Girl Fun

The girls like to sleep in - which was fine with me as I could get my workout in and a few chores done before I needed to cook breakfast!  Coffee break is usually 9:30 and the girls played outside so I could see them while I drank my coffee!!

After lunch we headed over to Jaime's - the girls were excited to try out the new zipline that the Smiths' installed a week ago!  Rayna went over all the rules and both girls did great on it!!

I even tried it - I'm no novice to ziplining as I've done it in Mexico, Costa Rica and Nicaragua!  But one piece that I was hanging onto came loose as I was heading down!!  No big deal - Rayna just had to pull me all the way in!!

The girls enjoyed Kylan's swing while we were over there and also doing their virtual reality game!  Jaime and I had some time to catch up while they played!

Playing over at the fort is always fun - have you noticed a trend?  They dressed alike each day!

Each girl gets to pick a meal for dinner - Kenzie chose spicy crab linguine!

Each evening around dusk the girls headed to the hot tub!  I only had to tell them a few times to lower their voices!!  The sound carries throughout the valley and I told them the next door neighbor could hear everything they were saying and they both looked shocked!!

Another fun day!

4 Days With Aleah and Kenzie

It's time for the "girls" to come and spend time at Nana and Papa's house!!  Aleah and Kenzie were SO excited and spent days planning their wardrobe and what they were going to do!!  (they must get their planning skills from me!!)

Since Rayna and Matias were heading to Denver and Ft. Collins, they offered to bring the girls back down which worked out great - except for the fact they didn't get here till 11:45pm - WAY past this Nana's bedtime!!  But they arrived safe and sound and that's all that matters!!

We all slept in the next morning!!  And their day began.....

It was definitely a special coffee day for me and the girls wanted hot chocolate!!  We ALWAYS take a picture when they come of them and their hot chocolate - and I think it was Jessi who suggested that I should post pictures of them with their hot chocolate over the past few years - great idea!!

2016

2017

 2018

 2019

 2020

WOW - they've sure grown up!! (and yes that's my reflection in the window on two of the years!!)

I set up a table in the basement so they could do their crafts and it worked out well!!  No need to entertain these 2 - they find plenty of stuff to do on their own!

Here's one of the crafts they did together - turned out really cute!

They had a fun filled day together and we played cards in the afternoon!  Evenings they spent in the hot tub as soon as it got to be dusk and we had wonderful weather all the time they were here!  More to come!!

SNOW!!

Just so I don't forget about this last snow, I guess I better blog about it!

Not much to say except for the fact we woke up on June 9th and there was around 4" of snow!!  And it was still coming down lightly!!  Luckily Glenn had covered all of his outside plants!

Of course with the warm temps, the snow didn't hang around for long - and that's a GOOD thing!!

The poor hummingbirds had no idea where to get a drink!!

So if it's hot where you're at, maybe these pictures will cool you down!

A Keppy Weekend

I could hardly believe that it had been New Year's Eve since the Keppys had been to our house!!  WOW - 6 months!!  We were all excited to have them come, even though Gary had to work.

They rolled in Friday late afternoon and I had snacks waiting for the kids!!

Papa didn't waste any time since Evan was only going to be here overnight as he was heading to Kylan's for a few days.  He taught Evan how to ride a motorcycle!!

Saturday morning the Smiths (minus Brad) came over for coffee and cinnamon rolls so the boys had a few games of pool!!

My hot chocolate girls!!  Kenzie LOVES spraying the whip cream on!!

Papa made pancakes one morning and of course Gwyn got her favorite animal, an elephant!

Jessi and I enjoyed reading and just hanging out!!  Saturday and Sunday it was horribly windy! Luckily on Sunday morning when we were having our coffee on the deck, it was warm and not too windy at that time!

We also played cards with Kenzie and had a ball playing Apples to Apples - Gwyn can't read of course so she would just throw a card in and it was hilarious!!  We did a LOT of laughing!!

Papa and I took Gwyn over to the playpark Sunday afternoon but it was so darn windy it was almost miserable!!

Gwyn loves to help in the kitchen so she helped me make the strawberry salad - it was so good that we almost ate most of it the first  night we had it!!

During one of the "not so windy" times, Papa took Gwyn on an ATV ride around the property!  She sure loves being outside and spent a lot of time swinging!

Jessi and I did walk both mornings - Saturday morning we had just gotten back and it started to rain!  It was rainy and cool on Saturday morning so not a great day to be outdoors!!  But we found plenty to do inside and had a wonderful weekend together!

May Photo Dump

It's JUNE!!  Spring has arrived in the mountains - the snow is gone - the days are warm - but the nights are still cool!!  PERFECT!  And since we all seem to be spending more time at home these days, I'm glad I live where I do and have a beautiful house and property to hang out!!

