Monday, October 28, 2013

FIVE YEARS CLOSER TO HEAVEN...

 
Five years closer to Heaven...
 
 that means 5 years closer to meeting our Savior...
that means 5 years closer to scooping up this precious little guy and embracing him again... taking in his presence all while within the amazing presence of our Savior... I CAN NOT WAIT...
 
 
I can not wait to see ALL my boys together...
 
 
I can not wait until our family is whole again...
 
 
I can not wait till there is no more pain or sorrow... till there are no more hurting hearts, no more longing or aching arms, and NO MORE GOODBYES... EVER!!!
 
 
Today, 5 years after we were told that Samuel's heart was  no longer beating...
 
I am...
missing him...
treasuring every single second that I had him growing healthily inside of me...
thanking God for the 9 beautiful mos. that he was a part of our family...
honestly, wishing I could have had more time with him...
(I think I will always feel that way even though I know the Lord knew the exact number of days his life would be and I fully trust him in that)
 
 
Days like today are filled with mixed emotions... such thankfulness... and sadness...
 
I think as the mom who carried this precious little boy... and personally experienced his death fully, literally inside of me and then bringing forth, birthing a child that wasn't living any more... I can not help but remember the moments of these days in a more personal intimate way... There are traumatic memories, there is no way around that... probably more traumatic for me than the rest of the family...
 
 
At the same time... I am so thankful that the Lord chose me to be Samuel's mom... from the moment that I knew he existed and for the rest of my earthly life, regardless of how quickly he was taken from us... I will praise the Lord for his good and perfect gift to us in the sweet life of Samuel. 
 
 
He was perfectly formed by our Heavenly Father down to every last detail, perfectly formed for our family, perfectly used by our gracious God to bring us closer to Himself... perfectly formed to teach us and change us in so many ways...
 
I love this beautiful little boy, Samuel, so very much... more than I can describe...
 
 
 
I am so thankful today that I am...
 
5 years closer to Heaven...


Sunday, October 27, 2013

Stillbirth...

Stillbirth...
 
A word that probably makes most uncomfortable...
A word that if truly thought about probably strikes fear in the hearts of most pregnant women...
 
What a word... I remember, that was a word that I mulled over and thought about every so often for years...
 
As a childbirth educator and doula... I had asked myself over and over again, how would I care for a family and the baby (yes, I said the care of the baby... even though he / has already died...the way that the nurses and my family cared for Samuel was so important... they were so respectful and tender with him... meant the world to me then and now!) if they had a still birth and I was their birth doula or the person that had taught them all about the day when their special miracle would arrive...
 
only to have all of their dreams dashed because of the death of their child before he/she ever drew a breath on earth...
 
In all honesty... It made me nervous for their sake... I couldn't imagine what they would go through... how I would help them cope in the midst of a delivery like that...
 
But I was NEVER worried for my own sake when I was the one pregnant with the baby...
 
I remember plain as day a few weeks before Samuel was born thinking and even telling Greg that I thought this baby was safe... that he/she couldn't have gotten wrapped up in the cord... (he moved around a lot... but not often in those crazy circles or rolling motions where I thought the cord could have been an issue.) 
 
And yet that is where we found ourselves one day after our due date...With a baby that was no longer alive inside of me...
 
Did you realize that  there are 26,000 stillbirths a year in the US... averaging out to about 1 in every 160 births...or about one ever 20 minutes...
 
Did you realize that there are about 5,000-6,000 SIDS deaths per year in the US...?

Did you realize that in Africa, there are more babies that die as a result of stillbirths than die from AIDS and malaria combined??

Did you know that there are 28,000 babies that die in the first year of life in America??


It breaks my heart to hear of any baby dying... for any reason... 1 baby dying every year would be too many in my opinion...
But it really stuck out to me that there are about 5 times as many deaths each year as a result of stillbirth compared to SIDS deaths... yet there is so much more education and working to prevent SIDS death... (please hear my heart... I am so so very thankful for all the SIDS prevention education... so thankful... just wish there was more stillbirth prevention education)

I can not help but think that the common public or even the medical field doesn't fully understand what a family goes through who is grieving the death of their baby when it wasn't even born yet?
I think that there might be a common thread that most people believe that since that child hadn't breathed a breath yet or that you hadn't experienced a day of life caring for them... that it is somehow easier... I know that I had many imply that after Samuel died... that somehow because it happened before he was born it was better or easier...

