A Summerful of Photos

View from the Pew at Soldiers Chapel

I have procrastinated blogging about summer, but suffice it to say that in panoramic Big Sky, Montana, we repeated many favorite experiences including Music in the Mountains on Thursday evenings and lots of hikes, with Beehive Basin being the most strenuous.

Our summer began in Big Sky, but we soon embarked on a long road trip on which we stopped to see Julie's estranged step-sister Grace and her husband in Missoula, attended an old friend's fun wedding in Spokane, were introduced in person our new grandson by our son Jay and his wife Sasha in Los Angeles (with a special cameo appearance by Amy), celebrated the 4th of July with Darlene, Brooks and BG3 in San Diego, and stayed at assorted hotels along the way.

Shortly after returning home, Karen and Randy flew up from Redondo Beach to spend a few days, including a daytrip to Yellowstone National Park to see the Paint Pots.

We ate at Ted's Montana Grill in Bozeman for the first time, and it proved to be good, though we opted for Montana beef burgers rather than the signature bison dishes at the restaurant owned the famous founder of CNN cum bison rancher, Ted Turner (aka "the Mouth of the South").

However, Randy ordered nachos with bison chili, so we all sampled some bison, and it was tasty.

After Julie dropped Karen and Randy off at the airport, she had just enough time to pick up provisions at Albertson's before picking up Jay, Sasha and Owen at the airport and headed to 3 Bar for BBQ ribs.  We had another delightful visit with this sweet family.  I should mention that we were warmed as always for the over-the-top welcome by our granddogger Jojo when she saw us in California and in Big Sky.

In August, Darlene, Brooks and BG3 arrived and hosted us at their lovely home for dinner, happy hours and hiking a few times.  We also had two new Big Sky restaurant experiences going with Darlene and Brooks to a couple of their favorites.

The YC Golf Course Restaurant had a great view and tasty meal, but I have to say the best lunch was at The Corral Bar and Steak House in Big Sky with Darlene and Brooks on our last full day in Big Sky.  The Corral Burger Julie and I split was terrific and more than enough to sate us.

I should also add that our yard proved to be a favorite place for lunch for some other locals.

Without getting into too many details, I should mention that our long road trip really screwed up my spine alignment but Heidi at Lone Peak Physical Therapy soon had me fully ambulatory and even climbing the equivalent of 30 flights on the seven mile Beehive Basin hike.  I kick myself for not taking the advice of my doctor to go there as soon as we returned from our road trip.  My stubbornness resulted in a lot of unnecessary pain and missed fun.

We capped off the summer by flying to Philly on flights memorable because on the bus ride to Bozeman we learned our flight was delayed two hours.  We had a scheduled three-hour layover in Salt Lake City, so we instead spent time in laid back Bozeman Airport, where Delta Airlines even bought us a nice dinner at Copper Horse Restaurant.  We easily made our connection.

Back in the swing of the Main Line, we were soon spending time with Gina, Laszlo and Emma, who have become members of the oldest skating club in America, where Emma is now part of a Synchro Skate team.

Amy came to Ardmore to join the fun for the last weekend of summer, and the weather turned out to be gorgeous.  Gina stopped in for our usual Friday afternoon wine and week-in-review session.  On Saturday, Gina joined Amy, Julie and me on an apple-picking session at Indian Orchards in nearby Media.  It was a fun outing, but the girls always make everything fun.

In the evening, Gina took Emma to a skating session, which we stopped in to watch for awhile before leaving with Laszlo for a Greek Festival at a church in Broomall, which is about four miles away.  Great Greek music and truly delicious food at this annual event resulted in huge turnout for the parking lot tents event.

We rationalized that standing in line for food was not much different than standing a little closer to the stage to watch the band playing music nearby, made more pleasant by splitting a bottle of Greek white wine while waiting.

The Pork Souvlaki and Moussaka were fantastic, but the Spanakopita --- a spinach pie in fila dough with feta cheese --- that Amy ordered proved to be the star of the entrees.

Laszlo brought over four eclair shaped honey pastries: Galaktoboureko.  Once again, simply excellent.

On Sunday, Amy went with Julie and me to church (the church in the photo to the left is actually not where we went, but rather the Greek Orthodox Church that hosted the festival) before she headed over to spend a little dedicated time with Emma before heading home.  This being Monday, the last weekend of summer is very fresh in my mind, which resulted in it being weighted equal to the rest of the summer, but isn't that how life always seems, with what is close magnified?

In any case, we again thank God for being so blessed to enjoy another wonderful season.

Wes, Patra, Tony an Judie at Canfieled Acres in Davenport, WA

Bridge On An Oregon Trail

Taprock Grill, Rogue River, Oregon

Teddy's New Throne

Julie, Karen and Randy at Ted's Montana Grill

Karen's "Dolphin" Fruit Salad

View From Wilson Hotel Lobby Bar

Darlene and Wes on Eglisse Trail

Gondola View of BG3 Tearing Down Eglisse On Mountain Bike

Brooks and Darlene Hiking Uphill

Moose Creek

C'mon, Cotton!

Pennsylvania

Cantaloupes Larger than Watermelons