End of May Faves!

It's the last day of May as I write this, and tomorrow when this posts, it will be the first day of June....one of my very favorite months because it is when the summer solstice occurs marking the first day of Summer!!  Time is slipping by so I'm pausing to take a break in the day and  give thanks for FIVE of the blessings God brought this week.  We call these the FAVE FIVE and if you head over to Susanne's site you can learn how to join in.

narrow trail in the Fox Preserve

and a wide section in Fox Preserve

• DISCOVERING NEW NATURE PRESERVE! The start of the long weekend brought hot, sunny weather to our area.  A new member of my small group wants to "learn" to hike and had never been on a real trail before.  She invited her husband and 14 year old son  to join us.  We explored a new nature preserve in town which is located right across from one of the bike paths I like to use near the Mohawk River.  It was very buggy and some of the trail isn't very cleared yet but what fun we had discovering many kinds of wildflowers...we even saw a small snake (ugh!).  We only did the main loop which is only a mile but on a hot, humid day it was just right.  I'm thankful for beautiful places to hike and new friends.

image courtesy of Amazon

• MOVIE DAY!  It's rare that I sit and watch an entire movie on Netflix in one sitting, but Sunday after church was rainy and cool so we all stayed home to relax and rest.  I found this movie....what a sweet one!  Clean cut, super awesome plot, and the little boy was just so endearing.  I was the only one who wanted to watch it so I'm very thankful for a comfy family room couch all to my self!  It was heaven to relax and do absolutely NOTHING.

Left side, front to back: Cindy, Ken and his wife Ingrid and sons Matt and Jerome
Right side, front to back: Katelyn (Cindy's 11 yr old), Amber (Pete's daughter), Amanda and India (Ingrid's daughters)
 2nd ANNUAL MEMORIAL DAY PICNIC

Dave in my kayak (green) and teaching Jerome
on Moreau Lake

This daddy duck was helping to guard Mama's eggs!

• MEMORIAL DAY BEACH BBQ!  Last year we began a new tradition with some family and church friends of having a kayaking/swimming/bbq day at an Adirondack lake.  This year, because the weather started out cloudy and cool, we decided to just go to the state park where Dave and I keep 2 of our kayaks.  My new friend Ingrid and 4 of her 6 young adult children joined us along with her husband Ken. Our friend Cindy and Jay who just transitioned to a different church but still keep in touch, were there as well, with 1 of their 2 children.  Dave's co-worker Peter and his daughter who has some special needs, was there too. Everybody brought their own burgers to grill (yes I had a veggie burger!), and a salad or dessert to share. There was an amazing amount of delicious food.  I had the fun of teaching Pete's daughter how to kayak!  She did pretty well and everyone had such a great time.  By mid-afternoon the sun was out and the day warmed up enough that a couple of people went swimming.  I'm thankful for good food, fun and fellowship with fellow Believers.  Huge thanks to my husband Dave for helping to make all of this happen!

• LUNCH DATE!  Yesterday I took some time off work to have lunch with the ballerina Claire and accompany her to her annual physical.  It was bittersweet because it's her last year with her wonderful pediatrician. We really loved her and she always took time to listen to Claire and my other daughter. I'm thankful for good medical care and for this lunch place!!

First peony this year!

First of my tea roses

• BLOOMS!  I pulled in to the driveway yesterday after work and noticed some of my perennials have bloomed!  I love perennials because I only have to trim them back in the autumn months and they don't need much care other than watering throughout the hot, dry days. What I need to do is find a chemical free solution to the aphid problem for the rose leaves.  I'm thankful for pretty blossoms in the late spring.

That wraps up the week.

I hope you all have a very relaxing weekend!