I also know that many stillbirths could be prevented through better care and monitoring.  After living in the hospital for 7 weeks during my pregnancy with Levi with the health of my placenta under great scrutiny... and experiencing the very thorough ultrasounds three times a week... I know that  poor blood flow can be detected fairly easily through looking closely at the cord and also at specific ventricles in the brain... It was amazing how they could tell that Levi was still safer inside than outside of me.

Stillbirth... something that I never really considered could ever happen to me personally... But now that I have lived it, watched many other young women walk the same path in life... now I see the full picture and all that a life lived after a stillbirth of ones child could be like...  It is hard, it is gut wrenching at times, it is beautiful... it is scary... it can be lonely... It is a time when the Lord certainly carries you each and every day and faithfully heals your broken heart... but ultimately, it teaches you that EVERY SINGLE SECOND WITH YOUR BABY IS PRECIOUS... in side the womb and out! 



Tuesday, October 22, 2013

The challenge...

 
Here are the street boys in the slums of Kampala eating the food they were served at the feeding program... for some kids this is one of the few meals they eat each week... Heartbreaking...
 
 
Look at this little beauty... She is precious... Perfectly created by our Heavenly Father... You don't see very many little girls on the streets... But she may have just joined up with our group as we traveled through the slums to go play soccer with the boys... You should have seen the following of kids we immediately attracted as we wove through the incredibly dirty and poverty stricken area...
 
 
 
Which brings me to today...
 
It is time for our annual (well now it is annual, since this is our 2nd year doing it) beans and rice challenge...
 
In an effort to...
1.  Give us all some perspective on  how good we have it here in America and how very spoiled we are...
2.  See how very hard some people have it in the world...
3.  Bump up the gratitude level around here...
4.  Grow more empathy for orphans, kids who live on the streets, the homeless in our own backyard...
5.  Be content with less...
6.  Learn to be thankful for whatever we get to eat... not matter how much we like or dislike it:):)
7.   and hopefully allow the Lord to teach us even more than we are expecting and grow us in ways we didn't imagine...
 
We will be eating beans and rice for the next month... at lunchtime...
I know... not a very big deal... :):)  But you have to start somewhere right??
 
We will not be legalistic about it... But we will try our very best to stick to it... If we happen to get a lunch invitation in the coming month... then we will eat beans and rice for dinner that day instead... I am sure it won't be but a day or 2 till Greg is offered a nice big beef and cheese sandwich at church...t always works that way... and that is where the rubber meets the road:)
 
Tomorrow, the kids will take a try at eating that beans and rice with just their hands... just a little practical experience for them to realize how millions of kids eat each day... If you look at the pictures above you will see the street kids in Uganda doing just that. 
 
I will keep you posted on how it is going... Jojo, the funny kid that he is... is totally excited about it:)  I have heard a few moans from the rest... the beans are already in the crock pot...
 
Tomorrow Day 1...Hintz beans and rice challenge 2013...
Anyone want to join us??
 


The abundance of the Lord

So  Anna and Caleb hit the road with me today to head to Royal Oaks Apple Orchard in Harvard Illinois today.  We were there a few weeks back to actually pick apples with some family and friends...
 
But today we headed there for another reason...
 
To glean the apples that had fallen off the trees.
(Gleaning was a practice that they allowed in Old Testament times where the harvesters  would leave some of the harvest on the ground for those less fortunate to gather later)
 
So this neat orchard allows non profit organizations to come and gather for their churches, food pantries etc. 
 
We were AMAZED by the abundant blessing of our Father... and the recipients of our church food bank will blessed today with fresh apples from the orchard. 
 
The only rules... don't pick off the trees... only off the ground... but we knew full well from picking there a few weeks ago, that when you picked one beautiful apple off the tree that a few seemed to always fall to the ground. 
The apples on the ground were next to perfect... :):)
 
It was a super chilly night, (they even let us pull the car right out into the orchard) but the kids and I had a blast knowing it would blessing to many today!
 
Love the generous heart of Royal Oaks Orchard... if you live near there... give them a try next year for apple picking:):)

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Following my heart and the Lord's calling!!!

