I am, indeed, a little late in posting these images…ahem…fall has come with a flourish of activity around Spring Creek Ranch. There has recently been a last hay cutting, a move to design the NEW website, the opening of fishing season!, our local rodeo, Okanogan County Fair and the beginning of a new school year.

Bringing us back to Rosh Hashanah. Translated from Hebrew as the Head of the Year or commonly known as the Jewish New Year. I had the distinct honor of bringing snacks for my girls’ first day at Little Star Montessori and I thought what could be more timely (and yummy) than fresh challah.
As our little one was resting from the excitement of the Labor Day Rodeo (big sister decided at the LAST possible moment not to climb onto the back of a wild sheep and bust some mutton-next year, perhaps?) preparations for making challah began…

Challah, in the world of kid’s bread baking, is like an action sport. You get to divide the dough, squeeze it into long snakes and braid! And in the case of the Rosh Hashanah challah…make it ROUND.
The tradition of making the usual loaf round signifies the continuation of the seasons, the cyclical nature of the year (among many other interesting ideas). The word for year-shana comes from the hebrew word repeat…
Brushing on the egg glaze, so much fun.
Voila! And of course, the kids got apples and honey, too!

The North Cascades Smokejumpers, who have been based in Winthrop, Washington since 1939, did a practice jump at Spring Creek Ranch (see Spring Creek Cabin in the middle/center of the photo). The children from Little Star Montessori School came to watch. What a beautiful day!

Leah, who grew up in the Okanogan Valley and Randall, who has lived in Seattle/Bellingham and Alaska for many years, chose Spring Creek Ranch for their destination wedding, in part, because it was a great meeting place for their families and friends. “Half wayish” from each side of Washington State, one could say.
Leah and Randall chose to get married in a circle, in the middle of our alfalfa field. We mowed them an opening and set up crisp, white flags on bamboo poles. The setting for their ceremony was breathtaking with the sun setting behind the North Cascade foothills for their backdrop.
Annie and Ken, Leah’s parents, raised a pig which was roasted to PERFECTION by Norma and Brad Martin, a local couple. Friends and family from all over the country came to the Methow Valley and enjoyed a weekend of recreation and visiting.

We set up our camping area and hosted about 20 tents. The salmon run up Spring Creek was in full swing and the campers said that they could hear the fish in the creek as they went to sleep!
I am not sure that I have ever laughed so hard AND cried so honestly during a ceremony. What a perfect way to end our awesome season of weddings! Cheers everyone!

{see Meghan’s review on Yelp http://www.yelp.com/biz/spring-creek-ranch-winthrop }
Congrats! Meghan and Chad! What a wonderful weekend full of friends and family and good memories for all. Meghan and Chad beautifully combined Jewish and Christian traditions while weaving the theme of water and the natural world through out their ceremony.
Spring Creek was full of spawning salmon that kept all of the guests and campers entertained!
Beautiful local flower arrangements decorated the property.
Each table was named for a western river: The Methow, The Rogue, The Columbia…
The couple on their way to the Spring Creek Cabin for a quiet, precious moment after the ceremony.

Now that July is nearly gone, we have finally had some beautiful, hot and sunny days. Spring Creek Ranch is located at the confluence of the two major rivers that run through the valley, the Methow and the Chewuch. The Chewuch is generally several degrees warmer than the Methow.
This time of year, it is a pleasure to spend time cooling off in both the rivers!