Springs and more springs!

 UPDATE:  I heard late last week that the place where my grandmother lived is not going to pursue an extra month rent due to the reasons I pointed out.  I am SOOOOO grateful, I saved her $2000!

I am in orientation and virtual training this week, switching over to my new job.  I took a break today after training, before my zoom yoga class to post some pictures from my hiking trip last week.

We saw 7 different springs.  It is amazing the area in less than 100 mile radius has the type of geographical features that allow the viewing of so many beautiful springs.  This is not all of them, just the ones I saw.

Alley Springs

Cave Spring

Welch Spring

Round Spring

Blue Spring

Big Spring

Mammouth Spring

I noticed on the map there were a few of the springs with the same name, Blue Spring, for instance.  I guess they were running out of ideas.  Maybe Wet Spring or Roaring Spring wasn't considered, LOL.  Many of these springs are close to parking so you can drive and not have to walk too far.  The Alley Spring was the most photogenic - the bright red mill next to it and the walk around it made it easy to photograph.  Big, Blue and Round springs came out from under a rock cliff, making it harder to get a representation in a photograph of the size/color.  The Blue Spring was an amazing blue color, and so deep (over 300 feet?) that it was dark and hard to see.  The Welch Spring was cool, because next to it sits an abandoned hospital.  Eery.  It was about a mile walk.  Cave Spring was connected to the Current River, I was able to kayak into it directly from the river last month - which was much easier than the 2.5+ miles up and down into the woods required to walk to it.  There were a couple want to see next time I am in that area, such as Pulltight Spring.  Just not enough time.

Well, the days are still pretty warm after a brief cool/rainy couple of days - my plants are liking that and so am I because we unhooked our hoses in case it freezes and i left them unhooked so i don't forget and have freeze damage.  Tomorrow is supposed to warm to nearly 80 then drop to 40.  While i was gone last week, DH arranged for a delivery of a rick of wood for us to burn this winter.  It probably isn't quite enough for the entire winter, but we can always get a little more.

My brain is tired after training, esp virtual/online training.  It is so boring and hard to pay attention.  At least they gave us plenty of breaks so we could get up and move around.  I swear that in the last few years, the worst types of soreness/injury I have had are from sitting too much at work and sleeping wrong, lol.  

I am LOVING our new bed though.  I am excited to have our new bed intime for winter and our rik of wood.  What have you out there been doing to prepare for winter?  I have been thinking of getting one of those salt lamps too - I just replenished my vitamin D supply and use LED lights as much as possible due to SAD.  The dark/damp just bums me out.  So, all winter it is important for me on nice days as much as possible to get out there and get a little sun on my face/arms.  "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can".  I have some relatives who are having a hard time with some health issues that i am thinking of, so i am blessed with my lack of problems there.  I hope this is not a long winter and i hope you are safe and well where ever you are reading this from!

Last Trip for a While!

 It is Friday!  I am back working and putting in 10 hours today.  Will only get 20 hours in this week, as we were off Monday and I took off Tues - Thurs for my hiking trip.  But I am glad I worked Sunday so i will at least get partial check!

It was nice having Monday off, but I spent much of my afternoon making a couple of dishes to take to the hiking trip for our pot luck the first night.  I made a bean dip and nachos fixings and made a cinnamon roll/caramel apple "lasagna" bake dish that I found on Pinterest.  It was yummy.  I also put out a few fall decorations like some pretty leaf garlands and a couple of metal pumpkins I put out on my front porch and a couple of wreaths - and that is about the extent of my fall effort!  Felt weird, because it was still mid 80's earlier this week!

Went to bed pretty early, so I could get early start to meet my friend to ride to the hiking trip.  I belong to a hiking club and they do overnight spring trip and a fall trip each year.  Last spring we did the spring trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas.  This was literally right before Covid shutdown.  

The hiking club fall trip was to Eminence, Missouri.  If you read my blog before today, you will recall that I went here a month ago to kayak on 3 of the area rivers and LOVED it.  

This is an area in Southern Missouri about 1.5 hours Southeast of Springfiend.  It is a beautiful area consisting of beautiful pristine forest protected in the Mark Twain National Forest and limestone and dolomite rock caves and springs resulting in rock formations, caves and spring fed rivers.  Very pretty area, sparsely populated, but popular for travelers wanting to hike and enjoy the rivers and look for the wild horses that live here.  

I will probably write and post pictures in multiple different entries on my blog because I took so many pictures and enjoyed it so much, I want to capture a record of it for myself as much as for the blog!  It was a great trip and I am so lucky to have happened across this hiking group that I joined a year and a half ago and have met so many wonderful people and made friends that I enjoy and admire so much.  

The officers of the club pick the hikes and scout the areas, researching and access maps and then doing the hikes before they invite the entire group.  We have suspended carpooling and mask up when we are doing our group photos to be respectful and careful due to the virus.  The officers work so hard to give us interesting and pretty hikes.  They even find lodging and reserve blocks of rooms for our overnight trips.  This trip to Eminence, we stayed at Echo Bluff State Park.  There is a lodge and cabins and RV camping.  It was very nice.  Beautiful setting and wonderful accomodations.

