It is the Judd Memorial Trail.

It has everything from majestic ironwood forests, to bubbling streams, 

to waterfalls with fun names like Jackass Ginger Falls.

It also has a lot of wild Coffee plants!  

Just look at these beautiful red berries that will turn in to beans!

Just a reminder in case you didn't already know,

I will be off island from 9/1-9/8 attending my sister's wedding!

I hope to come back with lots of pictures to share of different types of Nature

that we don't see on the islands. 

I'm praying for changing leaves! 

See you soon!

and a little angel!

Get a load of his hair!  Soo much of it!

He also made the greatest  faces.

I love this moment between Mom and Baby P!

This was such a fun session!  

Thank you, M, for a wonderful day!

And to think that it started out with me forgetting my camera!  DOH!

I have pulled an image from my archives and re-processed it for this weeks post.

It is one of my favourites from a trip to the Big Island that I took over 2 years ago.

From the Leading Lines, to the color, to the splash,

it just makes my heart happy and peaceful to look at this image.

I flew to the Big Island of Hawaii just for the day

all by myself!

It was a wonderful day of wandering the Hilo and Volcano sides of the island,

parking on the side of the road,

and deciding, "Hmmm, this looks like a good place to hike down and see what I can find!"

Then I prayed that I could find my way back out!  LOL!

It was such a peaceful Momma Recharge Day!

I hope to do it again someday.

I always get to see other Service Members returning home.

This time, after 7 months, it was finally OUR turn!

My daughters got to meet Daddy separately since Elizabeth was still in school when he landed.

I told Colleen that morning so that she could get excited.

I found out through our Family Readiness Officer, Ed Hanlon, that we could meet Doug at the gate

through a USO program!  Doug was NOT expecting us to be right there!

(Thank you, Ed, for the help and video!)

Elizabeth had no clue!  

My friend, Autumn, picked her up from school and took her to Ala Moana Beach Park 

under the auspices of some fun in the sun with friends.

It was so much fun surprising her! 

(Thank you, Autumn, for helping with the surprise and video!)

I thought I'd try something new and put the video together with the pictures and add a little music!

Enjoy!  We did! 

Daddy Homecoming from Thereasa Gwinn on Vimeo.

I have a feeling they keep Mom on her toes

on a daily basis!

They know how to get into a bit of trouble in a short period of time, too!

I asked them to sit a little closer and for big brother to put his arm around little brother.

Next thing you know, they are both covered in sand!

Our evening was full of giggles!

They have this sweet little sister, too!  

She has the same amazing blue eyes as her brothers.

She didn't want much to do with the pictures but instead wanted her blanket.

Still, we were able to get a few good images of her and Daddy.

Mom even got her to sleep!

I just love this sweet moment!

Thank you, K, for letting me get to know your family a little!

I sure do love where I live!

North Beach on Marine Corps Base Hawaii

USS Russell

and @troycutchens.

@Joscie was the first person to contact me when I announced that I had joined

Operation: Love Reunited

back in June!

I was excited to hear from her and happy to do this session!

One of the hardest things about Navy Homecomings,

Or any Homecoming for that matter,

is the wait while your loved one is so close you can see them!

Troy snuck up on us from behind as we were looking towards the ship!

Sneaky, sneaky!

They were all happy to see him, too!

I think he was happy to be home, as well.

Finally!  Time to take him home!

Welcome Home, Troy!

the girls and I went outside to get some air.

I was captivated by the raindrops that were still hanging

around on the blades of grass.

I love how they bead up in little rows.

Then, while trying to capture the drops on the Red Ti Leaves,

I started seeing a little more abstract.

It's fun what you can start seeing when you least expect it.

These last two are some of my favourite that I've taken.

I can see them big on my walls. Hmmmm….

(Yes, I'm just now getting to these pictures!)

I loved these flowers!

Their color, that they only had 4 petals,

Their location…

Now, if only I knew what they were!!!

Some fun facts about the color purple (to borrow from my friend Catie Stephens idea)

Purple is a term used in English to describe a range of colors between the red and blue hues.

Tyrian Purple Dye was made from the mucus of the Spiny Dye-Murex Snail.  Because of it's rarity, only the royalty could afford it.

Purple is a color between red and blue light, whereas Violet is a spectral color.

Purple is associated with Saturday on the Thai Solar Calendar.   Anyone can wear purple on Saturdays and anyone born on Saturday can adopt Purple as their color.

The Purple Heart is a US military decoration awarded by the President of the United States to those who have been injured or killed while serving in the US Military on or after April 05, 1917.

"Deep Purple" is a popular Rock Band.

"Purple Haze" is a popular Jimi Hendrix song.

People with purple auras are said to have a love of ritual and ceremony.

Few, if any, words in the English language rhyme with Purple.

In the Star Trek Universe, Klingons have purple blood.

In Star Wars, Mace Windu is the only character to have a purple light saber.

Now, if anyone knows what kind of flower this is,

would you mind letting me know?

Thank you!

I wonder why the Clown Fish is so Grumpy!