Nature Walk

Hello Friends!

I'm a country girl. There, I said it. While I love living in the city (city suburbs) I love nature. I love the feel of the wind in my face, the smell of wet leaves under the gentle heat of a winter sun, the soft sounds of feet along a walking path. Best of all, I absolutely adore the sound of my giggling kids enjoying each other's company in nature-- even if their talk almost always involves a certain sound the body makes that one can mimic with one's arm pit, if you're so inclined. Still, their body talk doesn't distract from my love of nature. 

We recently visited my family in Hopland where my Sis and I had some time alone without the boys. I know--what a shock!  We even caught the tail-end of a mushroom fieldwork/workshop. The university students had walked through protected Hopland land to harvest a variety of mushrooms for study.  I had never given mushrooms much attention other than the ones I find in my grocery store wrapped in plastic. The sheer volume of the variety of mushrooms the students were able to harvest was amazing. So may colors and textures.  Some ugly and some so beautiful I wanted to touch them. There was a benign-looking mushroom that was poisonous which made me think that I'll be sticking to the plastic wrapped mushrooms in my grocery store for the foreseeable future. :-}

Here is a photo of one of the larger mushrooms the students harvested. 

Afterwards my Sis and I went on a walk while we chatted as sisters do. I was glad I brought my camera along. 

My nephews, unlike my own boys, don't seem to mind having their photographs taken. It was so strange to photograph two children who actually listened to me as I took their photographs!  ;-) Gosh how I love these little guys! Mwuah!

A trip to Hopland is incomplete without a photo of a happy boy and his favorite chicken. 

Until next time, here's to wishing you many happy hikes in your neck of the woods. :-)

--Carolina