Strolling

One of our favorite places to wander is the Oden State Fish Hatchery, near Petoskey, Michigan. It's usually a fairly quiet place, but on rainy fall days it's often deserted. It used to be the perfect place to stop and give the kids a chance to stretch their legs and feed the fish.

Now that they're older it's still a perfect place to soak up some of Northern Michigan's fall colors. I say "they're," but with one away at college, only one of the kids was with us. Next fall it will just be my husband and me. Which is how it should be, but it tugs a little at my heart strings to think about having an empty nest...

Even in the rain, Northern Michigan in the fall is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. 

We spent an hour wandering together quietly enjoying the smell of wet leaves, the sound of the rain and the beauty of autumn.