Jackson County Fair

Leila and I got the chance to visit the Jackson County Fair on Thursday. We were parked and ready for the fair early! So early, that there wasn't much going on. It actually turned out pretty well though because it caused us to peek into the 4-H barns. We usually look at the animals at our local fair but haven't ever watched the 4-H showings. Between the horses and steer, we probably spent 2 hours watching the 4-H kids show their animals. It was very interesting! Guess who wants to be involved with 4-H now?! 

Side note....it was pretty neat to be at the Jackson County Fair in the 4-H barns because Mom and Aunt Kathy grew up showing their 4-H animals in these very same barns!  

These piglets were only 5 days old! 

Oregon State University had a cool display about eating locally and tracing food from seed to waste. They had a trail of activities to follow for the kids. There were 15 stations, each with a question for the kids to answer. Once all 15 answers were completed/found, Leila turned her "passport" into the teacher for a prize. 

Of course we rode a few rides too before we left. It seems that the animals are really the big part of this fair so the rides didn't even open until 11:30. But we had plenty of time to ride a couple before we left for the day....and before the temps hit 100! 

This gal, Annie, was GREAT! She is a story teller, singer and magician. The kids were so engaged!!! 

Hellgate Jet Boats

Oh, how I love the jet boats outta Grants Pass! The three of us had a blast last year and because of us raving about them, Mom and Jim wanted to try them this year. Christopher had class, so he couldn't come. We were all bummed about that. 

We ended up having the same driver as last year! Mike is great! We saw an eagle and two ospreys fighting each other for a fish. They were diving at and chasing each other through the canyon and right over our boat. So beautiful! 

The ride is two hours long and takes you to Hellgate Canyon. The pictures don't show you just how beautiful it is!! 

We had quite a memorable trip...although some of the memories we could have done without! A flock of geese took off in flight right over our boat and pooped on us! Yuck! While we did have some droppings land on us, the folks in the row right behind us REALLY HAD IT BAD! Luckily, there were so many more amazing sights to focus on that the goose incident really wasn't that big of a deal. We would still go back in a heartbeat! 

Shasta Visit

The four of us drove to Mt. Shasta to visit Barbara and Dick. I finally pulled off I-5 while driving trough Weed, CA and got a picture of Leila under the town's sign. I've wanted to do this several times over the years, but never have. I told the carload, before leaving Ashland, that we would be stopping in Weed! Many of you know that Leila's nickname is Weed (or some derivative thereof). When she was a baby and was asked her name, she replied with Weeda (her pronunciation of Leila). The name stuck. 

Our visit in Shasta was so pleasant. We walked around the town, ate lunch at Barb's brother's restaurant and did a little shopping. 

Cheese and Chocolate

Monday we headed to Medford. Our orignial plan was to tour the Harry and David factory. Leila and I thought this was pretty interesting last year. Unfortunately, all the tour vans were booked for the day, so we were unable to go. So, we made a Plan B: The Rogue Creamery and Lillie Belle Chocolate Factory. Yum!!!! 

We shared a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich from the Rogue Creamery. So

good!  

We watched them make some chocolate while Leila enjoyed a specialty ice cream sandwich. 

Then we came home and swam in Mom and Jim's hotel pool. 

Swimming!

When in Ashland, there's no shortage of ice cream treats! We took Grammy and Granddad swimming at the D. Meyer Pool. Christopher had the time off so he got to join us!! That's his hand and ice cream on the right. 

Pool Time

Our second set of grandparents came into town today! We had a great time showing Ashland to Gramma and Papa. Now we get to enjoy it with Grammy and Granddad. Today, we swam at Grammy and Granddad's hotel. We had the pool to ourselves for much of our swim! 

We wore our USMNT jerseys to dinner to celebrate their win against Cuba!! 

Thursday

Last year, we never checked out the Tudor Guild's brass rubbing activities. We can check that off our list now! Leila and I went Thursday afternoon. The Guild has over 55 rubbings to choose from and they set up a few tables in the garden area behind the Elizabethan Theatre. It's a nice, shady spot with just the right amount of quiet and park noise combined. We chose our rubbings and enjoyed a peaceful activity together. 

Then we went home, changed into our swimsuits and visited the splash park! Not so calm, but super fun! 

And finally, we got to spend some time on the hammock in the backyard! The backyard is reserved for the guests who rent the lower level of the house and since we rent the upper level, we get to use the front patio. Our landlord is awesome and loves Leila, so she tells us to please enjoy the hammock when there are no downstairs guests! So, we had bedtime stories in the hammock. Lovely! 

Guys and Dolls

Leila saw her first Oregon Shakespeare Festival production on Wednesday!! Leila, Gramma, Papa and I saw Guys and Dolls. I loved Christopher's production at ERHS much better, but I really liked the show! The man who played Sky was really, really good! Leila was so excited to finally see a show here at OSF...even if it wasn't in the Elizabethan Theatre. 

