The Pacific Northwest has had more rain this winter than at any other time over the last 37 years. That's a lot of rain. My mother lives in a rural island community near the mouth of the Columbia River. A mudslide has shut down one of only two ways to access the area. The only option for getting on and off Puget Island is a small ferry which can carry between 9-12 cars (depending on size). We went out there today and were forced to leave our car on the Oregon side of the river and then to walk with the twins onto the ferry. Hundreds of people have been doing the same way since the mudslides hit last week. Once we arrived on the Washington side of the island my mother was there to greet us and to escort us in her car back to the house. The picture shows Liz and the twins enjoying the 20-minute ferry ride.
Before eating our meal we had to survey the damage recent storms had made to their property and other parts of the island. High wind damage is obvious where ever you look. Frances and Katherine were a little less interested with the storm damage and made it clear they wanted to visit with the 
chickens and goats on the property. My mother has something like 24 chickens on the island, too many dogs to count, more cats than you've ever seen before. Puget Island is a little like the zoo. It is a great place for kids. Both Frances and Katherine had a blast visiting with all the animals.
A major purpose of this trip was to celebrate the birthday of one of those guys who looks younger with each passing year. Mother made a good Southern-style "Chicken and Dumplings" for dinner. The food was terrific and the cake just great. The twins played for hours with each other and with their grandparents. We're hoping to get the entire family together here next week for another birthday-related event. We're all agreed that birthdays should last at least a month.
