Inkom Crazy Lady

Going South

2012-01-15T19:53:00.000-08:00

I decided if I wait to "catch up" on all the things that I haven't posted...
holidays, trips, visits I will NEVER post again.
So, instead here's what we did over the weekend...
(kinda like the old "What I did on my summer vacation..." theme-
but with a gazillion photos - because I can).
So....
a three day weekend mid-winter.
What to do?
We wanted to get some exercise and be outdoors,
but there isn't much snow for snow activities
and I'm not that big a fan of that anyway...
I don't really like to get real cold- or real hot for that matter.
We went south to Moab where the weather was in the mid 50's.

Chuck did some research and we decided
to check out some of the hiking and scenery at Arches National Park.

Just so happened that it was the one weekend of the year
where the park entrance was free nationwide.
Who knew?
Not me!
Lucky us!
We passed these cool domed formations early Saturday.
(They remind me of loaves of bread)
and headed for Devil's Garden Trailhead.
There are a variety of trails and a number of arches and lots of hiking.
This is Lanscape Arch, the first big arch we came across.
As you can see it is eroding on the left side.
In 1991 there was a big chunk of it that came off while people were standing there.

You can't go under it anymore... But you can stand in front of it all bundled up like a mummy if you want.
The wind was a little chilly for awhile.

There were some ascents over fairly steep rock.(Which don't look NEARLY as steep in photos as real life.-
Remember this fascinating bit of information for later on...)

The big divisions in the trails were marked pretty clearly.
And it seemed like around every corner there was another scene straight out of a classic western.
These are the aptly named Double O arches...And you CAN stand in them,
as they don't seem to be in any danger of falling any time soon.

We walked out to Dark Angel,
which is this cool looking monolith thing...
Looks like woman in a hooded cloak from behind, and then check out the rock formation over to the right side.
To me it looks like one of the terra cotta soldiers from China from the waist up
with a bouquet of flowers (the little shrub) for the hooded woman...

This was not the first,
nor will it be the last of figures, animals, etc. I saw in the rocks.
It's even more fun than finding shapes in clouds...

We decided to take the longer "Primitive Trail Loop"
back to the trail head rather than retrace our steps.
This would take us through the "mysterious Fin Canyon"
(as the brochure called it),
and over a few "strenuous" rockface areas.
These are an example of the "fins" A lot of them reminded me of the tops of big ole cruise ships from the side.

Even though the weather was in the 50's it IS still winter.
And so there were no wildflowers to be found.

However, there were still some neat plants to be seen.

And yes, photographed.

Check out the length of the needles on this little puppy.

Fortunately, the primitive loop had little rock cairns
along the trail to keep you from getting lost.
Plus they look cool.

We were able to find Private Arch.
(apparently Lewis sans Clark was there- or at least his shadow.)

See what I mean about the ship thing?
Does that not look like the prow of a Carnival cruise ship?!?

So...
they did a really good job marking the trail- except for one little part.

We wandered around for quite a bit looking for cairns,
and all we could see were some pretty sheer drops.
This little passage had footprints leading in and out of it.
It was the only way we could find that seemed like a way to get down.

Now is the time you should remember that bit
about things looking a lot less steep and less scary in photos.
I went first, so I can't blame Chuck for getting us into it (dang it!)
In order to get down we had to lean across and shuffle along the wall.
Our feet were pointed almost straight down.
He is taller than me and with the angle of the rock
and the width of the space between, I had a LOT farther to lean.
By the time I got to those two rocks we had to go around,
it got pretty hairy -
well ok,
SCARY!

I had to sit down and try to schootch around those big rocks on my bum,
trying not to slip down into the crevice -
where there were castoff water bottles and other detritus.
(No, no bones - yet).

From the top it did NOT look as steep as it was,
and in order to get the last little bit around the rock

I had to let go of the rock and try to throw myself back
and not fall into the hole. I was afraid to go either up or down.

Yes.
I DID think about that guy who got stuck and
ended up sawing his arm off with a pocket knife a couple years ago.

Let's just say,
in spite of my declining agility, stupidity and bad choices,

we both did manage to make it down,
without severely damaging ourselves
or resorting to limb lopping.

(Obviously there is something terribly wrong with me
in that I stopped in this process to photo record our stupidity for posterity).

We walked on trembling legs around the base of the "fin" and found this a bit later.
Yeah.
Thanks.

We actually walked back up the trail
and found out where we were "supposed" to have gone.
In the process we directed some other hikers who were headed in the wrong direction.
This was one instance where it was much easier to go up, than down.

We made really good time on the rest of the trail out-
Can you say adrenaline rush?
The sun had started to go behind some of the formations
which highlighted the variations in rock.

We saw two more arches.
Tunnel Arch.
And Pine Tree Arch.
We also saw this. Which I call "Frog with Attitude".

And at the trailhead we saw these nice warnings.We tried!
Honest.

On the way out we stopped at the Balanced Rock.

Where I was reminded once again that balance is REALLY important,
whether you are a rock or just rock headed.
Here are a few parting photos shot from the truck on the way out of the park. I wouldn't want to live here- it gets WAY too hot in the summer for my taste.
But, it does have some very interesting and unusual geologic sights.

(That was just day one- if you're lucky I won't torture you with day two :0)

The Road to Hell....s Canyon Wilderness

2012-01-07T17:03:00.001-08:00

One cool EARLY August morning Chuck and I set off on the trail to Hell...

Via Seven Devils that is.

Chuck had assured me that there wouldn't be much of an elevation change
as the topographic map indicated the lakes were pretty close in elevation range.

I was a "bit" skeptical when the 1st thousand feet was down.

We spent the next three days going repeatedly
up and down
multiple times,
thousands of feet.
(The red line indicates just one day's trek).

However-
In the process we saw incredible mountains,

lush meadows,

growing things,

deep blue lakes,

And perhaps

more varieties

of flowers

in bloom

than on any

other outing

we have ever been on... I know I take a lot of flower photos... But seriously... Which ones should I leave out?

These Indian paintbrush

were just feet away from a snowbank.

I was SOOO excited when on the hike in,
we caught sight of a mountain goat about 3oo yards away.

I got this photo with my zoom.
The only other mtn goat in the wild I had ever seen
was a distant black speck across a valley.
So this was a big deal for me. It was prime mountain goat country.

After a long haul with a heavy pack- up and down- that first day
we set up camp by this stream complete with flowering "something".

We have been working on getting our packs lighter,
(we're not getting any younger ya know...)

So we got this tent...

It's smaller than it looks.

It was a great base camp. We spent three days, hiked close to 27 miles,

had a nice encounter at this lake. . .

With this little guy...

And his mama.

And even though she was eating "something" from a campsite.
I was ecstatic to be less than 25 feet from a wild goat for the first time.
(besides Chuck that is).

There was a junction in-between valleys and lakes ,
and ups and downs.

The farthest "up" we got was at Sheep Lake.

And after hiking up FOREVER...
we had to go DOWN to get to it...

which meant we had to go UP to get back out...

It was worth it though,
because guess what?!

Yep! More goats!

He was a good looking goat in spite of his shaggy backside.

After three days we packed up and headed up and down,

and up and down and finally up and out.

We loaded the car up and went to the fire look out.
Yes.
There was a little bit of a hike up to get to it.
We saw the big view of the area we had just been in.

It wasn't really the trail to hell- but it sure was memorable and fun.

Up North...

2011-10-25T18:50:00.000-07:00

After we left Leavenworth we took a swing by Brianne's new home in Lewiston.