This Girl

 

Tuesday night Leila and I enjoyed ourselves with the simplest of toys...Photo Booth on Christopher's iPad. We were laughing so hard at some of the pictures that we had tears in our eyes. I can't get those silly pictures to post here though (I'll keep trying).  Then I convinced her to take a regular old smiling selfie with her mom. Ah, this girl. 💚

Backstage Tour

We started our day with a Backstage Tour of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. I've taken this tour before and very time it's a little different depending on the guide you get (some are actors in the festival, some are the crew folks, some are education department). I always find it fascinating to hear about the inner workings of the three theatres they have here at OSF. Mike and Shawn joined us for the tour too! 

Children's Festival in Jacksonville

It's officially a tradition! We have been to The Children's Festival in Jacksonville two years in a row now! What a great event! Put on by the Storytellers' Guild and the Jackson County Library System, this huge event takes place over three days in the Britt Gardens. There are so many crafts and art booths to explore and it only costs $3 dollars to get in! Everything else is free (unless you buy food). This year, the weather was drastically cooler! Shawn and Mike are visiting still, so they got to experience the festival too. Papa relieved me of carpentry duties this year. 

Leila and I tried our hand at leather stamping. It was so fun and very easy. I'm thinking future Christmas gifts for family and friends! 

Once we had our fill of all the activities, we had lunch at our favorite Jacksonville restaurant, Bella Union. We found this place last year when Mom and Jim visited. The outdoor seating is under this giant, viney tree. It feels like you're a fairy in Pixie Hollow! 

From there we headed a tiny but further west to visit McKee Bridge. It's the 4th oldest covered bridge in the state of Oregon and the highest at 45 ft above the water. The Applegate River flows under the bridge. Pretty cool! 

Railroad Park

Today we went to the Railroad Park in Medford. It was awesome!! It's hosted by the Railroad Historical Society of Medford and only runs the 2nd and 4th Sundays of each month. Last year, we missed it because we didn't find out about it until the 2nd Sunday had passed and we weren't going to be around for the 4th Sunday. So, needless to say, Leila and I were very excited to check it out! Mike and Shawn came into town this morning so they got to come exploring with us! The whole park runs on donations only! Can you believe it, there's no entrance fees or tickets to buy for riding the trains?!? 

This was the children's train, the only one we couldn't ride with Leila. The other trains were open for all ages, but I didn't take pictures of those trains because I was riding them! 

In addition to the train rides, they also had several models set up. Our favorite was Harry Potter and the Hogwarts Express!!   

 Leila even got to take a turn controlling the train. 

We also learned about telegraphs. That was so fascinating! These gentlemen that run the telegraph stations are very knowledgable and talented! I don't understand how they can decipher the messages! There were three telegraph stations around the park that visitors could write messages to. Leila wrote her message on a piece of paper, handed it to one of the gentleman, and watched and listened as he explained what he was doing to send her message. Then we went to the station thatbwe sent the telegraph to and picked up Leila's typed out messages! So cool!! 

We will definitely be going back next summer!! 

Crater Rock Museum

By recommendation of the ladies in the Rogue Valley Visitor Center, Leila and I drove to Central Point to check out the Crater Rock Museum. I noticed in the Southern Oregon Parenting newspaper that the second Saturday of every month is Kids' Day at the museum, so children get in free! It is also the day when they offer a kids' class on a variety of Earth Science subjects. Today we learned about caves and the rocks that are found in them. It was pretty cool! After the class, we looked around the museum and then we went out back to the rock garden and bins. Leila picked out some pretty big agates, jasper and obsidian rocks for a total of $2. Awesome! A great little outing for a Saturday morning. 

Stage Combat Final

Christopher completed his elective class for his summer course work on Friday. He took a stage combat class. Their professor invited folks to come watch the "fights". It was really interesting to watch! They had a group coreographed number, an unarmed partner fight and a partner fight using rapiers. Chris knew his stuff! 

Prior to watching the stage combat class, Leila and I started our morning with a walk through Lithia Park. We made a new friend! We stood still watching him eat and he kept coming closer and closer! 

Exploring Jackson County

Is there a better way to start a summer morning than playing near the beautiful Ashland Creek? We played on the big toy for a bit, early this morning, before heading to historic Jacksonville to participate in an African Drum Circle! It was part of the Jackson County Libaries Summer Kids' Program. I goofed and took us to the wrong branch initially, so we got there a little late. But not too late to participate! There was one empty drum so Leila had a spot! 

The storyteller is the woman in the center of this picture with the blue shirt on. She was so engaging! She would tell an African story and play the drum to go along with the story. The kids mimicked her playing thus becoming part of the story.

We left the library and headed across town to see the Butte Creek Mill. More on that in a second. Without realizing it, we traveled on Old Stage Road. This is where my Mom and family grew up. We passed my Grammy and Papa's old house and barn. I had to put this picture in for my family. 

Back to the mill... Butte Creek Mill was built in 1872. It's still in use today! It's the only old-time mill that still grinds flour in the state of Oregon! 

Right next to it is a bridge built in 1922. Its one of Oregon's historic landmarks. 

 And to round out our day's historic tour of Jackson County, we drove a mile down the road to see the Wood House. Built in the late 1800s, it's been recently restored to keep it from falling apart. Before leaving the mill, we walked next door to the museum and I asked the curator how far away the house was. She smiled and said not far at all and then proceeded to tell me her great-grandfather built that house! She was so tickled that we were interested in it that she told us its history and gave us a picture of it. 

The Tavern girls really enjoyed our day!