Appleton in October

After two days in Door County, we were so excited to visit family and friends in Appleton.

My brother Gary and I are so close, and as siblings we're only 14 months apart.

And let me tell you, we could talk for hours and hours. And we did!

We had so much fun with Gary and his wife Kathy.

Erica, Preslie, me and Kathy

 First up ~ they took us to my niece Erica & Nate's lovely home ~

so I could meet my great-niece Preslie. Oh my gosh, isn't she quite the beautiful baby doll!

And speaking of beautiful, my sister-in-law Kathy has the most beautiful flower garden!

This is but a fraction of the flowers that are still blooming in October.

And my brother Gary knows my husband so well. He & Kathy took Randy & I 

to the EAA AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh.

My husband was in heaven. He was like a little boy. He LOVES military planes.

 

In fact when he was a little boy, while his Dad was stationed in London,

their whole family flew to France in this transport plane ~ the C-47

and this is exactly what the inside looked like! Can you imagine!

Randy always wanted to be a fighter pilot and has had the pleasure of experiencing the Air Force simulators out at Luke Air Base. But watching him in the cockpit of this F-100 gave me a glimpse into his undying love of fighter jets.

Nothing better than the yard sales and thrift stores in Appleton...

... that is until they took us to their downtown Farmer's Market. OH. MY. GOODNESS.

Check out that GINORMOUS pumpkin stem! And how cute is the proud owner!

I was blown away! Yes, it was windy, but seriously, what a Farmer's Market!

And they kept telling us this is nothing compared to what it was like at the start of the season.

And that sweet corn up there ~ THE best sweet corn EVER!

I know, I've got a flare for the drama... but this cranberry scone was the best too!

Gary, me, Anna, Kathy, Erin & Erik and Randy 

So, SO fun hanging out with my brother's family! 

And as you can see, we put away a LOT of that sweet corn
along with Kathy's scrumptious roast meal.

Then we spent a couple days visiting our dear friends Jim & Laurie.

Jim was one of my dearest friends throughout high school.

And he knows me so well ~ 

Sunday morning we went on the most refreshing, exhilarating hike 

and then we watched the Green Bay Packers remain undefeated!

As we were driving back to Wausau for our flight back to Phoenix,

I couldn't help but long for a simpler life. 

I want to be on that hayride up there, with not a care in the world.

I want to be fully immersed and mindful of the little things in life.

And I want to never forget being in the van with my niece Anna,
after picking her up from UW-Oshkosh, talking about music and 70's fashion...

... and being stunned by the glorious sunset taking place right outside our window.

And sensing at that very moment that I was right where God wanted me to be.