Wednesday in the water

Wednesday, July 10:  I picked up the girls at 1:00, we ate a nice lunch over at my place, and then we headed over to Versluis Park to go swimming. Kaity was excited to go back ... especially now that I had found our nets. Perhaps we would catch one of those elusive guppies yet!

 I'm not sure what this snarly face (see below) is all about on Kaity ... she cracks me up. See Emma behind her?

 It was a picture-perfect day ... and the temp got up into the low 90's with pretty high humidity too.

 This was a refreshing little spot to cool off!

 This is a very pretty little park. I'm SO SO thankful the Lord brought it to mind last week ... it's so much easier to drive the 5 minutes here instead of the almost 50 minutes over to Grand Haven. I DO miss the lighthouse, the piers, the boardwalk, gorgeous Lake Michigan ... but sometimes you just have to do what you can with what you have!

 Kaity absolutely LOVES to be in the water. She is armed with a water weapon (below) and is looking for a target!

 Look at her! We met a few "friends" today at the beach. One in particular was a boy, perhaps 11 years old, by the name of Cameron. He kept referring to Kaity as "the girl with the dead aim." Emma explained to me that Kaity has been shooting Nerf darts since she was a baby, so she ought to be a pretty good shot by now!

 Look how gloriously happy Kaity is. This smile is worth every single bit of effort put into "packing up" (it is no small endeavor!) and hitting the beach. 

 Versluis Lake is actually a gravel pit; hence, the caution with the roped-off swimming areas. They have three life-guards stationed in an elevated station. Two of the three keep their eyes roaming back and forth across the swim area at all times--it is their designated JOB. I found this out because we went seeking a life jacket for Kaity. You see, they offer life jackets right there at the station for children. However, the 3rd lifeguard wasn't available to help us at that very moment, and the other two told us they could NOT stop "roaming" with their eyes on the beach area ... not for one second! 

 It reminds me of the verse that Emma and I talked about last week during our study of the kings and the prophets. We were in 2 Chronicles 16.9:  "For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him." But God doesn't need two lifeguards! His immense heart of love and the greatness of WHO HE IS, is enough to keep His eyes on those who are FULLY committed to him. Why does He watch over those who love Him? "TO STRENGTHEN THEM." We are so weak without Him! Thank you, Lord! Help us to BE fully committed to You.

 I did a bunch of swimming too, and I actually sat in the water, net positioned UNDER the water to swoop up one of those bratty guppies ... to no avail! We never did catch a single one of those guys!

 I was glad to see the kiddos make friends so easily. We shared our water guns with them for awhile, and our nets too. It was so much fun.

 Speaking of fish!!

 Thank you, Lord, for this beautiful little place so close to where I live. Thank you for giving Wednesday to us!