Take the Time to Count Your Blessings

As I was taking JayJay for his daily walk today I was simply amazed at all the beauty that is just outside my door.  Each day he gets downright abnoxious and literally "in my face" until I put on the walking gear...consisting of an old lavender coat, hat with scarf, mittens and 3 dog treats in my pockets.  He gets excited about the simple things in life, like going for his daily 3 mile walk, getting to ride in the car with Cary to town or the dump, and waiting for the treat lady to show up with doggie treats for every dog along Shepherd Road.  I would hate to see her Costco bill each month just with the amount of dog treats but every dog loves her.

Anyways, our walk was quite brisk this morning as we clipped along with the weather being a balmy 24 degrees.  No lingering or you may freeze in the spot.  JayJay's whiskers were frozen.  However, the fields were magnificent with the ice twinkling, the snow made everything look so peaceful and the blue sky made the snow covered mountains look like something out of a fairytale. 

I hate to say it but I did not have my camera with me and did not capture this beautiful scene, (these were taken a few weeks ago)  but I spent alot of time just appreciating each and every thing that nature was offering as I strolled along.  Sometimes we do not take the time to appreciate or thank God for all the blessings He so abundantly gives us on a day to day basis.  But today I thanked Him for allowing us to live in an area that has many times been referred to a "little slice of heaven".  However, with that thought I was caught off guard that I never think of winter in heaven.  I guess because I love sunshine, hot days and palm trees....along the ocean, I have been thinking that heaven is going to be more like that.  Who knows, maybe the ski bums will live in an area with lots of mountains and snow, while I spend eternity on the beach under a palm tree.  It was kind of fun to think about anyway.

If Winter is Here, Spring Cannot Be Far Behind

Oh my, we are stuck in the dead of winter, it snowed yesterday about 5 inches and the Winter Blues seem to be desperately trying to seep in.  However, I have spent a little time today on my computer, came across some pictures and my heart is rejuvenated!  I ran across some amazing pictures taken last year and they reminded me of why I absolutely LOVE living in this area.  (This time of year I really need to be reminded of that as visions of palm trees and "life" during the winter months invade my mind).

I desperately miss the longer days when you can take a quick 20 minute drive into the mountains and just be surrounded by beauty.  Out of my 4 adult children, one is always ready to head to the mountains with Mom and spend the day just appreciating God's gift to us----nature! 

My husband and I are considered "new-comers" to the St. Maries area.  We have actually only lived on the river for 9 years.  We were city folk from the Spokane area for 27 years and then decided that the hustle bustle of the city was getting us down and we retreated to the river.  I will be honest, it has been quite a change, somewhat of a culture shock but it has been worth it.  Where else can you be enjoying a morning cup of coffee and watch a moose cross the river just feet away from you?  Where else can you gaze at over 40 deer who have not a care in the world, yet hunting season is at its peak?  This truly is God's gift to us and we must take care of our gift. 

Getting back to the whole reason I felt compelled to even start writing in my blog,-- which I am grossly overdue-- are some pictures I came across just a few minutes ago that brought back some wonderful "younger year" memories.

 While my son and I were tromping around the area known locally as Cherry Creek, we took some pictures of what use to be my Dad's farm land.  In the 70's and 80's my Mom and Dad were living along the St. Joe River farming a very fertile area that was edged on one side by 3 miles of dike along the river.  It was flat, beautiful and a wonderful place to escape the city life on weekends, which is exactly what I did.  My Dad was a very successful farmer who chose to raise grass seed, Timothy and Blue Grass that he then sold to the Asian market for golf courses.  After almost 20 years of living off the land along the river and loving every minute of it, his health would not allow him to continue what he loved.  God is good and knows what people can handle, and what would be just too much for them.  My father lest this temorary home and went to his true home one December day, just months before a chinook, early thaw hit the St. Joe area.  With so much water rushing down, it was too much for the river to contain and unfortunately there was a break in the dike.  What we looked at as horrible, actually turned into a beautiful lake that many people now enjoy viewing.  My Dad would be so proud of the "water view" property that his livelihood has become and on that day trekking up in the mountains with my son, I was able to capture on film the river running along the dike and old farm.   It brought back some very good memories and I am so pleased that so many people can enjoy the beauty of this water and have "water-view" properties.  Just a little history.........

When Everything Turns White

Have you ever noticed that when snow covers the ground it actually acts like a sound barrier also?  I absolutely love taking walks when the snow has turned everything white, because there is a still, calm that is so relaxing, refreshing and yet energizing at the same time.  The snow seems to create an insulation against noises and while walking in the still of the snow it allows you to "hear" other sounds you would normally not be able to hear.  Or maybe it is that while the white snow acts to clean the canvas of the normal landscape, it allows our thoughts to enter into places  that are normally running rampant and never stop long enough to really listen or appreciate what is all around us. 

I have taken on a new appreciation of just how beautiful our mountains, trees, and the river become when they are clothed in snow.  This past week we went from no snow to having 16 inches within 3 days and what a magical winter wonderland it became.  Of course I can sit back and appreciate all this beauty when warm and snug in my home with the fireplace ablaze and the car does not need to edge out of the garage the entire time.  I can appreciate why children get so excited about snow days, they don't need to worry about cars sliding along the highway.  Sometimes I think we need to have a more child-like perspective on life and just appreciate all the beauty that seems to come our way. 

The Scenic St. Joe River Road in the Fall

Fall is definitely here and the colors of the leaves are brilliant.  We took a drive up the St. Joe River and arrived in St. Regis, Montana about 3 hours later.  The ground cover of reds is evidence of the profusion of huckleberry plants.  The river is beautiful any time of year but when yellows, oranges, reds and greens jump into view there is just nothing prettier.

