Well, it's mid-October already and this past week has been much less busy than the previous few weeks. I'm ready to share FIVE of my FAVE blessings that came into my week. Join in by heading over to Susanne's blog!
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| In the first mile of Wolf Pond Trail High Peaks region of the Adirondacks |
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| beautiful, but narrow trail through a col like part of the trail |
- DEEP WOODS HIKE: Last Saturday there were 4 of us signed up with my SoulSteps group for a hike into the interior of the high peaks region of the Adirondack Mountains. Our destination was Wolf Pond and it was a 2.5 mile hike in from the road. On our way in, we passed 4 hikers from out of state (Alabama!) who had hiked in to see the sun rise. We started out on the trail at 9:45 and got to the pond by 11:30. We made excellent time trekking through the forest. It's true wilderness and once we were off the main road on the road to the trailhead, we had no more cell phone coverage. We all loved this trail. It was the first time hiking this trail for all of us and the young woman named Shawna had never hiked in the ADK before so she was the "newbie" and she did great! I'm so thankful I get to lead this ministry group and that we had perfect weather for this autumn hike. (temps starting out were 38 degrees but it warmed up to 58 on the trail by the time we were done and 62 in the town we stopped in for ice cream on the way home. Here are some more fave pics from that day's adventures:
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| the trail in the 2nd mile through balsam trees.... the smell of Christmas was all around us! |
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| taking a lunch break at the lean to: l-r: Shawna (beginner hiker), Geoff, Cindy H photo used with permission |
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| almost to the pond..... with a view of some High Peaks in the distance |
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| finally made it to this gorgeous wilderness pond! 11 October |
- FAMILY TIME: After church on Sunday, in the late afternoon, around 3:30 pm, I built a fire in the firepit to burn some brush Dave had chopped the day before. There's just something about an Autumn bonfire, a good strong cup of coffee and a sunny afternoon. I had made an Apple Pie on Friday to share with the girls on Sunday afternoon. They both hung out for a bit and then Claire had to get back to her apartment to study but Courtney stayed as she was doing laundry so we watched another 2 episodes of Handmaid's Tale. I'm so thankful both girls could be here, together, even for just a little while. I'm also thankful we got all the brush burned before the rain started.
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| French Roast coffee from our French Press a good book, and a warm fire |
- SURPRISE SUCCESS: A friend of ours from church, Richard K, had seen my Facebook post of a pic I took of the apple pie I baked on Friday and that I sometimes surprise myself. (i'm not known for my pies and rarely make them so when one comes out great, I
brager post about it. He commented with "Surprise me by bringing me a piece to the 9 AM service". Well, I didn't make it to the 9 (I went to the 11), but sent a piece with a note attached over to church with my husband to surprise Rich with. Here's his FB post a few hours later:
- SCENTS AND SIGHTS OF AUTUMN: This past week, we had 2 1/2 days of much needed rain! It made the grass very green and the temps dropped a bit at night, getting into the upper 30s. I had no back pain on Wednesday and once the sun came out in the aftenroon, I decided to surprise my husband and mowed the front lawn. Because I felt so good and it was such a beautiful, although windy, autumn day, I decided since the battery on the mower was still mostly charged, to go ahead and mow both side yards and the bulk of the back yard. The only part I couldn't do was directly behind our shed and kayaks as the ground was still way too wet there. The scent of the freshly mown grass, the scent of woodsmoke in the air and crisp leaves beginning to fall, made me smile and say "Thanks God for Your beauty all around me." I also love how the yards looked after the mowing was done. These pics are actually from Thursday afternoon though, around 4:30 pm. The scents and sights of Autumn make me smile.
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| Front stoop area (the front door was open slightly but the decor is the word Welcome coming down with each letter getting a leaf or acorn The happy jack o lantern is on a remote so we turn it on around 6 pm and turn it off around 11 pm or when we head upstairs to bed. |
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| Front flower bed is put to sleep for the winter...... |
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| Front yard from the mailbox..... the back cherry tree has 2 small pumpkins sitting in my "rock garden" |
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| backyard is all set for weekend bonfires |
- GIRLS DAY AWAY: Since my youngest daughter, Claire, couldn't join my sister Joy and I and my oldest daughter Courtney on our "Annual Autumn Girls Day Away" a couple of weeks ago, she asked if we could go on her next day off (yesterday!) to Stockbridge, MA for a shopping and lunch day. She didn't have her Chem2 lab last evening and said she'd be free all day so once my sister Joy got here, I drove down to Claire's apartment to get her and we took off for the Berkshires. It only takes about 50 minutes to get there from Albany, NY. There still isn't a whole lot of leaf color there but it appears to be almost at peak. We stopped at a fave coffee cafe first where we sipped our coffees in the warm sunshine on their outdoor patio. Then we headed to this village to shop, browse and eat lunch at this place. It was a lot of fun spending the day with Claire. I'm thankful she had some down time and could not only visit with me, but also her aunt Joy. In fact ,we were so busy enjoying the shops and chatting, we neglected to get any pics!! Here's a couple of pics from the websites.
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| No. Six Depot Coffee and Roastery West Stockbridge, MA photo courtesy of aruthurious |
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| downtown Stockbridge, MA in the Berkshire Mountains |
That wraps up my week but there's always more than 5 blessings, right? Other ones I should mention: husband surprising me with some news about my car and the possibility of getting a new one (More on that at a later post!); texts from a friend I haven't heard from in awhile (C); the power of prayer regarding a couple of situations I've been praying about; a warm fleece blanket for the bed now that the nights are dipping below 50 degrees F.
What made you smile this week?? Do share in the comments and remember if you are signing as "Anonymous" the comment will be deleted. Please use initials or your blog title or first name, Thanks!!
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