Snelling Park

A couple of weeks ago we had some wonderful weather here in the valley, so we headed outdoors to a park nearby in Snelling. It's a nice place to take the kids because of the beautiful river that backs the park and all the trees and rocks to climb on. It almost has the feeling of being in the mountains but without having to travel miles and miles to get there.
On this day we packed up a lunch and spent a couple of hours, playing, walking, picking little flowers that grow in the grass, throwing rocks in the river, and picking up sticks. Of course, there was the danger of running across poison oak, which Daddy has horrible reactions to, so we made sure to keep a close eye on where the kids were running!

Brayden watching his brother and sister play by the river

Ryley looking out at the river... he sat here for quite a while lost in his thoughts

Our beautiful Daina... gotta love those lashes!

Little Rigan... tired and peaking around the side of the stroller. I don't know how I feel about this photo, I DON'T think I like the composition but there is just something about it that I DO like... I'm just not sure what it is?!

We call him "Smiley Ryley"... can you tell why?

There's that wonderful smile again!

So obviously I didn't take these photos... I handed the camera over to my husband who has proven to have some talent in photography also!

I cropped this one... I like my eyes but didn't like the idea of having other people look straight up my nose! This one being cropped is quite an unusual composition also, but again, I think I like it!

While we were leaving the park my husband noticed something strange and called my attention to it... can you guess what it was???

Here's a close-up of the same thing...

If you guessed, ants drinking soda, then you'd be correct! Someone had poured soda on top of a parking post and thousands of ants had discovered it. The first photo reminds me of an eye ball... it's really an odd picture... especially for me to take. And the second photo I think is pretty cool just because the ants have shadows!

This really was a beautiful day, being outdoors with nature all around us, and enjoying time with 5 of my most favorite people. It was a wonderful reminder to me that God is the creator of all things, big and small, and He created them (and us) with purpose. I was reminded that I need to take time to slow down and really appreciate and recognize all His blessings... the trees, the grass, the flowers, the water, even the ants... but most importantly, the couple of hours spent bonding with my family! It's in this rough economy and hard times, that I can see God's daily blessings in the littlest of things.