for cooked foods, salads and desserts. Here's Cade, his pal Chris and Braeden in action:

But what about yesterday's photos at Galesville Reservoir?:

Getting ready to drop the boat in the water

Boys in the water

Jo's hair getting buffeted by the wind as Scott accelerates

and then Scott stopped the boat

All done - loading up again for the return journey

Check out the videos of the boys kneeboarding - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIWtSjrT0vY and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGV5yRvZjmU

Friday night

It's Friday night - we've been boating at Galesville Reservoir and we got back and had an Asian takeaway for tea. I've not been at my brightest - a bit too much sun yesterday was followed by some strong beer, so today has been a day of abstinence for me.

The temperature at Galesville was "only" in the high 80's, but here in Grants Pass, we've just had our 5th consecutive triple digit temperature day. We haven't seen any sign of any lightning strikes or fires anywhere near here, despite news warnings about them the last few days. On Wednesday, it was reported that there were 2,500 separate lightning strikes in Southern Oregon - can you believe it?

Tomorrow morning (Saturday) we're planning to get up fairly early and head for Table Rock before the heat gets up too much. Photos of that - and today's at Galesville - will be posted next time around.

Oh - and we got Scott's bike back - all gears working now.

The stats on this blog are showing we are fast approaching 200,000 reads now!

The weekend starts here

Scott and Lucy are both off work today so we're planning to go boating. We've got Cade's birthday on Sunday as well, so plenty to look forward to.

I took Scott's bike to the bike shop yesterday to get them to fix the gears, so hopefully on my next ride, it'll make things a little easier.

Last evening, Jo and I went to the Oregon Pour Authority - a new pub - who had a promotion on with the Southern Oregon Brewery, whose tap room in Medford we've been to a few times on previous holidays. We walked in the door, bought a couple of pints and put our names in the raffle and a few seconds later, my name was first out of the hat - I won the t-shirt you see me modelling here:

'Scuse the untidy trailer!

The beers were, as usual, nice, but a bit too strong for our liking, so we're not quite on top of the world this morning.

Bye for now

Still no storms

Despite all the fears, we still haven't had any storms, but we're sitting outside just now after dinner and we've noticed a couple of helicopters with water buckets flying past so there must be some fires breaking out nearby.

It's been hot again however - three triple digit temperature days in a row. I went out for a cycle again this morning (check http://www.strava.com/activities/173102175 and my cycling blog) but otherwise nobody has done much around Delsie Drive today - at least not until Lucy and Scott came home from work and provided Tequila Sunrise and BBQ'd chicken respectively for Jo and I.

We had lunch at Cartwright's Deli (http://cartwrightsmarket.com/) - nice place and a great selection of beers to refill my growler.

Yesterday, I accidentally "busted" Cade & Braeden. Cade's pal Jacob was staying over and they spent some time in the pool - mostly jumping off the roof of the shed. This was something that was strictly taboo last year, but the brazen way they did it this year - even posing for the camera - suggested to me that it was now an approved practice. I was wrong - but here they are in action anyway:

Braeden's a bit more subdued than Cade.

I forgot to show you the welcome we receive every year:

That's all for now.