The mountains of North Carolina are beautiful over all seasons but display spectactular colors during the fall months.  These photos were taken in late September just as the leaves were beginning to turn as we traveled the Parkway up to Mount Mitchell.

Awesome Dad--101 Years of Age 7-26-2012

 Makes a statement, makes a wish, and blows them out!  Another year for an amazing man.

 My brother, Tim, me and Dad.

 Dad and Mom on his special day.

My daughters, Leta and Beth with their Grandfather.

Another year for a popular and loveable man who wins the heart of everyone he meets.  He has led such a good life and is an inspiration to all of us who love him.

As his nurse was getting him ready for the luncheon on his birthday, he said to her:  This is really a special day for you.  She said:  No, it's a special day for you, your birthday.  No, he says:  It's special for you today because this is the first time you ever put clean underwear on a 101-year-old man....and so it goes.  We love you, Dad.

We have seen so many Sandhill Cranes here in Minnesota.  I have found that here in this state they are more brown than gray and don't seem to be as large as the pair that frequents Sumter Oaks in Bushnell Florida.

Como Conservatory, St. Paul, MN

 Fiddle-dee-dee

 I thought this was interesting, the color and the texture.

 I always love sunflowers--as you know, they make me happy.  This presents a little different angle on a beautiful flower.

 Something orange with black berries....

 This was an interesting burst of color in the foreground of the waterfall and above the koi pond.

 And there were water lilies

 and more

 and more

 and I thought this one is especially pretty.

 The mosiacs added pretty color and cover around the moat.

This is Cloe.  She is quite amazing, stretching out across a limb and scratching her own tummy.  We didn't have Winston with us, but I think he could learn some lessons from her. :-)

Crex Meadows & Atlas, Wisconsin

                                          Scenes from Crex Meadows and Atlas, Wisconsin.

Rodeo Clowns

 I learned respect for the rodeo clowns during my first rodeo in Isanti, MN.  The firefighters sponsor a rodeo every year and it is well attended and supported by local businesses.  The two clowns were on this swinging seesaw and dodging the bull--the madder the bull got the more they had to dodge.

 Here the clown was walking on the fence and decided to show off his patriotic shorts.

The clowns distract the bull while the rider runs for cover.  When these bulls come out of those stalls, they are bucking and jumping.  Once the rider is off the horse (either by choice or not), the clowns keep the bull distracted until the rider is safe.  There were a couple of times when the bulls just wanted to romp around the arena and getting them back into the holding area was not an easy task.

Crossing the mid-west into Minnesota

As we have traveled from North Carolina to Minnesota, we have seen some of the most beautiful farmlands.  We spent a couple of days in Forest City, Iowa, and you could see for miles on either side of the highway.  We saw cropdusters along the way as well (they're always fun to watch), and fields of wind generators, especially in Iowa.  One afternoon the air was very still and the turbines weren't turning.  When vehicles were traveling along the gravel roads, the dust boiled up behind them and then hung over the corn fields like low-handing clouds.

While we were in Forest City, Iowa--purpose was to have work done on the motorhome--we noticed everything is Winnebago.  Winnebago County, Winnebago River, and the plant itself takes acres and acres of property, plus the customer service center, the activity center, and the welcome center that offers the tours of the plants.  While our motorhome was being serviced, we hung out in two places:  First, the Northern Iowa Heritage Village which was amazing, and then we went over to a city park set up our chairs in the shade of a tree and enjoyed the rest of the morning enjoying our surroundings.  We were thankful for overhanging clouds and a nice breeze that kept the temperatures down--just what we ordered.

By the time we got to the park, Winston was exhausted.  The nice, cool grass provided a perfect spot for a nap.