North Lake Revisited

Just short drive from our home is the North (officially North/South) Lake State Park. This park holds many fond memories for me, first as a child when I came here for picnics and swimming with my mom and later with my own family. My mom and her friend, Irene, used to round up a hoard of kids and bring us here on several summer outings.

In my teen years, I came with friends for many joy filled memories sitting around campfires, sharing ghost stories and practical jokes and doing lots of hiking.

Then for several years I came here with my own family. The church I attended organized a traditional Memorial Day Family Camping outing each year. We hiked, swam, created church services, and even baptisms. The boys loved the time with the other families, the hikes, swimming, but most of all the campfires. We really thought we were raising pyromaniacs the way they would throw logs, food, rocks, and almost anything that we weren't sitting on just to see it go up in flames!

We also fished, canoed and Bryan, one time, mountain biked.

We had our share of memory makers, the biggest and last being the time our whole family camped together with the church families. Bryan was known for having accidents as soon as the weather got warm enough to play outside. Memorial Day seemed to hold some significance for him and became the time of year we would say, "Bryan be careful! This is the time of year you have mishaps." This one fateful day, I remember warning him just as he road his bike on the very edge of a culvert on the side of the road. Later that day he would be taken to the hospital with a broken collar bone after flying over the handlebars of his bike into a creek bed. That was the last time we camped as a family!

This past weekend however, Jim and I returned for a more relaxing time. Since my torn calf muscle was limiting my hiking abilities, we decided to go up and take a boat out on the lake. We rented a canoe and paddled around South Lake (where the rentals were) and then went through the small area connecting to North Lake. Usually we swim and camp on the North Lake side, so this was unusual for us to go back and forth between both sides.

As we rowed around I took some photos of the sights we came across. These days I find it amazing how something as simple as lily pads floating on the water can take on a beauty all their own. A beauty that I probably overlooked in my many times at a lake or pond.

These two were a just as surprised as we were as we paddle by them. They followed us over to the beach later in the day to feed themselves as we fed ourselves.

Though the day started out cloudy, the skies cleared for a beautiful fall day! We were amazed that the colors in the mountains were as far along as they were. We are pretty green still around our house. Just goes to show you can't trust the weather channel's leaf mapping!

All in all it was a good day for two 50+ adults to enjoy God's creation.

Tivoli Bays - Part 1

Tivoli Bays, a Hudson riverside trail through fields, woods, marshes and mud pits is located across the river from our home. On past drives we have often seen the sign marking what we thought was the start of a scenic trail, but once we walked it found it lacking. One fork took us to an open field with high grass and no idea where the trail went from there. As this side of the river is known for deer tick infestations, we decide not to proceed. We turned back and took the other fork only to find ourselves deep in the woods going farther and farther from the river we were hoping to see. With sunlight starting to fade and past experiences with Dutchess County mosquitoes, we once again turned back.

A few weeks, ago after some research, Jim directed us to the start of the new trail head. First, we had to take the Rhinecliff/Kingston bridge to cross the river to the Bard College campus. This college is spread out over several town roads and it is an interesting drive. To get to the trail head, we had to pass historic homes, churches, dorms, college offices, recreation fields, the performing arts center and other areas of study. As we pulled into the parking lot, we were awestruck first, at this mansion tucked away at the end of Blithewood Road,

and then by the most unusual tree we had ever seen.

The students use this lawn to have frisbee contests.

It was a huge tree that had survived severe winds, lightning strikes, and rot. We think the white rock-like formations were from earlier supports of some kind. Possibly the tree grew around them or they decayed to the point they are now. Looks like a spook tree for Halloween, no?

We walked around the grounds of the mansion which we later learned was the Levy Economics Institute and before being purchased by Bard College was the home of  Andrew Zabriskie. Beautiful!

The house faces north rather than the river and on the west side are these formal gardens.

We found many beautiful flowers in this garden which gave me inspiration for my own at home.

 

The gardens included some great photo opps in addition to the flowers.

We have seen many statues like this in our tours of gardens and often wonder, why men and women alike are always depicted with one boob uncovered? Can any of my artiste friends explain this to us? We were tickled at the expression of the cat on this one. The smile on the subject's face is surely fictional as we are sure the claws of the kitty are digging into his/her leg at this point!

At the west end of the garden is a view of the river.

We can only assume that when the house was built the trees were probably cut back to allow a more magnificent view, but this one was beautiful and peaceful just the same.

 Hmmmm, we might have to come back when the leaves are down to check it out again!

 Enjoy!

In a later blog I will give you insights from the actual trail, just in case you were wondering...

(Remember, you can click on any of the photos to see the detail in the full size.)

Family Vacation

Jim and I drove over 15 hours straight through from New York to Georgia in our new car

over Labor Day weekend to see Bryan and Jess' new home.

