Summer's Hurrah

I know everybody says it, but I really cannot believe that summer vacay is coming to an end.  HubBub actually took the weekend off, as things were pretty slow there.  So, he had Sat thru Mon off!  I know!!! Never happens!  The sad thing is, that on such short notice, we couldn't get our dogsitter set up.  So, we took a couple of short daytrips on Saturday and Sunday. 

On Saturday, we took a trip through Cable, Wisconsin and down to Hayward.  I had been wanting to visit the Pine Needles yarn shop in Cable all summer.  I have been very good about NOT increasing the size of LeStash, but I did score a couple of skeins.

On the trip to Cable, I finished yet another set of Fetching Gauntlets.  I've lost count, but I think I've made 4 or 5 sets of these this summer. 

I love this yarn!  It is Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. Knit Picks has a new cashmere and merino blend out that I might have to try.  When I finished the gauntlets, I went back to work on the green sleeves for the HubBub sweater. 

I feel that I've been working on this sweater forever!  I guess it has been about a year, off and on.  I'm making it on size 4 needles and he's a big guy, so it is a big project. 

While we were in Hayward, we stopped by the candy store.  It was packed in there!  We got a small bag of assorted hard candy, and some fudge!

I got a half pound of maple nut fudge, my absolute favorite!  I've been carefully rationing out a small bite in the evenings. I can make a half pound of fudge last a LONG time that way!  We drove over through Danbury on the way home and came up Hwy. 61 from Hinckley. I love the drive north from Hinckley via 61.  When I was a kid, we came up that way every Sunday to see my grandparents.  The trip always feels like "we're going to Grandma's" to me.

Yesterday, we went to the County Fair.  It was hot, but enjoyable.  HubBub had never been to that fair, and he was surprised at how much there was to see.  We watched some horse racing, took in all the historical buildings, and listened to some former students play music on the stage.  I was coerced into joining the Historical Society, but it's okay because I'm into the family history and stuff. I love the animals, and I took pictures at the Petting Zoo of the babies.

There were two very tame alpaca.  Gotta say I love their fleece!

Twin fillies, this one had one blue eye.

Arguably the smartest animal in the pens. Donkey.

Zebra reaching for a carrot.

Wallaby.

Camel.  It was a one-humper.

In the end, Jack was very happy we were home each evening and that he didn't have to be left with the sitter.

All in all, it was a really nice weekend, even though we didn't get to go on a longer trip.  I wish we could have more weekends like this!

I was reading some advice for good blogging, and it said to keep to the theme of your blog.  It said that your readers should know what to expect when they visit your site.  I think about the other blogs I frequent (see blogroll on right) and in fact, those bloggers pretty much hold true to whatever their theme is.  That's got me thinking.  My blog was originally supposed to be about knitting, but like my mind, it seems to wander.  In my attempt to be fairly frequent in my blogging, I see that I resort to writing about daily life more than knitting.  In fact, it seems I write about my daily life with some knitting sprinkled in, which is pretty much how my life is.  I'm wondering now if my blog is too scattered, or if it is okay to write about life with fiber sprinkles?? 

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Grandma's Driving

I  gave my mother a pretty good laugh today.  She recently made a visit to the eye doctor and they gave her a peripheral vision test.  She has a genetic condition that is reducing her vision as she ages.  This condition can be repaired with a bit of cosmetic surgery on her eyelids.  She's balking at the idea of cosmetic surgery.  I am encouraging her to have the surgery, because impaired vision is a safety hazard when she is driving. 

