Grass!

I have been in Hurricane this past week and I am so happy to have GRASS in my back yard! In the evening the cotton tails come out and trim it up for me, fertilize it and provide entertainment. It has been a really fun week here for me. Along with the mouse hunts and sister sleep overs, I have been able to connect with my old friend and patner in crime, Patty Gubler and her sister Edna Claire (sorry Clairey, that's still the way I remember you!).

Yesterday I drove to Zion and stopped in Rockville to visit with another friend from school, Shillene DeMille. I hadn't seen her since high school so it was really fun catching up. What struck me last night is that as you are living your life and going through your growing experiences, some how you think that everyone else has perfect lives. What you find out when you connect is that everyone has been on a journey and that life is a different growing experience for everyone.

I'm getting ready to ramp up the plans for the "girl's getaway" over Peach Days in Hurricane. Some of you have contacted me and I am excited that you are excited. I'll get a post out next week and we can all start putting the adventure together.

The Trek to Utah

We had a great adventure getting from Kiowa to Hurricane this weekend. We decided to take 2 days and drive the southern route. We drove through rain, fog, clouds and beautiful country through Publeo, Alamosa, and over Wolf Creek Pass into Pagosa Springs. We had a great Mexican lunch on the banks of the river over looking the hot springs. We watched people sitting in the pools and grottos (in the rain) then running and jumping into the cold river and back to the springs. Next we headed on to Durango. We stopped at a great place in Durango (the Durango Silver Company) and I got to spend time taling with one of the owners, who is a rock hound like me. He had some gorgeous pieces that he and his father had hand crafted. He talked to me about stone cutting, his turquoise mines and other earthy stuff. He even gave me a rough piece of turquoise to practice cutting on. I was in a little bit of "stoner" heaven. I would love to get some one on one learning time with him as I progress through my gem courses.

Next it was on to Cortez. We decided to spend the afternoon at Mesa Verde. That placw is INCREDIBLE! I took pictures until my camera died. It is just unbelievable that people built and lived in the dwellings, how the heck did they do it? And a better question, WHY? It was so fun and interesting, made the trip down the steep winding road late in the eveing worth it.

We spent the night in Cortez, then got up early and headed out through the 4 Corners area, Kayenta, Page, Lake Powell and home. I bought a beautiful pot from some indians selling on the side of the road (yes, I'm a sucker for that stuff), in fact I was disappointed that we didn't see more stuff as we went, but it was Sunday and it was really windy!

We dropped into Hurricane about 2:30 on Sunday, it was a super fun way to celebrate Father's day with my dad. He LOVED Mesa Verde and was so happy to see the country, the sites and to look for wildlife (we saw a ton of wild horses, with a lot of babies). He counted hogans, teepees and mused about how they built Mesa Verde all the way home. It was a fun week with a perfect ending.

The Sanctuary

We've had quite the adventures today. After the racoons, we headed north of Denver to a wild animal sanctuary. They rescue animals that have been obtained illegally, are abandoned or confisticated. Tigers cannot be re-introduced into the wild so they try to socialize them into prides. They had about 75 tigers on site along with tons of bears, lions, wolves, leopards, mountain lions, a few servals, and an animal that I had never heard of that looked like a cross between an ant eater and a racoon.

The sanctuary is spread over 230 acres and you view the animals from a 35 foot high observation deck. We spent about 3 hours there moving around watching the animals, it was very cool. Here are a few pics from the day.

Unexpected House Guests

I went out to do chores this morning and when I reached into get grain to my surprise my barrell has become home to these critters!

Sloppy Kisses

One thing that is constant on the ranch is the walking and exploring. I took my mom and dad for a walk yesterday to show them the big nest in one of the pine trees. I got these shots of them with the dogs. I love them because both my parents are laughing and they look like they are having a good time. Seeing them happy, makes me happy.

The Elbert County Twisters

Yesterday we got quite the show from Mother Nature. During our grocery shopping it started to get really loud in the store and I knew it wasn't good. I sent dad to the front to check it out and it was hailing and raining like nobody's business. Luckily there isn't any damage to my car, but WOW! We loaded the groceries into the car in the pounding rain, we were soaked! Then started the trek home. Part way home people were pulled off to the side of the road looking into the fields, some with cameras, I just figured that there were deer or elk or some other wild creature but as we looked to the south, we saw the big twister, it was WILD! We stayed for a few minutes, but headed up the road, the storms track northeast, which put my house in the path potentially. http://www.thedenverchannel.com/slideshow/19759223/detail.htmlindex.html?currentSlide=31&taf=denHere is the link to the news site for pictures. We didn't have any damage at the ranch, the tornado and funnel clouds were to the southwest about 12-15 miles.


These are pictures of the airplane hangar south of us that was destroyed. It is a private grass strip and if you look close at the picture the only thing left of the hangar is the back wall. The roof is on the ground at the far right of the picture. A couple of planes were inside, one was damaged. Pretty amazing that everything around it was virtually untouched.

Thankfully this is the first afternoon/evening in the past 2 weeks that we haven't been under a tornado or extreme weather watch.