It was lovely to see Bri, Dom and Lil Miss Autumn.
I took scads of photos (big surprise there eh?)
Dom was excited for some diversion. He got down to dinosaur business right away.
He is one expressive boy...
has a million faces... And interesting bits of facts to share. Mostly about dinosaurs..
And whether you want to wrestle...
If not...there's always dino shows on the telly.

Miss Autumn wasn't quite sure what to think about grandpa... And proceeded to check him out pretty thoroughly.
"You sure about this guy mom?"

Ok..Guess he checks out.

Now lets try the buoyancy test!What!?
You mean there's more than one stranger here?!?This calls for a closer look. I dunno...She's got a pretty big head... And look at those choppers!

Free at last!

After all that I need a lil sustenance mom.

Leaving already!?!

Just when I was getting used to them.

Ahh... They'll be back. Who can resist a cute mug like mine?!

Since our visit Corey has returned from Iraq and the whole family is together !
Yay!
Now we're looking forward to a Christmas visit when Autumn and Eliana can meet :0)

(Chuck says I always post unflattering photos of him...
I think he looks pretty good -
especially when Autumn has her fingers up his nose. Right?)

Just seems WRONG.

2011-10-24T05:47:00.000-07:00

Last Friday would have been mom's 82nd birthday.

I got several auto-generated email reminders to wish her a happy birthday.
I didn't say anything to anyone because...
well for a lot of reasons.
It would appear from all the emotional episodes I've been experiencing lately
that holding everything inside isn't doing me a whole lot of good.

So, I'm acknowledging ...

Mom, I miss you.
I hate that you're gone.
I can't seem to get myself together.

I wish you were here.

Not sure how to proceed.

Roadtrip - Leavenworth in July

2011-10-10T18:32:00.000-07:00

We had to cancel the annual backpack trip
-too much snow.

Yes in July.
Instead we went on a roadtrip!

(not to worry, we DID do the march later...)

This was the view from our hotel at the edge of Leavenworth WA.
It's a fun little "faux" Bavarian town.

This lil guy was part of our welcoming committee.

As was the bee and pretty blue flowers.

Here's the hotel.

And the pool.
We actually used both it, and the hot tub!

The town has some pretty stiff regulations for buildings...

check out the Bavarian MickyD's.

There were lovely planters all over.

And amazing food options... yummy German bakey.

And Ohhhh!!! I DO mean Yummy!
(I'm drooling just thinking about that pastry).

Here's the main street.

The gazebo in the park.

The yodeler.YES.
YODELER.
(From Grace, Idaho no less)

And he was good.
Not just anyone can get young boys to dance in the park.
( Check out the attractive headgear of the gentleman in the wheelchair.)

I'm not sure what this pole was all about- it reminded me of a jolly man in the far northern climes.

There were lots of people in rustic attire.
This was our server at our favorite German restaurant.

I had been put on a "soft diet" because of my recently diagnosed TMJ, so I got to eat meatloaf.

It was DELISH!

Chuck had authentic German Jaeger schnitzel.

And was THRILLED to have me snap a photo.

There were all kinds of specialty shops-
clothing, toys, cheese, nuts, ornaments...These two images are for Kelsey.
I "thought" about getting her something small- but the little cup pitcher was over $200!

The organ grinder...- sans monkey.

We didn't just wander around town
...though that was pretty fun.

We got up and headed out for a hike.
Even though the weather didn't look too promising.

On the way to the trail head we saw a black bear across the river.

The river was gorgeous.

Our goal was Alpine lake.

The trail was lush and green. Here's a side view of the same plant- They look like falling leaves.

Thimbleberry blossoms.

Ummm... Pretty White flowers?

Water...

Pretty purple flowers...I actually have a cool flower identification book -
but if I waited to look them up it would be -
well, never getting posted...

Some MASSIVE green leaves.with old lady hands for size comparison.

We ended up turning back because it got really rainy and wet. (and the person belonging to the old lady hands forgot to bring her rain gear...)
So, instead we went back into Leavenworth
went to the opening of the final Harry Potter movie,
ate some amazing Italian food,
and "somebody" managed to lose their favorite visor.

But that another story....

A couple more stories...

2011-09-29T19:03:00.000-07:00

During their teen years mom and Rula would go to work in the fields in Wendell for 50 cents an hour. One day they needed to get to the fields and Rula proposed they take family car, a 35 Plymouth. This presented a temporary setback, as neither of them was tall enough to drive and reach the pedals. But with Rula handling the steering and mom on hands and knees behind her manning the gas and break pedals, they set out. All was proceeding nicely until the highway turned north and they met another car - literally. A woman jumped out of the passenger side and started screaming that they were in BIG trouble. A truck driver who had witnessed the incident stopped and told the other driver it was his fault. The mouthy woman didn’t say another word. Rula and mom limped back home in the overheated car and counted themselves lucky.

Education was always important and mom completed her senior year of high school at Albion Normal School. She and her friend, Meredith, were the only two graduates that year. Mom spent another two years at Albion and earned her teaching certificate. She and Rula lived in Comish hall and Grandpa and Grandma Hall provided $15 dollars a month for them. The rest of their living expenses were covered by “hashing” in the cafeteria. To hash meant that they were in charge of a specific set of tables. Using a large oval tray, mom on one end and Rula on the other, they would deliver meals and then clean up afterwards. In the dormitories they cleaned the bathrooms and in the classrooms they cleaned erasers and blackboards.

It was during those years at Albion that mom met her future blue eyed husband, Bob. Dad also worked in the cafeteria and noticed the cute redhead long before she realized he was even alive. Shortly after they began to see each other mom informed dad that she would only continue to date someone who could take her to the temple and dad began to investigate the church. Mom graduated in 1948 and got a job teaching third grade at Gooding. She was thrilled because for the first time she was able to buy everyone in her family presents for Christmas.

On 1949 mom and dad were married in Idaho Falls. They made their home in Richfield where they lived in a 12 X20 foot house. In February, Randall Robert was born in Wendell, ID. During that time her younger brother, Lewis, came to live with them. One day while dad was working at the sawmill and mom was out doing irrigation. Lewis was in the small house washing dishes. Randy, not quite one, was in the little jumper in the middle of the room. Lewis saw something moving and was startled to see a small rattlesnake headed behind the door. It slithered into a paper sack that was filled with more paper sacks. Lewis scooped Randy out of the jumper and headed outside. When mom returned and learned about the snake she marched into house, grabbed the bag and shook out the snake. She used her irrigation shovel and tried behead it. The shovel was too dull. After several failed attempts, she held the snake pinned with the shovel, reached into a drawer, grabbed a knife and lopped its head off. Talk about the proverbial mother bear instinct!

(So...I think there is a STRONG resemblance to Miss Amy Lee and her eldest son in that last image of mom...what say ye who know them?)

And a BIG thanks to Celiac who sent me a couple images to co along with these posts.

Corpus in June

2011-09-19T17:17:00.000-07:00

I'm not even going to try and put these images in any kind of order.
I should eliminate some of them cause there are WAY too many.
But I seem to be having difficulty making any kind of decisions of late so ...
it is what it is...
Leyla thoughtfully considers her green watercolor squiggle...it "could" be a worm.
She loves her some butter!
(She's got the grampa V gene alright!)
Obviously not camera shy.

LOVES her kittys!Even when they don't love her attention.
Um...scary!
But does she care!?!
Child labor force.
Nah Uh!!!!

Miss Chloe got a scooter for her birthday!
Lelya wanted a turn.
Chloe was ever so helpful.
Showed her the ropes. Protected her noggin. And Leyla flexed her guns!
(Actually she's showin off her "tat")
Chloe thinks it is HILARIOUS to make faces when you take pictures. So. ...We took a LOT of funny face pictures.
Which is HILARIOUS.

