My mother in law (who is likely reading this) just had a birthday. This year she insisted on taking all of her children and spouses out for fried chicken. In her world (and mine) family is everything.

On her ninetieth birthday, all she wanted was a trip to a beautiful nearby state park with her children. But it was winter and she was battling cancer….again. So the trip was deferred until summer. Just months after successful surgery, we piled in the car and headed to the woods.

Our first stop was a pie shop where I have had a lovely lunch in the past. On this day we encountered a man who told us he didn’t have lunch available(even though it was clearly on the menu), only pie.

He answered the phone in the middle of our order and berated the caller while we stood awkwardly trying to figure out what to do. I decided to buy pie to go (my love for pie overcame my distaste of the owner’s surly demeanor). Surprisingly, the grouchy shop keeper gave the birthday girl a free slice of pie, so the stop wasn’t a total waste of time. The second stop at McDonald’s wasn’t the quality lunch I was hoping for, but their ice cream went pretty well with a slice of pie.

The roads in rural Missouri are often winding, hilly, and narrow. I grew up in this country so “roller coaster roads” are nothing new. They can be a bit jarring for those who aren’t used to them. After a few hours, arrival at Echo Bluff State Park was a relief. However, even the park roads are steep and winding.

The park is home to a herd of wild horses that roam the river banks. They greeted us along the road in a birthday surprise welcome. It was a rare treat, to see them so close to the road, especially in the middle of an afternoon.

Getting in to our cabin was an adventure. We had the top floors of a duplex condo. Navigating two long flights of stairs with suitcases and coolers of food in tow was a bit of a challenge. Nine people brought food and gear that took multiple trips up and down the stairs and the had to be distributed among three bedrooms and a small kitchen.

After a fun shuffle, three families landed upstairs and two down. We laughed because the only bathroom upstairs was inside our bedroom. A bed was on the landing outside our door, and we set up an airbed in the tiny square of unoccupied space near the stairs. I felt like I was participating in a middle school sleep over …in all the best ways. Shenanigans were definitely on the horizon.

After everyone settled, I packed a snackle box full of fruit and nuts and candy and we headed to sinking creek. Lawn chairs and floating chairs circled up in the cool clear water. At 90, my mother in law was introduced to the “Ozark afternoon”. A beautiful and lazy day of doing nothing but sitting in a river. It was lovely and relaxing.

Afterwards, I made Italian style pizza. The small kitchen turned into a pizza factory as I tossed dough and slathered olive oil and toppings on every available surface.

Relaxed and stuffed. We settled in for a cozy evening.

As an early riser, I got out for an early morning walk and managed to find the horses roaming along the riverbank near the cabin. They were beautiful and almost ghostly in the morning mist.

By the time I returned, the kitchen was buzzing with bacon and biscuits. In preparation for the trip, we bought thick slab bacon in a variety of flavors from Swiss meats (a mid Missouri treasure). I love it when my husband makes bacon breakfast. Hot biscuits make me smile.

Afterwards, the birthday girl wanted to visit Alley Spring. It is home to a grist mill, a mill pond with some of the greenest water you can imagine and a natural spring pumping thousands of gallons of water into the streams.

It was hot. So hot, that I really didn’t want to explore the 1800’s era mill (I have been here many times). So I left the group and took a brief hike around the mill pond. It is about a half mile loop. When I got back, my amazing mother in law had started the loop.

She wanted to hike on her birthday. At 90, she fought the heat, navigated the rocks, and enjoyed the beauty of nature. Her reward was standing in a swarm of butterflies attracted to the milkweed along the side of the trail. I will remember the power of the moment. Hundreds of beautiful butterflies. Purple flowers (purple is her favorite color). And a community of family holding hands as we navigated the rough terrain. What a powerful metaphor of the sweetness of life.

Life moments are not always convenient, Things don’t always happen at the time you wanted. Sometimes life seems unbearably hot or cold…or just generally uncomfortable. It can feel inconvenient to have to pack and plan; perhaps easier to avoid the effort. Sometime the path comes with hills and valleys and boulders. But with family, a little rest, good food, and laughter… life is magical….and in those rare moments it takes your breath away.

So as I sit here, thinking about a simple chicken dinner and family adventures in the Missouri woods…I am grateful. Thank you birthday girl for still making magic. 90’s look good on you.