A Summer Life Lately

Keeping up on the garden has been a daily, family task.  We're happy with the steady stream of yummy green things that are coming in.  Actually, I should say that the Rugged Mountain Man and I are happy with all the yummy green things.  The Blossoms are a bit chagrined at the amount of salad they are expected to eat.  

I catch the sunrise and savor my quiet time before the troops venture forth.  

I picked up this cute vintage tea cup at the Goodwill store the other day.  It's so dainty and proper.  I've enjoyed it as a part of my morning routine lately.

 and we all catch the sunsets together on the back porch.  It's a favorite time of day, catching lightening bugs, scratching the dogs, and chatting about the day.

Sometimes bunnies join us on the porch.  There are loads to go around.  

The Fair is cancelled but the work associated with our summer animals is not.  The Blossoms have been really good sports about their summer farm work.  I've been truly been pleased as how much the little Blossoms' work ethic has improved lately - - - finally.

The antics of their livestock keep our conversations lively and our days interesting.

We've been enjoying fishing lately.  On this particular day, the Rugged Mountain Man took the little Blossoms out on the boat and the older Blossoms stayed on shore and fished with me.  

Blossom4 caught her very first fish ALL BY HERSELF.  Evidently, she was nearly beside herself with excitement!  Blossom3 also caught some fish as well.  They were still grinning from ear to ear when they returned to regain their land legs a few hours later.  

Good summer times around here, friends!  Hope you're soaking it up.

Dominique

A Cabin Day

What have y'all been up to lately?  

Rory and Jake want you to know how thrilled they were to learn that we were going up to the cabin for the day.  

The weather was 68 degrees for a high, so we opted for mostly just dinging around the creek.  

Blossom3 dropped her hook in the water after some "Brookies," but with no sucesss.  She was certain they were hiding under the swimming hole rock, but those Brookies would NOT venture out.

The Blossoms did a little climbing too.

We enjoyed just watching the light rippling through the water.  

Later on, the girls were catching minnows and I perched on a rock and thought and prayed.  I needed the pause and reset that I often discover on the banks of our cabin's creek.  The Lord's peace washes over me there.

The girls eventually braved the chilly mountain water and did some swimming.

We had laughs a la s'mores around the campfire, after gobbling up our pork chops and potato packets.  

We reluctantly trekked home, content and refreshed.

Value

One thing that I learned during these last few months is that we truly value people, 

not activities or things, 

but people.  

We value shared jokes.  

We value small talk.  

We value triviality that bonds the bigger things.

We treasure good views with our favorite people.  

We treasure giggles and belly laughs with family and friends.  

We treasure quiet together AND conversation.

We cherish time spent together.  

We cherish hugs.  

We cherish touching an arm or shoulder and praying together.  

We cherish the playful shove or pat.  

We're soaking up every drop these days.

Dominique

The Wildflowers

May is wildflower month around here.  It's one of my favorite things about May.  

(These pics were snapped in May.)

The honeysuckle and dame's rockets combine to perfume the air deliciously.  We marvel and savor their fragrances on every jaunt and tramp.

I'm actually not sure if this lovely little golden flower spike is a wildflower.  I managed to convince the girls not to pick it. 

It was growing on a bank near a neighbor's mailbox.  I love the image I have in my mind of the four of them climbing up the bank to investigate and discuss it.  

And buttercups!  Oh, how I love buttercups!  They're so wholesome and cheery.

The nuances and shades of each wildflower demonstrate the vast creativity of their Master Designer.  

Why did He bother with so many tiny bursts of beauty?  I've wondered this sometimes.  It always takes me back to His character.  He has such vast stores of artistry that bring mankind so much joy.  

It seems that as we take the time to notice His hand in nature, 

we inadvertently train our children to be observant of His hand ever at work around us.

Dominique

Friday Family Adventure

It was a Friday family adventure.  We took the scenic route to a state park I hadn't visited since I was a teenager.  The girls had never been there.  

I do love a good vista!

We picnicked on the banks of the lake after frightening a bald eagle from his perch nearby.  

Fishing with children has its ups and down.  Rather, it has its good casts, its tangles and getting caught on mysterious underwater objects... 

It's for this reason that this was the first year that I actually got my fishing license.  I grew up fishing, with one of my earliest memories being boating on the Great Lakes and catching fish with my Grandma, Grandpa, uncles and cousins.  As a mama though, I've always just wrangled our youngest children.  Or, I spend my fishing outings untangling lines and baiting hooks.  

This time, I got to fish some.  The girls fished and relished the peace of the lake. When we tired of that location, we drove around the park, trying other fishing holes and creeks.  

The above picture could very well be captioned, 

"What do you think?  Are there fish here?  Should we try it?"  

It was like fishing hole jumping and state park exploration all rolled into one.  

 We eventually ended up at a neighboring state park, fishing in a much larger and very picturesque creek.  

The Rugged Mountain Man was thrilled that the trout were ecstatic to see his lures in this location.  

The girls and I didn't do quite as well here as we did in the lake and the other creeks.  Also, it was rainy off and on all day and Blossom4 managed to fall in.  She started to get a bit chilly so her patience for fishing finally waned.  

We did see an American Redstart there though, a small warbler that we'd never even heard of!

Nevertheless, It brought me so much happiness to see the Rugged Mountain Man having epic fishing moments.

Back to the truck we went and decided that before we left, we should pop over and see the iconic Railroad Tunnel.  It's what good Pennsylvanians do!

We always brought visiting relatives to see our Railroad Tunnel, tucked in the dense woods, beside a robust creek.

By now, Blossom3 has donned the Rugged Mountain Man's wool flannel and shared her mostly dry sweatshirt with Blossom4.  We were just doing what it took to prolong our adventurous day.  

We ventured toward home, taking the most scenic, indirect route.  We weren't lost, per my Dad's definition, because we still had a full tank of gas!  Seeing backwoods Pennsylvania for miles upon miles was good for the soul.

It was a memory for the ages!

Dominique