October 09, 2006

What a wonderful time we had in our 24 hours in Brown County! On Thursday it was overcast, drizzly and cool, so we didn’t spend much time outside. Instead, after we checked in at the Abe Martin Lodge, we explored the rustic sights inside! Abe Martin Lodge features a huge fireplace in the main room, complete with an open atrium to the lobby below. The dining room overlooks the deck and woods surrounding the lodge and Thursday night is BBQ night, complete with “live entertainment” (an old guy with a big beard singing 60’s songs and playing the guitar…all a little too loudly!). Christopher was really freaked out by the entertainment (I must admit, I found the old guy to be a cross between pathetic and sinister….he would have looked more at home on a street corner with his guitar case open for ‘tips’) so we ate in a back room alone….or should I say AMY AND I ate. Christopher did not eat a BITE of his “buffet” meal. It took him nearly 3 hours to “come in off the ledge” when we got back to the room. Thank goodness for his portable DVD player and PEDIASURE! On Friday we awoke at 5:45 and were in the dining room for breakfast at 7:05 (they started serving at 7:00). I originally had planned on breakfast in the room (cold cereal and muffins) but we had to kill time until it was warm enough to go outside (it was pretty cool and we had only brought very light jackets….not good planning on our part). “Besides,” I thought, “this is one meal that I KNOW Christopher will EAT!” since his love for scrambled eggs and sausage patties is legendary! Well, that’s what I get for thinking! Evidently the aura of the old ballad-singer from the night before still lingered in the dining room….Christopher was like a cat on a hot tin roof and didn’t eat a bite! THIS TIME, though, we asked for a box and took his food back to the room, and once he was happily ensconced in front of his DVD player, he relaxed enough to eat! The woods in Brown County State Park are beautiful any time of year, but more so in the fall. The leaves are all shades of reds, golds, browns and yellows and they form great drifts on the ground, perfect for launching oneself into! Christopher loved all of it. He is a true “outdoor kid” and I’ve never once (ever) heard him ask to go INSIDE. We played on the playground near the lodge and he enjoyed swinging and going down the slide. WE climbed into the North Lookout Tower and enjoyed a beautiful view of the fall foliage all around us. We drove into Bloomington and had lunch in a secluded park on the edge of Monroe Lake. It was all we could do to keep Christopher out of the (chilly) water! We explored the giant tree that had fallen, exposing what was left of its withered roots. We threw rocks into the lake, and just enjoyed the breeze and sun! It was delightful! We had a wonderful time and we got some pictures too (check the photo gallery). There is a lot of life to be lived out there, and I plan on living it to my fullest capacity for as long as possible! I heard someone say “I’m not dying of ALS, I am LIVING WITH ALS”. I’m not done living yet! Sometimes I think I’m just getting started….