I made the traditional tapioca/whip cream/strawberry dessert.
Which is NOT hilarious -
but DELICIOUS!
We had a few other silly moments. Which really need no explanation.

Leyla may not play the piano but boy can give a good wet willy.
You look like you might need a wet willy!
Which finger shall I use?

Playdough time. Oh yeah!Down time. Coloring , crazy hair time...
Skank gramma time.

Cake making mama.

Chloe got a cool pink guitar from her dad. Mom gave her a few playing tips.
And Chloe gave Leyla a few playing tips.

Chloe also got a really cool fairy outfit.

And she let Leyla try it out too.
What a nice big sister!

Crazy! But nice!

Chloe also got a dollhouse and mom helped paint and assemble it.

Did I mentions someone loves to make faces when there's a camera around... Though she DID get a little shy when everyone was singing Happy Birthday to her.
She got some new clothes (and a crown).
Sooo many presents!

Did I mention that she was a good big sister?Shawn the Sheep Rocks!
And is mesmerizing.

It was a great birthday!

Chloe loves to make art.
Whether it's water color. Or 3d.
or markers.
Or crayons.
or mixed media...

And fortunately none of it went on the walls!
(This time :0)
The girls and I went to a beach ...And then it was time to go home... I love my girls. Even when they're goofy.
Or when they try to give me kittens.
They ARE pretty cute.

Kelsey still has more .....

Kittens!
Not girls.

Spunky Youngster...

2011-09-18T19:52:00.000-07:00

Eighty one years, a spunky little redhead Velma, joined the Hall family which included , an older sister Rula, and her former schoolmarm mother, Alice and a jack of all trades, farming father Ira. Born just 8 days before the big stock market crash of 29, Velma’s formative years coincided with the Great Depression. In spite of lost farms, meager possessions and precarious economic times, her sharp intellect, nurturing nature and tenacity counterbalanced life’s trials and she grew into a responsible, caring, perennial optimist.

Describing her family life in mom’s own words she said “We had a blessing on our food every meal (and we all ate at the same time). We had family prayer prior to breakfast and supper, kneeling at chairs turned away from the table. We were expected to carry out our given responsibilities to very best of our abilities. It didn’t matter whether it was a talk for church or a household task the same effort was expected.

Father, as we called him, worked long hard hours to provide for us. We always had horses, cows, chickens, pigs and sometimes ducks, geese, or turkeys which required daily attention prior to beginning the field work required to raise row crops. Irrigation was also a daily job. Alfalfa hay, grain and pasture were every year crops. Corn, sugar beets, potatoes or beans might be the other row crops. They all were labor intensive.”

Somewhere around age 5 mom became convinced that she needed to eat the sparkling icicles dangling outside from the roof. Hanging over the roof’s edge, she methodically detached the icicles and dropped them to the waiting arms of her 3 year old brother, Kimball. To her dismay and frustration he dropped or missed every one. As might be expected, mom soon followed the icicles and fell. She was concussed, sustained a broken nose, and multiple bruises and contusions. She managed to walk to the house where grandma was sewing and tapped her on the shoulder before losing consciousness. Her survival was in doubt for several days and the results of these early injuries affected her for the rest of her life.

This incident demonstrates several key characteristics of her character. Mom loved nature and all its beauties, whether it be a dazzling icicle, a beautiful sunset, garden flowers, a majestic mountain range or a sparkling mountain stream. She would set goals; tasting icicles, getting an education, raising a family, making art, or remodeling and with the determination and drive she inherited from her fatherl, and the kindness and understanding she got from her mother, she set out to obtain those goals, no matter the difficulty, time or personal cost.

Mom was 4 when they lived at the Rice place between Elba and Malta. A nearby canyon had a creek that provided the family drinking water. The water was only about 4 to 5 inches deep and had a big cedar tree right by the road. The water was clear and Cooooolllld ! One night after mom and Rula were sent to bed, they went out the back window and spent some delightful time crawling in the ditch in their nightgowns. Boy did they have fun! When grandma and grandpa found them they were in BIG trouble. Later, that same night they had some visitors who had children their age, which was a rare treat. However, because of the water escapades, they were not allowed to play with them… a frustrating, but natural consequence.

Sorrow

2011-09-15T19:46:00.000-07:00

Numb.
Fractured.
Scattered.
Disengaged.
Bereft.
Lost.
Sad.
Weepy.
Out of breath.
Sobbing.

Just words.

Descriptive in part, of how I feel much of the day.

I go about my everyday business and think "Oh, I'll just ask/tell mom...

-then I can't breath.

And I start to weep.

And my head hurts.

And my side aches.

I miss my mom.

It hurts.

I want to carry on in a way that would make her proud
- but can't seem to get beyond the emotion and pain.

I'm trying...
and hopefully that is enough for now.

Virginia in June

2011-07-10T09:18:00.001-07:00

So, just a heads up...

If you're looking for great literary content -
this is NOT gonna be the post for you.

If you're looking for amazingly cute little boys
with the occasional good looking parent thrown into the mix scroll on...

This is "almost" the look Jayden gave me when I got in the car at the airport... He warmed up a little when I gave him my green water bottle.

And even more when given my repertoire of crazy lady faces.
(I'll spare you viewing an image of that - use your imagination.)

Luke was receptive from the get go.
But then, he is a bit younger with possibly less discernment
(the crazy faces worked for him too.)

We spent considerable time at various parks to get some crazies out... As you will see Mr. Jayden is a connoisseur of the park/recreation scene.

and takes great delight in testing out every aspect of each.

He leaves no stone unturned when it comes to exploration.
Literally.

At the miniature golf course
he knew just what to do with all those holes. Holes of any sort.He got every one-
multiple times. We had to refill the magical green flask- a LOT.

Jayden likes to swing.
And Luke LOVES to swing.Though it's sometimes a dizzying prospect.
A little air time.
Did I mention he's a ladies man and loves his gramma?
He is a natural explorer and has no fear of enclosed spaces.

He tends to get totally immersed in things.Both boys have got some ball handling skills.
The windup.The pitch.The follow through.
The delivery. Ahh yes!

They come by the skills naturally.
Dad demonstrated his prowess. Seconds after this image dad beaned Jayden smack in the head.Twice.
Long distance.
Like I said - skill.

Time for some cerebral pondering of the quality of sand.

And then on to new adventures.
One of which was eating out.
Jayden came prepared with high expectations.
Dad helped with diversions during the wait time.
That went on, and on, and on.

Luke waited patiently with mom.
But was thrilled to finally be set free.Not all the time was spent outdoors.
The new apartment has lots of space for wiggly boys.
Who like to take a long run...
And leap! onto dad.

Luke enjoys just chillin.Hanging with dad.

Juggling cups.Oh,
and he is
"The Train Whisperer" Or Wheel Licker.
You decide.

All in all one happy boy!

And while Jayden is a man of action...
(Not to mention style).

He does have his concentration times. Which can be very intense.
Video entertainment times...
(preferably with trains)
Single...or double seating.
His quiet times.
Often with some encouragement from dad.
All of which require occasional fueling stops.
Assisted... Or individually administered.
Back off gramma!
Ahhh...

I miss these cute blue eyed boys.

And look forward to seeing them and their parents again.

Love em!

(yeah- it took me two weeks to get this post finished...I'm cool that way.)

June- and We're Off!

2011-07-04T16:57:00.000-07:00

Whew!

That was a FAST month.
At least for me.
I finished school on Friday, June 3 .

WOOHOO!!!!!

