Lake Stevens

I was thinking the other day that in our entire married life, this is the farthest away we have ever lived from the Ocean.

I really do miss it.

I'm a beach girl

and while I'm not fond at all of being in a swim suit,

I am very fond of walking on the sand picking up shells,

running from the waves as they crash on the shore threatening to soak me to my knees,

sitting on a blanket and watching the dolphins put on a show as the sun goes down,

photographing the kids as they boogie board or build sand castles ...

all of that is right up my alley.

Where I grew up in Pensacola, Florida, we lived about 15 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico.

I remember going as a family after dinner to walk on the soft white sand of the beach at sunset.

I did lots of adolescent "thinking" during those walks.

When we lived in Georgia, we were about 30 minutes from the beach.

As a young mom, my kids and I would meet friends at the beach and we'd stay all day.

The kids would play in the surf while my friends and I relaxed on the sand and had girlfriend chats while our skin turned a golden brown.

When we moved to California, we discovered a whole other world of beaches.

These beaches were made for exploring and their breathtaking scenery just cried out to be photographed.

We had so much fun playing in the tide pools and sitting by bonfires while a guitar softly played for us and we sang songs like "God of Wonders".

When we moved to Rhode Island we were surrounded by the stunning beauty of the ocean. Walking along the cliff walk which dropped into the ocean on one side and was backdropped by mansions from the guilded age on the other, became a favorite thing to do.


Yup. The ocean's shore has always played a big role in my life,

and while I really do miss it's vastness, I just can't deny the beauty that we have here.

The snow capped mountains hemmed by tall evergreens make a striking scene, don't they?

This is Lake Stevens. We plan to enjoy it as often as we can.