Mail Boat Tour on Geneva Lake

Enjoyed a beautiful day in Lake Geneva with three great friends from high school/Free Church days in Rockford...Cheryl McKay, Ginny Brass, and Cindy Judge. 

The mail boat ride brought back lots of memories of time spent on Geneva Lake...at my Grandma and Grandpa Severin's cottage and at several of the different camps on the lake.  Andy and I spent part of our honeymoon there, too.

The bottom right hand picture is the Wacker's getaway ~ as in Wacker Drive in Chicago.  The one next to it is where Grandma and Grandpa's cottage was back in the day...now it is has been torn down and a huge home fills the property.

It's fun to watch the mail carrier jump off the front of the boat, hussle to put the mail in the box and jump back on the back of the boat...well, most of the time anyway.  He missed it once and ended up in the drink.  I noticed that he had his eye on the boat the entire time.

Mail delivery by boat is done on other lakes around the country, but here at Geneva Lake is the only tour boat that delivers the mail.  It was recently featured on national television and there are clips on YouTube as well.

We had lunch at a great little place on the water, enjoyed an arts fair on the library lawn, and of course some homemade ice cream to top it off.  It was a great day filled with remembering, laughter, sharing, and planning for another get together!

Training for The Way

 

Over the past few weeks we have switched to only walking dirt paths.  It has been easier on our feet and legs and has also provided new challenges and scenery.

Some of the time we have been on the Glacial Drumlin State Trail which runs from Milwaukee to Madison ~ about 52 miles.  It was developed on an old railroad line and is fairly flat.  The parts we have walked have been crushed rock and dirt.  They are well maintained but the bugs have been a problem and we have had to get some potent bug spray.

Some of the way has been through low ground with lots of sitting water, many filled with cattails.  Other parts there are miles and miles of huge fields of soy beans and corn which are quite pretty and quite healthy right now.  There are open spaces on the trail but much of it is under a canopy of trees.  

Today we walked twenty miles...a first for us.  There are 3-4 days when we will walk 18-19 miles on our trek across Spain, so we wanted to know by experience how that would feel.  We went from Sullivan to Jefferson on the Glacial Drumlin Trail ~ it took us a little over 7 hours to complete.  Even with ideal weather and conditions, it was challenging.  We took two nice stops for lunch ~ yes we ate two times! 

The other area we have enjoyed is Lapham Peak State Park which is just a few blocks (as the crow flies) from our home.  These trails give us a more realistic feel for what the Camino will be like ~ dirt, rock, and grass trails, up and down hills, sun and shade.  The Ice Age Trail is a National Scenic Trail and cuts through the park ~ when it is finished it will be 1,000 miles long, following the edge of the last continental glacier in  Wisconsin.

So far we have seen a variety of different butterflies, frogs, snakes, and turtles, lots of rabbits and a few deer.  Today a a couple of Sandhill Cranes were playing on the path, but they flew off as we got closer to them.


PS
The little brick building is the nicest, cleanest most modern outhouse I have ever used.
It is in a little park just outside the little town of Helenville, WI!

Walking Through Life

Aimee was born January 28, 1975 at Fort Hood, Texas. Six weeks later Andy left for 189 days in Germany on Brigade 75 with the US Army. It was hard to be alone with an infant first child. However, there were some advantages. 

 Like being able to put her in a stroller and take her for a long walk when she got fussy...which was almost every night around suppertime. I didn't have to fix dinner at any special time, so off we would go. She loved it, plus walking gave me some exercise and an excuse to get outside. 

 I have been walking an hour a day every day since then...over 37 years. Okay, not every day, but most days. Year round. In recent years, my standard has been: not walking in below zero temperatures. Other than that, I walk. In rain, sleet, or snow. 

 I have been in hiking clubs through the years, in Germany and in Colorado. We went all over the countryside, finding new trails and challenges. When we moved back to Colorado in 1999, I was in my fifties...we started hiking Fourteeners in the Rockies. I have climbed 12 of the 14,000 foot mountains in Colorado.

 I also got a new bike and started riding regularly. A few years ago I rode nearly 1200 miles preparing for a 100K ride to raise money for the American Diabetes Association. On a trip to Hawaii, we kayaked the NaPali Coast of Kauai.

 So, I have been active and exercising most of my adult life.

 Now, in less than a month, we are leaving for 7+ weeks in Spain to walk The Way of St. James ~ El Camino de Santiago. The distance from St Jean Pied de Port, France, to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, is about 800KM or 500 miles. The trail we are following is called The French Way. 

 It will be the biggest physical challenge I have face.

 Why am I doing it at age 65??? 

 I am not really sure... 