I don't think I have had the chance to let you all know here that I am following my heart and the Lord's calling back to Uganda this coming January.  My oldest 2 boys, Louis and Caleb are saying, "Here am I Lord, send me!"  right along with me and we are thrilled!
 
Last year this trip was a LIFE CHANGER for me... A GAME CHANGER...
 
Those close to me know that before my sweet hubby had a call to this wonderful church in Illinois, the talk around our home was how to get back there... Was the time now??? Did our church body have a presence there yet??  Would it be a wise thing??? Were the kids old enough to move 1/2 way around the world to a foreign country??? Yes, you hear that right...move us all... Those were the wonderings in our hearts...
 
Was the Lord calling us as a family back to Uganda???
 
Yes, this girl who had clearly told my husband years ago... I did not think at all, in pretty much any instance that the Lord would call me to do mission work overseas, said it was TOO FAR FROM FAMILY!   But that same girl had a serious heart change.  Last year, I was ready and fully willing to consider it and follow the call if we had felt the Lord leading us to that...
 
My husband is the more level headed of us probably...
We did research... we were ready to make calls to the district offices of our church body...
 
Then BOOM... we had the call to come here...
I can clearly say... I KNOW THAT THE LORD HAS US HERE!  WE KNOW HE CALLED US HERE!  We are so very blessed to be here... Who knows maybe that will be His plan for us some day... but the time certainly wasn't now:)
 
Once again... I know too that He is calling us back to Uganda to go love on orphans... feed babies... care for children body and soul... share HIS good news... feed the street boys in the slums of Kampala... Get our hands and feet dirty in the red soil of Uganda doing whatever work He calls us to... and we can't wait!
 
I know He is calling us back where He will break our hearts in new ways for the things that break His heart! 
 
We have a few in the church here that are praying over and considering joining us... It is so funny how He works... I felt a total nudging from the Holy Spirit to talk to someone specifically about the trip (totally out of no where:)  and of course true to our faithful God, he had been nudging her as well! 
 
 Louis and  Caleb's friend Emma, from Phoenix, will be coming as well as we travel and serve with International Voice of the Orphan  (IVO) again!  We know that even now as people are praying and considering if the Lord is calling them that He is going ahead of us forming the team He desires to serve together there in January... It is so exciting to watch His plan unfold...
 
We are thrilled!  We know that the Lord always provides... but yes, taking 3 of us across the seas is a financial undertaking.  We are praying over what to do here to help fund raise, maybe a church wide dinner diva night...  and Louis plans on offering photography sessions to help fund raise for his trip as well!  If you live in the Chicago or Milwaukee areas and would like kids, couples, or family  photos done email me at hintzmom27@yahoo.com to get something scheduled:)  He does a great job!
 
I couldn't help myself... a few pictures from our last trip...
 
 
 
This little man, Felix, literally stole my heart... My heart leaps with joy at the thought of seeing him again...
 
 
Our wonderful leader Dwight ministering to a sweet little one in the slums...
 
 
The team with the village kids at Praise's house... oh, I miss them...
 
 
Hanging with some former street boys at "The Street Child Project in Kampala"  The stories of these boys are gut wrenching, yet it is so beautiful to see and hear of how the Lord has worked in their lives!
 
 
All my boys...
 
 
The feeding program to the street boys in the slums... What a blessing it was to spend that day with them...
 
We would love to have your prayers as we boldly step forward to answer God's call to serve and love the orphans in Uganda...  THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!
 


Friday, October 18, 2013

Passion...

Photo
(The inside of our church worship area)

My heart is grateful tonight...

We had our annual stewardship dinner tonight at church... It was a first for us...

It started out with wine, cheese, and chocolate tasting... Hello??? such a treat for this stay at home mama... who really doesn't get out that often:) 

It was a sweet time of getting to fellowship with people, such a treat for me because on Sunday mornings, life is so busy for me, and I feel like I am chasing the kids around a lot of the time... so it was like a little gift to be able to sit and visit with members, and even hunt down specific chocolates for some of the older ladies... FUN!

Honestly, I marvel at how the Lord brought us to this place.... we are so blessed!

As our Senior Pastor shared before the stewardship speaker, my heart was almost ready to burst... it is an exciting time to be a part of this church... Within a 3 year time span every single person in staff leadership will be new... from the senior pastor, to the associate pastor (greg), to the youth director,  to the DCE, to the music person, to the principal, to the executive secretary... all of them... leaving either through retirement, taking other calls or jobs, and 1 through death....

