Trip back to the Homestead.

Even though we live in the Seattle area, both of our roots are in the small town of Colville, WA. Colville is located in north eastern Washington in a place where there is lots of sunshine in summer, lots of snow in winter, and enough outdoor activities to keep a person busy for a lifetime. Debbie's family still owns a small farm nearby this town and we regularly make the trip to go see them. When we are there, we make sure to spend time exploring our old haunts as well as finding places we didn't see when we lived there.

Make the Jump for more pictures and story.

It's funny how things can hold significance in your life, yet you don't even know it until years or even decades later.

Jesse moved to Colville around 1980 and started school in 5th grade at Hoffstetter Elementary. Debbie had been attending school here starting a couple of years earlier.

Over the years, there have been many changes to the school grounds, but the one thing that has remained, even if moved to a different location, is the merry-go-round.


There isn't really anything special about this merry-go-round in particular. Except, perhaps, this is the place where we met almost 35 years ago.

Even if we didn't know it at the time, and it wasn't until we were discussing it may years later when we figured out that this is where we met, it still holds a place in our memory.

As you pull into Colville from the south, if you look up on the mountain behind the town you will see a white cross and a giant letter "C". These are affectionately known as "The Cross" and "The C". Original, huh?

You don't need a 4x4 to get up to them, but it helps. There are a few portions of the road leading to the summit which are quite rough and have loose rocks, so you should at least have good tires.

It is common for younger people to make their way up here. Either to just explore or on occasion to party. It's common for us older people to make our way up here just to enjoy the view of the town and the valley.





Because Colville sits at the very base of this mountain, you can see the entire town. You can also look west down the Colville Valley all the way to Lake Roosevelt.

It's always nice to finish up a summer day talking fish stories on the front porch.

We will leave you today with a parting shot of Emma after having played in the mud, water, horse trough, and the rest of the horse field.

More Pictures!