24/52: Father's Day Weekend in Eugene/Springfield

Father's Day Weekend is becoming quite an event.  The last few years, it's been centered around some sort of road trip and this year we started off with a beautiful drive on Friday to King Estate Winery for a wonderful lunch.  It's a beautiful area and our lunch was spectacular.  We stopped off to pay a quick visit to my Aunt and Uncle (Mom's side) and it was nice to spend a bit more time with them having just seen them again for the family reunion at the beginning of May.

Friday night we hit PK Park in Eugene to see the Emeralds take on the Vancouver Canadians in minor league baseball action.  The park is great (just a few years old), very imitate and a nice place to see baseball (it's still not Civic Stadium).

Saturday we headed up the McKenzie River Highway on our way to Sister's, OR.  It was a spectacular drive with stops for waterfalls and panoramic views of Cascade peaks.  For me, it wasn't about the destination, although Sisters has a lot going for it...it was about the journey and spending quality time with my Pop over Father's Day Weekend.

The weekend went by all too soon and before we turned the rental "beast" van back into the rental car company, we were already planning next year's adventure.

Enjoy!
Stacy 

26/52: Father's Day Weekend in Eugene/Springfield, OR

We had quite a mismatched weekend with a bit of this and a bit of that over Father's Day.

Last Friday, we drove from Eugene to Roseburg to the Roseburg National Cemetery where my Dad's brother, Mike's ashes are interned.  It was a bitter sweet journey, but the family agreed that it was the right thing to do...to say a proper goodbye even if Mike was absent from our family most of his life.  I know it meant a lot to my Dad and that's all that really mattered to me.

We drove north west out of downtown Roseburg along the Umpqua River to Henry Estate Winery. This part of Oregon is beautiful and the "Hundred Valleys of the Umpqua" forms the heart of the timber industry of Southern Oregon, generally centered around Roseburg. 

The Native Americans in the Umpqua's watershed consist of several tribes including the Coquille and the Kalapuya.  The Umpqua River boasts some of the world's best fly-fishing and is famous for its small mouthed bass, striped bass and shad population.

Henry Estate Winery, has been in operation for more than 30 years and has five generations of wine growing history behind them.  Beginning in 1978, Henry Estate produced only 2,000 gallons of wine.  Today, full production is 18,000 cases, 75% of which is handcrafted from estate grown grapes.  Their tasting room is open daily from 11-5:00 and it gave us an opportunity to sample some of their wonderful wines and take in the gorgeous views.

We also stopped by Misty Oaks Winery and has their current offerings of Gobbler's Knob Red Blend, Constitution Ridge Pinot Blanc, Jones Road Cabernet Franc and the Viper Trail Malbec (we enjoyed so much that Rosemary bought two bottles).

We left the vineyard and headed north east to the historic town of Oakland, OR.  This city was the first city to be placed on the state's historic register in 1968.  The city's two block business district consists of the original brick buildings built in the 1880's and 1890's. Stearns hardware has been in operation since 1887.

In the center of town is Tolly's Grill and Soda Fountain, housed in a historic building built in 1872. It was great place to stop for linner (lunch/dinner) and enjoy an old fashioned homemade soda from the restored fountain.

On Saturday, Brian flew in from Seattle and we went out for breakfast at the Washburne Cafe before settling back to E Street.  We didn't have much planned for the day, but it was nice to be outside by the pool and visit as a family.  The weather was just perfect and it made for a great outdoor day and time in the pool.

Saturday for dinner we decided to have a small plate/tapas/appetizer meal.  Brian made his Pinot Noir meatballs, Pop threw some honey mustard chicken wings in the slow cooker, I grilled some lamb lollipops and there were dips and salads overflowing.

It was a great celebration of Dad and family once again this year.

Happy Father's Day to all! 

Enjoy!
Stacy

Old Photo Friday: Stacy by the Pool

WHO: Stacy Dare Brady (my Dad wrote on the picture...Stacy by the pool)
WHAT: Ready for a swim
WHERE: E Street in Springfield, OR
WHEN: Summer 1978/79 - I look to be about 9 or 10

This time of year is bitter sweet for me.  Local kids just finished the school year here in Portland and it always reminds me of my youth.  Summers for me were so magical.  Filled with lazy days, bike rides, sleeping outside, playing all day and always.....swimming at E street.  Growing up with a swimming pool in my backyard made summer....summer.

Enjoy!
Stacy

Songs from the summer of 1978.......

Andy Gibb - Shadow Dancing
Bee Gees - Night Fever
Player - Baby Come Back
Frankie Valli - Grease
Wings - With a Little Luck
Bonnie Tyler - It's a Heartache
ABBA - Take a Chance on Me
Donna Summer - Last Dance
Kansas - Dust in The Wind
Pablo Cruise - Love Will Find a Way
Little River Band - Reminiscing
Eddie Money - Baby Hold On 
Bob Welch - Sentimental Lady
ELO - Sweet Talking Woman
Jackson Browne - Running on Empty
 

 

25/52: Covered Bridge Tour on Father's Day Weekend

We had a wonderful Father's Day Weekend in Eugene/Springfield.

Saturday we took a road trip tour of covered bridges in the Cottage Grove area. 

Mosby Creek Bridge; constructed in 1920.  This is the oldest bridge in Lane Country and one lane remains open to traffic today (although closed for repairs)

Oregon has the largest collection of covered bridges in the West and once of the largest in the nation.