While all of those people will be missed and are dearly loved for their work here... There is so much excitement... The passion for reaching the lost with the Gospel of Christ was spoken loud and clear by our head pastor.  You can not help but be fully on board with someone who is so sincere, caring, excited, and clearly shares a passionate vision of reaching the lost with the Christ's saving grace.  It was exciting...

So again and again... the faithfulness of the Lord shines through as we embark on this new ministry here... I am amazed at God's goodness in bringing us to this place to do ministry! 
Photo

This is the historic chapel of our church... It was built in 1863 and is what I get to look at everyday our my front window... It is a beautiful building used now for our Ethiopian, Pakistan ministries and for weddings in the cooler months of the year.  BEAUTIFUL!

Monday, October 14, 2013

My son...




Samuel Mark Hintz... my 5th born...
Born into the arms of Jesus October 29th 2008...
Born still with out a heartbeat into my arms October 30th 2008...

With the end of the month just around the corner, my thoughts go to my sweet baby Samuel... It is strange having a child that you forever see as a baby... because that is all you ever knew him as... occasionally I will get a glimpse of a dark haired little rascal running around and wonder...

There are so many things I wonder...I know and I trust in God's plan that he wasn't meant to live a long life here... but as a mom, I can't help but wonder all that he would have become, what his voice would have sounded like when he called for me, would he be calm and quiet, or rambunctious like some of the others... :):)

As the weather cools the familiar fall feeling of sadness creeps in... How could he possibly be almost 5 years old... In all reality it feels more like 2 1/2 years ago that he died... But then again there are moments where the ache in my heart and the longing just to hold him again are as if it has only been a few weeks since he was gone... grief is a strange thing... 

I struggle a bit being in a new place, having just moved, where no one knew me in the early days of my sorrow... no one here saw me walk those early days of deep sadness... They know the me now... not the me who had just handed over for the last time one of my most precious treasures, my beautiful,  9 lb. 2oz, dark haired, toes like his daddy, peach fuzzed covered face sweet bundle of my son... Tears fall now, even as I just long to hold my Samuel again...  I just wish for a moment I could hold his skin to my face... smell that sweet baby smell and soak in every bit of him all over again...

Sometimes you just long for those few familiar people who NEVER minded the tears...

When I think of those early days... even the first year... I don't even know how we survived it... Somehow, really, only by the grace of God we got school done, had meals... and made it through... even if school and other things were  accomplished while just barely hanging on by a thread...

Never have I felt more watched, judged and invisible all at the same time... strange, but true... not a fun place to be...

Even last year, after 4 years, I remember telling my home school coop ladies at the beginning of the school year... that I intended on making that the year we would not just survive, but THRIVE... I know, crazy 4 years of survival??? I am sure to some it looked like much more than survival, but at times that is really what it felt like to me...

Even now in these days, I recognize the sacred dance of grief and joy... it is all intermixed...

It is funny how my arms are now so full of littles that I scarcely can handle them all at once (when they gang up on me:) but at the same time, I long to hold and my arms ache for the one I will have to wait for eternity to hold again...

I don't want anyone to worry about us... We really are doing so well here... We are so very grateful for where the Lord has moved us... We are so grateful to be a part of a wonderful new church and to be on board with a ministry team here that is such a gift to us! Moving is hard... but so good too! 

We are so grateful to the Lord for how He has used the short life of our Samuel in ours and other's lives.  We are so grateful for how the Lord has changed us as a result of His brief time with us... So hard... but so good at the same time... There are times I just wish for the old me, the me before I walked a road of heartache...

But really I would NEVER want to be who I was... It would mean living without my son... and it would mean missing out on the most precious 9 months with him... It would mean missing out on those 5 hours of seeing him in my kid's and husband's arms... It would mean never having felt the weight of that perfectly formed creation and miracle from God in my arms...  it would mean going back to the person I was before I knew personally and lived out that the Lord could mend and heal a shattered heart...

Never once did I not believe in the saving Grace of my Heavenly Father... or did I not believe in Him and all he could do...
I knew He could do it ... I knew He would do it... I knew that He would bring good out of our loss... but at the time in my despair... no amount of good seemed worth it... not in the day and day in and out of what I was feeling...

