Happy Birthday Jill - And Me!

 It's birthday day for Jill who is actually in Des Moines with Aleah and Parker - Aleah had a softball tournament out there so they drove out and she spent the day at the ball field! Happy Birthday Jill!

Glenn brought me flowers for my birthday!

Gwyn and I celebrated by having a Butter Braid that morning! YUM!

And then it was time to head to Co. Springs to meet Jessi!  Unfortunately Jessi and Kenzie hit bad traffic so it took them a lot longer than normal to get there - Gwyn and I just relaxed with her smoothie and my coffee until they got there and we ordered lunch!

Always a fun time enjoying coffee with Jessi and lunch there was delicious!  I said my goodbyes to Gwyn after a wonderful time with her and we each headed our own way!

Since Allan next door shares a birthday with me, we invited him over for a steak dinner since his wife was out of town!

All in all a fun day!  And when I truly think about it, I can't believe I am 71 years old!!!!!!

Gwyn

 Gwyn is a joy to hang out with - she loves to play games and cards with me but is just fine coloring or being on her IPAD.

I had already booked tickets to see Despicable Me at the local theater so even though I wasn't feeling very good, I still took her!  No, I didn't eat any popcorn or have a drink - but Gwyn ate the entire tub! WOW!  She loved the movie - me, not so much - I couldn't wait to get back home and lay down!

Glenn made shish kabobs that evening and Gwyn decided she DID like shrimp!!

We'd had rain the night before but the weather was decent for a while so we headed down to do a campfire!  Gwyn had fun making s'mores!

Friday morning we were headed over to Wild Horse to get coffee and a smoothie - but a friend of ours who I know well since we're both on the homeowners board together had gotten a new puppy.  We had to stop there so he could sign a check and he asked if Gwyn would like to play with the puppy - oh my gosh - she was so excited to do that since she was missing her puppy!!  They had a great time!

We finally made it to Wild Horse and Gwyn had her smoothie and of course I had coffee!

Papa had a pretty dirty face when I took this picture but it's still cute as ever!

And Friday night was her last night to stay!

Denver/Happy Birthday Jessi

 I was excited to head to Denver to watch Gwyn play basketball - she has played a few games in her league and is getting better with each game!  Jessi suggested I head up Tuesday morning to have coffee with her which I did - always a great time enjoying coffee together!

We actually did a little shopping that afternoon - Kenzie, Gwyn, Jessi and I - and I found a new purse which was desperately needed and 4 new tops for upcoming trips!

We headed to Gwyn's game late afternoon - traffic was bad as expected but we got there in plenty of time!

She looks so cute in her uniform!  They play 3 on 3 against another team so it was a lot of up and down the court for these young ones!  It took Gwyn a little while to get going but once she did, she made several baskets!  And it doesn't hurt that she is taller than most of the players!

Break time in the lounge - a cute place!  The 2nd team in her branch didn't have enough players so the coach asked Gwyn to play an extra game to help out!  She did awesome! And yes, she has 2 jerseys to switch out!

After a 3rd game, it was time to hit the road and get back home!  Jessi and I took a walk with Kona and I enjoyed watching her in the park!

Wednesday was Jessi's birthday!!  Happy Birthday Jessi - of course she had to work and I was taking Gwyn home with me so we all said our goodbyes and hit the road!

Glenn met me in Woodland Park as I had a massage so he took Gwyn and they went to the playground a while before heading home! Glenn cooked up some yummy fish for dinner that night and Gwyn even slept in the lower level all by herself this year!

Unfortunately I didn't feel well on Thursday so Gwyn spent part of the day hanging out with Papa!  He was working on the old truck so she had fun handing him tools and learning about things - HA!

Swinging on the tree swing is always fun!

And the two of them enjoyed a ride in the razor around the loop!

I love this picture of her coloring with markers!  She's so good to entertain herself when she needs to!

To be cont'd....

Happy 4th of July

 Since we're pushing the end of July, I guess I better get some blogs done!  July has been SUPER BUSY and I'm almost looking forward to August for the slow down!

July 4 is a BUSY time at the Savage household!  It was not only Aleah's 15th birthday but also Robby and Jill's Anniversary!

Happy Birthday Aleah!

Happy Anniversary Jill and Robby

And here's the whole crew!

The Keppys were in Iowa for the 4th and Jessi sent this pic - love the background!

Glenn and I just hung out during the day and then headed to Jaime's late afternoon for grilled hamburgers and salads!  I made a batch of brownies for dessert and we all enjoyed the evening!

The Smiths headed to Cripple Creek to see the fireworks but Glenn and I just opted to head back home!

June Photo Dump

 WOW did June go fast!  Seems like I JUST did the photo dump for May!

Rayna and her boyfriend Hezekiah came up one day for lunch and fun!

We had guests from Kansas!!  Becca and Kayden came out for a few days to Colorado and spent a night with us!  I DID forget to take a picture of both of them so she texted me this pic taken at Manitou Springs!

Glenn and Kayden took a ride in the razor - check out Kayden's hair - WOW - I had to touch it!