Fun in the great outdoors

I am so thankful that I get the experience of living "at the cabin" all year round. It has been such a beautiful Spring here with lots of moisture so the wild flowers are going nuts. I let Hannah come outside with me yesterday and realized when she tried to climb a tree (she doesn't have front claws) that she had never experienced that part of being a cat, so I decided that she should. I found a tree that had a slant to the trunk and put her in it, she LOVED it! You can see though that she is a little heavy to be teetering on the little branches, and pulling her out of there reminded me of Tricia's picture where they're trying to get Brecken off the carousel, it was a bit of a fight!

Next I put her in the buckboard so she could stay outside while I took the rest of the pictures.

I love seeing the wild turkeys when they're strutting their stuff, their feathers are so cool looking in the sunlight. They can be a little aggressive in the Spring though, just ask Pete or Jean.

And what post would be complete without a dog shot? This is Sadie, she's still my shadow. I was gardening the other day and she decided she wanted to wrestle, so she took me down! We rolled around on the grass and I was giggling so hard I thought I might wet myself! It was fun, but I have a few bruises now from those strong sharp teeth! And it always gets interesting when the other 2 dogs join in, I am totally out numbered!

This morning started bright and early, 4:00 am to be exact. We had company (Bruce's cousin and his wife) stay with us last night on their way to Minnesota. Of course I don't have pictures of that, but I have to mention the homemade ice cream from last night, it was unbelievable! My best batch ever! Vanilla with raspberries on top. I have a Krups machine that you freeze the bowl for 24 hours then pour the mixture into it and let it go for about 30 minutes, it is the best invention EVER. After they left at 4:00, Bruce geared up and left on a motorcycle adventure at 6:00 am, so I am a lone woman in the Garden of Eden today! Speaking of... this last shot is a barrel cactus I found out front, in bloom! I haven't seen that here in like, forever!

The Road Home

Today, like most days has moments of reflection for me. I've been wondering a lot lately about heaven and what it's like. I think about how different people are and how varied their paths through life are. I wonder if there is a difference for people who always do what's right and for others of us who meander across the straight and narrow every once in awhile but have a harder time staying in the middle of it. Then what happens to those folks who can't even find the straight and narrow for most of their lives (maybe never) but find it when they get to heaven? What about people who just get dealt a bad hand and are born into an impossible situation? And what about those who die way before they should? Is there a special bonus?


Is it better to be part of the world and be tested or to stick to your small circle where doing the right thing is easier? Is it better or worse to experience life and repent, or to be obedient and long suffered?

And what if it gets dark on our way home and we can't see the road anymore? Will we have divine guidance or will we be flying by instruments? And just what will it be like when we actually get there? Will it be familiar or a big surprise? Will we actually find those who have gotten there before us and will that part really be that important, or will we understand something completely different from what we know here and now?


HBALYA

Life in Tornado Alley

Actually we live just on the edge of it, so thankfully most of them are to the north of us. This picture is looking north and east this afternoon. It's actually prettier than it is scary. Although we've been under a tornado warning for most of the day, all we got was a lot of wind and a few raindrops.

The Snake and the Hawk

You'll have to use you imagination for this story, but I guarantee it is true. I was driving into Denver this morning and say a huge hawk perched on a fence post with something dangling from it's talons. I did a double take and realized it was a SNAKE! I watched in my rearview mirror as I was driving but couldn't resist the temptation so I turned around and went back. On the drive back I was pulling out my camera, turning off the radio, getting ready for the perfect shot. I was so stunned by the size of the snake, I missed the shot, but the snake in his talons was at least 6 foot long, it hung down the front and side of the fence post. I startled him when I rolled down the windo and he dropped the snake and flew off. I'm pretty sure he came back, he was only part way through dinner! Wish I could have gotten the shot, it was totally unreal!

Girls Time Hootenanny

Does anyone even know what a hootenanny is? I looked it up but its not in the dictionary, guess we get to make out own definition.

I would like to start getting some ideas for fun things to do over Peach Days. I plan to open up my airplane hangar to tables for crafts, boutique, open for suggestions. Might be fun to try some fun or old time photos. Anyway, I am happy to host the casual event (people can come as go as they please) I just want to make sure it is FUN, interactive and comfortable and that I am NOT the only person creating or setting up the FUN stuff to do. So I need your help.

Please leave suggestions of things you would like to do, things you would be happy to set up and be in charge of, activities to consider (and your thoughts on others suggestions) and most importantly, spread the word! It would be fun to have a luncheon one day or at the kick off so people can come and get reacquainted. There are so many gals from school that I would love to catch up with, but I have lost contact. I am willing to set up another blog site if that is an easier forum to get this things going. PLEASE RESPOND AND LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK, even if you think this is a LAME idea. Who is musical or dances or tells fortunes or draws caricatures or can teach a craft or sell something inexpensive and awesome? Who wants to do a cook out (potluck and/or dutch oven?) What are you interested in doing, just to hang out and shoot the breeze?

In the meantime, I think I will set up another blog, I'll let you know where it is when I have it ready. Until then - send it here!