Participated in a 5k fun run the next day.
I do more of a jog than a run.

But. I DID it.
I HAD to participate... did you see the name of the race?
Plus a friend of mine has a grandson who was recently diagnosed with type 1 diabetes
and her daughter had organized the race..
Did you note that I got second place in my age category?
I'm not saying how many women ran in my category -
Just saying I finished -
and got second...
Sweet eh?

So that was Saturday -
On the following Tuesday I headed to Provo
to spend the evening with Ty, Angel and Mr. Lincoln
before leaving on Wednesday morning for Virginia.
Do I have pictures?

Ummm.

YES!I brought down this rocking horse that great grampa Bob made
and he knew exactly what to do with it and rocked on.
He also spent considerable time playing with the wooden pull duck gg made too.

Not to mention his fascination with the Thomas the train tub toys I gave him.
(no tub required.)

It's serious business.

Taking a break to recharge the energy levels -

donuts work best, eaten while sitting in dad's lap.
Want a bite? Too late!
Recharged and ready to rumble.

(Up next - Visit to Virginia!)

End of an Era.

2011-06-06T20:26:00.000-07:00

On Memorial Day Weekend Chuck and I celebrated 18 years of marriage.

The April following our wedding I got him two kittens for his birthday.

Thus began the epoch of El Moose and Kiki
-aka Crazy Karl
and Moose.

We did not have an excellent history with cats and
I figured if they lived for a couple years we'd be doing really well.
Well today, over 17 years later Moose finally left us.

He joined Kiki who passed away a couple months ago.
I was totally unprepared for how hard this would hit me.
I am not one of those people who go all gaga over animals.
But, he had been with us for 17 YEARS!
And he was the least annoying animal I have ever known.

Right up to the end he would come up

with his snaggle tooth to let you scratch his chewed, cancer riddled ears.
He was SO loving He liked nothing better than for Chuck to hold him on his chest, his leg, or his side and while resting his paws on him survey the world or catch a few z's.

He was an outdoor cat that LOVED catching critters.rodents, birds, snakes, lizards, bugs. He spent countless hours outdoors watching anything that moved.
If you headed outside you needed to pay the toll of a good scratch behind the ears.
Rest in peace buddy. We're gonna miss you.

In Training

2011-05-31T20:22:00.001-07:00

About a year ago I decided to change some of my health habits.
One main factor was upping my exercise levels.
I haven't ever really had a problem with exercise in the summer,
but winter is another story entirely.Last fall I set a goal and committed to run in the
2011 Portneuf Gap half marathon in September 2011.
My friends Toni and Jeff encouraged me to sign up for a spring race to help me keep on track during the winter. So, I signed up with them for the Moab half marathon in March. The shirt pictured above hung in my kitchen by the laundry as a reminder and if it weren't for it's presence I KNOW I would have stayed in bed many a dark, cold winter morning.
It seemed like March was a LONG ways away. But, it crept up and before I knew it it was race time.
Even though several people told me it wasn't a good idea,
I had Chuck drive me over the course the night before
so I would have an idea of what to expect.
I'm glad I did because I was worried about hills
(as well as that whole 13.2 mile distance thing.)
At the drop off site we saw this cute lil guy.
The blue bird of happiness. A good omen right?

I wasn't worried so much about being able to go the distance because I had done it before on my own. I was worried because I found out that they close the road along the river for the race and if you aren't at a certain point when they open it back up there is a "sweeper vehicle" that will come and pick you up and you don't get to finish...
I am NOT a fast runner.
In fact I'm sure there are long legged people who can speed walk much faster than I run/jog.
So, I was worried that I would get "swept up" and not get to finish the race.
I was SO wound up I couldn't sleep
- plus I had a Lady Gaga song stuck in my head which didn't help a whole lot.
We loaded onto the buses which ferried us up to a drop off point. The row of portapotties at the drop off was in constant use right up to race time
- Apparently I wasn't the only one with some nerves.
The race actually started up a ways beyond the drop off point
- but you can get a feel for the road we would run on. It really was a beautiful day and other than some pretty windy patches
the weather was great for a run. (Much better than in Idaho).
My goals for the race were:
#1 FINISH
#2 Stay ahead of the sweeper vehicle
#3 Run the entire way
(I was afraid if I walked I wouldn't get started again).
#4 Finish under 2hrs. 45 min.
(I told you I'm a slow runner).
So- if I was to beat the sweeper, not walk and finish under 2-45
- I would NOT be using one of the blue portapotty beasts alongside the road.
It was interesting to see how different people ran.
Some sprint and walk. Some jog and run. And there were people of all ages and sizes.
The hardcore people were off in the distance before I even got across the start line.
And I was fine with that. The people watching and changing scenery and light made the road go by a bit faster.
I was pretty excited to make it to the cut off before the sweeper.
At that point I only had about 1 1/2 miles left to go.
No sweat.
And it was level or slightly downhill too.
But, I was starting to run out of energy.
The last block before the finish was longer than the rest of the 12 3/4 miles.
I was SO pooped I thought I would have to break down and walk.
But I was danged if I would wuss out with the end in sight.
I met my goals.
My official time was 2hr. 37min.After I crossed the finish line and started to walk it all caught up with me.
I was dizzy - weak and spent. I staggered around for a bit.
Got some orange wedges and liquids and ultimately had to lie down for awhile
or I would have passed out.
I DID finally get to use one of the blue "elite"thrones.
We all made it. And I even saw a friend from work who came and ran in the race as well.

So, the bluebird of happiness WAS indeed a good omen.

Do I want to run again?

The face says it all.

I think it's a little like having a baby-
right afterwards you NEVER want to go through that again...
But, the sense of accomplishment was tremendous.
Not to worry though - I won't be going all race crazy -
I am still planning to do the Portneuf Gap 1/2 marathon in September.
But, that will probably be the extent of the half marathon silliness.
I'd like to do some 10K races just to keep me on the track with my goals.
But I don't want to ruin my knees -
and to be honest I MUCH prefer walking to running.

Catch Me if You Can

2011-05-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

I really should try the "speed blog" thing that Miss Des shared.

But, I have SO many cute images I can't bring myself to do it...
even though I'm about 2 months behind.
(ok maybe closer to three)....

Tyson, Angel and Lincoln came up to visit
while Jaron, Jenette and family were here.
Jayden went right to work putting the moves on Angel.
(She IS pretty cute.)
Lincoln didn't seem to mind much. He was busy with the trains and tunnel thing.
Jayden was very helpful trying to fit Tyson with some headgear.
Luke likes Angel too
(and is apparently mesmerized by gramma's big head.)

Luke is one happy, smiley, WIGGLY boy. The boys were THRILLED to be let out of the house! And headed straight for the water. Imagine that. There was some pretty extensive rock throwing.
(Check out the expression on Jayden's face.) Gramma had to keep an eye out
because they wanted to pick up the "pellets" all over the lawn from the deer.
Once inside the running did not stop. Unless cornered.
There were occasional breaks for some tech time.
Bacon time.
("Uhhmmmmm bacon...." Homer Simpson) Gramma provided smoothies and diversion...Look Moose!
Taught the boys to high five.Which they thoroughly enjoyed.The companionable feeling came and went.
Curious George is enthralling.Two two year olds putting their heads together...
LOOK OUT!

Chuck chillin with Luke.

Great Grampa and Gramma W came to see everyone. Group photos are a "bit" tricky with wiggly little boys. But, that didn't stop us from trying.. and trying...

All too soon it was time to go.
Sigh...
Miss them all.
Love them all.