I reminded Mom of a time when I was out driving with Grandma.  I'm thinking I was in the ten-year-old range at the time.  That would have put us in the late 1960's. Grandma had several surgeries for breast cancer, and combined with radiation of long ago; she had quite a bit of scar tissue on her chest, neck and sides of her torso.  We were making a quick trip to the Holiday station, as I remember it.  I don't know if it was a Holiday at the time; but that's what it is now.  Grandma was driving a boat of a Chrysler 300.  The vintage may have been a '64. It was white with red interior and push button transmission.  She pulled into the lot and snubbed the bow of the boat up to the side of the building.  She left me inside listening to the radio while she ran into the store.  It was busy, and lots of people were coming and going.  I was enjoying the music and not really paying much attention to what was happening around the station.  Gram wasn't in there very long, I think she just got a gallon of milk.  She hopped into the driver's seat and threw the boat into reverse.  She was gabbing away at me as the boat moved backwards.  I noticed a slight uphill grade to the parking lot that I hadn't noticed when we came in.  At the same time, I saw a guy in the store start waving his arms and generally blowing a gasket.  I glanced behind us and thought I saw a roof of a car, kinda close.  I hadn't just fallen off the turnip truck, and putting two and two together I said, "Uh, Gram?  I'm pretty sure you just backed over a car."  She said, "What?! No I didn't! Who'd park a car behind me??" She threw the boat into drive and pulled slowly forward.  As the boat came down off the crest of the sheet metal wave, there was the definite tinkling of lots of broken glass hitting the asphalt.  About the same time, the raving, red-faced guy came boiling out of the store.  He started with something like, "Are you crazy lady? You just ran over my car!"

Now, Gram could be a formidable force, and looked a good fight directly in the eye.  She was a firm believer in a strong offense, and went after him. "Why in the world would you park right behind my car?  Didn't you know I couldn't see it?  I'm an old lady, and I can't turn around like I used to!  Don't you go calling me names, Buster! It's totally your fault for parking behind me, and your toy car better not have scratched my car!....

That poor guy just couldn't believe it!  He started backing away, shaking his head,  and couldn't get a word in edgewise.  She said call my insurance man and gave him the agents name.  She got back into the boat and we headed for home.  The whole time she was grumbling, "Can you believe the nerve of that guy?  Parking right behind me and then saying it was MY fault?  What the devil kind of toy car was that he was driving anyway?  It wasn't even substantial enough to hold up to a little fender bender. I couldn't even tell I'd nudged the damn thing..."

Gram's been gone for 23 years now.  She gave the cancer the stink-eye for almost 30 years and never lost her fighting spirit.  Love you, Gram, and you gave us a good laugh today!

Lifedream Procrastination

The past week and a half have been spent mostly working on school stuff.  The room is coming along.  I have one more bulletin board to go, and my number line to put up.  My classlist has changed.  Two children were moved out of my room and four were added.  The current count stands at 25, and it may stay that way until school starts.  This is good news, as I have started to put names on things and get their desks set up.  Progress!  The earliest that I may hear on the resume I have outstanding is Monday, Aug. 16.  It is difficult to be working on setting up the classroom, spending the money required to get things ready; and know that I may not be spending the year there.

Those of you who know me in person, know that this hasn't been the easiest summer for me.  Emotionally, there have been several family matters that have been taxing for me.  I was raised to be a nurturer, and nurture I must.  Even when I am not physically with my family members, I feel the worry and want to take care of things for them.  I do not feel rested, in fact, I feel less rested than I did in June when school ended.

Yesterday it was a scorcher (again) and I spent some quality time with the new Where Women Create and Studios magazines.  I LOVE these magazines, and spending time in a cushy, air-conditioned chair at Barnes and Nobel reading them is heaven on earth for me. I find them totally and completely inspiring. After enjoying them, I started some negative self-talk on the way home.  Why is it that these women can find the time to do that which I so desire?  The simple answer is that they devote time to developing their passions.  I ask myself why I have such trouble giving myself permission to play as they do.  I look back at my New Year's goals and my beginning of summer journal entries for perhaps the past eight years and I see the same thing.  I write about spending time creating, giving time to myself, dedicating time to refilling the well so that I have more to give.  Yet, here I am, at the end of another summer.  Exhausted again.  Still.

I think that there may be two important reasons why I seem unable to begin the life I crave.  The biggest reason is fear.  Whenever I sit with a blank piece of watercolor paper, or even a clean page in a sketchbook, I hear a voice in my head that says, "Your brother is the artist."  I feel simply terrified to put a mark on the page.  It is fear that the comments are right.  That I will put marks that will verify my fear.  That I will put marks on the page that will tell me that my dream of being an artist is unattainable.  I have sketchbooks that I purchased when I was a teenager that only have one or two sketches in them.  I look at them now and I see an ability to draw, but they were put aside because they met with lukewarm praise from those most influential in my life.  Perhaps they were afraid I might follow my passions toward an "unmarketable" or "frivolous" career choice?  Perhaps my brother was better than I, but my ability was never really recognized. In fact, I feel it was discouraged.

