Kings Canyon National Park

 

 

Thanks to the President's Day extended weekend and Rudy getting

a day off work for his birthday, everyone

was free a few Fridays ago.

We took the opportunity to head south and then east

to Kings Canyon National Park despite a majority of the park

being closed for winter.

We decided a small view of the park was better than

dealing with the hoards of visitors in other seasons.

 

The park is located south of Yosemite

and contains similar terrain and features minus the spectacular valley and amazing waterfalls.

Our trip in was very beautiful as we drove along the
narrow and gently winding road enjoying the green
of spring and the newly emerged wildflowers.

 

Our first stop in the park was to eat our picnic lunch.

Despite the snow, the sun was shining so our lunch time was pleasant.

 

The Visitor's Center was buried in snow.

The backside of the avalanche off the center's roof.
It had a lovely blue color through the tunnel.

 

We were able to visit the General Grant Grove
because the trail had been cleared.

Snowed-in parts of the park were open to cross-country skiers

and those with snow shoes but we were neither so we stuck to cleared trails.

 

We climbed through this downed tree.

It gives one perspective on how big Sequoia trees really are.

 

 

The burned out backside of the General Grant Tree.

We climbed up a mushy hill to get here and slid down icy
patches on the other side to meet up with the main trail.

Seedlings poking through the snow.

 

After our little hike, the boys did flips from the railing into the soft snow

and lobbed snowballs at each other.

We climbed back in our vehicle for the long drive down to Hume Lake.

That turned out to be a road where you hoped you never met anyone coming

from the other direction.

It was narrow, potholed, winding, and although it was plowed

there were shady areas that were full of snow and ice.

It was a good area to get a view of the Sierras and the park's backcountry.

 

Hume Lake is dry in the winter

when the water flows through the dam.

You can see where the wildfire burned right to the northern edge

of the lake last summer.

There's a large Christian camp and conference center on the southern

end of the lake that wasn't sure if it would survive or go up in flames.

Thankfully, it survived.

One side of the stream receives sun and the other doesn't.

 

It was late afternoon when we left the park and

made our way home from the clear mountains into the cloudy valley.

I've heard of the misty hills of the Appalachian Mountains

and this is how I imagine they must look.

 

As we approached home, we realized that spring had hit the valley in

earnest and almond blossoms were bursting out in orchards.

We were blessed with winter and spring in one day within just a few hours drive.

 

*******************

In our Bible story readings after supper we have been reading about

the Old Testament judges.

It was Tiana's night to read and she was reading to story of Gideon

but whenever she would come to the word, "Midianites" she would read

it as, "Mennonites."  It made for an interesting time as she

talked about the wicked Mennonites that oppressed Israel
and how Gideon was to destroy them. 

 



Half A Century

 

 

Some ages can simply not go unnoticed
although Rudy was doing his best to declare that this

birthday was not going to be celebrated.

 

The plans started rolling around in my mind around Christmas.
A few phone calls to make arrangements set everything in motion.
Some colorful party supplies were purchased and

the invitations printed and sent out.

 

 

Things were snuck out of the house right under his nose.

Borrowed rooms at his work were decorated on Saturday afternoon.

 

On Sunday, I was happy when we finally left church.

I was rather worried that someone would let something slip.

All afternoon my mind was going in a whirl

while desperately hoping it would all be a surprise.

 

At 4 p.m., he so kindly fell asleep on the couch.

The older three left with some games in hand to go spend

the evening with some friends.

He didn't even notice they left.

 

While he snoozed away, the older kids were at his work

 welcoming people, setting out food, and taking care

of last minute stuff.

 

At 5:10, Rudy's boss called and told him to meet him at work

because there was an important issue to take care of.

Rudy groggily changed his clothes and drove off for work

grumbling about things happening on the weekend.

 

A few minutes later, Tiana and I left home.

I had someone videotaping so I didn't feel like I needed

to be able to sneak into the room ahead of him.

 

When he entered the room where everyone was hidden,

 the lights flashed on and everyone yelled.

He jumped back two feet into the hallway because he

thought there was an explosion.

Even after he figured out that people were in the room,

he had no clue why they were there.

That's one of the benefits of having the party

  a week in advance.

 

After his heart settled down and he could breathe again,

the party began.

 

Our guests brought platters of finger food,

many pots of coffee were consumed,

pumpkin roll and ice cream were the dessert.

 

"Happy Birthday" was sung with gusto.

 

The photo booth was especially enjoyed by the children

 

and endured by those who are a bit older.

 

The gag gifts provided lots of laughter. 

 

The night was lots of fun but by the time things were cleaned up

and we were home again, I was completely worn out.

The stress of making it all a surprise was worse than

the actual work.

I assured Rudy that I would not be throwing any

more surprise parties for him any day soon.

Actually, I don't think his heart could handle any

more parties that caught him off-guard like this one did.

 

 



 

Jumbled January

 

I'm getting complaints about my outdated blog
but I really don't know what to write.

Our January is a jumble of events with few connecting

threads running through them.

January is January.
It's more laid back; a month of recovery.
We try to not let anything exciting happen

so that we can recover from the busyness of the previous months.

 

Wesley left right after our trip south.

He headed for the cold country

where there are friends and Bible School.

Nathan stayed in the south for awhile
and returned home a week after us.

He is getting to be an expert Amtrak traveler.

 

Rudy returned to work on the 4th.
The girls started school on the 4th.

On the 4th, I plotted what I would do the next day,
which was my birthday.

 

 

 

I was well pampered.
Nathan took Tiana to her writing class, picked up Bethany,

took the girls to the library, and then they all went shopping.

 

I spent a few hours ALONE!

What a rare treat.

Then I had a massage.

Another rare treat.

 

Rudy brought home supper

and a birthday cake.

I had the night off.

 

Tiana made this supersized kiss for me...using MY chocolate chips!  :-)

 

We have been blessed with rain.
Nathan likes to take detailed photos
and this month his focus has been raindrops hitting the puddles.

 

One day we were trying to get home via a back road.
So much for CA not having any water.

We were glad to be in a high-clearance vehicle.

A car coming from the other direction had to turn around and

find another route.

 

The wet ground was good for pulling out old fence posts
but not so good for building a new fence.

 

 

January is good for cleaning things out.

The containers were matched with lids and the extra lids
and lidless containers were (gasp!)  THROWN AWAY!

 

 Seldom used toys were hauled out of the closet.

 

On warmer days the cats relaxed on the picnic table

where they could catch some rays of the setting sun.

 

Daisy was well loved.

 

One day, Tiana wrapped her in a blanket
and put her in the doll stroller.
I figured she would stay for a second or two.
Instead, she sat there for an hour, basically

only moving her head to keep people in her view.

She finally jumped out because Rudy came home for lunch.

 

I had to do some work on my photo albums

and I came across these pictures.

This snow suit belongs to a friend who bought it for her

first-born and whose grandchildren now wear it.

 

A chunk of the month was spent preparing on the sly
a surprise party for a special guy.

 

January holds a lot of promise.
It's the first month in a new year.

"Clean out" and "organize" are often the theme.

Going back to school is always shocking

no matter if it's the 4th, the 18th or the 25th

of the month.

Suddenly the month is done

and I am finally used to writing 2016...

most of the time.

 

We ended the month with a bang.

But, more on that next time.