Early Morning walks

I was awake very early this morning. I am currently unemployed so I have no reason to be up that early but I was. My husband leaves for work early around 5:30 AM and I usually fall back asleep but alas this morning was not one of those mornings. So I laid in bed just snuggled under the covers for a bit but then decided to get up and start my day. After doing my Bible study and prayers I took my two beagles Heather and Lucy for their morning walk. I have come to love walking in the early morning with the girls. In fact when I get up in the morning they are waiting to go.

It was chilly and the sky was slightly overcast with the sun making an appearance as the clouds moved. A slight breeze filled the air and I was glad I wore a jacket. The streets were just beginning to fill with traffic but not much yet. Every part of our walk is filled with beauty all around. There is a river that runs near my house and we make a loop around with the path along the river being our final leg. The current is swift and the cascade of water as it flows over small downturns. Once I saw a mother duck with her row of ducklings heading towards it. Another time I saw a mama cat and her 3 kittens, I called to them but they just stared at me through the brush.

Of course the dogs make the walk challenging. Lucy wants to stop and sniff everything. She darts side to side and if she can find something to eat she will do it if I do not stop her first. Also if she sees someone or something, she wants to go to them/it but I don't let her so she will continually look back at the desired object till they/it are out of sight. Heather usually likes to just put her face forward and walk in a straight line every so often deviating from her set path. Since we loop around to the river we do come to the street that would take us back to where we live before we get to the river path. Heather will try to get us to turn that way but I pull her along and tell her "good try." She is also funny in that if she does not want to go she will try to dig her claws into the sidewalk but never works. However they do look forward to these morning walks but let's see how excited they will be when there is snow on the ground this winter. This will be a new experience for us all. And if I am employed at that point, this morning ritual will start earlier then usual.