We really enjoyed spring this year in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  It was great weather for playing outdoors, walking at local parks, enjoying nature and checking out all the trees and plants that were blooming. 

        

We have gone to so many places to enjoy the spring weather outdoors.  The Blue Ridge Mountains are full of unique and beautiful places like waterfalls, creeks, rivers, mountain sides, mountain tops, produce farms, orchards, and more.  But our favorite regular place to go is the local parks. 

On this beautiful spring day we took a nature walk and I think every tree was in bloom.  What lovely colors and fragrances flowers permeate the air with!  It is truly a burst to the senses to enjoy these spring flowers.



As we walked along the paths, we enjoyed learnig about different plants and their cycle of life.   We talked about spring and how many things are born or “reborn” this time of year.  We also talked about how we as people are born and reborn too.  We can be reborn each spring into a new year of person growth and blooms.  We can also be reborn into a relationship with God through believing in his son Jesus Christ.

 

We took time to walk a couple of laps and walked about two miles today around the paved paths.  

        

Each time around, the children noticed a new plant to look at in a new way.  Some plants, like this ivy growing on this tree and the ground had signs of both death and life.  It was easy to see the new life and the old life on the same plant.  The scriptures say we need to prune away the dead branches in our life.  When a farmer prunes away the dead branches of his apple trees, grape vines, or rasberry bushes, it promotes new growth and healthy life in the plant and it enables it to be more productive and bear even more fruit.  Pruning away the dead or diseased parts of our own lives that don’t line up with God’s plan for us can help us also be more productive and fruitful too.

        

After our walk was over, we enjoyed a picnic lunch together.  We shared sandwhiches, cheese, yogurt, sweet potato chips, grapes, and juice.  

        

After lunch, we spent some time on the playground climbing, swinging, jumping, running, and laughing together.



We played for several hours on the playground, made new friends and visited with old friends.   

        

It was a beautiful spring day.  

                                

Be sure to check out our entire series of Walk and Talk Wednesdays where we focus on family fitness in many areas such as physical activity, outdoor learning, nutrition, relationships, and faith.
 
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