Sarah, Steve and I went camping at Johnson's Shut-Ins Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Temperatures were perfect for camping - cool nights and pleasant days - but not so perfect for swimming, even though we did it anyway. Neither Steve nor I ever completely immersed and I didn't venture down the shut-ins. Emily and Quinn and Larkin drove down Wednesday to spend the morning with us and, darn if that wasn't the day it rained. Not heavy but enough to prevent any swimming. Although, Larkin, while climbing the rocks, accidentally fell in! Beckie stayed with the dogs and we are so grateful for that. Not only can we not take the dogs down to the shut-ins but there were dogs at practically every campsite and it would have been so stressful - for us AND the dogs. Thanks to Steven for loaning Sarah his small tent and sleeping bag.
Sarah helped me take and edit this night photo above our campsite and you can see that fall colors are just starting to happen...
We got home mid-afternoon on Wednesday - in time for everyone to shower and for me to attend the first of two Mehlville School District strings registration/information meeting that evening.
Thursday, I had a visit to the dentist to check on my crowns and make sure they are still doing their job. This was my view from the chair. The room next to me was all St. Louis Cardinals memorabilia. It is a pretty great dentist office...
Thursday night, I had a neighborhood beautification event to attend so I could not join Steve and Sarah at the annual St. Louis Symphony free concert in Forest Park. Our ward youth always attend and this year, it was Steve's turn to go early and save a spot for them. He and Sarah brought blankets, folding chairs and a picnic dinner. They also each brought an umbrella to protect them from the sun but instead, it turned out they needed them for the rain that fell intermittently on the concert! The musicians were covered so they kept playing and Steve said that most of the crowd stayed. They always pass out fans with the face of the conductor on front and a list of upcoming concerts on the back.
Sarah and Beckie went to lunch on Friday while Steve and I attended the temple. That evening, Steve, Sarah and I drove over to The Hill (St. Louis's historic Italian neighborhood) for some gelato. The shop is right next to a lovely fountain....very reminiscent of Italy
Saturday morning, we three met Larkin at the zoo. It was Larkin's birthday present. Being a pleasant fall weekend, the zoo was quite crowded but it was still enjoyable. Larkin wanted to visit the turtles at the herpeterium, the monkeys, the big cats (who were all out but sleeping in shady spots), the giraffes and zebras, and we ended at the red pandas before heading to the gift shop where she bought a stuffed fox. Emily, Joe and the other three kids dropped Larkin off and they spent their time looking for Pokeman and attending the art museum. We serendipitously ran into them at the nearby McDonalds afterwards and had lunch with them!
Saturday evening, Sarah and I attended the opening concert for the 2023-24 St. Louis Symphony season. Their featured artist was Hillary Hahn who played the Mendelssohn violin concerto. We also heard the Sorcerer's Apprentice, Magic Flute Overture, Till Eulenspiegal's Merry Pranks and Don Juan. It was an incredible performance!
Emily and family and Beckie are coming over this evening for a family dinner. We hope the weather cooperates and we can eat out in the backyard. I will post photos so if you are reading this now, come back on Monday for an update. Sarah leaves for Utah on Wednesday so we only have a few more days with her. It will be sad to see her go....
No comments:
Post a Comment