Take a hike!

Last month, SuperDad chose a hike for our Valentines Day date.

SnakeMaster joyfully accompanied us.

I love the shadows created by these saplings

and the rich layers of green lichen on these rocks.

I know I annoyed SuperDad with my constant halting on the trail to take photos, but at least there were worthwhile places for him to stop and gaze around.

Water finds routes to trickle down the mountainside

This log nourishes fungus

A lone leaf clings to a tree

My camera was fascinated by the colors in the rocks.

My boots stopped here

Like father, like son

All in all, it was a lovely date with terrific views

And I know SnakeMaster wants to go back soon!

WWC #65: Pine & Contribute

The words for this week are:
Pine (As in “pine for” or “pine tree”)
and
Contribute

Our pine tree is artificial, but this way we don’t contribute to deforestation. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!) Smack in the center you can see a blue glass pine cone ornament, and a little lower on the right you can see a straw pine cone ornament with red trim (both came from Germany).

The boys put the tree up themselves. I carefully strung all 600 lights (actually, I think 2 are burnt-out or broken, so make that 598 lights), and then the boys decorated the tree with a wide variety of ornaments.

Gary made this lovely pig ornament, so in a way he helped decorate the tree, too! It was his contribut[e]ion.

Victorian Ball

MusicMan and his date contributed to keeping the past alive on Friday night. After a series of dance lessons and etiquette lessons, they dressed up in period clothing and attended a Victorian Ball. It was held at an historic plantation with live music provided by a group which loves to play from songs from the era. (History Club rocks!)

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And now a message from Tink :

If you haven’t joined the fun yet, go here for details. Don’t forget, we also have a Flickr group for easy shareability. Plus, you get to find out the new words at least an hour earlier. Happy snapping!

ANNOUNCEMENT: Next week’s WWC will be the last for 2008.  2009 will kick off on January 8th.

Life, Love, and Laughter

THE PERFECT MAN

(Inspired by this post by Mrs. G
and this post by Jenn)

My husband and I didn’t date before we married. 
This is true.  Really.  We met as counselors at a church camp.  I was fascinated by this man who looked directly into my eyes with his own denim-blue ones.  I knew he liked me when he tossed me into a snowbank.  A small group of us stopped for hot cocoa and french fries before going home.  He & I exchanged addresses and hugged goodbye, but then everybody was hugging everyone else goodbye.  It was after we were in our separate vehicles and ready to roll  when he trotted back over, leaned in the car and said, “God was going to kick my butt all the way home if I didn’t come back and kiss you goodbye.”  It wasn’t much of a kiss, but once I got over the surprise, I would have climbed into the cab of his truck and gone anywhere with him, then and there.  And to the best of my knowledge, God did not spend the next 3 hours kicking his butt! 
We lived 6 hours apart.  Our letters crossed in the mail.  We talked on the phone.   We went back to the camp to ski and get to know each other in a safe environment.  After a resonable period of time 2 weekend visits, we were engaged.   There were many more weekend visits, but we rarely had what might be construed as a traditional date.  I can recall one movie, one dinner out at a pizza place.  We got to know each other, but all our funds were spent on phone bills and gasoline. 

It has been nearly 21 years since he asked me to marry him.  I still love to look into his denim-blue eyes.  He still makes me laugh.  And we occasionally go on a date… a dinner out, an extra-long walk, a bike ride, or just a drive.  Nothing earth-shattering, like this:
 
I think this comic must have been inspired by this post by Susie!