Snow Crazy

Finally some decent snow! We just had to go sledding; so we packed up and went up the canyon. Two nights later we were out on the golf course in the dark picking our lines down the hills. Some of my best holiday memories are centered around sledding. Zipping down the ski hill road at Maverick Mountain, in the dark after all the skiers had gone home on our runner sleds. The next morning all the men would set up shop at the cabin and repair all the runners. Those things can be deadly at 30 mph, but fortunately no one was seriously injured.

Aspen has perfected the "cheese" face.

This picture is priceless.

Puppy Love

I vowed I would never have an "indoor" dog. Unfortunately our .1 acres does not allow the free range that the ranch I grew up on did. Do doggies go to heaven? Are they part of our eternal families? I hope the see Toby (the rottweiler mix ranch dog we had as kids) and Chella (our first dog as a married couple who would climb, moutain bike and even kayak with us) and our current dog; Neico (who I hope hangs around at least til the kids graduate). He's only 7 months old but I can't imagine evening rough-housing without him.

Here's Chella sunbathing in Red Rocks, NV while Scott and I climbed.

Neico sharing his crate with Aspen. She'll climb into it and then call Neico in and then they curl up together.

Mercedes using Neico as a pillow.

Moab Trip

The Windows in Arches National Park.



Scott has a friend from California who has a vacation home in Moab; fully equipped. We spent a weekend hiking, 4-wheeling, and playing as much as possible









We had a great time on the 4-wheelers. Neico did too, he's exploring behind Scott.

Mercedes loves rocks and crystals so we spent a bit of time in the "Rock Shop" where the girls picked out their own rock necklaces.

The girls were quite the little hikers. Aspen hikes nearly 2 miles a day at home taking Neico for walks so Arches was a breeze!

I tend to boo weekend trips because it feels like such work for a short period of time; but they're always worth it!

Halloween '09

Sully and Mike Wazowski from Monsters Inc. They were so cute!




Someone REALLY likes suckers.


At the ward Halloween party with Cleopatra (Elora).

Sunday Evenings

Sunday evenings are usually filled with bike rides and running in the grass; which lead to blackened feet and slivers since Aspen will not keep her shoes on. The girls, or a girl and Dad will zoom down the hill on the plasma car while I hold my breath. Where are the helmets!



Skippy Jon Jones and Neico. I caught the shot right before Neico tried to eat Skippy. How could you not love a siamese cat who thinks he's a chihuahua. Another one of Mercedes "special" toys who tends to find his way into her backpack frequently on his way to school.


The weather right now is perfect.

Where's Tiger? and Dog vs. Tarantula

Last summer some nasty person dumped three kittens at the end of our street. Two of them decided they liked living under our deck so we fed them, got them their shots and gave them a home. Mercedes, with the help of her neighbor friends named them Tiger and Snowflake. Tiger was the typical "scaredy cat" while Snowflake just wanted to sit in your lap. They roam the hills behind our house and the only time we'd really see Tiger was at dinnertime. Every now and then we'd find a beheaded mouse or a huge grasshopper missing its legs, compliments of the kitty's. But we haven't seen Tiger in a week now. There are many perils in the hills; we had a rattlesnake in our backyard earlier this summer. Neico and I came across a coyote just a few hundred yards from our back door. And the last 2 nights we've come across very large tarantulas. We've also heard of mountain lions snatching peoples pets. Where are you Tiger? (the kitty on the left)


Here's Neico playing with the tarantula. I think Tiger could've taken the tarantula but I'm not so sure about the rattlesnakes or coyotes.

11 Years

When people ask Scott how long we've been married he says "Seven wonderful years." He omits the 3 chemo years. I guess now he can say 8 wonderful years. Our Anniversary was on Thursday (the 20th) which was the first day of school plus soccer practice that night. How did we end up with a 2nd Grader! I'm not one of those sobbing parents; I rejoice on the first day. No more, "I'm bored, there's nothing to do!" I'll give you something to do; go clean the bathroom. Plus I'm a big fan of learning but not so great at teaching.

Mercedes refused to get hot lunch last year and all she would eat in her cold lunch was a butter sandwich or a sour cream quesadilla. I did my best to pack other healthy snacks but she's a hard one to please. The second day of school was pizza day and she was happy to get hot lunch. Hooray!

Since we couldn't celebrate our Anniversary on the actual day we opted for Saturday night. We started the evening with trail running up to Stewart Falls which might have been a little easier if we hadn't already mountain biked 8 miles earlier in the day. We passed a family with 5 children under 6 years on our way up the trail; covered in dirt and a little whining but they seemed to be doing alright. On our way back down we came across them again; this time with lots of crying and obvious frustration from the parents. We offered to help carry children and they gladly accepted. Scott and I carried their 3 and 4 year olds the rest of the trail. They were all so exhausted already and they wouldn't have made it back to their car before dark at the pace they were going. The little boy kept asking to come to our house to see our dog and the girl wanted to know who my favorite princess was. I wondered how may people had passed them with annoyance at their crying children when all they needed was just a little help.