And we also had Tasha come for a night as she was heading to Mueller State Park for a night of camping but couldn't get a reservation for Saturday night so we were glad to have her stay!  She brought me these beautiful flowers!

And speaking of flowers - they finally got a new batch of hanging plants at the feed store in Florissant so Glenn and I went in early one morning to get a couple!  I absolutely LOVE this plant BUT if you don't water it every day, it droops!!  Kind of a pain to take care of but certainly worth the way it looks!

I love the view of my plants and porch!

Jaime had a dr appt in Denver one day so I rode with her and we stopped at Red Robin for yummy burgers and sweet potato fries!  Their strawberry lemonade is also fantastic!

One of my favorite soup recipes is Green Enchilada Chicken soup!  I had the ingredients on hand so decided to make a batch, even though it was warm out!  As I'm pouring it into the crockpot, I noticed the side of it said HOT!!!!  WHAT?????   Anybody that knows me well, knows I can't tolerate anything very spicy - in fact, sometimes the MILD is too spicy for me!!  But I went ahead and made it (with a note to myself to look more closely the next time I buy it!!) and added some extra broth and chicken and a baked potato in the frig just to try to kill some of the heat!  Trust me, it was still pretty darn HOT for me and I used plenty of sour cream when I ate it!

Iowa has flooding - and still does!  Neal and Jen had to evacuate the house and the water DID get up there!  This is a drone pic and that's their house front and center - the water is now receding and they are back in the house but dealing with a very wet basement!

And that's a wrap for June!

Iowa Fun

 Iowa is all about visiting - and eating - and visiting - and eating!  HA!

The weather was quite cooperative while we were there which made the trip very enjoyable!  Unfortunately Neal and Jen were on vacation that week but at least we got to see their 2 kids along with Nedelle!

Chance and Maggie were staying at friends' so we got their addresses and picked them up around the Blencoe area and then headed to Onawa to pick up Nedelle.  We let the kids choose where they wanted to eat and Mexican was the choice!  The meal was great and we enjoyed catching up with them!

Papa and the 3 grandkids!

Chance and Maggie are getting taller every year!

Sitting in golf carts at Leonard and Patty's place is the evening entertainment - or just sitting outside on chairs having a drink and talking!

Patty and Leonard puchased a golf cart also so Patty took me for a ride!

Late afternoon one day we had our annual farm meeting - Jim always handles everything and it's always good to know how the farm is doing!  Then we headed over to Woodbine to eat - always have a great meal and drinks there!  We opted to take desserts home as we were all so full!

Patty and I walked up to Jim and Brendas' one evening to take pictures of the sunset - they have a wonderful view at their place!

Thursday early evening we met with Glenn's 3 sisters (and one husband!) at the Country Club in Onawa!  It's always fun to catch up with Geri and Carl, Sherry and Deanna.  Glenn got to talk to a couple of people that he knew and we had a wonderful evening!

Sometimes the "full moon" is actually better the night before the actual date of it and this night was no exception!  I love how it was lined up with the old Soldier water tower!

Glenn got to spend time with some old buddies during the week - Patty, Brenda and I headed to Mapleton to have coffee one morning - and Patty and I spent a lot of time just talking!  All in all a great trip to Iowa!

This Is MY Hometown!

 Memories - great memories of growing up in this tiny midwest town - with not a lot left in the town but the wonderful people who band together in times of need!

I love getting up early in the morning and walking around and around the main street - there's no traffic - occasionally a car or truck would go by but for the most part, silence!  Probably just how the town people like it!  There's no grocery store anymore - just a gas station that carries the necessities and makes some great pizza!

The Community Center is STILL used!  Probably not as much as it used to back in the day but they still hold fish frys there and school reunions, along with other things I'm sure!  My FAVORITE memory of this place is playing in the band "Mosby and the Raiders" for dances!  I'm not sure how many times we played at this place but it was a lot!  Great times - Fantastic memories!

I have no idea what this little place is that's tucked back off the main street and I always forget to ask Patty what it is - it just reminds me of Colorado so I took a picture because it's cute and makes me smile!

This wasn't here when I grew up - but what a beautiful addition to the town of Soldier and I enjoy reading the names of the men who served.

Main street - a bank, a bar/restaurant, and a small gift shop - but right around the corner is the tiny library that is really busy for a small town - Patty and I went there one afternoon as there was an author that came to speak on her books!  They have had several that have done that!

This is down the one side street that ONCE housed a lumber yard and a feed store (where I worked for a few years) AND the grocery store ( which is now a book warehouse) where I once did the books!  And further down is where the school stood!

And this is the view looking down to the highway - this is where the gas station is, along with the elevator and the old football field!  There used to be a restaurant at the bottom of this little hill where all the kids hung out back in the day!

And now back up to Patty's house where she has the most beautiful flowers growing around the side of her house!

The flowers are absolutely gorgeous and day to day we could see more blooms pop out in their hot, humid weather!  

I walked up by the church but didn't take a picture - the church is absolutely full of memories too - playing the organ for church, leading guitar services, youth group, funerals, marriages, special dinners, ladies aid, etc   And the list of memories goes on and on!

It's WONDERFUL to have grown up in a small town atmosphere and I wouldn't have traded that life for anything!