As you leave St. Maries, the St. Joe River is quite wide, however it gets more narrow the further you go.  There are twists and turns in the road that open up yet another beautiful display of color.  Because of the clarity of the water, you can see all the river rock and the waves splash playfully as the water hits into a large rocks sticking up out of the water. 

There are quite a few campgrounds along the way, some well known like Huckleberry and Tin Can Flats.  They vary in size and I tend to like the smaller ones with only 6 to eight camp sights.  The town of Avery always offers some interesting sites and it is easy to imagine the activity that use to happen in it's "heyday".  Just outside of Avery you can either turn left and head over Moon Pass driving through tunnels on a dirt road and eventually end up in Wallace,ID or continue on the St. Joe River Road heading to Red Ives and the Montana border.  We chose to keep to the right and head to Montana.

St. Regis in itself is an interesting little town with resturants, antique stores and gift shops to spend a few hours (and a few bucks) before heading west on Interstate 90 back home.  Although it is not as scenic, it does cut off about an hour of drive time and winds along the southeast end of Couer d'Alene Lake.

All in all, it was a delightful day with the blue sky, crisp fall air and a day spent appreciating the beauty that North Idaho has to offer.  I would love to say the next pictures will be in the winter with those same trees and water snuggled in a blanket of white snow but the road conditions might keep that from happening.

Morel Mushrooms....maybe better than Huckleberries

We have had an extremely WET spring but there are always good things that come out of adversity if you take the right attitude.  The excessive moisture has brought an abundance of mushrooms in the area hillsides.  I have never been mushroom picking, although my Dad and brother were always going out and spotting those yummy morsels.  A new young friend showed up with 8 and 1/2 pounds of morel mushrooms and my taste buds were salivating like mad when I saw them. 

After questioning him for every bit of information we could get, we THOUGHT we knew just exactly where to go to find these wonderful delicacies.  My son who is an avid huckleberry picker, to the point that we have nicknamed him the "Huckleberry Hounddog" arrived from Seattle and he and I set out to stake our claim.

Heading up Shay Hill, I now know why the Subaru Forrester has won the hearts of many who dare to go where others cannot or wouldn't even venture to go.  It was like a little tank crossing all those washed out ravines.  I was really impressed and it got us to the top of the mountain. 

I hate to admit it but we kind of got "skunked" when it comes to the volume of mushrooms picked but we really hit the jackpot when it comes to scenery.  The views atop the hill were outstanding, could even see for about 30 miles of the Coeur d'Alene Lake.  The spring flowers were abundant, fresh air never been fresher and it was just great to get out into the beauty area. 

Although we did not come back with many morels, we arrived home with a whole new appreciation of mushrooms as we had spotted over 8 other varieties and had no idea of they would be delicious or death!  Thus, onto the computer to study mushrooms, found a book at my Mom's house about the differant varieties and best yet, found out that there is a Mushroom organization in Spokane, WA that offers monthly meetings and field trips.  Guess where we will be going in the fall? ? ?  Life is just one big learning experience after another.

Natural Beauty- Obnoxious Weeds-or Land of OZ -- You Decide

Each season brings new beauty to the area but I think that spring is by far the prettiest in this area.  We have a huge field right across the road from our home and it brings so much joy each time I look out a window or walk out the door.  Many times the view is of 20 to 50 deer grazing in the fields, or a fresh blanket of white snow, but in the spring we are fortunate enough to get "wild lupin".  I absolutely love gazing at all the purple and lavender flowers and am amazed to hear complaints about how we need to get rid of these obnoxious weeds.  Obnoxious weeds, I think they are a sight for sore eyes after the long winter! 

Even better yet is to take the dogs and grandkids for a walk in these magnificent fields.  The dogs enjoy running through the stuff while the kids enjoy picking to their hearts content.

If I were to try to grow these in my yard they would most likely not do a thing, yet left alone for Mother Nature to tend to them....they flourish.  I always feel like "Dorothy" heading to the city of OZ.  JayJay may not look like Toto, nor I like Dorothy but it is still magical.

Runners invade St.Maries for St. Joe River Marathon

Race day has finally arrived and close to 400 runners laced up their running shoes to participate in the inaugural run of the St. Joe River Marathon on June 12.  The majority of the runners are from out of town.  The event chairman, Jesse Baker was quoted saying "It's great to be able to put on a race for the locals, but we want to bring people into our area to see how great our town is."

Organizers of the race were excited with the response to the race, this being the first year and only about 100 runners were expected to take part.  He said he believes it's the area and nature of the race attracting runners.  "Runners want to experience something new and the beautiful area is also a driving factor."

One such runner is Kjell Schioberg who has run more than 60 marathons in his life.  Yet, when he runs the St. Joe River Marathon he'll be running on gravel for the first time.   Mr. Schioberg was born and raised in Hamburg, Germany and recently joined the staff at the Tribal Wellness Center in nearby Plummer.  He ran in the Ironman professionally for four years along with racing in South Korea, China, Malaysia, Japan,
Canada, Austria, Germany and Singapore.  "They were all exotic places," Mr. Schioberg said. 

The St. Joe River Marathon will be his third marathon in four weeks.  "It's all new.  I've heard it's a beautiful course.  It's right next to the river.  I don't listen to music when I run because I just like to be out in nature and be with myself," he said.  Well, the St. Joe River is one of the most beautiful places to be so he will surely enjoy himself.  With many more participants than expected, it gives this event planning committee something to think about for the future.