Saphira's 3 year old pictures at Fernwood Botanical Gardens

Every summer Fernwood Botanical Garden offers one Free Family Day per month.  We enjoy this park so much, we decided to make sure we didn't let summer pass by without a visit there.  It also has some really pretty areas, so Alegra wanted to take some pictures of her little sister since she's turning 3 at the end of this month.  Wow, where does the time go?  

The pictures below are at the frog pond.  The last time we visited here, we had some pretty good laughs at Diella who got scared by frogs jumping out from under the rocks where she was peeking underneath at.  This time, she was much more cautious. :)  But I stood ready with the camera just in case it happened again.  They have a great time watching the frogs in the pond and catching some too.  I was just glad we didn't lose anybody in the pond.  That Benaiah was mighty close, if you can believe that.  :)

 This little waterfall area was so delightful.  Alegra learned in this area that a picture would look better if we could see more of the surrounding area....like her toes in the water.  They were so cute.

 She loved posing, hugging the trees that were "just my size".  

 And we always enjoy the train display.  It's so fun to watch the trains go through and see all the tunnels and bridges.

 I couldn't resist taking a picture of this pear tree that they trained on this wall.  It was really artsy.

And a fun day was had by all.  Always enjoy having my mom come along on our walks and adventures.  It was a beautiful day to be outside.  Trying to keep up with the walking while I can, but between some of the heat we've had and the mosquitoes this year, it's been challenging.  I guess when I'm not walking, I'm working outside or in the kitchen.  Always something to get done around here.

Gene Stratton Porter- Walk Thru Summer 2015

We had a busy day the other day picking strawberries.  All were tired afterwards, but I knew that they wouldn't be tired if we stopped at Gene Stratton Porter State Historic Site for a little walking and photography.  They were all into the books they brought along, so they weren't even paying attention to where we were at.  I had some pretty happy children when they realized where I had taken them.  

 I loved this!  All of their best morning faces.  Saphira was even pretending to snore.  :)

We didn't have time for a long walk, but a little is better than nothing.  They would have walked a lot here, but they knew it was an extra blessing for the day, so they didn't complain that we didn't spend much time.

Kayaking and Walking -Beautiful Day!

After a late night at our first Spring Family Ball, we decided it would be best to stay home on Sabbath and just relax.  Sometimes you need family time too, and we knew that with the next day being Shavuot we would be needing the extra down time before another big day and late night.  After a little music practice for the Shavuot Celebration, we decided to take the children to a nearby friend's house to kayak.  They love being on the water, especially in their own little boat.  Since these were all last minute plans, I text another friend to see if they wanted to meet up with us there.  Their children love the water as well.  It was a fun time for the children and such a lovely day.  

And of course Benaiah had to swim in the water.  Brrrr. 

 Teaching Saphira how to stir the water laying on her belly.  Didn't need any little ones falling into the water.  

We played in the water for a little bit, then I wanted to get a walk in somewhere, so our family headed to Delth Church Park for a walk.  It was nice to have Jonathon along this time as he is usually working when the children I and go for our summer walks.  I stayed ahead of everyone for the most part and kept up a good pace.  Oh, it feels so good to be back to walking without having the pain.  Very thankful!  Alegra had her camera and usually lagged behind, catching neat moments in nature through her lens.  She is gifted in capturing nature.  Intricate details of God's creation she sees as others just stroll right by it all.  But I will say that some of us saw deer that she missed because she was back behind our crowd.  We don't usually see deer too often or very long with our noisy bunch. :)

We came home and practiced a little more music and I took a good soak in the tub while the others gathered up everything we would need for the next day's Celebration.  Even though we didn't stay home all day, getting out in nature can sometimes be just as relaxing and enjoyable as staying home doing nothing.  An enjoyable afternoon and evening and even got a little fellowship time in with friends.