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Family Reunion Mary's House - 2009
At the end of June, 2009, I (Rick) took a long vacation to the Northwest.  I flew into Portland, rented a car, and drove around Mount Hood and to my sister's house in Trout Creek, Oregon. 
I arrived fairly late the first evening, but I was able to conjure up this gathering the next morning for breakfast.

What a crew!
Later that morning we decided to have a family outing in the front yard.  This is mom and dad on the 'love' swing waiting for the special events to start.
This is our grand daughter, Ava, the cheerleader, rooting us on....
Robert and dad blow fill up the water slide..... Oh yeah!
And, this is our first contestant. Not bad....
This is me after a shot of courage. 
Diving into a full body slide for the full distance of the event.... Ouch, is what I later said. 
Mike had the best form and actually had the best overall technique.  We tried to copy it but never could....
This is the peanut gallery.. Okay, I'll be nice.  So they didn't want to get wet... what can I say...?
I don't remember whether Tyson got wet or not.  If not, I'm thinking he was giving 'perfect form' instructions' in this photo. 
Brent had a wild approach pattern.  The film later depicted him rolling in a wall of water.  An "Agony of defeat" moment.  I was afraid to show it, afraid that many might not watch the rest of the footage below. 

Actually, he probably came in about third for form, with Mike in 1st place, Anthony in 2nd, and Brent in 3rd. 

This is Deseray at the end of her ride.  You will notice the board has actually left her slide pattern. 
Robert rated his mom's slide as a perfect 5. 
Later we all relaxed in the sun.  This is a girl moment here....
Later in the evening we started thinking about dinner.  Mary had hamburgers and I think she even had a few steaks, but memory escapes me. 

Here, Robert is probably thinking "Where is dinner?" 

Oh, here it is. 

And, there it went...
After dinner we thought it was strange to see a deer so close to home.  The kids were beginning a summer Olympics training camp in fence post jumping and this doe was right at home watching them have fun.
Tyson says, "Let the training begin."
This is how it is done...
... and this is some further training.  If I wasn't so old I think I might have even tried it.  But, jumping from a four foot post, and landing in the yard with a tuck and roll pattern is probably a thing of the past for me.
Happy Birthday Rick H.  How old are you?
Robert says, "lets have some cake."
And, Ava agrees.....
This was just too cut to pass up.  This is Ava in her light red evening gown, patterned for an evening of fun.  You'll notice the full figure gown is silhouetted by her happy smile. 

You go girl....
The last day we began to wrap things up.
Robert was a big help.  
This was the girls moment.... then everyone departed.  It was fun.... Mary and Mike... thanks again for opening up your home for another family reunion.
For me, I continued to head south, but I first drove over to the coast and visited with Lamar and Olga.

There is a whales back in this photo.  It might be hard to make to make out, but it is there.....
This is Lamar, Rick (me) and Leo (Olga's brother). 
And, Lamar, Olga, and me.  This is taken from Lamar's house in Depot Bay, Oregon. 
This is a picture looking north from Depot Bay, Oregon. Nice day.....
Then, Brent and I passed through Eugene, Oregon, and caught this fast frame of Robert enjoying lunch at a nice restaurant. He sure looks happy. 
Then, Brent and I headed southeast towards Lakeview, Oregon.  We stopped at Salt Creek Falls for a quick photo moment.
Oh yeah, Brent is also a camera geek.  This is me here....
While in Lakeview we took some time and drove up to the top of Blackcap to watch some hand glider launch. 
This guy did a great job at launching.  It sure looks like fun.
This was a double launch here.  I talked with the passenger later in the day (at the local Dairy Queen) and he said that he got sick from the quick turns the pilot made to gain altitude. 

Bummer....
Then, Brent and I drove to Sparks, Nevada, and watched the fireworks with Mom and Dad. 
Yahoo, I wonder who took this photo for us? 
The fireworks were fabulous.  But, the vacation trip with family was 10 times more special.  I think I might try this again next year....