Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!

My baby girl turned 17 on Saturday. (sniff!) Every single day of those 17 years has been a blessing.

We took her to Silver Dollar City to see the Feet of Flames performance at SDC's World Fest.

These are some of the dancers in solo dresses:

Afterwards, the dancers came out into the auditorium to talk with the audience. The tall gent visited with Alatariel for a few minutes. She was elated. She was particularly taken with his Irish accent.

Ala and Dad at SDC:

Posing for birthday pictures back at the cabin:
She's wearing the double Trinity knot ring that she picked out for her birthday. She also got some tee shirts and a porcelain figurine of a Chinese geisha.

There were bird feeders all around the cabin/campground area. I saw my first real, live Indigo Bunting. There were several, along with tons of goldfinches, house finches, Downy woodpeckers, and one black/white/red-throated bird I couldn't identify.

On our way home today, we stopped at the Roaring River (I think) hatchery. It was pretty interesting.

The outlet for the underground water source for the river. It was really pretty. It turns out 20 million gallons of water a day.

The overlook at the river:
The water was a beautiful turquoise and crystal clear.

Ala said she had a good birthday.