We finished the evening with dinner at Sundance; food always tastes better when you've just worked your body hard. Plus Sundance has fabulous food.

I'll remember this Anniversary!

Colorado Trip

The first day of our trip we spent at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park. Here's the girls on the gondola you have to take up the mountain just to get to the park itself. The purpose of the trip was for Scott and I to race in the MuddyBuddy but turning it into a family vacation made it that much more fun.



Outside a portion of the caverns. Not as big as Timp Cave but still pretty cool!

The girls loved the coaster. Aspen even fell asleep on it the last ride we did.

As well as the trampoline there was a 4-D theatre, a giant swing that sent you over the canyon, a sluice box where Mercedes panned for precious gems, a climbing wall, a maze, Bull-riding, and a speleo box which Mercedes took home bruise on her forehead from.

The next day we visited the Denver Nature and Science Museum. They had a really cool interactive exhibit called Expedition Health. We now know that Scott's armspan is the same as his height whereas I'm more like a primate with longer arms than my height. Lovely.

See the sign; especially for ages 5 and under. We had too much fun in that room. Aspen looks like shes protesting having her face shoved into the contraption.

The MuddyBuddy was a good time. Six miles of mountain biking and trail running with obstacles and lots of mud.

Me and my partner Julia coming out of the mud pit. Mercedes decided next year she'll do the Mini MuddyBuddy.

We stayed in Estes Park for a night and ran into a herd of about 20 Elk.

When we were in the caverns Aspen kept singing this song over and over with all the actions. I taped it but it was just too dark so here she is doing it on the bed in the room.

The biggest accomplishment of the trip was the end of the Lally (pacifier). I didn't give it to her the first night and she didn't ask; but the next morning she said "Mommy you forgot my LaLa!" I told her the Lally Fairy came to our house and took the lally's to the hospital to give all the babies. She's asked for it a couple of times and then wants to hear the story again but hasn't had any trouble with naps or bedtime!

Kids and Dogs

We (meaning I) am getting lots of good morning exercise with the addition of Neico. Every morning he and Aspen both get up around 6:15, so after we've all had breakfast we head out for a run/hike/walk while Mercedes is left sleeping. Our route consists of one of four directions; each with a different park as the destination. This morning we hiked (with Aspen in the baby pack) a mile and half one direction on the trail behind our house with Aspen singing her cute little songs in my ear and Neico sniffing everything that looks interesting. I keep promising myself that our religious morning exercise will slowly burn away the saddlebags that keep attaching themselves to my thighs. Yesterday we went to a park and Aspen suggested we play on the Harry Potter; huh? We straddled the teeter totter and Aspen began singing "Teeter totter, Harry Potter, wash your face in dirty water." So thats a Harry Potter!
Aspen, for the longest time, always insisted on wearing her purple shoes (Croc's; which I loathe, but are cute on kids) everywhere we went. Now she won't go anywhere without her yellow 'blip-blops'.

Scott decided to wear Neico out with Mercedes bike last night before an outing to Farm Country and then the new Ice Age movie.

Baby Boy Flygare

I gave in. How could I not after the allergist told my little girl not to pet or play with her cats anymore? She sat in the back of the car crying and then said she was so mad; mad that she can't play with her kitties and mad at Daddy that he gave her his allergies. I told her just be happy he only gave you HALF his allergies. Then I did the unthinkable; mentioned to a dog crazy husband that I'd been thinking that a dog might be good for our girls; hypothetically. I'd done a little research on breeds and so immediately he asked to show him what I'd found. Before I knew it we had appointments to see 4 different litters. What did I DO!

Meet Neico (nee - ko). A 9 week old male black tri Australian Shepherd. If we ever gave birth to a son Scott insisted we name him Neico; which I'm not all that fond of. I said here's your chance to have your boy named Neico. He's confident, smart, sticks to Mercedes like glue and cute as a button. He went rockclimbing with us the first day we had him and completely wore him out. He sleeps in Mercedes room in his crate and his first night didn't even make a peep until 5am (until guess who took him out to potty and play). Now I have that extra bit of motivation to get outside - or deal with a hyper, neurotic dog. He even looks a bit like our first mutt we adopted after we got married; we still miss you Chella!

Gardens

We took advantage of the nice weather to see the gardens at Thanksgiving Point while my Mom was in town.



Do they look anything alike?

Aspen had to smell every rose.

Lexie and her kids came with us too. Mom and Cortney helped a ton after my sinus surgery. Aspen and Mercedes had a cute new hairdo every day with Cortney there. Half the time I don't get their hair done until noon.

Why is it my 7 year old insists she's too tired to walk while my 2 year old just wants to run? They are so totally opposite in every way. Aspen can now open the fridge, the pantry and unlock every door and let herself outside. When Mercedes was her age we would just tell her not to do something and she wouldn't do it. We definitely have a mini-Scott on our hands.