Their new home is situated on five acres in the suburbs of Atlanta in what could be called horse country. Ranches and stables and horses were everywhere we traveled. The home is a ranch with three bedrooms, a full basement, large familyroom/office, living room, three baths and a large eat-in kitchen. A lot of space!

Aaron & Corinn and Dan drove up together from Florida to join us. 

The boys shared their rooms with us. Of course this came at a high ;) price for us grandparents.

Country living has been a dream of both Bryan and Jess and after 10 years of living in tiny to large apartments this has been a dream come true. Bryan has taken on landscaping and deforesting the yard of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac. Of course with country living comes the unexpected guests who come to visit. Like the two tiny ring neck snakes. The huge lionlike dog that wandered through their yard during a rain storm, deer with baby fawns and the like.

Jess has been filling cabinets throughout the house and finding more cabinets and closets than she ever dreamed of having. Some are STILL empty! Elijah and Asher now have their own rooms and have their own taste in decorating.

There are also three areas to "retreat" outdoors if one wishes. My favorite was the screened porch with a large swing. Asher, Elijah and I spent many moments there birdwatching and reading together. (Thanks Elijah, for using your new hammer to tap in the nails that were popping up in the floor. Grandma's toes appreciate it!)

At one point as I sat on the front stoop (big enough to hold two large rocker chairs and small table with numerous trucks and toys, I thought how nice it would be for the boys to have riding toys to play with on the huge yard. Bryan must have read my mind because a one night after dinner he had Elijah entertain us with is new driving skills.

(Note:mower blades are not running while Elijah is driving.)

You can also catch a glimpse of the hammock they bought for another relaxing place in the yard. Great place to read, rest and hang out with little boys!

This brings to mind another thing new for this family -- climbing trees! The yard has some great ones and Elijah was just too eager to show his climbing skills.

The weather cooperated the whole time we were there. So we set out for some walks through some of Georgia's many trails. This one was an easy one so we were able to carry on conversations without having to worry about tripping over roots or stones.

Of course having the family together meant lots of meals together. We went out to eat several times for breakfast or grab a quick lunch or celebrate a birthday or two or three with dinner. (Dan, Aaron's and Asher's)

There were projects to work on:  Bryan's new grill, Elijah's new sword, using his new tools from Grandma and Grandpa, yard work to be done with new hedge cutters, etc.


It was a fun time, a relaxing vacation, a time to catch up with the kids and time to get to know our grandsons. (One is as goofy as ever!)

Now that Asher is speaking more clearly it is really amazing to hear what he has been thinking!

Now we look forward to repeating the adventure in November when we all gather for Thanksgiving -- again at Bryan and Jess'. For now...farewell and safe travels.

Goodbyes after breakfast.

Aaron & Corinn as they headed back.

Note: On previous blog it was mentioned that we would be taking the minibike down. Due to problems with our truck, we had to postpone that until Thanksgiving :(.

A Grandfather's Labor of Love...

When my husband Jim and his little sister, Cathy, lived at home, their dad got them a minibike. A Rupp minibike to be exact. A classic today. After Cathy moved from home and their parents were selling their old homestead, Cathy offered the bike to us. We had three sons that would surely enjoy the bike.

After a getting the bike repaired and refueled, the boys had some great times riding the bike in our yard and the back fields. It was great fun though a little tense as the kids rode by themselves or together with us or their brother, Bryan.

I have a picture somewhere of Bryan riding it and his long legs being held up to allow him to ride on the lawn. We have another of Aaron holding on for dear life, but enjoying the ride and the camaraderie with his big brother. The bike took the boys on a few good jaunts before it was in need of repair again. Being the end of the season the bike was put away and never came out of the garage again.

The years went by and the boys got into mountain bikes and  BMX bikes that they liked to ride in the "trails" doing stunts and jumps and such. The poor little minibike was relegated to the back of the garage.

Then when our grandson was old enough, he spotted it in our garage asked what it was. From that day on he would look for it in the garage and ask if it was fixed yet. Truth be told, Jim would have loved to hand it off the him and make more room in the garage, but they had no place to ride it.

Until now. Bryan and Jess moved their family into a home on five acres! The yard is HUGE and just begging for little boys to ride minibikes on them.

So we are heading down the Georgia to deliver a repaired minibike to the new generation of Bells. But first came the labor of love only a grandfather could bestow on his grandsons. So here are a few of the phases to get there.

Tools & Parts to do the job.

Custom pieces to make.

The patiently waiting Rupp.

Memories of Grandmother...

A few months ago, my cousin sent me this photo of my Grandmother in her kitchen.

