Summer Workers at Willowbrook
 For the past 10 years the gardens and grounds of Willowbrook have been developed and maintained by me and the kids (and any of their friends that were willing to work). One by one the kids have left the nest, leaving me to have to import help. Lucky for me I have nieces and nephews who think working for Aunt Terry is a cool way to spend the summer! This year I enjoyed having Kjiersten and Curtis as my go-to helpers. My motto is, "work hard, play hard" and we did just that. These kids made and served a lot of tea sandwiches and scones, washed a lot of dishes, and pulled a LOT of weeds. We made sure to make some good memories playing too! Here are few pictures of the fun we had. You might want to come and use Willowbrook as base camp to enjoy some of these fun summer adventures.
Our bike camping trip to Rasar State Park was super fun! Only 11 miles from Willowbrook, the ride to the park is beautiful, with little or no traffic and totally FLAT terrain. Typically when we bike camp, I tow the tent and food in my little bike trailer and the kids strap their sleeping bags to the handlebars. Conveniently, this time we had a non-biker who drove to the park with all of our gear! We arrived at dusk and made s'mores over the fire and then came home the next day after a great pancake breakfast and exploring the bank along the Skagit River.
My favorite local hike is Schriebers Meadow at the base of Mount Baker. It makes for an easy overnighter and the views are spectacular. My daughter, Addy came along for the fun.
 
I always haul the bulk of the gear so the kids can enjoy the hike with lighter packs. Attached to the side of my pack was the 'white mystery box'. The kids asked what was in it, and I told them it was a surprise. You can imagine their delight when, after dinner, I opened the box and shared with them half of a Costco velvet chocolate cake! If you think this cake is delicious, you should try it on top of a mountain!
 Our last adventure before Kjiersten went home was canoe camping on Baker Lake. (Curtis missed out on this one, but I took him canoeing on Lake Washington under the 520 bridge and along side the arboretum) . Baker lake makes canoe camping so easy! Our family has the prep-time down to about an hour. We use Ikea bags to toss all of the food, sleeping bags, and camping gear, load them up in the 15 passenger van and hook up to the canoe trailer and off we go! The paddle across the lake is just enough to make you feel like you are 'getting away from it all' and the remote campsites have incredible views of Baker. I took a three-canoe load of teens with on this trip and my job was to keep the food a-comin'. I really do love camp-cooking.
Work hard-Play hard. My kinda summer! I think Kjiersten and Curtis agree. They said they will come back next summer. |
