Many years ago I was the chief babysitter for the Ashton girls, except for Amy who joined the family many years later after they moved from McCall to LaGrande, OR...The "Girls" were like a second family to me as I not only took care of them but also joined their family on excursions...Over the years we have stayed in touch, visiting when possible...So when Sue called and said, "Do you want to go?" I said, "What time do I need to be in LaGrande?!"
The 5 hour drive flew by on Friday and we arrived in McCall about 1pm, spotted Diane waiting for us at an outdoor Cafe in McCall, The Salmon River Brewery in the old train depot...Not sure why its called the Salmon River Brewery, with its view of Payette Lake in McCall...Whatever!..We ordered brews, and 3 entrees to share, fries, wings, mac and cheese/with salad...I'm thinking, 'Oops, here goes my new food plan.'
From there we found our condo for the weekend...It was about two blocks from where the girls grew up and the McCall golf course, where Herbs dad was the greens keeper for nearly 10 years...But McCall is nothing like it was 55 years ago...Their house is gone, the golf course is twice as big and condos have sprouted everywhere...New roads, bumper to bumper traffic, hoards of people, everything has changed...We chilled at the condo, quiet away from the craziness of the streets, and caught up on family news before we searched for a place to have dinner...The girls found the marina and cafe where they used to go to watch the 4th of July fire works...Our dinner was good and the view of Payette lake, gorgeous as always.
A good nights sleep, coffee, showers and a lazy morning, we visited the McCall Cemetery and the graves of our loved ones, before going to breakfast at the Pancake House...It was jam packed, but we waited our turn, admired the beautiful flowers in hanging baskets and planters all along the patio...Amazing!!.It must take one full time person to keep them watered and deadheaded and can't imagine the work it takes to get them planted and growing for such a beautiful display...Our breakfast appetizer was the platter sized cinnamon roll and again we shared entrees...OH MY! Service was good, food was good.
We visited downtown McCall and its speciality shops, a thrift store, book store/drugstore and cooled off with drinks at a java place...Shopped for groceries (dinner) at the local Albertson's...Back at the condo we packed a small cooler with drinks/snacks and walked to Davis Beach, where the Ashton Girls spent many hours playing/swimming in the cold waters of Payette Lake...The sun nearly down and the crowded beach thinning out we made our way back to the condo and again did what we do best; Poured our favorite beverage, pulled out wings, clam dip, fruit, cheese, chips, salsa, cookies and half a cinnamon roll from breakfast and ate dinner...Sunday morning was another lazy one, checking devises for news of home, before eating leftovers, packing up, saying our goodbyes and hitting the road...Diane going to Burns, OR and us back to LaGrande...During the 3 days, the talk was non stop, laughter filled the air and memories resurfaced...It was a wonderful weekend, thanks for taking me along...Hugs To All...OWAV:)
Diane getting some seeds. :)
Blooming Basket
More Blooms
Patio lined with flowers
Platter sized cinnamon roll
Amy and Diane
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