Grandma Anna Muller

What memories it stirred. The photo depicts her the way I always remembered her. In her kitchen, apron on, ready to go. I think I only saw her sit for meals and once in her living room for about ten minutes. She didn't sit back and relax, but somewhat on the edge of her seat, ready to jump up in a moment's notice to get you something or stir something on the stove.

We tried to go to Grandma's at least once a month when I was growing up. The drive was over two hours from our home in the country. Rick and I amused ourselves in the back seat or slept.

Someone had drilled into our heads how dangerous it was where Grandma lived so we were never allowed outside alone. But one day, I went out on the front stoop and just stood half in and a half out. As I gazed up and down the street of similar stoops I was amazed that I was in the middle of the city and no one was around! Then one door opened a few houses down across the street and a little boy about my age came out. He did the exact same thing I did. As he stood in his doorway, half in and half out, he caught my eye as he gazed down the street on my side. Our gaze held for a minute and as if by some hidden cue, we both stepped back inside and shut the doors! My heart was beating fast. Were we really in danger out there? Why was no one else out there? How was it that at just the precise moment I decided to step outside he did too? Very intriguing for a little kid.

Grandma Muller was of tough German stock who raised seven children (five boys!) and lived into her 90's. Her home was always clean and neat. Never anything out of place. She had two items for us to play with: Lincoln logs and little plastic musical bells. I loved playing with those two toys!

Her home was quiet for being in the middle of Woodhaven, NY (the city). One fascinating place that I found in her home was her bathroom with its skylight and octagonal black and white floor tiles. I am not sure why that held such a fascination for me, but I loved to go up there and stare at the tiles and try to make designs out of them or check out the skylight at different times of the day to see what it would reveal.

The other room that intrigued me was Grandma's bedroom. The door was always shut and we were told, "That's Grandma's room" and though I don't remember being told not to go in there, I remember the feeling that it was off limits. This only made it hold more mystery than my little mind could endure. So only once did I take a chance to creep down the hall to her room. I stood in the doorway and scanned the room. I was awed at the how beautiful it was. Peaceful and neat, very neat. Her room faced out front on the street and spanned the whole width of the house. Her window was open and a gust of wind, blew the curtain sheers into the room. It gave the room an almost ghostlike appearance.  I tried to think my Grandmother in there through the years. When I spotted her silver hair brush, I could picture her sitting at her vanity, brushing her hair as a young woman and then as the matriarch of our family. Grandma's hair was never down, so I could only imagine what long tresses were hidden under her combs and hair pins.

The memories of my grandmother are comforting in a nostalgic way. Her home was a place of peace and quiet. A place of delicious scents from the kitchen and family dinners around her dining room table. A place of mysterious rooms and scary basements. A place of hidden dollar bills that she magically produced to give to us almost every visit.

While I usually dreaded the trip, I never lost the sense of family time and joy my father felt at going "home". She may not have been the cookie baking, story reading Grandma of my dreams but she was my Grand Ma in her own special way.

My cousin included the following notes with the photo:

My own apron when I remember to use it.

Remember Grandma and her aprons?
Remember making an apron in Home Ec?

The History of 'APRONS':

I don't think our kids know what an apron is.

The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath, because she only had a few.  It was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material but, along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.

It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.

And when the weather was cold, Grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow bent over the hot wood stove.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables.

After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folks knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.

AND --

Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool.

Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.

They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron.

I don't think I ever caught anything from an apron but LOVE.

Medieval Times

Over the past few years our nine-year-old grandson, Elijah, has been infatuated with the world of knights and castles. I bought him a wooden castle one year with the princess, the knights, the king and a horse or two. Then I found the mother lode of figures that you could pose into different stances. Over time we collected horses, men with crossbows, swords, and assortments of weapons and gear.

I also found a book on knights that explained all the weapons and how they worked. It showed the clothing that was worn and other details of the time period. That set off Elijah's imagination and he created his own games and role plays and would ask us all to participate.

Last year we had both grandsons for the weekend of their parents anniversary. Jim decided to take Elijah out on a hike as I stayed at home with Asher who was not feeling well. Jim came back just as excited as Elijah as he told me the story of their adventure.

They drove across the Hudson River down to Staatsburg,  to Mills Mansion. They parked the car and walked down to the river and found the hiking trail that ran along the river bank. Almost immediately, Elijah went into stealth mode, hiding behind trees and using makeshift weapons to thrash his way through the dense forest. In the height of his role play, his grandfather pointed out that he had practically stepped on a snake that was sitting just off the path. That didn't stop Elijah. (Jim may have stopped him for slicing the snake to pieces, I am not sure.) He ran on ahead with Grandpa struggling to keep up. If people approached, Elijah would exclaim that the enemy was sighted and they must take cover. By this time, Grandpa was getting into character.

As ships went down the river, the two would launch the heavy artillery at them and wait to see if they sunk any of them. Then they turned a corner and Jim thought Elijah was going to pass out! A castle came into view on the other side of the river!

