Thanksgiving 2013 - Bend, OR

Ben, Sam, and I flew out to Bend, Oregon to visit with Scott and Libby. Scott and Libby are renting a house until March. Bend is a great little town. Surrounded by mountains, but with the temperate coastal weather, it makes for a nice vacation destination. Unfortunately, the weather is so nice that there isn't any snow on Mt. Bachelor yet. We have been enjoying other activities in lieu of skiing. We have played several rounds of the game, Settlers of Catan. We have hiked in several parks and enjoyed tasty food. We hiked near in Shevlin Park and Smith Rock. Smith Rock was phenomenal. There were a lot of rock climbers there and the scenery was impressive. From certain vantage points, the entire mountain range could be seen. It was an 800 ft ascent which proved a little more challenging than we had anticipated. All of us were dressed in multiple layers thinking we would get cold, but we were sweating our brains out. You live and you learn, I guess. A great holiday weekend with family and feeling thankful for all that life has brought us so far!