For the last several years, I have had the blessing of going on an "expedition" with these two good-looking grandkids! We plan our time together to be around their July birthdays, which usually means it is HOT. It is also prime time for ticks and chiggers in Arkansas, so although I would enjoy hiking outdoors in the woods with them, our July expedition does not usually find us deep in the forest. Fortunately, we are blessed with dozens of other "kid-friendly" pursuits in our area, so this blog post will tell about some of those. Our first stop was the Museum of Native American History, in Bentonville, Arkansas (
www.monah.us/ ). A great thing about the museum is that it is FREE! There are photo ops even before you go inside, as this large teepee sits beside the museum's front entrance. The grandkids have a "link", of sorts, to one of the exhibits in the museum, and one of the books for sale in the gift shop. That's because the kids' mother is a radiologist, who used to work with another radiologist, Dr. James Cherry----- an authority on ancient effigy head pots of native American cultures, and he has published a highly-acclaimed book on the topic. There is also a link to some of Dr. Cherry's archaeological radiology research studies, on the website of the Museum.
Our next stop required us to drive through some lovely meadows in northwest Arkansas, and that is where we spotted a field full of youngsters, doing some equestrian training. Since I am always interested in passing along stories about Kaitlyn and Jacob's grandfather, I told them about the experience their grandfather and I had, when we attended equestrian events at the summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Our equestrian event tickets were scheduled for early in the morning, so we left our motel (one hour outside Atlanta), long before daylight, without turning on any radio or television news. (Of course, this was before the days of smart phones) We were well into the Atlanta city limits, when we turned on the radio to hear the announcer warning people, "DO NOT COME INTO ATLANTA TODAY BECAUSE OF A BOMBING A FEW HOURS AGO AT AN OLYMPIC VENUE!". Since we were already near the equestrian park, we kept going, not knowing what else to do! As it turned out, the equestrian event had NOT been cancelled, but everything was running at least three hours behind schedule because of GREATLY enhanced security measures at all event entrances, as a reaction to the bombings. The grounds of the equestrian venue, was our first opportunity to use a pay phone to call our loved ones back home, to let them know we had not been at the location where the bomb went off, and that we had plans to continue on with our Olympic itinerary. I am really thankful we did, because it was a great experience to see the pageantry in the dressage, and observe the OLDEST-ever Olympic athlete, compete against their much younger counterparts!
But getting back to the "Arkansas expedition", our travels took us to the tiny town of Gentry, Arkansas, for a restaurant I had been wanting to visit for over a decade, because it was recommended to me by a fellow Registered Dietitian. I took a photo of this wall decoration in the restaurant, because the words are very meaningful to me----"ARKANSAS, you run deep in me".
This photo shows Kaitlyn and Jacob in front of The Wooden Spoon restaurant in Gentry (
www.woodenspoongentry.com ). I was so amused that within minutes of me divulging where I had planned for our lunch, Jacob had looked it up on his smart phone, and was reading the "rave reviews" it had received, to Kaitlyn and me! The on-line endorsement made me thankful to finally being able to visit there. Although there was a line of people waiting to get inside, the line was shorter when we arrived, than when we left! My advice----get there early!
Following our lunch, we made the short, scenic drive to Gentry's other big attraction, The Wild Wilderness Drive-Through Safari (
www.wildwildernessdrivethroughsafari.com ) to encounter some amazing animals!
The gigantic horns on the bovines in this photo are simply amazing!
Likewise, the rack of antlers on this big buck, make him easy to spot, as he took a little swim to cool off, on this hot day in July
There were giant birds!
There were camels!
We marveled at the design of these zebras!
It was fun to see this very curious ostrich repeatedly pose for our photos! He was not at all camera shy!
One of the employees at the park gave us the special giraffe food the park supplies, so we could try actually "hand feed" this long-necked critter!
I was especially thankful to get to see and pet one of the kangaroos at the park, since I went all the way to Australia and back, without getting to do that!!