The second reason is my understanding of responsibility.  I was taught that it is my responsibility to take care of family, home, and everybody but myself.  I was taught that self-care is selfish and a waste of time.  If that is your core belief, how does one justify time spent doing something just for enjoyment?  You don't.  You can't justify it.  Not if those are your core beliefs. 

So, I understand that this is what is at the heart of my procrastination and frustration.  Where does one go from here?  I am 51 years old.  Isn't it time for me to start living the life I want to live?  Unfortunately, those around me are accustomed to me giving to them and caring for them; and they are not very happy when I express a desire to do for myself.  This has recently caused much difficulty in my home life.  I'm not sure where this will end or lead, but I do feel I am finally at a point in my life where the well is empty.  I feel that I cannot give more to those unhappy with me until I refill the well by living the life that meets my needs.

I also believe that it is this unfulfilled need that I try to fill with food.  I don't wonder, I know, that I would physically be a very different person if I made the life change I crave.  I know that my appearance is a direct result of putting myself aside, basically since I was a very young child.

I know from past experience that my resolve toward change can be manipulated by guilt and threats.  Unhappy people sometimes will do anything they can to keep change from occurring.  I really need support from others to help me stay strong in my quest.  Since those discouraging this change are closest to me, I cannot look to them for support.  I understand this now, and realize that the lack of support (and outright saboutage) has been a critical piece in changing my life.  Where does one look to find the support I need?

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Steamy Tuesday

Today, it is my mother's 74th birthday.  It is also my parents' 53rd wedding anniversary.  My mom got married on her 21st birthday because she wanted a sunny day for her wedding.  All her life, it has only rained a handful of times on the day of her birth.  The day of their wedding was brilliantly sunny.  In the outdoor photos, everyone is painfully squinting.  She got her wish and had a beautiful wedding day.  Happy Birthday, Mom!  Happy Anniversary, too! You had yet another sunny day!

I believe today was the hottest day of the summer, and the first 90 degree day we've had in something like 2 years.  What was I doing on this steamy day?  Climbing on and off a ladder and countertops at school, putting up bulletin boards. Youza, she was a scorcher, especially at ceiling level.  I had my little fan a-chugging, but it only made it feel like somebody had a blow dryer aimed at my face.  I did get two more bulletin boards up and my alphabet is at least on the wall.  It needs tweaking, as it is still wrinkly and a bit crooked, but it is actually on the wall. 

I could have taken pictures of the bulletin boards, but my brain was fried and I forgot.  It feels good to be making progress, albeit it slow progress, in the classroom. 

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Relaxing Sunday

Yesterday, I spent some time at school putting up a couple of bulletin boards.  The room has been gutted since mid-July, and now that the company is gone, I can start to put things back together.  Here's the start of the biggest bulletin board in my room.

That is green cotton fabric on the board.  I prefer to use fabric, as it holds up better than paper.  The blue next to the ladder will go up for the next part of the board. Here's how the green section turned out.

On I went to the next section of the big board.  By this time, I was hot and sweaty and put my fan on "high."  I had to finish cutting out all of the little animals for the next section of the board.  I'm not sure why I love farm scenes so much, but I do.  It must be the farming in my genes, put there by my great grandparents.  Here's the farm board.  I'm going to put the words "Welcome to Our Class" on the yellow sign.

After I finished this board, I went to my folks' house for a little visit.  Here's how the two look next to each other.

Today, was a relaxing day spent at home.  I did a little walking around outside and snapped some pics of the flowers in the yard. In spite of my notorious black thumb,  love having flowers around me and really miss them all winter.  This year, I went with mostly petunias.  I also have roses (which are past their prime now) and daylilies.  So, enjoy a few shots of my summer flowers.

Alyssum

Red Wave Petunia and Lobelia

Katie's Planter

Pink Daylily

Pink and White Petunias

Bright Yellow Daylily

Watering can planter

Purple veined Double Petunia

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Back at It...

