SUMPTER FUN

During Memorial Day weekend we spent some time in Sumpter, Oregon. My dad had a booth at the Flea Market selling wood and invited us to come along. It is a beautiful area as you can see by the gorgeous picture that my husband took.At the Flea Market the boys also had a booth. They sold snake neck-coolers, log cabin seed packets & balloons. Zane was very serious about their new business and delegated jobs to each worker; Zane sold the snakes, Luke was in charge of the seed packets, Cade was to sell the balloons and Lolly could sell Grandma Boom-Boom's coffee pots. Zane later said that, "Lolly didn't work out." She wasn't too interested in selling.

Luke went up to one lady and told her about the Douglas Fir seed packets that are marketed as Log Cabin Kits [my mom's creation]. She asked him, "If I plant the seeds will a log cabin really grow?" Luke, our budding businessman, responded, "Buy it and see."

We wanted to go gold mining while we were in town, but the business was closed and we were not brave enough to go find a place on our own for fear we would inadvertently end up at someone's claim. While we were looking around, Zane said he thinks he knows why people who are searching for gold are called miners. He said it is because they say, "This is mine. This is mine. No one can have it, it's only mine."

Later that night we were sitting in a restaurant right next to an entrance with a "NO MINORS" sign. Zane asked, "Why don't they want people who look for gold to go in there?" Get it? NO MINERS! Those boys keep us laughing.

We also got to ride on the Sumpter Valley Railway steam-powered train. It was the first train ride for the boys, Cory and me [except for on the miniature train in Molalla]. It was also my Dad's first train ride and Joy and Lolly's too. My mom has been on trains before, but it was her first steam-powered trip. My father-in-law, Terry, and his wife, Loretta, were also able to come with us. It was a fun time for all and the scenery was beautiful.