The Guddat Gang

This is Jon. Delaney and Adelyn had a surprise visit from their cousins Kaia and Kamryn. I had texted Uncle Logan about how it's been a while since we've all hung out and 10 minutes later they were at my doorstep as I ironically texted them while they were nearby on the freeway. Big cousin Delaney taking care of four-month old Kamryn under the watchful eyes of Uncle Logan. Adelyn, looking like a caged dog. The four cousins: Kamryn, 9-year old Delaney, 6-year old Adelyn and 4-year old Kaia............and Aunt Lyndsay's elbow.

This is Jon. Delaney and Adelyn have been finding the joys and freedom of owning the roads. Dee was hesitant to ride (over the past few years we've slowly built up the confidence) and Adds loved her scooter more than the bike. This spring however, they've jumped on the bikes and have taken to the streets. Both of them are thrilled with how much they can explore Kittitas that much easier, which has been fun to watch. Both girls have taken a couple of good falls, but every time have bounced back up and back on the bike. Neither was riding two weeks ago, now we can't get them off their bikes (even in today's rain), which is a good problem to have. Last weekend, Adelyn sportin' the shades while riding. D n' A on a morning ride this past Monday. It was chilly on Monday so the first gloves Adelyn found to wear were her gardening gloves. Delaney cruisin' like a blur. Adelyn too! We saw she was mastering the riding quick enough that we decided to b

This is Jon. Mother Nature played a trick on us again. Sunday was the second time we planned to head up to Mt. Rainier to go sledding at Paradise, but torrential downpours over the last couple of days caused landslides which closed White Pass for hours on Saturday night and Sunday morning. This is after last month's President's Day storm which dropped six feet of snow on Paradise over the course of three days, which meant we weren't getting there even if we had chains on a four-wheel drive truck driven by a guy named "Joe Six Pack". We still headed up into the hills though because we like going places that take us away from reality, even if it's just for a day drive. As we headed up Hwy 12 to White Pass, we stopped by the Oak Creek Elk Feeding station about 15 minutes west of Naches. I guesstimate there were about 150 elk there and were within a few feet of us. Delaney and I actually went to the Watt Canyon feeding station 15 miles west of Ellensburg on Satur

This is Jon. Has anyone been paying attention to a bit of news this week? Apparently there is a crack in the Wanapum Dam down river from the metropolis of Vantage (couple hundo people at most for a population base). Apparently a 65-foot long, 2-inch wide crack is a big deal. All joking aside, they need to fix it as I'm thinking of electricity, irrigation and general safety here. To relieve pressure on the dam walls, they've lowered the water level of the mighty Columbia 20 feet, which is incredibly significant as seen below. Brittany wasn't working today, so we headed down for a quick afternoon stroll in Vantage. See the crack there? Neither can I, but it's there, under water. Back upstream at the boat launch. I'm standing where there should be about five feet of water. What should be a large, deep body of water, major play area for boaters, rafters and swimmers. I'm told the owner knows his boat is hanging out like this. Apparently he doesn't care a

This is Jon. Adelyn has dubbed Wazzu her favorite school for about 18 months now. How did it start? I have a golf club cover of the Cougar mascot that somehow Addy got a hold of and really hasn't let go for a while. It's not weird or anything, "Butch" mostly stays in her room, but the pet cougar has now turned into full blown allegiance to the Cougs for Adelyn, even more so than my CWU Wildcats (although I'm a big Coug fan as well). I decided to surprise her with a trip to Pullman (great town, great drive along Hwy 26) to watch the WSU women's basketball team on Senior Day and she and I had a great time. Adelyn in front of the "Butch the Cougar" bronze sculpture which is at the Martin Stadium entrance. We found a couple of open gates and all of a sudden it was me and Adelyn all alone with Martin Stadium to ourselves. I think we played tag up and down most of the steps in the stadium. She also ran down and scored a touchdown on the untouched, s

This is Jon. My girls are quite the champion girl scouts. We had "Thinking Day" where neighboring troops convene to showcase what they've learned on various topics. Our girls joined forces to showcase Argentina (Delaney) and Girl Guides (Scouts in England by Adelyn). Did you know that students in Argentina have just two, 10-minute recesses? Did you also know that Queen Elizabeth II was a Girl Guide? Me neither, and that's why you should join me for next year's Thinking Day.