Just Before Fall Began...

I went for a walk...

After falling down the stairs and feeling very achy and stupid. I guess I'm getting old. 

Home is a nice place to be, but not for too long, and this is the way we leave. 

That's a good one to kill. 

Roadside weeds. 

The famous walnut tree. 

Tenacity. 

September yellow. 

As you may know, I really love butterflies, and I enjoyed capturing this one in the bean field. 

I love morning glories. 

Fielding sort of like a farm girl. 

I really like morning glories. 

I think one of the reasons is simply because of their name: Morning Glory. It reminds me that God's mercies are new every morning. 

Look at all of them. 

I think the purple ones are my favorites. 

Some other little flowers. 

Aren't they so dainty?

Moss is delightful, especially after a lot of good rain. 

So lush and moist. 

Like a big green carpet. 

It seems that autumn just jumped out at us. 

I think it's beautiful. 

A mug of very sweet earl grey. Mom made it the night before, forgot about it, sweetened it very heavily, and gave it to me the next morning. 

Dirty Girl

After the flooding went down in our parts last Monday, I went for a little bike ride. It was rough going: tiny bike with bad breaks, got chased by a vicious dog, got super muddy, and turned into a sweat heap. Anyhow, glad I did it.

The creek, though it had gone down considerably, was still a rushing clay bath. 

Me on the tiny bike getting stuck in the clay in the drenched bean field. 

The upper Mount Pleasant Creek along the bean field. 

Bike, sandals, and myself looking rather red. 

Through the bamboo, you could see where the rushing torrential creek had wiped out the leaves and even some bamboo along the bank. 

Just hours before, Lydia and I had stood right there with water up to our ankles. I'd say the water rose four to five feet in places. 

Chased

The clouds growing in size and darkness. 

Shiny bean plants under a very hot sun. 

The farm road

Horse and barn with those clouds growing in the background. 

A wonderfully hot outing. 

A field. 

Those clouds were beginning to look quite foreboding. 

I decided it was time to hurry on home. 

The storm seemed to be chasing me, and I heard thunder in the clouds nearby. But as you can see, the sun in front of me was still bright and very warm. 

Interestingly enough the storm never actually hit us. 

And That's Me

I took it upon myself to draw a self-portrait, something I haven't done in a while.

Got an eye

The artist's corner. That's "Mahin" up on the window seal. 

  

And the wild hair is blowing. 

Almost there. 

And for the original photo by my Dad...

I'm even wilder than in the picture. Yike!

Minnesota for a Week

Dad, Mom, Lydia, and I flew up to MN for a week, arriving back home on Wednesday. It was a good trip, though it came with it's own troubles. I am finding out that wherever I go and whatever I do, there are problems. That's, of course, because I'm there. Sometimes I say that wrong thing, sometimes I'm sick or feeling like a river rat, sometimes I'm just plain old grumpy. However, God has still used me even in the midst of my own problems.

So, to a summarize the trip, here are some pics. I only regret that I didn't get pictures of the friends I have missed. Anyway, I did see them.

The St. Croix River is quite pretty. We saw a lot of it this trip, and I didn't mind in the least. 

I don't think Lydia minded either. 

Nor did my toeses. 

It was a red sort of day, I suppose. 

Our uncle made thi picture out of chalk for Hannah and Tyler.

It was fun hanging out in Hannah and Tyler's cute little apartment. 

Hanging out with Gabriel at the Leake's house. 

I'm not a big reader, but Tyler lent Lydia and I some of his books and neither one of us could hardly put them down. 

Back at the St. Croix. This was a lovely trip to the Wisconsin side of Interstate Park. 

We climbed down this cascade of rocks. 

What a beaut!

There was a little lake that we enjoyed. 

Aww...the views from those cliffs. 

Hanging with the fam. 

Rainy days call for more reading, of course. 

Goodbyes.