Jayden Came to Play

2011-05-15T13:32:00.000-07:00

What can possibly hope to follow the thrills and chills of a cruise?

A visit from grandchildren is just the ticket!
Jenette came out for her grandfather's funeral and stayed for several weeks.
Jayden was more than happy to help me disassemble the gingerbread house.He checked to see if there was any laundry that needed to be done
(whilst wearing his new snowboots.)
He helped stack up stray letters.
And YES! There WAS some time spent with trains.

He listened for any sound of mom returning from her errands.

Checked to make sure gramma had a good supply of condiments.

Helped take care of the strawberries before they went bad.

And FINALLY!!! Got let outside! Heading straight for... "The Puddle"
and some long awaited rock throwing.

The boots worked really well at keeping the water out.

Happy boy behind the wheel.

Even happier boy, behind the wheel, in the puddle.

Whadda ya mean it's time to go in?!?

"They Might Be Giants ABC's" are not nearly as good as my puddle.
Miss my perpetual motion, train boy now that he's gone home.

But never fear, there are more images to come....
this was just day one :o)

(In the meantime...click here to check out Lincoln's shenanigans .)

Moms

2011-05-07T12:41:00.000-07:00

This is my mom when she was little. I love the look of mischief in her eyes.

Mom has always been a shy, private person
and is NOT a big fan of Mother's day.
However,
I thought she might not mind if I shared these images from back in the day.

She has always been a lovely person both inside and out.
She did an incredible job raising 8 rambunctious children with distinct
and sometimes infuriating personalities.
She always seemed to be in control, consistent and patient.
She assures me she was not.
She was, and continues to be, a shining example of kindness, service and faith.
I am blessed because of her presence, guidance and counsel.
She is motherhood.

Here are a few more examples of motherhood in action. Cuddling the newly born.

Braving the elements to give a child new experiences.

Creating lasting memories of life's milestones. Guiding.

Nurturing

And beautiful all.

I salute my ALL daughters.

You are amazing women and I love and appreciate you.

Ahem....

2011-04-27T14:50:00.000-07:00

"SOMEBODY"

has a birthday involving a 7 today...

So...it's a 7-11 day.

Happy Birthday blue eyes!

Love you!

And because I do,

I opted NOT to post any totally humiliating photos.

And as you know I DO have them...

Saturday at St. Maarten's 2-26-11

2011-04-26T19:28:00.000-07:00

Last Day...

I actually got up to see the sunrise .

Is it just me?
But this shoreline view reminded me of Greece...

We had an outing planned for the afternoon so in the morningwe walked to the beach about a mile away. I thought this beach was as nice as Magen's bay,
And less crowded.They had chairs for rent all along the way.

We opted to forgo the $1o rental fee for chairs and used our towels to sit right by the end of this pier.

The water was lovely. Warm, blue and with a bit of a drop off about6 feet out
as you can see by how short I look in the water only a few feet from shore.
This island seemed to have all the things one would expect to see in a tropical place.
Lots of colorful things along the boardwalk.

Even the names of the establishments were colorful.

A few historical artifacts. Several cultures were represented.
This is where we had our "French" all fresh fruit smoothie. Served by this cuter heavily accented French woman. A little wildlife.
Some weird looking stuff.

That actually comes from the trees.

And is used to make these lovely little faux ivory souvenirs .
Some gorgeous local stone.

???
Some rather cryptic signage.

Bumps? Hills? Mountains?

Stop the bumps, hills, mountains.

Abduct a child?

Just what are we filtering? Parking? Stopping?

You tell me what you think this means!

It all works together to create a little.... But, all in all

St. Maarten IS a friendly island.

It seems like it is a little more dry from the vegetation on the hillsides.
But there are some lovely plants. with some unusual characteristics. And some really cool blooms.

In the afternoon we set out for our last "adventure... which involved water....and wet suits.
This is Paul from the U.K. complete with a delightful British accent.
We became very close in a short period of time.
Because...
The outing Chuck had booked for us was a scuba experience.
Let me just say up front that I wasn't exactly keen on the idea.
Chuck is scuba certified and has a lot of hours experience.
He used to own his own tank and did a fair amount of cold water diving...
YIKES!
I, on the other hand, am a less than proficient swimmer
and the thought of going well below the surface
while relying on my ability to swim and breathe through my mouth is...
well, terrifying.
I was counting on some thorough preparation and instruction.
Not so much.
As we jounced across the harbor to the dive area Paul was using a little flip chart
explaining the physics of underwater weight and lung compression, how to let air in and out of various gizmos on the tank, how to get water out of the mask, how to breathe through the mouth, how to go down, how to go up...
...and all I could think was...
"I'm supposed to jump into the water, go under and breathe?!?!?"

The next thing I knew I was strapped into all the paraphernalia standing on the end of the boat flippers pointing out while Paul, Chuck and the guy on the boat kept telling me to
"Hang onto your mask, your belt, stick your leg out,
look at the horizon and step into the water."

The said it over, and over, and over.

And I kept thinking...
I'm gonna die, I can't do this,
I'm gonna die...I can't do this...
Yeah...
It was getting a little awkward and embarrassing.
I thought, "Chuck paid a lot of money for this... I can at least go into the water and
get out of the way so the other people on the boat can get out...

I FINALLY stepped off.
Went under and came up in a full blown panic attack.
I probably used up half my tank of oxygen in the first minute in the water.
Paul was very kind and supportive telling me how great I was doing,
and assuring me I could indeed do it... (Do I look reassured?!?)
He was holding my hand and got me out a little ways from the boat and convinced me to just "try" putting just my face in the water and breathe through the mouthpiece.

Remember Star Wars and the Darth Vader breathing?Well multiple that by about a gazillion and that was me.

Rather than bore with the blow by blow details...
let me just say that Paul was a genius at allaying fears and persuasion...
I DID go under water for about 40 minutes.
I DID hold Paul's hand in a death grip the entire time-
Letting go only for the brief time when he got Chuck and I to stand on the ocean floor for a photo.
(I call this shot "Scuba Gothic" )

I also held a spiny "spider looking' thing in the palm of my hand - all the while clutching Paul's.

I am VERY proud of the fact that I actually DID do it. Most likely there will not be a repeat performance
- unless Paul is there to hold my hand.

All in all it was an AMAZING day, trip, adventure...

I wouldn't mind going to St. Maarten's again soon...
Here are a few final photos from the trip...
Chuck's FAVORITE dessert Chocolate melting cake with a side (or two) of ice cream.

A creamy custard dessert I loved.
Typical breakfast fare... omelet made to order, fresh fruit,
yogurt and oatmeal.. Yeah, we suffered quite a bit.

Our waiters...

Kay from Indonesia with Chuck.

Sunni and I.
Those guys work 7 days a week for months on end to send money home to family.
They are unfailingly cheerful and hardworking.

This was the last of the towel animals...(I think I liked the frog best...)
but created by another hardworking guy from foreign shores.

Look how excited Chuck was for the trip to end - already mourning the loss of the melting chocolate cake...
Last shot from the ship in the port at San Juan...

End of the longest post EVER!

St. Kitts 2-25

2011-04-25T19:06:00.000-07:00

St. Kitts

Another day- Another port o call.

We didn't have any specific outings planned for this day.
So we set out to do a little exploring. This lil tug was one of the first things we saw.
Ty you've got a rig to call your own!

This island appeared less affluent and touristy. There were a lot of sidewalk vendors. But they weren't pushy at all.

In fact many seemed kind of apathetic. The fact that the government owns all the land and it is too expensive
for most citizens to own anything might have had something to do with that attitude.
But at least they have Scooby transportation readily available.

