Kayaking at last

   Joni and I decided to beat the extreme heat today but getting out on the water. Being in, on, or preferably under water is about the only surefire way to escape the oppressive Midwest summer. (Because really, the amount of ice cream it would take could probably kill you.)

   We went to one of our favorite area lakes, Smithville. Like Hillsdale, it is a man-made lake with lots of beautiful, weathered sunken trees to dodge. When we were out here a couple years ago, we discovered a couple clothes that were overtaken by them. The lily pads were as big as my wingspan, and the flowers were dinner plates.

   The flowers weren't yet blooming as we expected, so we will be back here in a few weeks to enjoy them. This little dude hitched a ride on my boat:

   To my Hawaii friends, Laura, Anya, Ann & Connor, Barbara, Laura M, Mason, and more: I went kayaking today wearing my Aloha gear to celebrate our Hawaii anniversary! (No one would ever confuse Missouri for Hawaii, but it was a beautiful day nonetheless.) I didn't realize it until later, but it was exactly one year ago that we were all kayaking together off the coast of Oahu!!!!

   Now, why on earth am I standing up in my kayak to take a picture, risking tipping the whole thing over?

   Joni's "good" camera (LUMIX) captured what my iPhone couldn't: a very long, beautiful black rat snake! Hanging out in this old stump in the middle of the lake.

   We did find a cove full of lily pads that were beginning to get tall. When these are at their full-size, they will be well over my head, making me seem even smaller than normal.