Our Mom was an amazing woman with more energy than most of her children (me included).It could be that raising 8 kids set that energy in motion, but I suspect she was always that way, a cheerful and carefree kid from the get-go.
Mom’s favorite place to go in the whole wide world was Lake Chelan. Every summer Mom and Dad would load all 8 of us into the station wagon and head for our week of sun and swimming. For a girl from Wenatchee this was the place of memories from her childhood. (Wenatchee is just an hour’s drive from Chelan) She and her best friend forever, Betty Dodson, continued the tradition even after the kids were grown. They set up camp at the R.V. park by the lake and invited the grandkids to their favorite spot. As need grew and we aged we had to settle for more practical accommodations at Darnell’s Resort. Mom’s unit remained the hubbub of all the action and activity, the meals, cribbage, and card games. Eventually it grew into a devoted group of equally enthusiastic lake people, grown kids, grandkids, and great grandkids, taking 4 units at last count. She loved it there, never a private suite for her she thrived on the energy of a room full of people and enjoyed that everyone took a turn for meal night. It was like a block party. Together we had our daily river walks, our cornhole tournaments (of which she was always a contender), nightly card games, and the lake at our feet all day long. This was her most splendid getaway.
Simple woman, simple needs, with a heart that always had room and energy for more.