Their town square was rather attractive with it's green clockwork.

However there were more colorful things to be seen. On many fronts - er backsides...Top sides. Back AND topsides. And just walkin by... The government owned buildings were brightly colored and well maintained.

This church was built in the 1700s and was probably the coolest building on the island.

Standing in the churchyard I turned my head and saw this ...

There were contradictions everywhere.

This was the cool rustic iron work on the side door.
It was really large inside.

A couple of the elegant stained glass panels inside. And speaking of elegant,
er fancy... Did I mention monkeys?

Apparently this island has an abundance of monkeys.
We only saw these two being used for photo ops...

But we did see this animal at the end of the day.

St. Lucia 2-24

2011-04-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

A gorgeous day - a few puffy clouds, clear skies

and a hair raising ride across the island to our Jungle canopy adventure.

As we whipped around hairpin turns I kept seeing all these houses on stilts.
But they were up on the mountainsides. No real danger of flooding that I could see.

Our driver explained that because of the way that the laws were written there
if you built a house and started with the upper portion and
later added the lower portion you only had to have one permit. If you started with the lower portion and wanted to add on top,
you would have to have another permit.
Permits are really expensive and hard to come by, so families go in together
and get one permit and multiple generations or extended families live together.
There were some really nice houses and some pretty ramshackle ones as well.

The jungle canopy ride is a fairly recent addition to the island and has several options.
One can do the zipline rides where you tear across the mountainside at breakneck speed.
Or take a leisurely tram ride over the tops of the trees and vegetation.

We opted for the latter and it was the most relaxing part of our entire trip.
The weather was absolutely perfect. Not too hot, not chilly, sunny but not glaring.

And the view was amazing!
I think I saw more shades of green
and varieties of leaves in a couple hours than I have seen in my entire life.

And there were colors too.
Yellows.
Whites. Oranges.
Pinks. Red. Fuschia.
This one reminds me of Indian paintbrush.

And this one was my favorite.
It absolutely glowed.

We saw this beautiful egg.
And some great knit rasta caps.
I LOVED this island and all the sights.

And here's the towel buddy of the day

Barbados 2-23

2011-04-20T19:17:00.000-07:00

It's interesting what stands out from the cruise.

It's been two months and you'd think I would have razor sharp clarity.
Not so much.
(Actually, I'd like to have clarity of any sort most days).
Good thing I took photos because those help to jump start the flagging memory cells.
Anyway...

Barbados...

The submarine trip...
No.
It was NOT yellow.
But it was pretty nifty all the same.

We got on board not all that far from where the cruise ship was docked
so we didn't see much of the island itself.

If you suffer from claustrophobia this is NOT the thing for you.
Those lovely glistening blue molds are to house the 40 some odd butts
that will be wedged in together to see the below water sights.

According to the handy posters these are some of the "sights" that were possible in the area.

And we DID see some sights.

But, I learned that because of light dispersion underwater

you can't really see all those vivid colors as shown in the posters
- except for some lovely blues.
There WERE a LOT of fish and some cool plants. Unfortunately - they didn't photograph so well...
Here is our intrepid skipper.
Musicians near the ship providing some steel drum music.
Not sure what these were - But thought the perspective was neat.

Chuck waxing eloquent to the Jedi towel creature about our underwater adventures.

Old Man Jaron...

2011-04-19T18:52:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned previously somebody is having a birthday this week...
tomorrow in fact!

So, it's only fitting that I should drag out a few photos -oldies but goodies -
because I can....
This is an atrocious photo of Kelsey- (sorry sweetie)
But check out those boys in the pink shirts and bow ties!!!
Not just anyone can carry off that look.
Pretty sure they will never forgive me for that.

Jaron was a car fanatic from day one...
So, any sort of vehicle whether it was a toy or on a shirt was cool.

He went through a rather extensive phase with a mullet. But, must hasten to add that he was NOT alone.
All the cool guys had them...
Hmmm... well maybe except for Tyson.
And who am I to talk!?! Check out my poof doo!
I think this was during the Cosby sweater phase for guys...

Here he is older, wiser, sweatered and sans mullet. This must have been around 5th grade?
Tyson is looking pretty dapper in his turtleneck
and look how cute Kelsey looked in her curls and ruffles.
She was pretty tolerant letting me dress her up all foo foo like.

Next up, Jaron in turtleneck,
Tyson and I in sweaters and
ME with the mullet!
Nice.

A "slightly" more recent shot...
with sensible headgear and Jayden sporting some stylin pants.

And this was the best shot I got of my boys with their boys and their beautiful brides
while they were here.
It's no easy feat wrestling two year olds.
But they do a great job.

Love you Jaron!

Day at Sea.... 2-22-11

2011-04-19T18:34:00.000-07:00

Yes.

I AM going to continue with my cruise posts.
No need to read on -
I'm posting so hopefully I can remember...

This was a really relaxing day. This guy carved the Indian head out in about 15 minutes while on deck.
Here's a view from the 10th deck looking down.
Our cabin was on the 11th deck. We tried to always use the stairs-
so we could "sorta" justify the food consumption...
Right.....

Check out the baby the steward left in the cabin-
much nicer than the weird snake like thing the night before.
I actually read an entire book - The Midwife.
It was pretty interesting, and a real treat to be able to read and not feel guilty that I "should" be doing something else.
Now THAT my friend is my idea of vacation!

A Public Service Message

2011-04-13T18:41:00.000-07:00

We interrupt Karen's "fascinating" vacation meanderings

(what do you mean you've been on hold for three weeks?!?)
for a public service message.
Someone Special has a birthday on the 14th of April!!!
Here are a few photos to try and help identify the aging one.

Can you pick the suspect from the lineup?
(hint - it's not the old lady in the hat.)

Photos are not exactly "current".
Not that the clothing would give that away.
Have you narrowed it down?
(hint - it's not the one with the crown on.)

And we can rule out the girl in the hat and the missing tooth.

Yep.
It's the one with the cheesy grin and silly hair.

It's tricky because the other guy in the lineup has a birthday NEXT week on the 20th.
Still wondering?

Well, the rabbit gives it all away.

Happy Birthday to my goofy boy Tyson!

Love you with all my heart.

St. Thomas

2011-03-21T20:24:00.001-07:00

Our first port of call was St. Thomas.
This was the view from our cabin when we woke up.
We had a shore excursion to Magen's Bay
which is on the other side of the island from the bay pic.We rode in an open sided bus through the port town and I took pictures out the side.
There were some nice clean looking properties.
Some colorful buildings. Some colorful fruit sellers. A colorful store AND owner.
(Note the eyepatch...arghh matey!)
An even MORE colorful building.
and MORE colorful characters.
Then we headed at great speed up the hill.
Past what our guide Lawrence called the "castle".
More hillside.
Top of the hill looking back at the bay and the ship.
Those cruise ships are beasts!

Finally,
Magen's bay.Named after Magen Fairchild of "The Fairchilds"
National Geographic lists it in the top 10 beaches of the world.
It did have amazingly blue water and dazzling white sands.
The water was warm, clean and very relaxing. But what I liked the best was this ^
OK.
I never could catch it on camera.
This unassuming bird is a Kamikaze diver.

It cruises at low altitude, then soars and dives straight down so fast you can hardly see it.
Plunges into the water and snags fish. It was mesmerizing.
I think they're called gannets.

This guy was posing for us at the side of the road.

He offered side and back views so we could check out his spiny back.

And this guy was posing for us on the bed when we came back after dinner.

Keep on Cruising

2011-03-21T09:59:00.000-07:00

Sunday in San Juan was gorgeous.

