So much fun!

 For the last 10 days we have been busy having so much fun with Samuel. He and his Papa enjoyed their fly-fishing float trip on the Deschutes so much, they were still smiling the next morning. Beautiful country, and new to both of them. No fish caught, but a great learning time.

 Our guide, Scott Blackwell provided them with a wonderful lunch, and Scott and his daughter Emily accompanied the insurance man and Sam. Aren't they just a picture of male and female fisher-folk?

 The next morning we left for Burns, and spent the Labor Day week-end there with Sam's great-grandparents, who are both 90. We had a great time. The men folks went out hunting for Indian artifacts on two separate days. They hunted on private land, where Dad has friends that give him permission.

 They had beautiful weather, just perfect for the occasion. Here it was time for a lunch break on the tailgate. Look at that beautiful blue sky!

 Samuel found his first arrowhead, and what a beauty it was! He was really proud and exited.

 Here is our desert-dirty boy, with his trophies from the hunt.

 And a trophy of another sort....one only boys could appreciate. A desert scorpion.

 On Monday the insurance man and his brother took Samuel out to the 'gravel pit' just outside of town, where they caught several trout. That was fun in and of itself, but it is also where Sam's Mom caught her own first fish at age 3.

 Samuel turned out to be a pro at cleaning and filleting the fish, and once we got home to Bend, I showed him how to fry it up and put it on my special 'fish' platter. We both murmured 'yum' when biting into that fresh fried trout! On our way home we stopped at a Rest Stop where Sam got his last look at the high desert. I think he has come to really appreciate the desert.

 Once home Sam helped his Papa out by mowing the lawn for him, and we got busy cooking and packing up our trailer to take another trip South to East Lake.
We found a great camping spot, close to the lake, and Sam and the insurance man rented a boat.

 They spent one afternoon and morning on the lake.....

 with the result of netting a fairly good sized brown trout. Another bout of cleaning, frying and enjoying the fish ensued.

 After a refreshing dip in the lake....do I remember Sam saying 'frigid'? We gathered our things together to head home.

 Sam found hundreds (if not thousands) of these tiny hatched frogs at the edge of the water. He wanted a picture for his siblings to see. They would have enjoyed catching them.

After getting home, we turned around and headed back to the Willamette Valley, where we spent the night with Joy and her family before taking Samuel back to the airport on Friday. It all went so fast...but was so much fun getting to know Sam better and the young man he is turning into. We couldn't be more proud of him. He is back with his family again now...but I hope with some memories to last a lifetime.