 

   The Stewart Bridge constructed in 1930 and restored in 1996

The covered-bridge building tradition in Oregon dates from the 1850's.  Out of necessity, pioneers built with the materials on hand.  Douglas fir was abundant in western Oregon and well-suited for bridge construction.

The heyday of covered bridge building in Oregon occurred between 1905 and 1925 when there were an estimated 450 covered bridges in the state.  By 1977, the number dwindled to 50.

 Chambers Bridge; built in 1925 by lumberman J.H. Chambers.  This is the only remaining covered railroad bridge West of the Mississippi River.  This is the bridge my father "might" have tried to burn down when he was a kid!?

The Currin Bridge was constructed in 1925 and restored in 1995, the bridge features white portals and red sides.

The Dorena Bridge was constructed in 1949 and restored in 1996 

The best part of the day was hearing all my Pop's stories about growing up in the area and getting into some serious trouble when he was a kid.

A final treat was driving up to Grandma Cavey's old homestead.  

This is the barn that my Pop helped build with Grandpa Cavey.  The white building is where they milked the cows.

What a great adventure for Father's Day Weekend!

Enjoy!

Stacy

70 Years of Memories for Diamond Jim Brady!

My Pop turned 70 on Sunday and we headed to Eugene for a family celebration.

It's hard to know what to get someone who is 70.  My Dad's made it clear that he has all the riches that any man could ever want (aside from winning the lottery) so I searched my soul to try and find some sort of fitting gift (oh let's face it....I stared with Pinterest)!

I came across a wonderful birthday idea called 60 years of Memories.  I immediately thought that it was a beautiful idea and I decided to borrow (steal) it for my own, but since my Dad would be 70, I'd have 10 more years of memories!

Everyone I mentioned the project to thought that it was a wonderful birthday treat, especially for someone as special as my Pop.

The hardest part was putting the list together and finding the e-mail and mailing addresses of friends and family (without being too suspicious).  A big thank you to Chick and Rosemary for helping me.

About 6 weeks ago, I began sending out the e-mails and letters and slowly the responses started coming in. I took the advice of others who have also put the project together and sent a reminder e-mail about three weeks from his birthday.

It was fun to see all the memories come pouring in from friends, ex-co workers, cousins and old neighbors.

We gathered all the memories together and I stuffed them into 70 vintage envelopes (Etsy), wrapped them in colored ribbon (Michaels) and added a cute label (Martha Stewart...eat your heart out).

Then, last Sunday morning, we shared a wonderful brunch, served up some mimosas and presented the 70 year-old birthday boy with his memories.

It took hours to get through all the letters!  Some of the stories made us belly laugh and some made us cry, but we all really enjoyed the outpouring of love and emotions.

Enjoy!
Stacy

Weekend Wrap-Up: To Eugene for Father's Day!

Chick and I headed to Eugene last Friday to spend the weekend with my Pop, Rosemary and Steve for Father's Day!

First stop was breakfast on Friday at Fin's Drive-In.  When Fin's opened back in 1994, I was one of the first waitresses they hired.  I worked there for a summer before jetting across the world, and I haven't set foot in the place since.

We had a relaxing afternoon at E Street, the house in Springfield where I grew up.  My parents recently remodeled the inside and painted the outside so the place doesn't look the same...it looks better!

For dinner Friday night, we headed over to Ciao Pizza, but they serve much more than pizza.

Everyone at the table had something different and bites were bartered for, plates were split and wine was sipped.  An excellent family dinner after a busy day.

My hometown, Springfield, OR was first settled by the Biggs Family in 1848.  The city was named after a natural spring located in a field.  The area was timber resource dependent, but since the 1990's the economy has diversified.

 Day Island Park (McKenzie River)

Main Street in Springfield, has suffered over the years. As the timber industry collapsed, businesses failed and families moved over the river to Eugene.  Recently, the economy is improving and a re-gentrification of the downtown area is underway.

 Old Time Springfield - Pictures courtesy of the Springfield Museum

In 1871 the main line of the Oregon and California Railroad bypassed Springfield for Eugene.  The story goes that a group of prominent Eugene Businessmen paid railroad financier, Ben Holladay, $40,000 to bypass Springfield by crossing the Willamette River near Harrisburg instead of Springfield this began a rivalry that lasts to this day.

Pop took us over to the old train depot, which currently houses the Springfield Chamber of Commerce.

The city of Springfield is surrounded by filbert (hazelnut) orchards.  The production has declined over time as fields have been developed into homes.  Filbert harvesting occurs in October and 98% of American filbert production is harvested in the Willamette Valley.




We also explored the Springfield historical museum, which was really cool.

After the depot and the museum, we had the opportunity to check out the Oregon K-9 Competition at Silke Field in Springfield.  It was a real treat for Uncle Steve who loves German Sheppard dogs.

We then headed over to B2 Wine Bar to meet up with family friend, Vicki Bell (who Sandra has known for over 30 years).

 Cheers from B2 Wine Bar!

Saturday night's dinner was at a new place in downtown Springfield called Plank Town Brewing Company.

Our meal consisted of Pulled Pork Tacos, Seared Steelhead, two Rib Eye Steaks and a Bacon Irish Cheddar Burger.

Cheers from Plank Town!

Of course, cards and celebration on Sunday, officially Father's Day! Pop cooked breakfast for all of us before Chick and I headed back to Portland.

It was a wonderful family weekend!

Enjoy!
Stacy