Today was a day spent on school stuff.  I'm back at it, needing to get a ton done at school.  I scrubbed more old paint off countertops, worked on my school web page (http://www.cloquet.k12.mn.us/webpages/LLyness), wrote an email regarding my school web page, cleaned out my school email delete box, cut out some laminating, measured up some fabric for a bulletin board, washed out my school refrigerator and got it cooling, pulled old tape balls off the front of cabinets, put together my tentative daily schedule, and decided on my beginning of the year reading groups. I also made a trip in to Duluth to pick up some more stuff at Explorations and punched out the pieces.  I feel pretty good about today's accomplishments, especially the schedule and reading groups.  Sadly, no pictures to share because today's activities weren't all that photogenic; but it was a productive day.

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Whew!

So, here I am, posting finally after almost a month away.  It has been an overwhelming month, to be sure.  I have no fun pictures, but I have been extremely busy.  My brother, Tom, and his family left this morning after spending two weeks with us.  His son, Daniel, is off to college at ASU within the month.  His son, Michael, is the nephew who spent some time with us two summers ago.  Michael is a special needs child, and I have been trying to help with him as much as I am able.  I spent every day of the two weeks with them.  We visited both the Guthrie and Jungle Theaters, the Mall of America including the amusement park and aquarium, the Science Museum and the Dead Sea Scrolls and Omni, a Huskies game, Canal Park, Brighton Beach, and fishing at Island Lake twice.  I taught my sister-in-law, Dee, how to knit a cotton washcloth.  I knit and gifted three sets of "Fetching" fingerless gloves in Cashmerino.  I read a novel and started another.  It was wonderful to see them, but their vacation is not a vacation for us or my folks.  I'm tired today.

Also, within the month, I've ridden the job rollercoaster. Granted the rollercoaster ride is all of my own making.  I am making changes to our health insurance, which I had hoped might change my teaching assignment for this Sept. back to the job I had last year.  I was encouraged by my principal's comments about the change and hopeful that I might be able to go back to that position.  After several weeks of being on the bubble, word came that my request has been denied again.  As that door closed, another opened in the form of a job opportunity in the Twin Cities.  I have applied for that job, but the timeline may be a problem, as the beginning of the schoolyear is fast approaching.  Because of the rollercoaster, the second grade classroom is most decidedly NOT ready.  My month of August is pretty well planned out.  I will need to be in the classroom pretty much every day, and I may need to make a trip to the Cities if they want to interview me.  I am excited about the opportunity, but the prospect of the change is frightening.  Bob does NOT want to move to the Cities, and this isn't a good time to be putting a house on the market.  There also may be a problem if I need to request a Leave of Absence from school to try the other job.  That said, this job opportunity sounds just too good to let go without pursuit.

My summer break is two thirds gone, and has been spent helping family and fussing over my employment.  I feel stressed and tired.  Because I must be available to work in the second grade room and perhaps go south for an interview, it seems that any hope of a vacation away is out of the question.  It is difficult for me to put my heart into preparing a classroom, knowing that I may be leaving the room before the school year starts or within a month or two. I like my blog to be upbeat and positive, but this is where I am at the end of July. 

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Post 4th Update

The 4th of July has come and gone for another year.  Bob had to work until 5 pm on Saturday the third.  When he got home, it was really hot, so we decided to go for a ride in our air conditioned Ruby car.  We stopped by Subway and grabbed a sandwich and headed north.  We cut over at the Three Lakes Road and ended up near Island Lake.  Since we were close, we stopped by Bob's parents house.  They were out on the pontoon, and we gave them a call on the cell phone.  It was about 8:30 and they were headed to the other side of the lake for fireworks.  They turned around and came back for us.  It was very windy, and coming back took some extra time.  We all piled on the pontoon and headed toward the far side of the lake.  We made it under the bridge without having to put down the top.  When we got the to location, there were tons of boats already there.  A private citizen spends thousands of dollars to put on a fireworks show every year.  It isn't publicized, but word of mouth does a good job of bringing in a crowd.  The show started at 10:08 and lasted about twelve minutes.  It was fantastic!  Every bit as good as the fireworks in Duluth!  The trip back to the cabin was nerve-wracking at best, and an Act of God that we made it.  The winds were nearly 50 mph and it was pitch dark.  We used the GPS and Google Maps on Bob's phone to watch for islands and such.  We were all soaked, cold, and tired when we got back.

On Sunday, the 4th, Katie came home.  While we were awaiting her arrival, we gave Ruby a bath.

