One Last Fall Walk

Nathan and Phoebe heading to the beaver dam after shearing Christmas trees. The leaves were crunchy beneath feet and paws.

Guard dog...

The beaver dam...

Nate's back to California. The dog misses daily treks to the tree fields with him. The decision has been made to put up a "No Trees For Sale" sign this year. We need a catch-up season...too many customers last year.

Autumn Leaves...Endless Raking

 The beautiful, colorful fall season is so pretty in real life and in pictures. We're blessed with huge old maple trees all around our house. Simply gorgeous. For several weeks. Then the wind and rain drives the leaves to the ground, and somebody's got to get them off the grass. Me. And Tom. But he's busy doing things I can't do...so mostly it's me.

I feel overwhelmed when I start the leaf mulching, raking, hauling (or, shhhhh, don't tell the environmentalists, burning) process. It takes about three sessions. I've tried waiting until all of the leaves are off the trees so the job could be done in one session. Hah...then it's dang near impossible.

At the start I attack the job with vigor. Then alas, the energy flags, my back aches, I can't see what I've accomplished, only what's still to be done. I won't quit, can't quit, I just want the job finished. Tom comes to my rescue and talks me into a sensible stopping point. We sit on the porch swing and drink in the view. A lawn (nearly) swept clean of leaves. Ahhhh, what a sense of accomplishment. Life is good again. Not perfect, but good.

Me and My Dad

When my boys were little, Mercer Mayer books were favorites at bedtime. Just Me and My Dad was a particular favorite -- this post and picture have nothing to do with that, except that this is, I think, a wonderful picture of me and my dad. And I don't have many pictures of just the two of us. So this will no doubt remain a favorite -- just like the book of similar title.

A wedding and two funerals

In the midst of the wedding week, on a Wednesday, my dear, dear friend "Aunt" Ronnie died. She was 94 years old and completely ready to go to be with God. She said to the nurses, "I don't know why it's taking so long."

For the past year she had been up and down with health issues. During the down times she would often say, "I just keep asking God to take me. I don't know why I'm still here." She was lonely for her Frank who died in October 3 years ago. I don't think she ever fully got over losing her first husband, Byron, back in the early '60s. I had held on to hope that Ronnie (Rowena) would have a second wind and be able to enjoy getting out and about after Frank's passing. Her health did perk up some at first -- I think because they got all the smoke from his old stogies out of the house. She had begun having bouts of pneumonia in the years before Frank died. And in the end that is what caused her death.

We attended her funeral on Sunday, after David's wedding on Saturday.

The next Wednesday, Gerri Deeter Mitchell passed away. She was 95 years old and had been as vibrant and vivacious as can be. She always sat in front of me in church, often joined by her granddaughter and great granddaughter. She absolutely lit up when they breezed in and sat beside her. The tall, gorgeous granddaughter had to bend way down to hug her tiny gramma, but as she said in her eulogy, "Even though Gram was only 4 feet 10 inches tall, I never stopped looking up to her.

I know both of those sweet ladies are hanging out with special loved ones in heaven and basking in the presence of Jesus. But I miss them.

Wedding Pictures!

Melanie's new husband, brothers, and father-in-law

David's new wife and sister-in-law

Melanie's mom and dad

David's mom and dad

The moms

The groom

The ceremony

The married couple

One Week