Fri., July 25, 2008

Got back yesterday from camping with 8 other women.  This is an annual event that my sis & I do each year during the summer.  We started with just the two of us and decided that we wanted to share the experience with others.  Ten years later and we are having to limit the number of women who can come.  What a great time.  We camped out in Mineral King at Cold Springs Campground.  This campground is on the east fork of the Kaweah river and had an enormous amount of rushing water in it.  We enjoyed the sound the entire time we were there.  The campground is known for its marmot problem but we escaped any damage to our cars.  We also had the priviledge of seeing a young buck & doe grazing through one of the two camp sites we occupied.  A mother grouse stopped by with her youngins a couple of times which was very exciting because she stayed a few minutes letting some of her dawdlers catch up to her.  We ate, played a ton of games, read, napped, and took beautiful walks/hikes.  The weather was colder at night than we expected (down to the mid 30's) and the first night none of us slept much.  By the second night we had layered our clothing and pulled out any extra blankets and sleeping bags we had with us.  We slept toasty warm for the other two nights.  Mineral King does play home to a small young grove of the giant Sequoias and that was a treat for one of my friends to see.  She's planning on coming back so that I can take her up to the actual giant Sequoia forest where the really big trees are.  And among the many wonders that I could comment on I want to let you know just how good God really is.   While driving up a 25 mi. road that takes 1 1/2 hrs. I started smelling something car-like.  After checking all instruments and car-like brake area I continued on.  I did smell the same thing coming down the mountain four days later but again continued on after checking what I could.  When I got home my very capable husband checked out the van and found a 4 in. crack in the radiator!  And with what that could have meant in this remote camping area I am very grateful to God for his protection!  Amen, amen, amen.

Tues., April 8, 2008

My brother-in-law is off today and all 4 of us start the day at about 8:30 am.  We are preparing our fenced in compound area & access road for a groups of campers coming up this weekend & next.  Today we are going to trim the trees within the compound  & on the road  that leads into the property.  The camping area or compound as we call it is about 8-10 fenced acres that the cows can't get to.  The road is a mile long and most of that property itself is owned by another person.  But because this particular road was established many years ago by my grandparents it has become an easement to my sisters property.  Jack, my bro-in-law, is operating the pole saw; Bob, my husband, is operating the chain saw; Sherry & I are following along with the truck & trailer and quad picking up the limbs.  Now this sounds simple but we worked from 8:30until about 1:30 before stopping.   We all stop for about 1 1/2 hours & then 3 of us continue to pick up what has been cut down.  We continued to work until 7 pm when I called it quits.  My  bro-in-law continued to mow the grass on the campground area until around 8:30 pm.  Sherry covered the garden plants because we're expecting below 32 degrees tonight.  Bob & I are exhausted!  We bathe, eat, watch a movie and call it a day.  Whew!  Oh; yes, this can be a typical day during the spring & fall when we work the hardest.