But now when I can look back on His faithfulness...  His work to bring me up out of the mud and mire of my despair and sorrow... and even more so, to put a new song in my heart... I am AMAZED!!

I cry right now... for the way my heart still misses my son... I cry now tears of utter disbelief and joy for how the Lord has redeemed my life and healed my broken heart... He is so good... through it all... so very good! 

So there it is that daily mix of joy and pain... and it is ok... it is actually good...

Our life is beautiful... and a life of...

missing... missing our little boy... we are so grateful that he is safe in Heaven but we miss his presence here... missing our other babies lost to miscarriage and a stillbirth in the adoption process of baby Joel...

longing... longing for the JOYFUL reunion we will one day experience in Heaven...

sheer exhaustion... when I am not sure I can go on for another minutes (I know we all feel that way at times:)  I am so so thankful for each of my children... for I know that life is fragile and precious and can change in an instant... we have lived that... I know not to take it for granted...

utter gratitude... to our Heavenly Father for carrying us through dark days and allowing the joy... His joy to shine in our hearts again... We are living a full life and we are so thankful...

Today is National infant loss and awareness day... so today we remember our precious Samuel, baby Joel, and the sweet little baby we miscarried in February 2010... I can not wait to scoop them all up in Heaven and have them show me around...
 

 
My absolute favorite picture of my first five gifts!
 

 
Thankful for the gift of a husband who isn't afraid to walk along side of me through the hardest of days and the best of days...

Saturday, October 12, 2013

they're off

 
Here is the fall mission team that is serving in Moore Oklahoma until next Tuesday. 
 
It is amazing how God knit this group together.  They had 10 teens and 6 adults heading down yesterday.  Our niece and 2 family friends came down from Wisconsin to be a part of the trip.  The team was picking up a friend from the air port last night that had flow in from Phoenix to join them.    A few friends and the youth director from our old church was planning on meeting up with them as well.  Since it is so close to Tulsa, I know Louis had another very special friend driving up to join him as well!  I have been praying for the Lord to bind them together in a beautiful way as they get to know one another while serving the people there in Oklahoma.
 
 
I am so thankful for their willingness to serve.  It is a first mission trip for a big handful of the team.  But they were excited to go and be the hands and feet of Jesus.  Most importantly I am praying for the Lord to work in the hearts of our people there and also the hearts of those that are still with out so much, and those that are still hurting deeply in many ways.   I am praying for them to be the listening ear when it is needed... sometimes the victims just need to share their story again.  I am praying that the people they serve can clearly see the love and compassion of Jesus shining through them.  Ultimately, I am praying that the Lord opens doors to share Jesus with those they serve.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

apple picking

 
 
This past Saturday we drove about an hour away to go apple picking at a beautiful Christian run apple orchard.  Levi loved it... the rain... the puddles... and munching on all the apples he could get his hands on:)

 
It is such a treat to just live a couple of hours away from my family... (not at all a reason we moved here... but a total bonus... kind of like a cherry on top for us!!! Such a sweet bonus blessing!!) 
 
This past summer while the boys would go up and stay with my 2 brother's families in Wisconsin to visit cousins, they were blessed to get to know family friends of theirs.  I am thankful that the Lord used that and allowed our boys to make some pretty neat friends.  We finally were able to meet as families up north and now to spend some time at the apple orchard with them... such neat people! 

 
 
That is our Hopie girl! So funny!
 
Louis, Isaiah, and Ella! 

 
This is the perfect picture of Isaiah to show how his nose totally gets this flat spot on top when he grins real big... How did we get so blessed to get this sweet little nugget!??  Talk about adding sunshine to our days!!

 
 
 
The crew on the hay wagon!  By far the favorite apple choice of our family was the liberty apples...  We had never had them before, but they were SO GOOD!!  Sweet, but tart too!  I think that is pretty much what we filled our bag with and then bought a bag of seconds to make apple sauce.  :)
 
 
7 of my greatest treasures!  We were so blessed by a great day at the orchard, even despite the rain showers.  My heart is full! 


OCEAN SPRAY CRANBERRY BOGS


 I think cranberry bogs are some of the most beautiful and fascinating things I have had a chance to visit.  There is an Ocean Spray bog about 20 minutes from my parent's lake house. 
 
