For the third and final post answering the age-old question, "What Did You Do on Your Summer Vacation?", I have a taste of our visit with members of our extended family.Late in June, we enjoyed a delightful change of scenery from our coastal North Florida home visiting people we love in Wisconsin. My husband's siblings and their families live in the Chicago area and in Wisconsin. A festive high school graduation party for Mark's niece provided an opportunity for all of us to gather in Wisconsin. Since he and I could get away for a couple of weeks, we made it a road trip and took the dog. Having written about our side trip to the Apostle Islands, this post covers the majority of our time away.
Mark's brother and wife have recently purchased a lake cottage near Oshkosh, a relatively short drive from their home, fulfilling a long-held dream. They generously offered it to us as our headquarters for our visit, so we felt totally pampered. Of course, it did mean that we were in the chosen gathering place for any and all that were free during the day or evening--but that was super, since precious family time together was the reason for our journey.
Their lake home faces west, and I have more sunset photos than you ever want to see. Every evening provided a different, majestic display while we sipped cool beverages and felt like royalty. During our stay, we played in the refreshing, clear water, took walks on nature trails, enjoyed boat rides, and feasted on scrumptious, fresh-caught fish. This lake is part of a chain of lakes along the Fox River. Boating along the chain provides a variety of scenery, from marshy or forested preserve land, to vacation cabins old and new, to impressive full-time water-side homes, to trendy city waterfront with dock-side restaurants and clubs.
We, and our adventure-loving Shih-tzu, Magnolia, aka Maggie, are thankful for Dick & Marlys' generous sharing of their lake home, for all the members of our beloved extended family, and for the varied beauty of our wonderful nation. Our time in Wisconsin this summer provided a well of memories to keep us going during less enjoyable or less relaxed days in the future.
Question of the day: What good times with friends or family and/or experiences of natural beauty from recent months have filled your well with memories and gratitude?
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Mary, thank you so much for visiting my blog. You seem, like me, to have a wide range of interests. Also like me, you seem to believe that an education is foundational to one's growth in this world. I have always maintained that one makes or breaks his or her own education. Like most things, you get out of it what you put into it. For me, I have always had an insatiable curiosity, always want to know the whys, to see it myself, to approach from a different angle. Your tip on purchasing one pencil at a time is a good one. That said, I see one pencil at a time is a pricey way to build a collection, no? If memory serves, they are either 1.99 or 2.99/pencil at Michaels! Still, for someone like me, that may just be the way to go. Thank you again for visiting me! I love when that happens!
ReplyDeleteIt is super to hear from you. Thank you for very much for visiting and for your interesting reflections. We share a love for lifelong learning for ourselves as well as concern for the education of others.
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