along for the ride

It is so beautiful here in southwestern Wisconsin.  Even during this end of winter dreary/sloppy/messiness.  Up here on the ridge we don't see the dramatic views of hills and cliffs, just the fields rolling softly downhill from us and distant larger hills.  It's very beautiful, but it doesn't have the drama that you see down the road or around the corner.  A few times a month we take a drive up to La Crosse and Onalaska, the closest cities.  Some spots on that drive are breathtaking.  Last week we drove there so we could buy shelving, fixtures and bulbs for our seed starting enterprise.  Mom drove and I got to enjoy the views.  I didn't bring a camera with me, but I did have my hand-me-down, out of service iPhone in my purse and I snapped a few pictures with it.

That farm is in a pretty spot and if I had succeeded with my photo you'd be able to see the beautiful church that's just on the other side of it.  Having grown up in the city, I'm always delighted by scenes where everyday life (churches, restaurants, schools) butt up against farms. 

A couple more barn photos:

It might be a little hard to tell, but that barn is red with white stripes.  I've seen a couple pinstriped barns around here and they seem so fun to me.  As does this little turquoise barn:

And now some of those hills I was gushing about:

The roads wind through hills and trees and farmland.  I always wonder just how the engineers determined where (and how) to place them.

One of these days I'll take some good photos with my real camera, until then this gives you an idea of what the landscape looks like around here and why I love it.