Roller Coaster

No I'm not talking about the wind in your hair, tears streaming down your face, make your stomach turn with exhilaration roller coaster ride. I'm talking about the tears streaming down your face, make your stomach turn, pull your hair out EMOTIONAL roller coaster ride. Half our house is packed in boxes. After almost four months of unemployment, Scott got a job offer in Spokane. We took it. I quit my job. Mercedes cried telling her teacher and friends. We prayed - if it's not the right thing for our family, please throw up a road block. THREE days before Scott was supposed to leave for Spokane he got a call from a local company. TWO days before he was supposed to leave he got an offer. Mercedes sat down at dinner, looked at us and asked, "Are we moving or what!" ONE day before his departure he negotiated his requirements. THE DAY OF departure we called off the move.

I was totally in move mode. Looking forward to a house with a big yard, a pool just up the road, a landscape that felt like the northern Montana and Idaho of my childhood. We found a baby rattlesnake in our backyard a week ago. Perils of living on the mountain. I WOULDN'T miss that. I had to totally switch gears. And now I'm up at 3 in the morning feeling SO happy that we're staying in our home, Mercedes gets to keep her friends and her great school, we will be able reap the benefits of the garden (mmmm, beans, tomatoes, peas etc.) and all those other things that come with feeling settled. At least all those projects that Scott started and never finished finally got done. I'm no longer obligated to my job, although I will miss my clients and having the time for a good workout every morning. BUT, I can now play all summer with my kids. Season passes to Thanksgiving Point?, Seven Peaks?, swimming lessons?, gymnastics? we'll do it all!

Goblin Valley

We took a trip down to Goblin Valley for the weekend. It was our first camping trip with both girls - Scott and I were trying to remember the last time we'd gone camping. We tried last year but Scott had such a nasty allergic reaction to the horses we packed up and went home. We pulled out our camping gear from all the camping we'd done seven (yes, seven) years ago, plus the bigger tent we had to get and extra kid gear and headed out.

Mercedes had a great time hiking around in the 'goblins'. Aspen proclaimed "I love Gobble Valley!"

At the campsite; yes we all fit into that little bivy behind the girls. JK. The days were nice but it still got down into the 30's at night. BRRRRRRRR. We ate our cereal in the car with the heater on. When I told Mercedes we were going camping she said "I don't want to go camping; I want to stay home and watch iCarly." She changed her mind after we got there.

The Baby

Aspen shut herself in her room the other day and typically when she gets really quiet she's doing something like eating toothpaste, spreading lotion all over herself and the floor or pulling all my clothes off the hangers. I found her curled up inside her baby's crib sucking on her pacifier; which she's only allowed to have at naptime or bedtime in her own crib. She must've thought that any crib would allow her the prized "lally".

Pasta w/ Chicken, Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Pine Nuts

Our computer died. Its been with us for six years and it decided to fritz out on us. (It was duck taped together) Two of the things my parents lived without at my age that I CANNOT....my cellphone and my computer. I can't pay my bills, save my pictures, connect with the world etc etc. without my computer. We had to go out and buy a new computer so we could function, which is not a minor expense when you're part of the recession layoff crowd. Everything was saved on the OLD computer and now we have to find a way to get it all off the hard drive and onto the NEW computer. So that's why I'm posting this recipe. My recipe files for the cookbook I'm compiling are on the OLD computers hard drive - I didn't even think to save them on my USB storage device. So I'm posting this because I don't want to forget it and I can't get it into my cookbook.

1lb whole wheat spaghetti
1lb cut up, chicken breast
1 bunch asparagus
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 small package herb goat cheese
sea salt
pepper
olive oil
garlic salt
italian seasoning

Cook spaghetti. While spaghetti is cooking, cook chicken in olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt. Cut Asparagus into 2 inch pieces, place in single layer in pan and sprinkle with salt, pepper and italian seasoning and roast at 425 for 10 minutes. Toast pine nuts over med heat.
Mix goat cheese with hot spaghetti and toss with chicken and asparagus. Sprinkle with pine nuts and sea salt.

Back From the Dead

I know it's been a while. Blogging just hasn't been on my list of priorities.

Christmas:

Mercedes asked Santa for a dolphin blanket and she got a whole new bedroom set. She played nonstop with D-Rex, the robotic dinosaur. Who knew a toy could be so irreverent

Aspen got a new play kitchen; she only really cared about the chapstick that she found in her stocking.

I got matching Kitchenaid appliances; the first time I used the mixer I turned up the power too fast and we had cocoa and flour ALL OVER the kitchen.

Scott got himself a new mountain bike. I've given up trying to get him anything, he just gets it for himself.

Mercedes Birthday:

She had a dolphin party last year so she decided this year she wanted a snowflake party. I can't believe we have a seven-year-old!

Aspens 2nd Birthday:

The only cartoon Aspen likes is 'Elmo's World' so she had a Sesame Street Cake.

Ok, so I had to include this picture. I found my wigs from when I was bald from the chemo. This one was my blonde bob one and it looked so perfect on Aspen.