Nature – Page 3 – Asbery's Echoes

Lightning Bug Bottom

I love lightning bugs. I get excited every spring when they first start coming out and I miss them in the fall. I still like to catch them and hold them in my hands and see them light up. They make the evening seem magical as they float around randomly giving off light. I can’t imagine living in an area where lightning bugs aren’t out lighting up the nights. A good friend sent me this little saying the other day and it puts a new perspective on the lowly little lightning bug – If God can make a bug’s bottom light up to decorate the night sky, imagine all he can do . . .

No Reason

I took this picture out of the car window while the car was moving. For no reason other than I love this view. I’m not a photographer by any means and this is not the best photo but I love it anyway. We were heading home from Uncle Jerry’s house after spending the afternoon with him and my two cousins. Aunt Konnie had passed away the day before and we all felt the need to be together. This barn sits down the hill from their house, through the tiny town of Rubio and around the corner. A couple of days later when we drove by there were cows roaming all over that hill and that would have made an even better picture but Drew had my phone and I wasn’t thinking about taking pictures then. It was a beautiful August day, the sun was shining, the sky was a beautiful blue with little puffs of white floating by. I would have loved to have taken a book and wandered up that hill, sat down in the shade of that barn and just enjoyed the quiet.

Roberts Creek Park West – 2018

Roberts Creek – one of my favorite all time campgrounds. (I’m over a week behind on sharing this) We had to get a spot early as the campground fills up fast for the Sprint Car Nationals. So even though it wasn’t going to be used until Thursday, August 9th, by Joe’s friends we set it up the Sunday before, August 5th, on our way back home from camping at Clear Lake. We decided on the 6th, after Joe worked and Drew and I visited Aunt Konnie in the hospital, that since it was sitting there empty we would use it so off to Pella we went. We stayed Monday night and Tuesday night and then came home Wednesday night. Joe went to work both days while Drew and I relaxed, explored and enjoyed our time together. A quiet bonding time spent in nature after a hectic on the go friend filled time. It was just what we needed.

Drew found lots of creepy crawlies to keep him entertained. First he found this millipede while we went for a walk. He carried it back to the camper and we Googled millipedes to find out all about them!

Then came the walking stick – he was climbing the camper. I much preferred the millipede – walking sticks are a little too “aggressive” for me!

Isn’t this cute? We talked to the owner and he loved giving us a tour. He was from Colorado and was here for the races but his wife wouldn’t come along. He said she hates his little camper. I can’t say I blame him – it is awfully tight quarters!

I got a lot of stitching time in too! Love those little squirrels!

Favorite Flowers

I think zinnias are my new favorite summer flower. They come in so many different colors and they just keep blooming and blooming. Some are tall, others are perfect for borders. The more you cut them the more they bloom so you get beautiful bouquets for the house that last for days and yet they keep blooming outside. And they’ll keep blooming into fall. I’m loving them this year!

Spur of the Moment Adventure

We decided spur of the moment to take Drew on an adventure. I casually mentioned to Joe that we should take Drew to Columbus Junction to the swinging bridge. I didn’t think he would say yes as we have so much worget done around here but the next thing I know we’re in the car and headed to Columbus Junction. And then onto Muscatine and Wildcat Park, and then across the Mississippi River to Moline, Illinois so Joe could show us where one of his accounts is located. Then back through to Walcott and The World’s Largest Truck Stop, back through Coralville for supper at Popeye’s and finally home. (We discovered none of us care for Popeye’s!) What was going to be a relatively quick trip and then home ended up being an all day adventure! We had lots of fun, Drew really enjoyed the day and Joe said it was a much needed getaway. Sometimes you just need to take off for the day and have fun!

It had been years since I’d been on this bridge. It’s approximateliy eight stories high and it is impossible to walk across it without it swinging.

Drew was okay with it until the young girl in front of us started making the bridge really swing. Then he was not a fan!

On our way through Muscatine we ran into Santa Clause!

