Birthday Wishes Fulfilled...

My birthday was earlier this month.  My husband asked me what I wanted, as any good husband would do, right?  After making a mental list of all the possibilities my answer may hold, I decided to go with simple and inexpensive.

"Honey, I would like to spend a day hiking and exploring someplace new to us in New York.  How about seeing Lake Ontario?  You, me, the dogs and whom ever of our kids is interested."
(And, then, I went shopping, all by myself, and bought 2 pairs of earrings...Takes the guess-work of these things!)

Well, between Don's travels for work.....

Then the dreary, cloudy, soggy weather we experienced for nearly 2 weeks prevented Don from following through with my birthday wish.  Bummer.



However, when we saw that yesterday was predicted to be mostly sunny AND 79 degrees, we decided we just had to do it.  Don would set aside his agenda for completing projects around the farm, and I would pause from school year preparations, cleaning, and processing the veggies from the garden.




We would hike at Chimney Bluff State Park in the morning, enjoy a picnic lunch, then head over to Sodus Point to see the lighthouse and relax on the beach.





 

And, a glorious day it was!!  I want to share with you, my followers, some of the beautiful sights and moments we (Grace, Rosie, Don and I) captured with my camera.  Definitely a place we'll be visiting again!!



I'll try to keep this to my 10 favorite photos, but please forgive me if I go over by 3 or 4!

Mac, fetching a log.  The water is so clear and blue!

My favorite hiking partners in a unique-looking tree.

Hiking towards the bluffs.

Grace captured this seagull on the point of this cool geological feature!






Keep Scrolling....I definitely went over my limit, Folks!  But, you just have to see...

The point from a distance.  Pretty awesome view!

Another beautiful sight captured by Grace!

Looking back at the beach from the pier...

The dogs had a blast swimming.  I wasn't sure how Tig would feel about the rougher, deeper water, since his only swimming experiences thus far have been splashing around our little pond.







Turns out he LOVES to swim - I believe he thinks he's a lab, too!

My beautiful artist!  I hope she will paint one or two of these pictures for me...

A sweet little family on the beach was flying this colorful kite.

And, of course, we couldn't end our day without our little tradition.....

You see, I grew up spending many, many weekends traveling from my family's home in Chester County, PA to the Chesapeake Bay area, where we went boating, crabbing, fishing and water-skiing.  On the way home, we always stopped for ice cream at this great little Mom-n-Pop place called, "The Real McCoy".  Up until a few years ago, I was still stopping there with my own kids.

So, when we saw a little ice cream place that resembled our traditional haunt, I looked at Don.....he looked at me, and.....

You guessed it.....

YUM!!

Thanks so much, Don, for a very lovely birthday!!

The "Critters" in Our Lives (part 1 of 3)

We've shared our lives with many animals over the years. I thought I'd take a couple of posts to introduce you to our current crew (for my fellow animal lovers!), because they are so entertaining and appear in so many of my photos.

We've been blessed with everything from dairy and beef cattle to a goat to guinea pigs in the last 18 years, but the "staples" in our lives have been dogs, cats and horses.  We believe God calls us to be good stewards of all that He shares with us, including the animals in our care, whether they are for food production or companionship.  And, so, with that in our hearts, we always strive to take the best care of our animals that we can!

Standing with me, above, is Ginger, our nine year old yellow lab whom we adopted from an Amish neighbor in Lancaster County, PA.  We first met her the day after she was born, and took her home 9 weeks later!  She received her little orange coat for Christmas this year because she can't quite handle the cold like she used to, but she's determined to stay outside with her family, no matter the weather.

 This is Macadamia Nut, aka. Mac.  He is just three years old.  While checking out a pony we were considering purchasing in Chester County, PA, Don and I fell in love with this guy, who was a pudgy little tank at just 10 weeks old. Needless to say, we left that stable with a dog, instead of a pony!  He will be in lots of my photos, because he LOVES to pose for pictures and he's always with us.  He's a hunting dog that missed his calling as a model!

Ginger and Mac (Oct. 2013)

 I cannot imagine my life without dogs.  They are a constant source of companionship and entertainment.

Ginger and Mac (Feb. 2013)

Currently, in our "rodent-control" department, we have our feline companions:

Lady, the youngest at only 9 months, is our female.  Adopted from the shelter where my daughter, Grace, volunteers, she has proven herself a mighty hunter. (And, quite photogenic!)

Bugsy, our largest cat, is 6 years old.  He got his name because his favorite past-time is chasing flying insects in the summertime!

Leo has been my long-time companion of 11+ years!  He was born behind a bush near the front door of our home while we were dairy farming.  His mama abandoned him there at 3 weeks of age, so I adopted him, and the rest is history!

Stay tuned to meet our horses and more......