Random facts:
Old San Juan was founded in 1508 and is the oldest city under the US flag.
The locals are US citizens and you don't need a passport to visit the island.
San Juan is the largest home-based cruise port in the world.
The blue cobblestones in the city were originally ballasts in Spanish galleons.
AND the Pina Colada was created in Puerto Rico.
We ate a nice breakfast at a little cafe before setting off to explore San Juan.
(The shorts are some we bought because of the hasty packing thing.)
We went to both forts and I took a gazillion pictures of the same stuff but from different views - because I could. These little lookouts are all along the walls which run for a couple of miles along the coast.
The walls are up to 18 Feet thick in some places.
I really liked the archways supporting the walls and the rather mottled gray/white stone.
Here's a boat we saw from one of the lookouts.
We could have used this bad boy to blast that baby right out of the water.
You can see on the ground where they used to rotate the cannons. But, I think this particular cannon might need a "bit" of work to be functional.
(Front end view of the previous cannon.)

Chuck actually posed for a picture with me. However,
apparently we were WAY under dressed.

Note she is sitting and looking at her feet...? Yeah, she could hardly walk anymore.
Ahhh...the price one pays for fashion.
The entrance to "El Morro Fort" the larger of the two forts.
This is the view from the closest street.

You can see the cemetery in the foreground.
The fort is in the back left.

Here's a closer view of the cemetery and capilla (chapel).
There were families flying kites in the big green grassy area
(hence first photo in this post of the butterfly kite).

Check out the groovy van that was selling ice cream and playing Christmas music.
It reminded me of the Chuckwagon.

Here are a couple more random pics. Crazy 60 foot tall textural, cylindrical "thing" in a plaza.

Some really cute, colorful, expensive wooden toys.
(Yes, that price is in US dollars.)

And one final doorknocker... Just because.

(This is all before we even got on the boat. So, there's going to be a whole lot more...
Don't feel obligated to read, wade, plow through any of this stuff. I'll never know :0)

Cruising...

2011-03-16T18:48:00.000-07:00

Last fall Chuck made plans for us to go on a cruise to the southern Caribbean islands, also known as the West Indies. He made the reservations: cruise, flights, day trips etc. I was happy to let him take care of it. We were scheduled to get on the ship Sunday, Feb. 19. Chuck came home Friday evening and after a busy week we decided to go to bed early and take our time on Saturday to get ready as we were to leave. So, around 8:30 I was propped up in bed writing about the day in my little journal. Chuck was watching TV. I casually asked "So, what exactly IS our itinerary ? I know we're going to a bunch of St. islands."

"Well, let's just take a look shall we?" and he pulled out the laptop and fired it up. After a few minutes he had pulled up the files and said " We're supposed to be leaving tonight!"

Very Funny Chuck.

But when he shot out of bed like an electroshocked steer and began frantically flinging clothing into his suitcase it dawned on me "Hey. He's not kidding." ( A12:50 AM Saturday flight comes on the tail end of Friday night, not the tail end of Saturday...
Chuck ran around in his straw hat and I stumbled around in my underwear trying to decide whether to wear a long or short sleeve shirt and whether there was enough time to finish packing, drive to Salt Lake City, check in and make the flight. Less than half an hour later we were in the car headed down the road frazzled and anxious.
Half an hour later Chuck asked if I had gotten the "paperwork" off of the bed...
Well...no.
I actually thought Chuck might start to bang his head against the steering wheel.

Fast forward a couple hours...Tyson met us at the airport with freshly printed "papers", we checked in and made it onto the plane with all of 15 minutes to spare.
Ahhh.....

We arrived in San Juan went to our hotel and were informed that our reservations had been changed by Expedia,
and no, they didn't know to where.
I thought "Is this going to be one of "those" kinds of vacations?"

Two hours and some intense phones calls later we had a room in another hotel and actually began our "jumpstart" vacation.

We explored old San Juan the rest of Saturday and the next day.
The town is full of brightly painted Spanish style buildings with a lot of interesting details.
(Celiac thought you might like the variety of door knockers.)

There are plenty of stores with tourist fare but the vendors are not nearly as pushy as we've encountered in previous excursions. After taking inventory of the contents of our hastily packed suitcases
we were looking for socks and shorts for Chuck and a few toiletries.

We ate a meal at a local eatery and tried out a dish that our taxi driver had recommended.

"mofongo"
Made with fried plantains and your meat of choice with sticky rice on the side.

There were lots of different types of local color

and
there were plenty of new sights.
Went to the Pigeon park. There were nests built right into the wall. And some really cool tree/vine things framing them.The pigeons were pretty comfortable with all the gawking people.

Sunset looking out at the bay from the pigeon park.
We went to the Butterfly Place". This is a no photos allowed shot.
The displays were AMAZING! Unfortunately this is NOT a great view.
A great finish to a rather long first day of vacation.

Bet you can't wait to hear about the rest of our wild adventures eh?

Just a "tad" behind...

2011-03-15T19:36:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure this is the longest I've gone without posting

since I first started this blog business.
I know that the last time I posted it looked like this outside.I am determined to get at least a couple of photos downloaded

for some of the events of the last 2 months?!?
(Man, I AM lame!)
I got to go to the Land of Lincoln the end of January to celebrate his 2nd birthday.

All scrubbed and ready to partay!
He showed his incredible bowling skills with a manly pink ball
(and a little help from mom).

He rapidly consumed delicious pizza lest dad should try to steal it away.
There were dazzling bowling pin cupcakes with a sugar content
guaranteed to induce a diabetic coma.
One large and one inverted small cupcake, donut holes, frosting, frosting and more frosting -
oh and some red fruit rollup garnish.
Quite tasty.
The blowing out the candle bit wasn't so popular.
But mom helped him get the hang of it.
He much preferred driving race cars. And then there was the new bike at home.
He was pretty wound up. I'm sure the bowling pin cupcakes had nothing to do with that.
Happy Birthday Mr. Lincoln!

Hopefully I'll get another post done in a slightly more timely manner...

Of drummin, steppin and sweatin...with this oldie.

2011-01-26T19:06:00.000-08:00

So, I'm taking a class called "Healthy Minds, Healthy Bodies" on Thursdays. I get inservice credit for it. It's about being healthy ( who knew from the name right?). There is a book that goes along with it called "Mindful Eating". And in "theory" it is great. All about getting in tune with yourself to determine what kind of hunger you have (there are 7 kinds in case you wondered) , and how to feed it and not do emotional eating and whatnot.

Then yesterday as I sat in a semi-darkened, faintly smelly exercise room with about 30 other people listening to a CD read by the author, in a monotone, yoga instructor voice (you know what I'm talking about - think massage therapy) , about talking to yourself, to your food and listening to your body talk back to you. I struggled to suppress maniacal laughter.

Seriously?!?

This was after trying to avoid the grim reality of my spasticity whilst trying to simultaneously drum on an exercise ball set in a laundry basket, do the rhumba, squats, and lunges all to the beat of seventies music ramped up to chipmunk speed the better to increase the heart rate.

Yeah.

Oh, and did I mention I got put in the front row 3 feet in front of the room length ceiling to floor mirrors?

Double yeah.

Not to mention the thick total body sweat slick, complete with running rivers from forehead to feet.

I "used" to think I was "kinda" coordinated. I never did march left arm, left leg in drill team and I was pretty good at softball (granted that was 75 years ago). But, after taking this class and trying a few yoga, and step training videos at home, I have determined that whatever elasticity and grace I might have once possessed it has gone "someplace special" never to be seen again. So, I'm REAL excited about trying out the "Zumba" dance moves scheduled for class next week...I'm sweating just thinking about it...

