Tom and Beth will go on their way today, and our Annie will come to her "own private Idaho" for the weekend.
The beat goes on, and I must say as I reflect on this week so far, it's definitely been another memorable one for the books.
And, it ain't over cuz we have busy days ahead over Labor Day weekend.
Yesterday we took Tom and Beth to Schweitzer where virtually every employee imaginable is helping prepare the place for this weekend's annual Fall Fest.
One employee told me that last year on Saturday, 6,000 people showed up in the village. So, if you plan to go, it's likely you might see someone you know.
While Tom, Beth and Bill rode the quad to the top of the mountain and enjoyed a lunch at the lodge, I moseyed around the village, taking in the sights and enjoying occasional visits with locals.
I took the photo of the Bulldogs for my friend Patsy at Sandpoint High who has an incredible Bulldog memorabilia collection. So, Patsy, I hope you like it.
These two Bulldogs were accompanying their owners on a Schweitzer honeymoon.
I also talked with my friend Matt Smart who runs the trail riding concession at Schweitzer. Matt, who used to train elephants, was saddling up horses and about to take a trio from Canada out on a 2.5 hour ride.
I also met Chris and Chris, both graduates of Sandpoint High. Before walking up to ask "Dreadlocks Chris" if I could take his picture, I had no idea that he was the same teenager who used to play baseball with Willie back in the 1990s.
Let's just say the years have gone by, and Chris' hair has grown a bit. I occasionally bump into the other Chris while attending parties at the Gehring house.
The little person in the Bulldog shirt has a dad who coaches football at Sandpoint High.
It was fun for me (the acrophobiac) to hang out in the village and enjoy the sights while the other trio enjoyed the views from the top of the mountain.
We drove home, took a break and then had some fun with the camera and tripod. Over this past day or so, it has become evident that the Lovestead dogs LOVE having company.
While Bill and I are quite happy and considerate to let the guests have their privacy out behind the barn, all three dogs do not see it that way. They hung out at the travel trailer, which turned out good for Foster.
During the break, we saw him trotting through the yard, headed to the woods with a rib bone, saved in the doggie bag from dinner the night before. Foster never eats the bone hand-outs. He takes them somewhere and hides them.
Later, we had fun with crazy picture shots with the camera and tripod and then headed to the visitors' hangout to watch Tom launch his drone.
Tom was nervous about this because the last time Tom launched his $1,000 drone near Lake Chelan, he crashed it at night. The next morning after searching and purchasing some shears, he was able to retrieve it from a tree limb.
The drone performed perfectly yesterday, taking off and taking pictures of the Lovestead. It landed precisely on its pad, and Tom was feeling a lot better about being a drone pilot.
We enjoyed dinner at Icehouse Pizza after showing them some of the beautiful sights around Hope. They'll be heading off for a few more days of camping before returning to Seattle.
Once more Bill and I feel enriched by the experience of having some folks we barely know staying over here at our little farm.
In showing Tom and Beth around, we have gotten to play "turists" ourselves in our own backyard (literally and figuratively), we've giggled, teased, had fun with the animals and just plain enjoyed each other's company and individual tales of life experiences.
Each experience of that nature over the years has reaped some wonderful memories and new friendships, sure to last a lifetime.
This afternoon Emma and I will drive to Spokane to pick up Annie, and another phase of enjoying smokeless skies and crisp early fall weather in North Idaho will begin.
Should be a fun weekend. Enjoy the photos.
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