Camping in the "Mountains"

This weekend we went camping with good friends of ours.  We've known them since before we had kids.  We wandered down to the southeastern part of the state, known for rivers, streams, and "mountains".  It was definitely VERY hilly and there is not an easy way to get there.  We all had to keep our eyes on the road in order to keep our bellies settled!

The falls colors were just starting to emerge, so the trees were beautiful.  Unfortunately the weather took a turn for the lower temps and it rained on us Friday night.  But we were prepared and kept warm with layers, gloves, and long johns.  We camped at a nice private campground and had sites just alongside the creek. 

Johanna was in "doggie heaven" all weekend since our friends brought their dog along.

Our first stop on Saturday was Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park where we took a short hike along the trail to see the main part of the shut-ins.

Off in the distance is the highest point in the state....they call it a mountain, Taum Sauk Mountain.  It's all of 1,772 feet in elevation.  

On the trail to the shut-ins...

The shut-ins are pretty cool looking.  The kids enjoyed climbing out on the rocks.  It's a very popular place in the summer when folks can cool off in the water.

We then drove a short distance to Elephant Rocks State Park.  There is a lot of natural red granite rock, but the area has been heavily mined in the past, so much of the boulders had dynamite markings on them and have been tossed all around.  Again, fun climbing for the kids.

(Yes, we were cold!)

Another view of the "mountains"....

Our last stop was the top of Taum Sauk to reach the highest point in MO.  We followed a short trail through the woods and found this rock with a marker.  No view, just the rock and marker.  :)

Back at camp....our little creek was quite pretty, too.  The kids had fun skipping across the rocks and trying to stay dry.  If it had been warmer there would have been much more fun in the water.

EDITED:  If you look carefully you can see two ruts (whitish lines) that cross the creek in the middle of the photo....these are wagon wheel ruts from a trail that went through many years ago.  Pretty cool!

A fun weekend with friends.  We are thankful for the nature around us, for the change of seasons and the beauty that thus ensues. 

Walking With Nature

As part of our science in school, the kids are required to do a weekly nature walk.  We've done this for all of our home school years and it's neat to look back in their nature journals at what they've sketched and recorded.  This week they each came back with some treasures. 

Benjamin had some beautiful maples leaves (no picture).

Elijah found a hummingbird's nest:

 Johanna "rescued" a dead chickadee from one of the cats:

 

Um....it quickly went back outside!

 

Ami found the tiniest beautiful red leaves:

 I love this quote from John Muir.  "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."

Readers

I love finding my two newest readers snuggled up with books.  In the last couple of months Elijah has reached a new level of enjoying books.  In the past he has always set the time for his required amount of reading time.  Even though he's enjoyed many of the books he has read, it's been because it was required or because he was earning extra computer time.  Now he's reading just for the enjoyment of it.  Yea!

Seasons

Our fall colors are just starting to emerge here.  I love this time of year and looking out to our changing woods.  Despite wishing there were some mountains in the background (!), I love the changes of season here and the beauty that God displays.

The changing of seasons to me means that time is moving on.  Healing and renewal can take place.  Yes, my heart still longs to be in the Sierras, but with time I've been getting better at fitting back into life here at home.  The use of Kleenex has lessened and time is healing.  I've been reminded of characters in the Bible that went through mountaintop experiences and subsequent challenges. 

One of those....Elijah, after he went up against the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel (I Kings 18-19).  Talk about a mountaintop experience where God clearly showed His power through Elijah!  But immediately afterwards Elijah ran for his life in fear of Jezebel.  He had just experienced this powerful display of God's presence, then he runs away in fear?  Mountaintop then a "valley". 

Another of these....Jesus, after his baptism by John the Baptist.  You might call it a "spiritual high", but then immediately afterwards Jesus was out in the desert for 40 days being severely tempted by the devil.  Mountaintop then a "valley". 

There are other examples, but my point is that it's very typical and human nature to experience some depression or struggle after a "high" in life.  It's also been said that fruit grows in the valley.  I have definitely experienced that too in my time since returning home from the mountains. 

God has been faithful (and I have an amazing husband, too!).  I truly believe that He allowed for all of the experiences I had while away and I truly believe that He will continue to use my experiences to strengthen my faith and produce fruit in my life.  Psalm 121 says, "I lift up my eyes to The Mountain - where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip - He who guards you never sleeps..."  I am so thankful for the time and healing that comes with the changes of seasons in our lives.  

Memorial Box Monday - Carfax

It has been quite a while since I posted a Memorial Box Monday story.  If you want to read more MBM posts, just click on the link on the sidebar for more of how God has worked in our family in big and small ways.  Today's story is one I originally posted three years ago, but this month we celebrate that Chris has been with Carfax for nineteen years.  Wow!  God's provision in this way continues to be a huge blessing to our family and we are so very thankful.  Thank you, Chris, for your hard work!

(Balloons from work today....the "one" didn't quite make the ride home!)

 After being married for one year and finishing college in southern California, Chris and I knew that we wanted to move to Missouri to be near family.  We chose Columbia because of the University where we planned to work on our Masters degrees.  We wanted to wait for a year so that we could have state residency, so after our arrival we started job hunting.  Yes, we were young and wet behind the ears and moved out here with a Hertz truck with all our earthly possessions, and no jobs or a place to live.  We both signed up with temp agencies and started getting calls right away. 

 Chris got a temp job answering phone calls for an upstart company named Carfax.  The show 60 Minutes had just aired with a news piece on this company you could call to see if your used car was a lemon.  Temp help was needed to answer all the 1-800 calls that came flooding in.  After the calls started to subside and other temps were let go, the office manager kept finding things for Chris to do.  He was a good worker and worth keeping around. Chris has always enjoyed computers and the Carfax office had plenty of computer work to do.  He was eventually offered a permanent job which we were so grateful for and excited about.  He quickly came to realize that his heart was more into computer work than pursuing a Masters in Psychology.  His gifts and talents lie much more in this area and we are so thankful for the way God gently guided him into this field. 

The rest is really history as Chris has now been with Carfax for nineteen years. We cannot begin to list all the ways this job has been a blessing to our family.  God has shown his faithfulness time and time again.  Chris mostly works 40 hour weeks and is home with family the rest of the time.  His work rarely requires travel.  His schedule is very flexible so that he is able to take off easily when we have doctor’s appointments and such.  He is blessed with lots of vacation time that has enabled us to take many memorable family trips and to be gone for 3-4 weeks at a time.  The financial impact has been incredible as well, allowing me to stay home ever since Michaela was born (another MBM story!), allowing for trips to Japan to visit family, and helping to provide for two adoptions.

God, we praise You for your sovereignty in guiding us when we had our own plans.  We praise You for providing for our family through the blessing of Chris’ job.  We praise You for blessings uncountable that go above our simple needs.  Our "standing stone" in our Memorial Box is a Carfax car so others may see it and allow us opportunities to share Your goodness to us.