Government Canyon State Park

I've been trying to loose weight by dieting for the last seven weeks and haven't lost a single pound. I truly have been eating right and very healthy, but the pounds won't budge. So, a couple of weeks ago, Floyd and I decided to start hiking. We're lucky enough to have a little state park just a few minutes from our house. It's really hot here in San Antonio (over 100 degrees for the last 30 days), so we thought we'd visit the park near sunset. The photo above was taken just as we drove out of our neighborhood.


This park is only open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 7:00am to 10:00 pm. It's been closed since 2005 due to a flood and only just opened this June. We bought a state pass last year, so we get to come and go as we please. It's so nice to be able to do that!
Anyway, when we got there, we saw this sign with a picture of a guy hiking on the trail.

It's so funny because it looks just like Floyd from the back. The picture above is from the sign, the picture below is Floyd! I knew he was cute, but he never told me he was a model!!

I was so surprised to see how beautiful this place is. This is one of the easier trails (perfect for me) and is almost like a tunnel because the trees grow over the path. It was warm, but not really as bad as I thought it would be. There was a slight breeze that ran through the trees which made it very nice. Plus, the sun didn't really shine down on us since it was close to sunset. Perfect hike! We done several since we found this park, and so far they're all beautiful. Some, of course, are tougher than others, but all have been very do-able for us.

The whole time we're walking along the path, I'm trying not to think about rattle snakes. This little guy was laying across the path as we came along. He was very beautiful and not scary at all.

Just look at this gorgeous old oak tree! It split right down the middle many years ago and died, but has never lost its beauty. You can't tell by the picture that it's huge, but it is!

This is one of those places that will be very fun to visit at different times of the year. Because there are a lot of trails, and we have the changing seasons, there will always be something beautiful to see here.

Blessings,

Patricia :o)

Heart Attack - Know the Symptoms

My family and I went to the river a couple of days before Memorial Day. We spent a lot of time in the water, in the sun, and eating things we shouldn't. That night I went to bed feeling very tired and fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow. Less than 30 minutes after I laid down, a sharp and persistent pain in my chest woke me up. I sat up and waited for it to go away. But after 15 minutes, it was still there.

I called Floyd and asked him to look up the symptoms of heart attacks in women. I knew they could be different from men, but never bothered to look them up. I only had pain in the center of my chest. Everything else seemed normal.

After waiting about another 15 minutes and the pain still didn't go away no matter what I did, we called the paramedics who recommended I go to the hospital asap. To make a long story short, it turns out that I probably did NOT have a heart attack, though I did have enough of the symptoms to get everyone worried. They did a battery of tests that showed I'm very healthy. (some of the tests were not fun and I don't want to ever have to do them again).

But, it all got me thinking. It could have been very serious. The doctors still don't know exactly what I experienced and I've decided to begin living a healthier life style which for me means eating more fruits and vegies, less fat and sugar, and exercising a little more. Also, I did some reading on heart attacks to become a little better educated. If you're interested in knowing some of the symptoms women are more likely to experience, visit the American Heart Association.