On the road to McCall Idaho on a stormy day. The Zest Quest.

Back from our Idaho Travels

I can’t believe we’ve been back from our Idaho travels for over a week and I’m just now posting an update! I had fully planned to post while we were there, but I just couldn’t get into the groove. Then life happened when we returned and we had so much to do this week. So,…

Category: Life through the Lens, Travel, Travel Highlights

Wisteria Hysteria – plant love gone bonkers

Wisteria Hysteria – plant love gone bonkers basically says it all when you have two of these things competing for attention at the same time. This is the first year this has happened — that the Wisteria tree is blooming its heart out at the same time the Wisteria vine has decided to explode, creating…

Category: Garden, Life through the Lens

Nimisila Reservoir in Winter

Nimisila Reservoir in winter appeals to me as much as seeing it in summer. There’s something magical about escaping our habit to hibernate in Northeast Ohio when there’s a hint of early spring in the air. I can go back through several years of photographs in the winter and always find some at a lake…

Category: Life through the Lens, Travel, Travel Highlights

Waking to Winter Beauty in Ohio

This was the view from my kitchen this morning. I stood there with my mouth hanging open for a minute. I was expecting snow, a lot of snow, but the shock and awe of the first major snowfall is always breathtaking. It’s intimidating too because of all the work it takes to dig out of…

Category: Garden, Life through the Lens

REVIEW: Chasing River by K. A. Tucker

An intriguing modern day novel set in Ireland, CHASING RIVER drew me in by its scenic location. Political unrest is part of the conflict that faces a couple from two different worlds who find themselves falling in love. Can an American sheriff’s daughter and an Irish Republican’s brother find common ground to bind them forever?…

Category: Books, Contemporary Romance 2016 Reading Challenge, Life through the Lens, Reviews, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016, Travel, Travel Highlights

REVIEW: A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson

There is nothing I love more than A WALK IN THE WOODS myself, so reading about thru-hikers is fascinating to me. After reading this book by Bill Bryson, I realize I need more of his books! I love travelogues, so Bill Bryson’s books have long been on my radar. I caught the bug with WILD…

Category: Books, Hiking, Life through the Lens, Movie Review, Reviews, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016, Travel, Travel Highlights

A Cottage Garden in Ohio – Part 1

Visiting a Cottage Garden in Ohio brings back memories of my great-grandmother, Nanny, who grew many of these same beauties when I was child. Gardening is more fun when it’s shared with a friend. Especially if it’s one who is as obsessed as you are and loves the same unusual peculiarities of the plant world….

Category: Garden, Life through the Lens

Veterans week in West Virginia – Sunsets, Mountains, More!

Veterans Week in West Virginia was an enjoyable getaway in late fall. The photos tell our story and will entice you to make your own. West Virginia State Resort Parks offered a 50% discount to Veterans from the first through the fifteenth of November, so my husband and I took advantage of it. I’m so…

Category: Life through the Lens, Travel, Travel Highlights

Hiking Challenge Extra – Plum Creek

It’s fun when your family loves the outdoors as much as you do. We added in an extra Fall hike with our son and granddaughters at Plum Creek Park in Medina County, Ohio, in mid November. It doesn’t officially count for our Fall challenge because of the county difference but an extra is always okay…

Category: Hiking, Life through the Lens, Travel, Travel Highlights

Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart!

We saw this arrangement at Pipestem Resort State Park in West Virginia and we thought how appropriate for this time of year. I do give thanks with a grateful heart to family and friends who make my life so zestful. From our family to yours, may you have a zest filled Thanksgiving! I’ll share more…