Painted Lady on Sedum...

A painted lady butterfly enjoying the sedum plant in the front. :)

Opening its wings out. So pretty!

Landscaping Progress...

We finally had time to work on our landscaping recently. We did have just patchy grass and uneven soil going right up to the house, but now we have proper flower beds and landscaping! :) Candace and her mom did an amazing job with laying out the final plans. We were so happy with the outcome!

 

Starting the landscaping work.

Halfway to being done. Plants and flowers planted and weed fabric and mulch in place.

We were given bricks by Candace's eldest brother and they came in really useful!

The curve of the flower bed at the front.

The completed landscaping from the front. :)

Sunset over Wal-Mart...

The sunset was quite pretty earlier this month. It would have been even more perfect with a majestic mountain and roaring waves in view. But I guess, for now, the local Wal-Mart will have to do! 😃

We Will Get Through This Together...

I recently picked up a new yard sign from the American Red Cross. I like the message and the map of the world, because no matter where you find yourself on our planet, we are all facing the same challenges right now.

 

We will get through this together.

Riaan's Combine...

Riaan built this adorable little Lego combine harvester recently. It is quite fitting, since it is harvesting season here. He had no instructions and just used his imagination without any help. We were so proud!

Remnants of Hurricane Laura...

The remnants of what once was the catastrophic Hurricane Laura tracked through Kentucky and southern Indiana on Friday, 28th August. It brought with it some isolated heavy rain and breezy winds to our area.

A Day Trip to Indiana Dunes...

We took a flying trip up north to Indiana Dunes State Park and nearby Michigan City on Friday, 21st August. We rolled out of bed and were on the road by 06h30 that day. We arrived at Lake Michigan - and got prime parking right by the beach - at noon and spent the whole afternoon relaxing there. We swam, hiked a couple of trails in the State Park, and visited the Nature Centre. We even drove across to Michigan City to see the lighthouse and grab a bite to eat for supper before heading home. 

It was so good to be back at a beach and to feel the sand between our toes - albeit an inland lake and not the ocean! The last time we were here was in early September, 2017. We rolled back home at 23h30, after a very full and fun day! A highlight of the day? Riaan, swimming with Candace, saying "This is even better than I expected!" :)

Riaan was so excited!

 

Candace with Riaan in Lake Michigan.

 Chicago skyline in the distance.

 Ship sailing across the lake.

 We hiked two of the three main peaks of Indiana Dunes - and Riaan hiked the whole way!

Mount Jackson. Hiking in sand is hard!

Candace at 25 weeks. :)

Eliza playing peek-a-boo.

View towards Michigan City.

After our hike we visited the Nature Centre.

Riaan measuring his wingspan.

Eliza's turn!

Looking at a model of an ant lion.

Michigan City scene.

We were stopped at the drawbridge by a passing yacht.

Pretty yacht on the river.

The old lighthouse museum - which we visited back in July 2016.

The current Michigan City lighthouse.

Harvesting the Sunflower...

We took our giant sunflower down several weeks ago. As you can see, the flower was massive! I decided to harvest the sunflower seeds, although to be honest the rewards didn't quite measure up against the effort of the whole task. I first pulled out the sunflower seeds and boiled them in a pot of salted water. I then sprinkled them on a roasting pan and put them in the oven. Once they had roasted evenly and were completely dry, I pulled the pans out and let them cool. The results were mixed, as a large percentage of the seeds had failed to develop. But the ones that did were still quite tasty! 

Half the seeds out. It made a pretty cool pattern.

 

The seeds in the pot.

On the roasting pan.

Dried sunflower seeds in the biscuit container.

An open sunflower seed showing the edible part inside.

Mini Mercy Ships Model...

Ever since serving with Mercy Ships and building my own cardboard Africa Mercy model back in 2014, I'd always thought it would be cool to have a small Lego Mercy Ships display model. Well, now we have one! Mercy Ships partnered with Best-Lock Construction Toys to create this awesome model of the Africa Mercy. I'm not sure who was more excited, Riaan or myself, when it arrived in our postbox several weeks ago. You can get yours at the official Mercy Ships store here! :)

Building the ship together.

He was quite excited!

Cycling with the Family...

We did our first family cycle in several months recently. It was a beautiful day and a lovely little cycle! :)