Mount St. Alphonsus, Esopus, NY

Elijah charged forward to see if he could spot whether it was friend or foe. Jim was amused listening to this little boy wonder run with his imagination. Almost everything Elijah came across became a prop for his pursuits. And willing or not, just about everybody and every animal became a player. I am sure it was a hike neither would soon forget.

I thought it would be fun someday to take Elijah to that "castle" so he could see it up close and even walk through it. Maybe we can do that when they are in the area at Christmas time. We will have to see. For now, here are a few shots of the majestic building.

Back side of the Mount

The "castle" is actually Mount St. Alphonsus and I have hiked around it and through it ever since I worked in the Lutheran church and we held our planning retreats there.

To Learn more about the Mount click this link.

If you are ever in the area, you will want to drive down the quiet driveway to the Mount and walk the grounds to the river or just meander through the beautiful building. There is a gift shop open several days during the week. It's a great place to retreat to for a quiet restoration of your soul. While this used to be a place to train new priests for the ministry, it is now open to those who find it. (And it's not hard to find!)  In a later blog, I will have to share my experiences with several of the those student priests ;)! For now, I think I hear a little boy asking for a catapult for his birthday...

What if...

As I stated in a previous blog, I was raised in the Catholic church. I also worked in an Evangelical Free Church and a Lutheran and a Baptist church. I have attended services in main line churches and charismatic churches. I have experienced legalistic congregations and liberal congregations. I have also had the pleasure of attending services in a synagogue and a black southern gospel church.

What I found in each one was people from all walks of life, races, color and yes, sexual orientation. The leaders that taught or preached came from many different backgrounds and interpreted biblical truths differently. Many churches claim to use the Bible as their text but no one but the pastor/priest/leader ever opens one in the service. Many people seem to blindly follow the teachings without questioning the authenticity. Many people who come from some of these churches believe they have the answer and proceed to look down their noses at those that don't believe it yet.

Sometimes the perception of the outside world is that of hypocrisy. Some hear snippets of what they think the Bible says and then holds it as a measuring stick against those that are in the church to how good a Christian they are.

Unfortunately, this has led many breakdowns in the relationships between believers and unbelievers. Unbelievers, or those that believe in God or a higher authority but don't read the Bible or believe Jesus to be God or the Son of God, are quick to point out when Christians are not acting as Christians should. I agree many Christians fail to walk in paths of righteousness and that causes a wall for those watching.

Years ago my dad stopped going to church because he couldn't stand seeing the people stand up and read the Bible on Sunday morning then lying, stealing or cheating the rest of the week. What dad didn't realize is these people are only human. All men and women fail at times. We don't like to think they will, but we can always count on people failing us at some time. What dad didn't learn in church is that we aren't supposed to be looking at the people in church. We are supposed to be looking at the only perfect example for us. That perfect example is Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was born to be our example for how we are to live. He is the only human we should ever look up to to see how we are doing. Now I realize you may not believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God, but he did say he was. Thus far, no one has proved he isn't.

Oh, and Jesus didn't come to show us up. He didn't come to point out our flaws and laugh at us. Not at all. He came to do the work he was sent to do. He came to fulfill the prophecies of the early prophets. He came to sacrifice himself for each of us.

Many believe he was a great teacher. I chuckle when I hear this. Why? Because if you think Jesus was a great teacher and this great teacher says he is the Son of the Living God, then, why don't you believe it? Well, now you may think he's not a great teacher, but just an ordinary man living an extraordinary life. Why?

People need to dig deeper and ask God (if he exists) to help them to understand what the Bible truth is. Start by asking God to prove to you who He is. That's what I did as a teenager and He did! Then ask Him to help you understand what the Bible says and who Christ was/is.

So many are quick to judge the beliefs of Christians by what they see Christians do. But again you are looking at the wrong person. Look to the Christ.

My heart breaks for many friends and family who have tossed the Bible aside, thrown Christ out with the heretics and refuse to find out for themselves who and what they are. Christians want to share the love of Christ, but just the mention of his name gets people's backs up. Many Christians do not understand their own doctrine, many have been taught incorrectly and then told they shouldn't study scripture for themselves. That's how we got Jim Jones and the like.

Many get turned off by Christians "proselytizing" and again I chuckle. Will these same people be turned off if they truly heard the message? If, in the end, the Christians had the Truth to happiness, peace and love, wouldn't they have wanted to hear it?

Such a quandary!

I heard this song a while back and I wanted so much to share it with all my friends and family to get them to think. THINK! Then check out what people are saying before you blindly follow or toss aside what we are trying to share with you.



http://www.christianlyricsonline.com/artists/nichole-nordeman/what-if.html
click here for lyrics