Wildcat Den State Park – we had been here before with Dad and Mom but we didnt venture down to the Grist Mill. What an amazing structure. We spent a little time exploring this building from top to bottom and all around outside!

I would have loved to have taken this home with me!

This guy loves exploring and he couldn’t wait to go up the stairs and down the stairs to see what he could find!

A view out of the second story windows at the back of the mill.

It is amazing what our forefathers were able to build without all the modern conveniences of today.

You cross this bridge to get to the water behind the bridge.

This little guy kept me company while I took pictures!

An old schoolhouse that sits up the hill from the mill. The doors were locked so we couldn’t get in.

Next we headed to the trails at Wildcat Den. The rock formations are amazing.

There was so many pretty wildflowers and ferns growing.

Another trail led to a quiet out of the way area of the creek.

And then onto Moline. This was the bridge we crossed to come back home to Iowa.

And our last stop – The World’s Largets Truck Stop.

And Drew finally got to see the inside of a semi. He thought the truck stop was the best part of the day. I thought the mill was the best and Joe enjoyed the hiking.

And Drew’s souvenir. A little wooden snake he bought at the truck stop! He plans to scare Grandma with it!

We had such a great day together. Drew started calling us the Three Muskateers! Spur of the moment was great but next time we’ll plan a little better. I’ll wear tennis shoes instead of flip flops (which aren’t good for climbing trails) and we’ll pack a lunch, drinks and snacks. We left home around 10:30 and got home around 7:30. It was such a beautiful evening – we fed and watered the chickens then sat out on the new deck and chatted about our day. It was nice to do something fun and then come home and enjoy the deck, something we had been working so hard on!

Toad Time

No Drew was not licking this little guy – he just wanted to stick his tongue out for some reason!

I’ve always loved toads. I remember having a pet toad when I was little when we still lived in town. It lived in our sandbox. My boys always wanted to scare me with all the creepy crawlies they would find but along with toads, I’m not too squeamish with anything creepy crawly. I looked at that as a positive but they were always disappointed that I didn’t scream and run away! Drew loves to catch frogs and toads and anything else he can get his hands on. Right now the crickets are out and he’s having a great time catching them. I’m thankful he’s finally outgrowing wanting to keep all his finds as pets and putting them in jars and trying to bring them inside but he still has to show me all of his finds. He’s getting more and more willing to catch and release – which is good for the house and for the little critters!

This little guy was the sweetest. He had a fat little tummy! And I see I need to trim Drew’s nails – dirty little boy fingernails – yuck!

Knee High By The Fourth Of July

Picture taken at Dad and Mom’s – not on 4th of July but the 8th – it’s a tad bit taller than Drew!

There’s an old saying around here, Knee High By The Fourth of July, which pertains to the field corn. The farmers hope for the corn in the fields to be knee high by the Fourth of July. I think they made it this year! Not only did it surpass being knee high but it’s tasseling too! The corn is loving this hot humid weather. They don’t detassle much anymore but I don’t know anyone my age that hasn’t detasseld a corn field at least once in their youth. Dad was never going to allow me to detassle because he knew what went on in those cornfields between the teenage boys and girls but then my softball team contracted a field so he let me be involved since it was all girls. By the time we were done – I sure was wishing he’d said no! I think you either loved it or hated it and I definitely did not love it! It was hard, dirty work. I was short and couldn’t reach the tassles. It rained almost the whole time we were out in that darn field. We had a machine to ride but it got stuck more than it ran and we were constantly pushing it out of the mud. You’d go out first thing in the morning and have to walk through spider webs. The only positive about detassling corn for me was the money I made – I bought my own saddle! The next summer I worked at the local Tastee Freeze. I could make more money in a couple of weeks detassling than I could the whole summer working for Mort and Julie but I didn’t care. I loved working at the Tastee Freeze! But I still love looking at the corn fields.

