All who wander are not always lost.

This past week flew! It was not free of challenges and frustrations but all the same, it was a good week. I was hoping that a ride would be in my weekend plans but Saturday was not it and Sunday proved itself to be not so great for riding either. But that did not stop us from trying.

We left home around 11:00 a.m. in hopes that the weatherman would actually be correct. Our intent was the Flint Hills; I haven’t been there since Mother’s Day weekend and was hoping for some beautiful landscapes and great photos. After passing through Andover, we took a route unfamiliar to us. We hit gravel three time (remember we are wandering, we are not lost!). We arrived in Peabody and wanted to take Highway 50 into Strong City, the weather had other ideas. It began to rain, so we pulled into a small gas station put on our jackets and drove back to Wichita through Walton, into Newton and home.

A short trip, but just enough to take a few pictures of the sunflowers growing wild along the road and the clouds that produced enough rain to send us home. No complaints, we need rain so badly!

Have a great week and be thankful for at least one thing every day.

Peace, Pam

Labor Day Weekend 2012

Labor Day, a long weekend to commemorate our working lives, a time to relax, a time to prepare for fall and say good-bye to summer…..most of all for my family and for me, it was a time to celebrate the 80th birthday of my mom. I only hope that I am as great a mom to my children as she has been to me and my siblings. I admire and adore her tremendously. We celebrated with family and a few close friends, missing were my granddaughter Matyson, (Caleb and Anne’s daughter) sick with strep throat and Josh (my sister's son and his girlfriend) Charlotte, they will be traveling from England to the states during the holidays this year.

We had a great time and I believe my mom was surprised to see everyone. She enjoyed chatting and sharing fond memories and great stories of the past. I hold close to my heart all the things she has shared with us. She is our “matriarch” a word that is a perfect description of her. I call her mom, her grandkids call her grandma, her great grandkids call her GG, her great nephew calls her Aunt Grandma and the preacher’s kids call her COCO. Her name? Colleen……

After the party we came back to Wichita; Kyle, Erin and Kollin came as well. We had a blast with them. Kollin is growing and changing every single day. He is a happy little guy that never really seems to get upset. Erin and Kyle are fantastic parents with so much patience it’s amazing. Kollin has Plagiocephaly. He is being treated with a cranial remolding helmet. Erin, living in Houston and always so creative, has painted it to look like a NASA astronaut. He wears the helmet for 23 hours a day, during the one hour, she cleans the helmet, cleans his scalp and then back on again. Kollin will be wearing this for about six months; he does go in for regular evaluations and is doing great. Creating massive amounts of drool, wiggling constantly, I love him so much, he just makes my heart melt!

Monday we took advantage of a cool morning and rode until noon. I found train cars on dead end tracks that had some unbelievable graffiti. It amazes me how each car and all of the painting can be so different. These graffiti artists are talented, I don’t care what anyone says, it is art! Maybe they are a little misguided but all the same, creative.

It was a wonderful weekend. Personally, I do not want the summer to end. The way the heat wave is going, maybe I will get my way. The pictures explain themselves, birthday party pics, Kollin pics and train graffiti. Enjoy the coming week.

Peace, Pam