A Gorgeous Magnolia Flower From Today's Walk It's 8 am and the kids have already been bickering for an hour. Tears have been shed. Threats have been made. Sound familiar? Surely mine is not the only household in which its youngest citizens insist on turning the institution into a circus on a daily basis? Some days it's hard to keep my cool. Nature provides the perfect opportunity to escape and compose myself. I bring the kids. It doesn't have to be far from home. In fact, the closer and easier the better some days. There's a sweet trail along the river not far from our house. When WWIII is about to break loose or I feel my last threat of patience about to snap, I load the kids and dogs into our mini van and head to a trail. With some comfortable shoes, sun screen, bug spray, and water bottles, we're ready for an adventure. It's not always peaceful. The fighting continues sometimes. I've been known to tell the kids (frequently) that I ...