July 21, 2015
I woke up with the alarm at 7:00 so I could meet my dear friend for breakfast. I left the campground at 7:50 to drive the short distance to meet Debbie at the Pine Cone Restaurant in Johnson Creek.
We both arrived at 8:30, our predetermined meeting time. We got seated right away and proceeded to catch up on everything that has transpired since the last time we were together. It was like no time has passed between us. We left the restaurant at 10:00 and I arrived back at the campground at 10:30. Then Bob and I took a drive out to the UW Arboretum.
We were there to visit the area near the spring where the family placed a memorial bench for Bob’s mom. A tree had fallen down in a recent storm and the spring didn’t quite look the same.
The walk through the Arboretum was shady and cool. Bob and I were the only ones there and he led the way to where the bench was placed.
We sat there for awhile enjoying the stillness and the sound of the singing birds in the trees.
After awhile we walked back to the truck and headed back to the campground. Whenever we’re in Madison, we try to visit the bench at the Arboretum. It does my heart good to remember Jo and how much she would have enjoyed that spot in the Arboretum. Once we got back to the campground, we hung out for awhile making plans for our trip home. Auggie got to spend most of the afternoon outside taking in all the smells from the woods. Around 3:30 we left the campground to pick up Tim, Bob’s brother, from home and the three of us would join everyone else out at John and Jenny’s house out in the country near Belleville.
We were one of the first to arrive. The others arrived shortly after us. Mary and I took a walk across the street to the old barn where John and Jenny had planted pumpkins in decorated old tires.
The pumpkin vines have taken over the area, but we could still see the tires hidden under the plants. What a cute idea!
We walked on further to the area where John and Jenny have placed some bluebird nesting boxes. The boxes were built with an easy way to view what’s inside by opening the side of the box. I opened the box very quietly and carefully to see what was inside the birdhouse. What a surprise! There were two baby birds inside.
We finished our walk past the farmer’s soybean crop and back to the house. I walked around the backyard where John and Jenny have amazing gardens and tons of wildflowers.
From the backyard you can see quite far. The house sits on a hill overlooking the farm fields below and the view goes on forever.
John built Jenny a beautiful grotto decorated with wooden hearts. How sweet!
We sat around on the back patio before dinner. It had turned out to be a fabulous day with lots of sunshine and not too hot.
The guys cooked brats on the grill and I brought my favorite potato salad from Jacobson Deli. (There is no other!!) We also had fruit salad and a green salad with brownies for dessert. After dinner, we had a great bonfire!
The kids really enjoyed roasting marshmallows and making s’mores. Bennett did his best to get this triple marshmallow in his mouth all at once! What a sight that was!
We had fun sitting around the campfire on a beautiful night!
The fire and smoke kept the bugs away for awhile. When the fire died down and the mosquitoes came out, it was time to say goodbye. Steve and Janet were leaving for home in Ohio tomorrow. Ten of us made plans to visit Devil’s Lake on Wednesday for some hiking and swimming and the others were going to work (poor things). We had a wonderful time out at John and Jenny’s place. It’s such a beautiful setting!