I will post more about our hikes and what pretty things we saw here.  I am just about ready to go for a short walk around the neighborhood with my DH.  The weather is just gorgeous now that I am back home.  I got home last evening around 7 and since there was a frost advisory, we rushed around for an hour trying to fit all our plants back in the house and garage.  We did not get all my cactus from the front porch in yet, but they seem OK today.  So maybe it didn't get below 32 last night.

My DH was glad to be home and I sure missed him too.  I told him how much I want my next trip there for him to be with me, we will just have to fork over some money for dog care, so we can have a little get-away together.  I sure was glad to be in my nice, new, comfy bed last night!  I was the last one in the cabin to pick my room (3 bedrooms) and I got the horrible mattress in the bunk bed room at Echo Bluff cabin.  The dogs sure were glad to see me too.

OK and TX trip

 I had a whirlwind trip to see my cousin in Southern OK.  Left at 3pm Friday and got there 7:30pm.  Just starting to get dark and a little cool.  I drove our convertible and had such a nice drive to and from.  Cousin and her husband have been very careful getting out too much and being in crowds since the Covid 19 virus, as have DH and myself.  But we decided to go ahead with this little visit, because she and I both needed it.  This time of year she usually comes to NW Arkansas and my aunts come south and we all do the War Eagle craft fair.  This is the first year we have missed this women's weekend since 1995 when we started.  So, cousin and I decided just she and I would visit...I just saw one aunt last weekend and saw my sister when we moved my Granny.

Friday night we caught up and had wonderful late salad meal and went to bed pretty early after I got the tour of her home she shares with her delightful husband B.  They have a view of the south over the Red River, into North Texas that is about 15 miles.  I should have photographed it.  They also have 3 barn kitties, a big dog a little dog and 10 new chickens and a rooster.  She and I both enjoy gardening and so i took her a kalanchoe and a mother of thousands plant (both succulents).  Earlier this summer I mailed her a banana plant start off my plant my friend from Florida mailed me last year.  In this year of Covid, i have mailed and received seeds/plants from a few friends - it makes me smile.  I have also mailed a few care packages and that makes me smile too.  Food, cards, candles, blankets, etc.

Sat morning cousin and I got up and went to the Dallas Arboretum to see all the pretty fall pumpkins and gourds and we had such a nice time.  It was beautiful there!

 

Sat evening we went to Sam Moon and Bucees, because...well it is Texas!  Sam Moon and Bucees were busy, but we felt comfortable wearing our masks like everyone else and keeping our distance.  We got to go food from the Cheesecake Factory in Lakeview (?) which was crowded!  That was the only time we sort of felt uncomfortable, but again, we just kept masks on and washed our hands frequently.  We ate in her car!

Sunday morning we visited more (non stop gabbing for us, lol) and talked about books and podcasts we recommended to each other.  I recommended the Bible Recap podcast to her and told her i recently had listened to Sally Field, Demi Moore and Jessica Simpson memoirs and she told me some of her book picks, including this Crazy Sexy Diet book and I ordered it on the spot from Ebay, along with one of her favorite books, Steering by Starlight, by Martha Beck.  I was lucky to find these 2 books used for $3 and $4 dollars, buy 3 get shippin free on Ebay!  I also got a couple more of my husband's fave authors (Nelson DeMille and Harlen Coben).  I have many of our favorite authors in hardback displayed in our library/dining room and I have all the ones we have in a digital file so when i find used book deals shopping, i can look to see if we have the particular title.  I use Inkpad app and i can share my notes among diff formats (laptop, cell phone) and i can share the notes with DH if he does the grocery shopping.

I am working this afternoon and enjoying my candle I got at Bucees.  We both smelled about 40 and decided this one was our favorite.  DH even likes it.

Do you have a favorite candle that you enjoy?  This one smells sort of masculine, with hint of cinnamon maybe.  I also liked My Dear Watson from Scentsy, but i am not sure if they still make it.  

I like this mug my cousin had, trying to stay positive in this uncertain time of Covid and leading into an election...yuck I don't like discord and confrontation.  I avoid political talk then feel guilty like i should get better at discussing and hearing diff views.  Uggggh.  Well, i did have a great discussion with cousin and her husband about politics, beliefs, even religion and spirituality.  We can all discuss with respect - that is what is missing from social media today - the respect.  Like the disrespect i felt from a former friend the last year and a half which made me ask for distance from her - she tells you her beliefs and how they differ from yours and makes you feel like you are wrong and i don't need it!  Plenty of people in my life who make me feel inspired and energized, not defective and broken!  Stay away from people like that!

Well, back on the healthy eating bandwagon.  I splurged way too much the last 2 weeks, so i made some squash and zucchini soup and will have that tonight.  Had a nice salad today for lunch.  I walked yesterday (my zoom yoga cancelled yesterday, my yoga instructor is on a meditation training).  I will walk another 4 today and tomorrow going on a challenging hike -5 miles, so that will be good for me.  But, it is supposed to be 84 tomorrow!  Whew.

What are you doing to enjoy the fall?  

See you soon