All Smiles at Smiley Creek-18

We departed Johnson Creek as a flight of two and stayed close to our friend Matt as we slowly climbed up. The smoke from local fires was thick, but we still enjoyed views of Matt’s airplane against the backdrop of the Saw Tooth Mountains as we neared Smiley Creek.

As promised, Smiley Creek was significantly cooler than Johnson creek. The kids enjoyed playing foosball, getting cozy in the giant bean bag, and even had the option off cooling off in the creek below the house.

The next day we woke up rested from a good nights sleep. I can’t tell you how happy I was to not have to camp, my back had not been enjoying sharing a camping pad with an infant.

We enjoyed a home cooked breakfast then headed to Pettite Lake to enjoy some water activities. The kids splashed in the water and enjoyed playing with the natural clay we found on the bottom of the lake.

The rest of the evening was filled with grilled chicken and salad on the deck while Matt and Woodsen talked about airplanes and quizzed Matt’s son Miles for his upcoming commercial pilot check-ride. I headed to bed to catch up on sleep and blog posts.

On the second morning we packed up headed to the airport to fly to Orcas Island.

Around this time I found out that my sister and her family, who were moving to the valley in the fall, had received early occupancy of the house they were buying. That meant that in a few short days my sister would be living in the same town as me, something that we had never experienced as adults.

Now I was really excited to get home!