And Jack helped.

Katie arrived and we headed out to the lake again.  We brought the dogs, and Hunter enjoyed fetching a stick and going for a swim.  Jack did the same thing that he did when we were washing the car. Spencer made his super-deluxe hamburgers for dinner and they were delicious.  Since the lake is low, we set up our annual fireworks bonanza on the beach with a campfire this year.  Steve and Sandy bring a big assortment of fireworks every year and we had the launch pipes on the beach, too.  We had tiki torches loaded with citronella, but Bob Sr. felt that burning an old couch off the pontoon might just do the trick.  Somehow the carcinogens in the vinyl helped to keep the mosquitoes down to a dull roar.

On Monday, the 6th, we went to visit my folks before Katie headed back to St. Paul.  We had pizza for lunch, and Mom gave Katie a set of dishes to use in her new apartment.  Dad is doing just great with his new knee.  We missed Ryan and Audrey and my brothers this 4th of July, but otherwise had a nice time.

I've been knitting some pieces for the Stained Glass afghan.  I was using some leftovers of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino yarn that I had used to make a set of Fetching Gauntlets for Katie.  I love that yarn and I love that pattern.  I decided to make at least one more set of them using the same yarn.  So, today I went to Superior and got a few more balls of Cashmerino.  The pattern is available for free at http://www.knitty.com/.  Here's how they look:

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

I Hate Insurance

There are no pictures, no funny quips, no updates on knitting today.  I spent 7 hours working on insurance stuff.  I hate insurance.  That is all.

On the Go Kinda Day

I made a trip back to the eye doc today for a recheck.  He was checking the fit on some new sample contacts.  I still have the cluster of black dots in my left eye from a "vitreal tear," but he feels that will get better.  I ordered the new contacts, and went and got a couple pair of new glasses as well.  My old glasses had lenses from three prescriptions ago, and I decided it might be time for an upgrade.  I don't wear glasses all that often in public, but I'm kinda liking these. What do you think? Do they make me look distinguished? 

What?  Still looks like me? Oh well, what can you do?

Anyway, while I was awaiting the aforementioned new glasses, I did a little shopping.  I went to the Dollar Store and got some odds and ends for the classroom.  I found some cool stickers that have pictures of coins and the amounts of the coins.  I got some preprinted sight word cards that I will put up on a word wall. (Much less spelling things for kids during writing time if they can look at the wall and find the words. ) I also got some new plastic shoe boxes for my A.R. books (the old ones were really broken up.)  I went to the fabric store and got 5 different colors of fabric to use as backer on my bulletin boards.  I really like using fabric vs. paper.  It looks nice all year.  I went to Chez-Target and got a new kind of saline that was recommended by the eye doc for we of the older set.

On the way home, I swung by the public library and picked up a couple of books.  I'm kind of looking for some new read-alouds for the new year.  Although I love starting my year with a Kate DiCamillo author study (I read The Tale of Despereaux, The Mysterious Journey of Edward Tulane, and Because of Winn Dixie,) I tend to have less favorite books for later in the year.  I picked up a Charlie Bone book (number one in the series was checked out, so I took number two.)

Charlie Bone books are sort of in the same vein as Harry Potter.  Kids with magical powers.  What I know about Charlie so far is that he can look at photographs and hear the conversations that were taking place about the people in the photos.

I also picked up this book.  I know nothing about it, but the cover appealed to me.

I watered my flowers and made a spaghetti dinner for Bob with whole wheat pasta and red sauce with Italian sausage and ground beef.  I completed a couple pieces for that Stained Glass afghan this evening.  Knitting group was a bust tonight, as everybody is busy with the holiday.  So I sat at home, had a text conversation with Doreen, knit,  and I'm still watching the Twins in a tied ballgame. All in all, the weather was beautiful, and I had an On the Go kind of day.

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Crafty Creation

I'm finally able to post a picture of my latest little piece of creativity.  Painting is outside of my normal realm of crafting, but something I'm trying to do more of this summer.  So, I started with a little unfinished pine birdhouse and gave it a paint job.  The sign Pinehaven Hill Studio is what I call my little crafting studio in my home.  (The home we built is on a little knob, and in the midst of a former red pine tree farm.)  The little silver heart has the word "Love" etched on it, but it is difficult to see because of glare.  I added some reindeer moss and the little bird which matches some of the colors on the house.  Although it was a simple project, I am enjoying it.