 We heard about the Camino 18-24 months ago. We thought it was pretty cool but it wasn't until months later that we decided to actually do it. Andy said one day, "I've been thinking about the Camino." I responded, "So have I." In January we got serious and started planning and purchasing equipment.

 Now, here it is. We look at this as a transitional Sabbatical of sorts...leaving full time ministry after over 40 yeas, and entering the world of volunteer ministry. 

 Join us! 

 Keep up with our adventure on my blog and through Facebook.

 Andy plans to start a blog, too. I'll keep you posted on that.

 I plan to post as often as I find WiFi.

 Spain is a first world country after all.

Faith's Adventure in Chicago

 

Faith and I spent another day in Chicago together using the Trolley to see even more ~ with stops at Chinatown, Little Italy, and Greektown.  We walked the streets and picked up samples of food along the way. 
We walked around downtown, poked around in the old city libaray (now a cultural center) and an underground subway stop.  I had wanted to show her a typical subway station underground but the one we chose was a very upscale completely remodeled station.  Was a nice place for a rest and a coke.
From there we spent the rest of the afternoon in Grant Park, exploring the many facets of the Park...the concert pavillion, The Bean, gardens, and of course, Buckingham Fountain.  She had her characture drawn by a street artist.
We met up with Carol, Margaret and Andy for Summer Dance in the Park and a picnic supper.  They have a huge dance floor set up and local studios provide teachers.  So everyone learns a dance and then has a couple of hours to practice and enjoy the evening.  Seemed like there were hundreds of people there.  It's done most weekends all summer.  Very fun. 
All week we had great weather...not even that hot.  On the way home it rained some, but we had another surprise stop with Chris, Tara and Jodi at Xtreme Trampolines in Buffalo Grove.  They had such fun jumping for nearly 2 hours before we headed home.

Most evenings we played games...Clue, Jenja, and Rack-O.  Faith loves to win but she is learning to be a happy looser as well!  She was patient, kind, helpful, flexible, grateful, and fun...growing into a sweet young lady.  We put her on a direct flight to Atlanta on Saturday and she made it home safely. 
Happy Birthday, Faith!

Double Digit Adventure with Oma and Opa

 

Faith came home with us from Colorado to celebrate a Double Digit Adventure for her 10th birthday this year.  It was fun to introduce her to some of our old haunts in Chicago and found some new places as well.  We enjoyed having her for 10 days...she is easy to be around and is a lot of fun.  Andy thinks she and I are two peas in a pod...loving to be active and on the go, ready for a new adventure with little need for a nap along the way.
Here in Wisconsin we visited the old stagecoach inn in Delafield ~ Hawks Inn ~, went miniature golfing, baked summer spritz, and went sailing on Lake Michigan with some friends.  Then we headed south to Six Flags for a great day with Chris, Tara, and Jodi Lawson.  Jodi turned 10 in May also, and those two girls really enjoyed the time together.  It was a surprise to Faith that we met up with them and she loved it.  We went on most all of the big rides in the park.  Faith wasn't sure about going with just Andy and me...she wasn't convinced we would be willing to go upside down that many times in one day!  We stayed from 11 to 11 and went home very satisfied!
In Chicago we stopped by Trinity, found our old apartment in Highwood, and checked out what they have done with Fort Sheridan along Lake Michigan.  We were very impressed.  Making our way down into the city we stopped to tour the beautiful Bahai House of Worship in Wilmette and the lighthouse in Evanston.  Lee, Carol, and Margaret Hutchins hosted us in their home for the week.
One day we drove downtown and stopped by Moody...just planting some seeds for the future.  Anita Lustrea from Midday Connection on Moody Radio gave us a tour of the studios.  We walked down the Magnificent Mile, walked around the Water Tower, and made our way to Willis Tower (the old Sears Tower) on one of the Chicago Trolleys.  It was an hour wait to get to the 103rd floor, but it was well worth it.  Faith didn't think twice about walking out on the The Ledge and we got some fun pictures of the city.
We continued on the tour of the city riding a double-decker bus down and around Grant Park on Michigan Aveue and back north on the Lake Shore.  We ended up at Navy Pier for the rest of the day ~ enjoying the ferris wheel ride, a fun game house, dinner, and fireworks before heading home.

Meet the Family

Maybe you are new to my blog and need to meet the family...
Sarah, Joel, Anders (5) and Cade (3) are in the top two pictures
and
Aimee, Gary, Faith (10), Avery (7), and Ryan (3 1/2) are in the bottom two pictures.
We spent some time together in Steamboat Springs, Colorado in July this summer.



Cute cousins...

Cute sweet cousins who seem to like hanging out and hiking together...