On our trip up north we thought we would educate the kids a bit on what it takes to get that cranberry relish on the table each Thanksgiving holiday...
 
 First they need to flood the bog and run this agitating tractor through the flooded bog to shake the berry right off of the bushes....
 The berries then float to the surface... there were a few times we thought we might lose one of the kids to the bog:)  They could reach right down and take a sample... SOUR!!!:)
 
 This huge hose gathers up the berries and brings them down to one end of the bog... it just keeps reeling them in closer and closer...
 
 These men rake them right into the machine... It sort of sprays them off and sucks them down like a vacuum, or drain in a tub and into a pipe that takes them up and out to the truck...
(We laughed... I was just waiting for these guys to start talking just like the Ocean Spray guys in the those funny commercials:)  They didn't, but they sure were nice to answer all sorts of questions for us...
 
If you look close, you can see the berries falling from the pipe into the truck...
 

 
Hopie had the best seat in the house... This new friend Seth took a liking to her and was a huge help to me... carried her almost 2 1/2 miles while we hiked:)  It was like a mini vacation... He was so good with her... and she loved all the attention:)
 
 
What the bogs look like before they are flooded... you can see the bits of red all over the bushes:)
 
 
Our Levi enjoying the great fall weather at the cranberry bogs:)

Such a fun day to take in the beauty and creativity of our God to make such neat creations for us to eat and enjoy!  

Sunday, October 6, 2013

THAT FAMILIAR LUMP IN MY THROAT

There it is again...
That all too familiar lump in my throat...

Did you know that October is Infant Loss Awareness Month?
Do you know someone personally that has lost a baby... through miscarriage, stillbirth, in the first year of life...

If you do... please reach out to them this month... even if it is some very small way... even if only to say their babies name... I know it will mean the world to them...

I just stumbled upon a precious online project called project heal.  Check out the website at www.carlymarieprojectheal.com/2013/09/capture-your-grief-October-2013  When I saw the website, Immediately I felt that lump in my throat...

Truth be told... it was the 2nd time I felt that lump today... As we were packing up the car to head home from the cabin we couldn't find my camera...

Then it dawned on me... I had left it in the car, in the driveway, overnight, unlocked...

Then it really dawned on me... the SD card that was in the camera had all of our pictures from when Samuel was born on it...

Do I have copies of those saved on the computer?  Yes... Do I have copies saved to a disk?  Yes, numerous discs in fact...

It still almost immediately sent me into a panic... I wanted that SD card... really I wanted the SD card more than I wanted the camera... The littlest of things that connect me to my son... I have so little that still connects me to him... each one matters so much...

Praise God Caleb found the camera within minutes... but just having to wonder where it was for that short time sent me into tears...

 I just wanted my SD card... 
I just wanted my camera...

Really I just wanted my son...

Right now I just wish he was soundly sleeping up in the boys bunk bed room with 4 of his brothers ... I just wish I could go jump in bed with him and snuggle up to his sweaty head as he breathes deeply with no clue that I am right beside him soaking him in... All of those things that I won't ever get a chance to do with him... I still miss him so much!  I am so thankful that Samuel is safe in Heaven... but right now... I just miss him, who he was... who he would have become on earth... all that he is to me... OUCH... my heart hurts...

Friday, October 4, 2013

HIS GLORIOUS CREATION...

The kids and I are safely back from a quick sort of last minute trip up to the Northwood's of Wisconsin.
 
We were reminiscing about the cranberry bogs and beautiful leaves... so we decided we would go for it and try to make it up in time to see the beautiful fall colors... and that we did!
 
We hit it at the perfect time... In some areas, I think we were just past the peak of colors... but yet in other places it wasn't quite there yet. 
 
We hiked with my brother's family and some new friends...
Enjoyed time with cousins...
visited the cranberry bogs...
relaxed around the cabin...
And went to a really neat wildlife preserve... 
(That was a total gift... my brother had received sort of a rain check gift  certificate and wasn't going to be able to use it.  I have always wanted to take the kids there, but it is too pricey for a family of our size... so here we got to go for free... what a blessing for us!) 
 
Pictures of the cranberries, and the wildlife preserve soon... For now enjoy the beautiful fall colors of Upper Wisconsin:)