I'm also adding a picture of the climbing rose that I have growing against my front porch.  I see we have a little bug action gnawing it, but it is blooming like crazy.

In less fun news, I went over to school today.  I moved my belongings from my last year's room into next year's (and past year's) room.  The room is going to require massive cleaning, total reorganization of all cupboards and file cabinets, and then the usual getting-ready-for-school work.  I'm going to have to spend a lot of time at school this summer, but I'm trying to keep a somewhat postiive attitude about it.  It doesn't hurt to clean everything out and reorganize every six years or so. I know over half of my incoming class of students, and I have some really nice kids this coming year.

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!

Cooking, Spinning and Knitting

Today was a day of laying low at home and getting a few things done.  I put together some really tasty cinnamon and golden raisin scones for breakfast. 

While we were enjoying our scones for brunch, I watched a television program called "Knit and Crochet Now" on the Create channel.  They showed a pattern for an afghan called "Stained Glass" by Susan Levin.  She created the pattern off of some antique afghans that her grandmother had made.  While I'm not a big fan of making granny square afghans as a use for small odds and ends of yarn balls, this pattern appealed to me.  I have bags of partial skeins, leftovers from completed projects.  After Bob fixed my printer, I printed the free pattern from the show's web site.

Off and on throughout the day, I picked up my needles and made a few pieces for this afghan.  This won't be a project I'm in a hurry to finish.  It will just be for times when I need to have something small to work on, and to use up odds and ends.

I did already make a modification to the pattern.  I'm slipping the first stitch on each row to give a more finished edge and an obvious place to put my black crochet stitches to make the "lead" in the stained glass.

I threw a pork roast in the crock pot to make barbequed pulled pork sandwiches for dinner while Bob fitted my saxony wheel Liz with a new turbo drive belt.  I was very excited to give her a spin, and brought out some white Romney from Green Eggs and Lamb farm in Wisconsin.  Lizzie spins like a dream and I filled almost a full bobbin in just a short time.

It was a lovely, relaxed, productive Sunday!

Be grateful and enjoy the beauty in each day!

Another Walk

Two days ago, I wrote about a book I read entitled "The Walk." Today was a very nice day for a walk in the woods.  It was in the low 60's and "cloudy bright" as Bob calls it.  It was perfect hiking weather for me.  We are so fortunate to have beautiful wooded areas within the city limits of Duluth, Minnesota.  Take a walk with Bob and I as we explore the scenic Lester River and Lester Park area of Duluth

.

To get to the park, we took the Seven Bridges Road.  We stopped at Bridge 5 and I took this picture of the Lester River.

Each of the bridges on Seven Bridges Road is lovely in its own right.  Bridge 5 (I don't know if it has a different name) is no exception.

In spite of the 60 degree temperature, there was a family swimming in the river here.  The children were body surfing in the rushing water.  We drove on to get to the top of the Seven Bridges Road and begin our hike back down the river.

 

The wildflowers, rushing rapids, and the textures of nature are my favorite photographic subjects.  A clump of wild daisies across the river.

The leaves of a poplar tree.  Here in Minnesota, most people refer to this tree as a "popple." It is also known as an aspen.

The shape of the pine tree that is in the center of this picture caught my attention. I think it may have been a spruce tree, but it looked perfectly shaped to be a very large Christmas tree.

I love the softness of the moss against the hard stone wall. 

Threading a birch through the "eye " of the jack pine.

We'll cross at the stone footbridge.  Can you see it up-river?

The texture and green color of this fallen tree stump appealed to me.

Stairway to Heaven

We had to climb up on a stone wall to take a shot of this trunk of a fallen tree.  Would you have recognized what you were seeing if I hadn't told you? I thought it was neat how it almost looked like a miniature version of the forest.

How many colors and textures did Mother Nature use to paint this tiny portion of a tree?

Field of Paintbrush

A study of darks and lights.

The wild strawberries are just about ripe.

A sprinkling of gold in a thicket.

This winding trail has brought our walk to an end.

The wildflowers bid us a fond farewell for today.

Thanks for joining us on our hike through the northwoods!

Be grateful and see the beauty in each day!