October 2 Back to Grand Rogue Park

Sunday Afternoon:  My heart sings for joy as I write about this special treat delivered to me today via Emma and Belle. It's been a pretty rare occasion for Emma to have anything whatsoever to do with me  during this year she has lived with me, and I have longed for the "old times" we used to share together. Before you accuse me of NOT accepting the fact that Emma is no longer a little kid, I will tell you that I DO realize she has grown up and needs her own space and privacy. I try super hard NOT to interfere with her need for solitude ... but it doesn't stop me from wishing with all of my heart that we could turn the dial back every once and awhile and just relax and laugh together like we used to do.

But enough of that. Today, Emma invited me to go on a walk with she and Belle-Belle. Naturally, I said YES! 

You will notice the unique situation of our dear Belle in the picture above. First--this is the cat pack that Emma asked me to get for her birthday. It reminds me of a little space ship! It's absolutely perfect for Belle. Also, Emma has dressed Belle in her Halloween costume--a little difficult to see in this picture, but Belle will be a PUMPKIN this year for Halloween. It was a little bit cool outside, so Emma figured if Belle had a little warm costume on, this would help her be happier. 

Emma had suggested we go over to where the railroad tracks are behind Maranatha Bible Church--there is one of our favorite woodsy places back there. But I suggested we stay closer to home (for Belle's sake, being that she isn't crazy about riding in a car) and just go to Grand Rogue (5 minutes away) instead. So that is what we did. We took a completely different walking route than Kaity and I had walked yesterday. I like this path much better because it is next to the Rogue River and then winds around to the Grand River.

Such a beautiful place! I felt like we had gone right back to EDEN.

Isn't Belle darling in her little back pack?

We ended up walking 1.8 miles. Yes! A few times, we stopped and Emma opened up the back pack (with Belle on a leash) to see if she would actually come OUT and enjoy nature ... 

This was about as far as Belle would venture (below) ... but she seemed perfectly happy to stay near her pack and the safety inside.

I was SO happy to be outside walking with Emma--it DID seem like old times ... ah ... my heart aches for how difficult life can be and how deep the struggles are that Emma faces. Please do Your work in her, Lord, as only You can.

I love these pictures!

What a gift today was! You are AWESOME in Your faithfulness and love for us, Lord. Thank you so much.
 

October 1 with Kaity

Saturday afternoon/evening:  Kaity was "up" for an exploration walk when I picked her up from Jesse at 3:30. Yes! We stopped at Grand Rogue Park, which is only five minutes from where I live. Kaity hasn't been here before, so it's always fun to take her to a new "woodsy" place. She enjoyed herself hugely, and so did I--although I had a difficult time keeping up with her! She runs SO fast!

It was one of those super perfect days to be outside--oh, for six months of this! I'll take whatever amount God gives us, though--and in Michigan, there are not that many 70 degree days that are totally sunny and just-so-softly breezy as this one ...

There are a number of ponds back here that are very swampy ...

This is about as far ahead of me as Kaity was during our entire hour here!

Now and then she would slow down enough for me to snap a picture ... she cracks me up.

So peaceful ...

SO GREEN still ... although a hint of color is starting to show ... it's going to get truly amazing in the next few weeks--so thankful for Octobers!

I checked the mileage on my phone, and we managed to walk one mile! That was plenty for Kaity and she suggested we leave the park and head for my house, which we did.

Our little Belle was waiting for some snuggles and cuddles, which Kaity supplied in abundance.

At one point, Kaity looked up from the game she was playing on her phone and asked: "What shall we do, grandma?" So I went through my usual list of games and indoor activities available to us here at the Beach House ... and then I just threw out the idea that we could "build with the train tracks!" never thinking she would actually take me up on it ... but she did! Kaity wanted to see if we had enough track to actually encircle my rooms ...

We had so much fun building it--we DID have enough track--and we tested "Big RED" to see if she could go up and down all of our hills and bridges--she struggled over some of them, but we helped her along. Overall, this was a really good activity for us to do. It got Kaity engaged and she "filmed" Big Red going around our track so that she could show her friend, Caden, in Canada.

I also made us a batch of French Toast for our dinner. NOTE TO SELF: Do NOT add so much sugar next time! It was overwhelming, and even Kaity didn't eat very much of it. 

I enjoyed being with you today, Kaity, very much!
 

October 1 Dwight Lydell Park

Saturday morning:  I decided to take a little walk this morning over at the park where Kaity and I were Thursday evening. I didn't leave as early as I had thought I would ... but 9:00 is better than not at all. I took a ton of pictures.

This is Mill Creek. It's not a very big creek, but I like it very much. I like the rocks and all of the wild flowers that grow on the banks of it.

Aren't the flowers SO pretty?

This is the old train depot that houses a bunch of HO layouts and other model train stuff.

I thought it was very "cool" that the wildflowers even grew on tiny islands in the middle of the creek! I would love it if I could learn how to grow some on my side yard here at home.

The leaves are beginning to change color ... it's going to get even prettier here in the next week or two.

I love these photographs and can't wait to design a few cards using them! You are an AMAZING Creator, Lord!

September 30 A little bit lost ...

Friday:  I ended up walking THREE miles today, rather unintentionally actually. 

Here's the story:  I walked out my front door at about quarter past six in the evening to take a "short" walk. I didn't feel like taking a "usual" route, so instead of turning RIGHT on Chauncey, I turned LEFT. As I walked and listened to beautiful music on a gorgeous sunny perfect fall evening, I just kept going up the hill and pretty soon I reached 7 Mile. Hmm, I thought. I didn't want to turn around and just walk back home the way I came, so I figured if I just hung a left at 7 Mile, I would shortly run into the golf course and could cut through there to get back to the Village quite quickly.

Was I ever wrong!

First, the golf course is a lot further down 7 Mile than I remembered! Thankfully, I was walking downhill by that time but I was very surprised to find just how far it was to the drive into the course. It's not an actual or official driveway into the golf course, just kind of a two-track that the owner uses. Anyway, I turned in there and walked for quite awhile and noticed "No trespassing" signs EVERYWHERE ... so then I felt guilty walking there--but at that point, I didn't feel I could turn around and retrace my steps before it got too dark. What should I do, I wondered?

I decided to cut across a rather vast meadow (knee deep in all kinds of interesting plants and weeds, and who knows what else!) and take the pathway into the woods. I remembered seeing many little paths INTO the woods from the back side of the village--so perhaps this little path would just take me through to the other side and then all would be well.

I turned my back on the meadow, which I was quite sick of by this time because the ground was so unpredictable and half of the time I couldn't see the ground because of all of the plant growth!

However, the deeper I got into the woods, the more I realized that I was super turned around (who, me?) and I was going to be in deep trouble if I didn't find something I recognized, and SOON! So I asked the Lord to help me find my way home! 

I was so relieved when I finally saw light through the trees and to one of the back lots of the Village. I was so glad to get back to where I knew I was. By the time I walked back into my little house, it was dark and I had walked three miles.

Note to self: STOP getting lost!