9:30 - that means it's time for coffee on the deck - every day that I'm home!!  I LOVE sitting on my front porch with coffee in hand - 15 minutes in the sun and then 45 minutes in the shade!!  After all, when you're retired, it's OK to take an hour coffee break!  I do love my new sign!

I struggled last year with what to put on my tree downstairs between the time we get home from Mexico and the 1st of June when I decorate for the 4th of July!  So I headed to the Dollar Store just to see what I could find - little umbrellas - how perfect!!

Grand daughter Kenzie got braces!!  Isn't she cute?

With the snow gone, it was time to take down the "snow" pictures but the only other set I have happens to be fall pictures!  So I went through years of photos to find the 2 perfect "spring and summer" photos!!  Although it's hard to tell from this picture, I love the two I picked out and had done on the canvas!  The left one is of Slumgullian Pass above Lake City and the right one was taken over at Sargeants where we ATV.

Oh darn - the bears are out of hibernation and strolling the neighborhoods!!  I kept thinking it was time to start bringing the hummingbird feeder in at night but I hadn't started doing it yet.  Glenn wasn't too happy with me about the ruined fence!!  The  bear did get a drink of sweet water - but won't be getting it again!!  I set an alarm on my phone for 8:00pm every night so I won't forget!

When I was in Iowa last fall, I had bought a couple of gnomes - and this 4th of July one is as cute as ever!!

Since I left my tall coffee mug in Mexico for next year, I didn't think I would have a problem finding another one at Walmart or Goodwill - but no luck!!  Amazon of course had them and I love my new one, even though it took FOREVER to get delivered!!  We sure were spoiled with 2 day prime that now has become 7 to 10 days prime!!!

And that's a wrap for May!

Fishing Time In Pueblo

If it's the end of May, it's time to go fishing in Pueblo - according to Glenn!  I do agree it's the perfect time to go as it's not too hot yet and usually not super crowded!

Camping was just opened in Colorado on May 18th!  And since ALL state and federal campgrounds now require reservations, I knew that everyone would be itching to go camp so I made reservations a couple of hours after they opened it up - we had marked on the map which campsites we liked and 4 out of the 6 were already booked by the time I made ours!  Yes, everyone in Colorado wants to camp this year as there's sure nothing else to do as everything is still closed!

It was fun to get the 5th wheel out and packed again for the summer!  But it's always a little daunting to me when we triple up with the boat behind it - luckily Glenn is an excellent driver and has no problem!

Our spot turned out very nice since there was a tree at our campsite!  We headed out on a Tuesday and stayed for 3 nights!  Glenn immediately headed out to fish - and I started a book, no surprise there!!

Burgers on the grill and a few fish to clean!

It always feels like "luxury" camping since we get to plug in at Pueblo!!  Which basically means I don't have to worry about running the battery down with extra lights on AND using the A/C if it gets too hot!!  (Which it did one day!!)

I enjoyed walking each morning as Glenn would get up early and leave and I would sleep in a little bit!  We were at a spot where he could park the boat in a cove and then just walk up to the campsite so he didn't have to load it every night!

We had some awesome clouds move in one evening and a couple showers of rain!

It's a beautiful setting at the reservoir, so much different than mountain camping!

Our neighbor Peggy came down to fish with Glenn one afternoon and they had a great time fishing!  I just enjoyed my books and movies and was content to stay around the campsite!

Here's Glenn heading back to the marina where I had to take the truck and trailer to pick him up!

Glenn didn't catch a lot of fish but he had a great time - until next time!!

The Food Pantry

I missed working at the food pantry while we were in Mexico!  The food pantry is one of my volunteer jobs and it's a great feeling to pack these boxes for the people in our county that need food!

I know I've been working at the pantry for over 2 years - maybe it's 3 years!!  I was started in the "egg" department and cold and frozen foods and I'm still in that area today!  We serve our clients on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of every month, usually rain or shine!  And trust me, there have been MANY very cold days we had to work in the warehouse - that's the days you wear long underwear along with several layers of clothes!

Two boxes are given to each family, a regular box and a green box.  The regular box holds the dry goods and eggs, along with a dairy or frozen item.  The green box holds the produce with breads and desserts put on top.

This is the section I work in.  If we have eggs, they are usually in bulk and have to be checked for cracks and then put into egg cartons.  Our goal is to give each family a dozen eggs each time but that doesn't always happen - if we're short, then we just put 6 eggs in a carton so at least they get a few!  Also the freezers and refrigerators are usually packed full of yogurt, cheese, milk, creamer, juice, etc. and any frozen dinners or convenience items that have been frozen to keep them fresh until it's time to pack them.

Boxes are put on a conveyor belt and we pack as they go by.  Outside the building there is another team who checks in the registered people and unload the items into their cars!  It's amazing how this all works and I was in awe the first time I was there!  Usually about 300 to 350 total boxes are given out each time!

A lot of the groceries are given to this organization from the local grocery stores along with Walmart - the rest is bought from Care and Share with donations.  What an awesome ministry!