Rest in the Lord and be willing to wait for Him. Psalm 37:7 (NLV)
Friday, April 17 It was a beautiful day for a five-hour drive to Zumbro Falls, Minnesota – southeast of where Bob and Doris live. Not long after we left their house on Friday morning, I noticed these two sandhill cranes almost camouflaged in the field. There were many opportunities to look for reflections in lakes and rivers.. These […]
Friday Morning, April 17 Before we say goodbye to them, I have a few more pictures. This one is from the end of their driveway. Their many white birch trees add great beauty to the property. I am not sure what kind of fungus was growing on this tree, but it was kind of pretty. […]
Thursday, April 16 This was our last sunset while visiting Bob and Doris. This picture was taken from the dock toward the house. Like I said last night – If I lived next to this lake, I would have to retire so I could take lots of pictures.
Monday, April 13 to Friday, April 17 This is Bob and Doris’ back yard. It is unusual to not see or hear water fowl during this time of year. Bulrushes that survived the cold winter. There were many red-winged blackbirds who perched on them and did everything they could to get my attention with their noisy song. […]
Thursday, April 16 Bob and Doris’ neighbor Frank came to show Cerwin the little machine he designed. I don’t understand how things like this work, but it makes sense to Cerwin. It operates by heat and sounds like a hit and miss engine. I am not a machinist, but it is easy to see that Frank’s skill is […]
Thursday, April 16 Before washing buckets, lids, and hoses, the cooker was put away until maple syrup time next spring. Being backed into it’s storage spot. Wheels are removed… …and put in the shed (by Jeremiah). There it will rest until next cooking season. Then it was time to begin washing 308 buckets and lids. […]
Wednesday, April 15 After leaving Japheth’s shop, we went to their house to see Aimee and the children. They have a great woodlot and property for children to run, explore, and play. Loraine and Rose were enjoying the warm sunshine. Wayne was reading. Japheth Jr. and Aimee were doing school work. Jeremiah was doing school work on the […]
Wednesday, April 15 The last time we visited Bob and Doris, we were in a TFC tractor – on the way home from delivering a chapel to Calgary, Alberta – so we did not drive to Bemidji to see Japheth’s new shop. This time we were in our car, and made time to go to Bemidji. I lost count […]
Tuesday Evening, April 14 When photographing the bucket gathering on Tuesday evening, I noticed a farm equipment graveyard and decided to look closer. Oh, the stories this equipment could tell.
Tuesday Evening, April 14 Sometime during the day Bob and Doris decided that this was the day to shut down their maple syrup production for the year. It suited Japheth’s family (their oldest son) to help, so plans were made to begin gathering buckets and taps before supper. We are off to the first woodlot – some […]
Monday, April 13 to Thursday, April 16 Bob and Doris are also beekeepers. Two of their hives survived the winter – this one was quite busy when we were there. The other was not as busy, so most of my pictures came from the other one. Bees were constantly coming and going. Notice the yellow pollen […]
April 13 through 15 I combined photos from several days to explain the way Bob and Doris gather sap and make maple syrup. I learned that there in no “normal” in the time it takes each batch to cook or gallons of sap it takes to make one gallon of syrup, because it depends on the sap and the weather on the day […]
Monday, April 13 On Monday evening, after cooking water off of gallons of maple sap, we prepared for a visit from Bob and Doris’ son Jon, his wife, Jen, and their four children before they left for Pennsylvania (next day) to visit her family. While they were visiting, the next-door neighbor brought their brand new […]
Monday, April 13 I am working on my blog about maple syrup, but want to do it in one entry (which will be large) so today I want to tell you about the new tea I experienced while at Bob and Doris’. The above picture was where I sat in Bob’s wood shop – blogging […]
Monday, April 13 We left Thunder Bay in the rain on Monday morning but could see blue skies ahead. There is still ice on many lakes. Soon we were driving in beautiful sunshine and seeing beautiful scenery. When traveling from Thunder Bay, Ontario, to International Falls, Minnesota, there is a lot of road, forest, and not much […]