Brunch and biking on Labor Day

 We joined with family on Labor Day for the annual Labor Day Williams family breakfast and bike ride.

Lots of great food for fueling before the bike ride

We started on the trail just south of I-90 on the Fox River

 https://exploreelginarea.com/guide/fox-river-bike-trail/

We went through East Dundee where we had previously stopped at Van's Frozen Custard for ice cream / custard on Saturday evening.

 

There was a building next door to Van's that had a tree growing through its roof!

We biked to Algonquin via the Fox River Trail

We saw a couple of these low bikes - it seems that you would feel really small with all the walkers and runners and bikers being taller than you would be.

We had a nice time with friends and family and survived a 16+ mile bike ride!

From Carl's exercise monitor on his phone:

I couldn't figure out how to get a picture that showed a map with the route on it... suffice it to say that we went about 8 miles out and about 8 miles back.

A year ago today, September 8, is the day that Carl took Sue to the emergency room, expecting her to be treated for pain management and dehydration. Instead, she was admitted to the hospital, ultimately to hospice care, and subsequently Sue met Jesus face-to-face last year on September 20. It is a challenging, difficult, yet necessary time as we are in the campground in the last place where Carl and Sue were together. 

We recognize the impossibility for anyone else to understand what our feelings are -- we cannot ourselves understand our feelings. We are so thankful that God brought us together, and yet we still sorrow for the losses of Sue and Dwayne. We recognize that our joy in having each other only has come about because we walked through the incredible pain of losing our spouses. We look back and wonder if there are things that we could have or should have done differently to allow our loved ones to live longer -- but in faith, we believe in God's sovereignty, we know that God holds our days in His hands, and ultimately any choices that we may have made wouldn't change His plan... 

We so appreciate friends and family who have cared for us, supported us, prayed for us, and loved us through this time.