Just saying.
(as Miss Des would say:0)

More December

2011-01-25T20:06:00.000-08:00

After sleeping on the trip from SLC "somebody" wasn't ready to sleep.

Actually, two somebodys.
Next morning it was Inkom Christmas time... "Somebody" wasn't too jazzed about wearing the Santa hat to pass out gifts.

But new books are another story.
And don't even get me started about sticker mania.
But in reality,
there's nothing better than a little hello kitty coloring.

Seriously.
Well, maybe putting the cow in the manger attic.

Let's go check out the snow.
Don't leave me!
Ok.
Maybe it's a little cold.
Snow angel.
Do I really have to have the straps crossed
AND boots?!?

Clean snow is delish!
You sure you know what you're doing?.

Ewww!!!
The bugs are kissing.

I LOVE berries. And gramma LOVES grandbabies.

Head Spinin, Noggin Joggin

2011-01-18T19:18:00.000-08:00

You know that saying about the best laid plans?
This is what happens when you have hopelessly optimistic, haphazardly plans...
You get the end of the story first...
See I "meant" to make it all one giant post with chosen photos from the month in chronological order... all tidy like...
Then the lesson yesterday in church was about "simplifying".
So, yeah.
Note the day I started this post ... That's right a week ago.
I"m going post this and see if after posting mid-term grades, an evening class and parent teacher conference this week I can find some more time to add a few more.

So- here's Mr. Lincoln watching Horton Hears a Who" for the 765 time in gramma's bed.
It really IS a good one.

This outdoor business requires a LOT of effort

just to get the clothes on!

But mom!

The striped green sock doesn't go!

Now THIS is an outdoor ensemble!

(Note the cool pink poodle on the scarf.)

Nice snow...

Posing with the snowman - Lincoln's not so sure about the placement of the carrots...

But THIS is good times!

He did NOT want to get off even when he was nearly frozen.

A good looking group! Whew! That snow business makes me famished.

Should have tried for a photo BEFOREwe endured 3 hours of church.

Leyla is a word game natural.
This is what I saw when I looked over...Nice.

We went to Mackay to see the "fam".

The girls had a lot of fun, played with 30 year old puzzles.

Chloe "let" great gramma help.

It would appear one must wear boots and pink to play with trains.Here's how Leyla feels about wearing pink boots. Reading is always good times.Especially when there're dogs made out of vegetables. All good things come to an end. We spent the night before their flight home with Tyson and Angel. Lincoln was up to some entertaining.

"See how I can stretch almost all the way out of my pj's? "Chloe is amazed.
AND I can reach every video if I get up on this.
Angel makes delicious cinnamon rolls! Thanks for everything!
What do you mean they're leaving?!?That's what I'm thinking too!
It was grand!

Let's do it again.

Soon!

Hmmm...

2011-01-17T19:43:00.000-08:00

So.
It would appear that I have fallen off the face of the planet.

Not so.

I have a plethora of photos but
so far haven't had/taken the time to do anything with them.

But... this week!
That's the goal.

See,
I'm thinking that making it visible
someplace outside of my enormous noggin
will actually help me to follow through...
- that's the plan.)

This photo is for Chuck. See I CAN post a "normal" image of me.
It's just not as much fun.

Cha-Cha-Change again

2010-12-07T17:33:00.000-08:00

The treadmill died.

That may not seem like a major tragedy,

but I am VERY reluctant to lose the headway

I have worked so hard to gain

because it's too cold to exercise outside now.

Chuck came to the rescue once again and got a new longer, fancier model - for my birthday. Not like he hadn't already gotten me a nifty GPS running device already or anything.

The good thing is I can continue to exercise.

The not so good thing was the massive seismic shift in "stuff"

that had to occur to move the beast indoors.

I think the cold was a contributing factor in the previous beast's demise.

Chuck barely got the machine put together before he had to head back to Boise. It took him an hour and a half to get the box downstairs by himself. I still don't know how he managed it. This is a partial view of "some" of the change process.

It actually was MUCH worse.
I managed to pare down one full bookshelf worth of books.

And if you know me that is a major feat!

I muscled the bookshelves, sofas, chairs and

yes, the new beast around until

I figured out something that could work.

Here's the current view from the stairs into the basement.

I haven't messed with pictures on the walls or anything. But, at least you can walk through now.

And look!

I have a dedicated childrens' corner!

Now, to convince a few to come my way...

As a matter of fact there WILL be some coming!

Kelsey, the girls and Shane are arriving on the 29th.

And Tyson, Angel and Mr. Lincoln will come up as well.

I bet you can imagine how that makes me feel.

something like this...

Planes, Trains and Automobiles....

2010-11-28T17:58:00.000-08:00

What I did on my Thanksgiving break....

I took the plane.
I saw MANY a train!
And rode in a brand new automobile.

To meet this cute guy!
(Luke Jaron Holmes)

And play with this handsome boy!

And to eat turkey with these serious people.

Before we actually got to the turkey eating
though, there was some cereal consumption.

Jaron had shared "some" of his strawberry sections with Jayden.

But - he wanted more... So he tried the soulful gazing technique. And then the sneaky introduction of the finger approach. Neither of which actually worked.

But he gets points for trying.Here we have the eating machine consuming treats for good behavior after his haircut...Yes. There was a bit of stray hair comsumed too.

Did you notice the way he wears his long sleeve shirts? He likes to keep one arm free at all times. Maybe he has a bit of the g-grampa V abhorrence of having his lower arms covered?
Luke doesn't appear to like the idea of hair consumption.
Mr. Jayden has taken his role as BIG brother seriously.
He carries his personal garbage (yes, that does mean poopy diapers) to the garbage shoot down the hall.
He pushes Luke in the stroller -and"occasionally" lets mom help him. He points out items of interest during reading time to dad. And items of interest usually include trains. He's CRAZY about trains!
He keeps track of dad by dragging him along behind with the help of Mr. Monkey.

Meanwhile - Luke spends much of his time helping dad, and mom and gramma K to relax a bit. Which is exhausting work!But well worth it! Jayden takes his playtime seriously-

as well as the wearing of stripes.He knows his parents need some recreation time. Seriously!

Pondering the merits of phrenology, barber school or perhaps massage therapy?

Check out the "Wonder" outfit!
Doesn't he look remind you of wonder bread here?

Chilling on dad's knees - in the same position his dad loved at that age! Mental telepathy time.
Man I'm stuffed - look at my belly!

Can't get much cuter than this!
Wait! Yes you can!

Autumn Rayne

2010-11-18T19:58:00.000-08:00

Yes.
Autumn.
And rain.
And I DO know how to spell.
Sometimes.

THIS is the "Autumn Rayne" I was referring to in the title...

Born Oct.30, 2010
2:40p.m.
7lbs. 2oz

Mom and daughter get along pretty well.
It helps when all she does is sleep and eat.
I never heard her cry the entire time we were there.

Big brother Dominik thinks she's pretty nifty.

She sleeps really well and when she's awake -

she's awake!

Grampa likes her.

Gramma likes her.

Who could resist a cute lil face like this?!?

Well, if there's cars around this guy can resist.

Now that mom's got a new baby and dad's off to Iraq
Dom is taking on his share of the household chores.

Testing the angles to get the best sweep.

Autumn pondering child labor laws
.
Of course it's not all work.
Here Dom prepares to wrestle gramma.
Hold this pose for a couple seconds-
then launch at gramma like a Tasmanian devil .
Good times.

She IS a little bit of a thing.
Check out her size compared to grampa's hand.

Yep.She's a keeper.