Mother nature....

Even as a little girl I've loved being outside. While I must admit, I enjoy nice weather better than cold. If the temperature is around 30° or above I'm good. I have blogged before about "going down south" camping. My husband and I have gone down several times recently. We have enjoyed some beautiful snowfall, warm fall conditions and most recently an unusally brilliant spring day.

My husband works way to many hours at an entirely too physically demanding job. So when we got to the campground he decided to take a nap. I took the opportunity to go for a long hike/walk. There are horse trails everywhere with well worn trails. During the 45 minutes I was gone I enjoyed a lot of sun, saw many birds and critters and walked up on a Doe who never knew I was there. She had been drinking from a pond and when I saw her I froze. She flicked her tail, looked around and slowly walked off. It was exhilerating to witness her so calm going about her day.

Our weekend ended early the next day due to rain. But prior to that as we were leaving the campground to go to our hunting/hiking grounds our only exit was blocked by a fallen tree. We walked about 2 miles until we found an elderly gentleman brush hogging who had a chainsaw and gave us a ride back. He was a delightful man with smooth skin, bright blue eyes and told us he had lived in the area his whole life. When he asked where we were from he told us he used to play 6-on-6 football against our local team back in 1952 and '53. He also asked if we had been morel mushroom gathering, to which I replied "no", but he told me where we could go if we wanted to.  How I would have loved to talk with him longer.  After hubby cut up the tree to clear our path, we loaded the wood in his truck (as a thank you for his kindness -- he refused the money we offered) the rain began and we decided to head back home. So short lived break, but refreshing and we have a couple new stories. Looking forward to many many more fun times in the great outdoors.

That's what I love about Sunday's....

I have ALWAYS been a Christian. Have gone to church off and on my entire life. Have listened to some AMAZING Pastors and, unfortunately, some not so great ones. The Pastor we have now, Rev. Saul, is one of the AMAZING one's. He has this gentle, warped sense of humor and keeps us laughing. He's been know to change the hymns on a whim, tell a hysterical joke and cry when they play Amazing Grace. When he preaches his sermon he walks around and talks with you, a lot of times asking for feedback. These days it's the FASTEST hour of the week.

Pastor Bob and Grandma next to him

My Grandmother sings in the choir...has for as long as I can remember. We just lost a 100 year old member and dear Bertie will be 100 this October. She just quit singing in the choir last year...but still comes to church MOST Sundays AND stands for prayer and hymns.

Morgan and Jonathan

When my son leaned in and pointed out that one of the hymns was a "good song" it made my heart smile. He really has been paying attention. Jon and Pastor Bob seem to have a connection. We are truly blessed to have a church that has soooo much history spread over more than 200 years AND such a wonderful leader.

I've always believed God is EVERYWHERE. The birds in the sky, the sunrises and sunsets and in the eyes of our children.