A Perfect Day For Wandering

After being cooped up in the house the last couple of days with all the rain, Drew and I decided to go for a walk around the yard. We ended up in the neighbor’s field! I’m thankful they haven’t planted anything here for the past couple of years. Although I enjoy the corn fields I really enjoy the beauty of it just growing wild. The sky was beautiful while we were out and the wildflowers are really blooming. All the colors just amaze me. You can’t enjoy the beauty of it without walking out in it and really looking though. I enjoy the flower beds around the house but I just love the wild beauty of a field overgrown with grasses, wildflowers and weeds.

While I was enjoying the flowers and the view Drew of course was exploring what he calls his favorite place – the hay bales. He loves to play around and on these hay bales. They are lined up along a fence line between our place and the neighbor’s field and he makes forts and secret places between the fence and the bales. It’s a great place for a little boy to use his imagination! I’m very grateful we’ve been able to raise the kids out here in the country!

Playing In The Rain

We went from 100 degree weather with humidity you could cut with a knife to rain, lots and lots of rain the past two days. And yesterday we had tornado warnings. At one point Drew and I went to the basement just to be safe. After the warning was past it cooled down and rained, again. (Not that I’m complaining – I’m so very thankful for the rain!) And Drew decided to play in the rain. I love to watch kids play with abandon and until he caught me watching, that is exactly what he did. He was out there enjoying himself with not a care in the world. I wish I could just let go like that and play in the rain!

Weekend Wanderings

Since we celebrated Father’s Day last weekend with the whole family we didn’t really have any plans for this weekend. The one thing we did know was we were staying inside as much as possible – the forecast was calling for very hot and humid days and boy was it right. You would break a sweat just by standing outside in the shade! We’re supposed to get one more day of it today before it finally breaks. So we stayed inside as much as possible and did very little. We went out for supper with Dad and Mom Saturday night which was an adventure. We ended up eating at a restaurant called Four Corners that Mom had read about in the Our Iowa magazine and it was delicious! It was out in the middle of nowhere, about an hour from home with cornfields all around. The parking lot was full and there was a wait but it was so worth it. The best buffet we’ve had in a long, long time! Dad and Mom enjoy finding new restaurants in out of the way places and we hadnn’t done this with them in a long time. When we got home we sat outside at their house and Drew caught fireflies. Once the sun set the heat broke and it was a beautiful evening.

Beautiful picture my cousin Todd drew. It depicts the train depot in Richland, Iowa from days gone by. Todd is a history buff and a very talented artist. Richland is the town where his mom and my dad were born and raised.

On Sunday we went with Dad and Mom to visit my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Konnie. It was Uncle Jerry’s birthday so Mom took brownies to celebrate. My cousin Todd was home so we had a nice small family get together. They have a beautiful farm with the most breathtaking views. They live outside a little town called Rubio but now have a Richland address since there’s no longer a Post Office in Rubio. There’s nothing left in Rubio besides a small refurbished train depot which is now a community center and a handful of houses. I think Jerry and Konnie’s farm is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been (Not that I’ve traveled or spent much time out of Iowa!) We had a nice visit with them and then we drove into Richland. Dad wanted to check on the acreage he and Konnie have together. It was originally their home place with their house and their grandpa’s house but there’s no houses left – it’s just a corn field. We drove past the Friends Church where Dad and Mom got married and their old high school which is no longer used. We meandered into the cemetary and drove around there. And Dad took us on down the road past the cemetary that led to two very very old cemetaries that I never knew where there. When we got back to Sigourney we drove through another cemetary. One I hadn’t been to since grade school when we would walk there and see all the old gravestones for fifth grade history class. A friend of my mom’s had passed away about a year ago and Mom wanted to show me the gravesite. I didn’t realize this cemetary was still being used. It’s a small cemetary with lots of very old stones. Drew wanted to get out and explore so we decided we would run to town one day when it wasn’t so hot and walk around and look at all the old old stones together. It’s a very peaceful and pretty place and I look foward to exploring it one of these days!

I would love to have this view out my front window! It’s beautiful in all seasons!

Drew found the kittens of course!