A Glimpse of Fall

Friday evening my husband and I took off for an overnight camping trip. I was hoping when we planned our venture that the timing would be perfect to view some fall colors. South Texas doesn't have a great deal of color in the fall typically, but I was anxious to see if there would be some at Garner State Park.
Lost Maples State Park is notorious for being the best Texas location for fall colors, but from past experience we knew the line to even drive into the park would take hours.
We opted for Garner State Park. We spent a week camping there for vacation in September and fell in love with it. We planned then to return later to hike another trail and see if there would be fall colors.
It was dark by the time we got to our campsite and set up camp. We had breakfast of coffee, scrambled eggs, bacon and biscuits while we looked at the various hiking trails on the map. We chose a trail we had not hiked and filled water bottles and headed out.
Before getting to the trail I requested a walk along the river bank for photos first.






I think this one is my favorite of the day: My hunny looking at the water:



Although the colors are not yet plentiful and vibrant they were still beautiful:



We hiked to the White Cave then on to the Foshee Trail and over to the Painted Rock Trail.



Our view from the top of one of the hiking trails:

A Reminder of Grandpa

Saturday as we visited with one of the couples from our church they happily showed us the many fruit trees and plants growing in their yard and on their property.



When they showed us the persimmon tree it reminded me of fall days when my Grandpa, in the Missouri Ozarks, would pick a persimmon and cut it open to see the shape revealed inside. He'd say the shape would predict how hard the following winter would be. The shape of a spoon would predict there would be much snow shoveling. The shape of a knife would predict a lot of ice to be cut. The shape of a fork would predict a mild winter. My husband asked if the predictions were ever accurate and you know, I don't even remember if they ever were! I just remember Grandpa always did this, and then would always invite us to taste the persimmon, which would always be so bitter we'd spit it back out and he'd grin just as if it were the first time he'd played the trick on us. When I shared the story with our friends, Fermin went to pick Marty and I each a persimmon so we could cut them and predict the winter. Since winters are always rather mild here in South Central Texas, I'm not sure the same predictions apply, but it's been fun to remember Grandpa in this way.

A photo of Grandpa and me taken several years ago:



When I cut open the perimmons this is what I found. Not sure if it's a knife shape or how Grandpa might predict a Texas winter, but it was fun to relive a memory that I hadn't though about in years.

Family Photos

While we were at Lost Maples Park in Vanderpool, TX this weekend I wanted to find some cool colorful backgrounds for new family photos. Here are some we took that day.

Saturday Solo Road Trip

I decided to take my camera and take a road trip by myself today. When I left I had a few desitinations in mind, but still wasn't sure where I'd end up. When I pulled out of town I was armed with a full tank of gas, a full coffee cup, a bagel, my cell phone, a map and of course MY CAMERA. What more did I need? As I was driving, and before my mind was made up about my destination, Erica called on her way to a baby shower to inquire whether I'd made up my mind where I was going. I told her a few of my destination choices, one of which was Blanco. She encouraged me to drive there via another more scenic route if I went there. So, that made my decision easier. I pulled over to consult a map and headed for Blanco. I told her the route sounded familiar and sounded like a route I had printed out this spring as one to take in search of wildflowers. I never did get the opportunity to do so then. As I was driving toward Wimberley I passed a unique looking building in the middle of nowhere and noticed the sign out front "Wimberley Glass Works." This was the route I'd considered taking in the spring and the glass gallery was one of the businesses I'd found online that looked intriguing. I pulled a u-turn and headed back to look around. What a beautiful gallery! I roamed around looking at various pieces and found a glass door to a room where glass blowing was being demonstrated. I walked in and had a seat to watch. I've always loved watching glass blowing. It fascinates me!

After they finished the piece they were working on I hit the road again. Soon I came to some really pretty views from the road so I pulled off to the side and hopped out with the camera. It wasn't long before I was joined along the roadside by another car with a couple with a camera in hand. I could see why it was a popular place to stop!











When I arrived in Blanco I headed straight to a little trail downtown that leads to a very beautiful park I discovered with my mom this summer.

I found a few colorful fall leaves on the trail:

This is the sight that greets you at the end of the short trail:







I spent some time sitting on a ledge, dangling my feet, listening to the ducks and the sound of the water. What a peaceful spot. I highly recommend it for reflecting, soul-searching, or just resting!




As I headed back toward home I ventured down a route different than the one I took to get to Blanco. As I turned onto this route, this is what I saw. You can see a glimpse of Canyon Lake off in the distance.

Home Sweet Home

I grew up in rural Missouri. My siblings and I spent hours upon hours roaming the fields and woods near our house and Grandpa's, fishing in the ponds, catching tadpoles in the creek, and building "forts" out of the brush. These are photos I took when we went "home" for Thanksgiving and wandered down to the creek to look around. These are photos of my "playground."

"...he leads me beside quiet waters. he restores my soul."

Psalm 23:2-3