Beautifully Poor

We LOVE being outdoors! When it's a free adventure even better. We found a gem of an area to hike, camp and now canoe called Lebanon Hills Regional Park . It is the largest park located in Dakota County, and for us, the most fun!With over 2,000 acres this place is great for swimming, picnicking, mountain biking, geocaching and of course hiking and canoeing among MANY other great activities all year round. Now if you don't have a canoe, kayak or paddleboard, there is an equipment rental right on site at the visitor center and the rentals are a great price! We happen to have our own blow up canoe thanks to my Dad so were able to go on this beautiful excursion for FREE aside from the gas it took us to get there! They provide this wonderful Canoe route that takes about 3 hours (so it says) to do the whole thing. We visited Schulze Lake, Portage Lake and O'Brien Lake. With a 4 year old it is quite hard to go a WHOLE day without some sort of complaining so we ...

Sometimes one day in our life is just what we need to keep on moving forward. A little inspiration, encouragement and hope entering into our sometimes dismal worlds. Today just happened to be one of those days for me. My family and I went on a short hike at a new park my husband found. We climbed up steep hills meant for mountain bikes and followed small trails intended for wild animals. We were able to explore the woods and enjoy God's beautiful world and enjoy the peace and serenity only that can bring. What touched me most deeply was when Benjamin stopped me about 3/4 of the way through our hike. He pulled my face close to his and whispered in his sweet voice, "Dance with me, momma." So right there in the middle of the woods with only Lawrence looking on, I danced with my 4 year old. He hummed a sweet tune and spun me on the forest floor like we were in a ball room and I was a princess and him a prince. Then he grabbed my face and kissed my lips and said, "...