Long Family Orchard and a Hike with Friends...

We visited our Mercy Ships friends on a lovely sunny day on Saturday, 5th October. We met up at Long Family Orchard, where we previously visited back in 2016, and munched apple doughnuts paired with cider. We then drove to a nearby state recreation area, where we hiked around the lake and enjoyed seeing the colours of trees changing as autumn nears.

A pensive-looking Anya with her apple doughnut.

Our three pose on the giant rocking chair.

Changing colours of autumn.

Beautiful leaf.

Great egret wading in the lake...

And catching a frog for a late lunch!

Two kayakers enjoying the serene Huron River.

Autumn Sunsets...

There have been some beautiful sunsets over the past few weeks. Here are a few of our favourite ones. :)

Flowering Asters...

Candace's asters that she planted last year have finally flowered. They have really taken over around our mailbox and have attracted so many bees this autumn. They also add a dash of colour to the front of our house. :)

Eliza's First Tooth Loss...

Our middle child lost her first tooth late last month. Unlike when Riaan lost his first tooth and we never knew what happened to it, Eliza knew that it was the time to pull it out - she had, after all, been wiggling it for quite a while!

White River Campground...

Late in September we drove down to the White River Campground, north of Indianapolis, where Candace's parents were camping for the weekend. We joined them for a day and enjoyed exploring the surrounding area. We visited the Strawtown Koteewi Park, where we explored the nature centre and the replica Native American village. There were also atlatl throwing demonstrations, along with an arrowhead making workshop. It was really interesting!

Walking over the White River.

A late morning walk to Strawtown.

The trail is for horses, cyclists, and walkers.

It was a lovely warm day.

Wildflowers growing in the prairie grassland.

The trail winds through tall prairie grassland.

Replica community building at the Taylor Center of Natural History.

Replica stockade wall.

Riaan trying his hand at the atlatl - what was used for hunting prior to the invention of bows and arrows.

Arrowhead workshop.

There are also animal exhibits and a small museum here.

Cycling Sunrise...

An early morning cycle rewarded me with breathtaking clouds as the sun rose over Detroit. I stopped and snapped a few photos before continuing on my ride. The frequent planes overhead (top left of this photo) were also a bonus.

Lovely morning for a cycle. :)

There was also a low-hanging mist shrouding the low areas on my route - as seen in this photo.

Father Christmas Babushkas...

We were given some store-bought stackable wooden dolls recently. They were from a kit, so you could paint them any pattern or design. Riaan decided to paint them as Father Christmas, since they have the pointy hat on top. So now he has three Santas, complete in red, light blue, and navy. :) He did a wonderful job!