I am using this photo of a very good-looking brother and sister, as my visual aid for my First Place 4 Health (
www.FirstPlace4Health.com ) memory verse that says, "He has given us this command; Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister." I John 4:21 This brother and sister treated each other with both love and respect throughout our expedition, (as they have on every other trip we have taken together!), and I greatly enjoy spending time with them! By the way, camel rides are available right here in Arkansas! My son and I once made a trip to the Memphis zoo for the sole purpose of getting to ride a camel, but it is no longer necessary to go to the Middle East or out of state, to have this experience!
The gorgeous outdoor setting for this photo was our next stop, and was located down an unpaved county road outside Siloam Springs, Arkansas, at their newly opened natural water park on the Illinois River. You can learn more about it by visiting their website at
www.siloamspringskayakpark.com .
The final stop for our expedition was at this cross, located high above the city of Fayetteville. It is fun to find the towers of "Old Main" of the University of Arkansas, as you look westward. If you would like to see this spot for yourself, just click on
www.mountsequoyah.org for driving directions, and a list of all the services offered by this mountain-top retreat owned by the Methodist Church. Writing this blog article is a reminder to me to always be
giving thanks for the Cross of Jesus and these precious grandchildren! They give me "MILES OF SMILES"!!! Tricia
This was my 12th straight year to compete in the 5K Division, of the White River Marathon for Kenya! That means I have been blessed to participate in the event each year since it started!
The crowd starts showing up at the Cotter, Arkansas, High School long before daybreak, and around dawn, the group heads outside to the starting line.
The temperature in the Ozarks in late November is almost always cold, but a misting rain added to the "chill factor", for the 2015 start-up. 
In spite of the dreary skies, the race had very few "no shows" on the morning of the event. Even the "no-shows" do not have to feel too guilty about their choice, as part of the entry fee goes to fund programs in Kenya operated by the well-known humanitarian organization, World Vision . (See previous blogs I published, for information on World Vision. Archived dates are October 7, 2009; November 21, 2009; October 4, 2012; November 24, 2013). 
My friend, Diane, was all smiles as she completed the finish line! If you want to have those same feelings of accomplishment, go to the website www.whiterivermarathon.com and sign up for the 2016 event! The race filled up in 2015, and some folks had to be turned away, so do not procrastinate!
I was absolutely DELIGHTED to get a First Place medal for my age category in the 2015 race! It has been my observation, since this was race #12 for me, that it is not so much that I have gotten faster since I did my first race, where I did not win any kind of medal; rather, it is just the fact that I have persevered, and been promoted into progressively older race categories, where there are fewer participants! 
The unique aspect about all the folks in this photo, showing off their prize medals, is that they are all members of the North Central Chapter of the Arkansas Master Naturalists ( wordpress.arkansasmasternaturalists.org ) ! Could it be that learning about the natural world makes you more appreciative of the miracle of the human body??!! So appreciative, in fact, that you make efforts to stay active??!! 
One way the married couple in this photo keeps active, is by being a part of the devoted Master Naturalist Trail Patrol volunteers, who do some hard physical labor, to keep our area hiking trails "maintained". In the process, they are also "maintaining" the physical health of their own bodies!
A big motivator for me to keep striving for optimum health, is a program called First Place 4 Health. It is a Christ-centered healthy living program, that is available nationwide. You can check for classes in your area by going to their website, www.FirstPlace4Health.com and typing in your zip code. One aspect of the program is memorizing a Bible verse each week, and I use visual aids from my photography to help me remember the words. One of my verses for the current "Healthy Boundaries" study is from Galatians 5:7 and says, "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?" Naturally, I thought of these photos I had taken at the various races I have participated in, although, fortunately, I do not have a photo of someone who kept me from finishing! Since I want to continue running a good race in life, I am going to keep an eye out for those things that that DO "cut in" to my obedience to the truth! This includes things that would keep me from participating in the 2016 White River Marathon, scheduled for Saturday, November 19. Being able to complete another 5K will give me "3.2 MILES OF SMILES"! Tricia
