tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69471272024-03-07T18:17:18.994-06:00Mommy Storiescorihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comBlogger1256125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-26858582618960576892021-08-24T21:22:00.002-05:002021-08-24T21:22:29.983-05:00A Tale of Two Seniors<p> <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugYQ95C54KSEdctcfOfK45if96ffkeBRn-sklIZEEFM-_1sUIaZVutP6wDsRM_9NylhrtE5eOvw_9wXQEdi5iD_UyoZpZKQ-RWY2jsnlrtsIqSSLYo-sxe3RbB1twegewZ4wBqQ/s4032/IMG_2547.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugYQ95C54KSEdctcfOfK45if96ffkeBRn-sklIZEEFM-_1sUIaZVutP6wDsRM_9NylhrtE5eOvw_9wXQEdi5iD_UyoZpZKQ-RWY2jsnlrtsIqSSLYo-sxe3RbB1twegewZ4wBqQ/w640-h480/IMG_2547.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Our first senior is Gavin. He is in his final year at North Dakota State University. We've been so lucky to get to visit him in Fargo at least once a year, sometimes even twice. We've really come to enjoy Fargo and all it offers. Gavin takes us to all the best restaurants and hikes along the Red River. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1i6GiMoIABi7KRrs68X4-eSCCgRgMKFb1CFubiHuEPpcvKpDFZRmR5loXvIMxKeHGwv5ZTc64l-zYe_qgHlAYVCLeLwgBddu89_uJ3TeJeVwMnUt9FTEGZcFWvqXM_iSPv2-Tow/s2690/IMG_4529.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2018" data-original-width="2690" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1i6GiMoIABi7KRrs68X4-eSCCgRgMKFb1CFubiHuEPpcvKpDFZRmR5loXvIMxKeHGwv5ZTc64l-zYe_qgHlAYVCLeLwgBddu89_uJ3TeJeVwMnUt9FTEGZcFWvqXM_iSPv2-Tow/w640-h480/IMG_4529.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>On one of our walks we passed this beautiful mural. I just love when cities let artists bring the sides of boring old buildings to life with art. This was at the end of a beautiful street lined with historic homes from the early 1900s. The whole walk was so lovely. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfeoWZxmQXwmgR0JwuF38qNvqK_5iOj60WnjXpvAe2iDJrndzYo0j0wpMzqyb1bHmm2HdKEb98-FjoJcJYgPcZfNUel0dKpZiEo30netNr9fO1V0pbAGvHfnPKx-HOwin8LIzchg/s4032/IMG_4518.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfeoWZxmQXwmgR0JwuF38qNvqK_5iOj60WnjXpvAe2iDJrndzYo0j0wpMzqyb1bHmm2HdKEb98-FjoJcJYgPcZfNUel0dKpZiEo30netNr9fO1V0pbAGvHfnPKx-HOwin8LIzchg/w640-h480/IMG_4518.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>We took advantage of the gorgeous weather and were outside as much as possible. We played tennis the evening we arrived. Funny story about our arrival. We were supposed to be there day before actually.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip4Ql75jEmaow98awpa1wKV9mng49E_RsFN2LzZWlHxFbMyAffc5V6GOVZjjle1UHpF_8g_osa8K3iTb7Vl_pUFTmU0dakd1cJgZv9t4BBH2vWZzyAPZ7_wNBfWn6u2v_N6XRJwg/s4032/IMG_4509.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip4Ql75jEmaow98awpa1wKV9mng49E_RsFN2LzZWlHxFbMyAffc5V6GOVZjjle1UHpF_8g_osa8K3iTb7Vl_pUFTmU0dakd1cJgZv9t4BBH2vWZzyAPZ7_wNBfWn6u2v_N6XRJwg/w480-h640/IMG_4509.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>But when we got to the airport, this is what greeted us. It is a line of people snaked outside the terminal. <i>This is odd</i>, we thought. We marched inside like this line had nothing to do with us. We were off to our sneaky little security terminal that hardly anyone knows about. But when we got over to it, there was a lady saying the line was 'back there.' We kept following the line only to end up back outside where we started. It's hard to describe our shock. The security line wound all around the top level of the airport and when it ran out of space, pushed the rest of the people outside. And nobody knew why. This has NEVER happened before. Chuck finally went in and asked anyone with a badge what was going on. Come to find out, the underground train that is used to transport passengers to terminals A, B & C was not working. So everyone who had a flight out of terminal A, had to take the bridge to Terminal A which is where our 'secret' security line is. People leaving out of the other terminals were bused there and went thru a different security line. It was a MAD HOUSE!!! We stood in line for an hour and realized we were never going to make our flight. We hadn't even made it inside the airport yet. So while I secured our place in line, Chuck went back in to see if they were holding flights. Nope. No flights would be held, was the answer. What to do?!</p><p>We decided to split up yet again. This time Chuck stayed in the security line and I went to the ticket counter line. We had like 30 minutes before our flight took off and we had an important decision to make - risk missing our flight and having to pay for new tickets, or ask if they can exchange these tickets for new ones on a different day since the chaos is clearly no allowing us to make our flight on time. I got to the ticket counter eventually and explained our situation. They let me move our non-refundable tickets to the next day without any fees because of all the crazy. This meant that since they didn't have a plane coming back on Sunday, we got to stay until Monday, giving us an extra day with Gavin, much to our excitement. By the time the guy was printing me out our new tickets, Chuck made it to about 100 yards from the security area. There was no way we could make it to security, sprint through the rest of the airport and make it to our flight before the doors closed. Thankfully, everything worked out and we got to spend the rest of our day back home.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDifbMc0uF1G7n4oTIcZfytaFch-n81nSZIWqEGpW-wgNHdMril1WgpnI9wiTMggGTLyy_f7fFWUzNIxVzRskxHu5DUDDKmxpAHb6a1Lo88aaK7Cv3X_9nkFa-dg2gB9K40e6aZg/s4032/IMG_4517.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDifbMc0uF1G7n4oTIcZfytaFch-n81nSZIWqEGpW-wgNHdMril1WgpnI9wiTMggGTLyy_f7fFWUzNIxVzRskxHu5DUDDKmxpAHb6a1Lo88aaK7Cv3X_9nkFa-dg2gB9K40e6aZg/w640-h480/IMG_4517.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We even got to change our reservations to a super nice hotel right in downtown Fargo within walking distance of Gavin's apartment.<br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKET1n3FyLR-yJFwW3G3rHyzXpUJRZXvYisY2wXNW0UP-E37zsU5olgOm14AxcoRhpPEqqJsZ2CWRvsfKDpG0JYSu4WhDheMGf_Fp0XXfQtAYFqGtDjaHzBiTVpWhLY738QGlmiQ/s4032/IMG_4515.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKET1n3FyLR-yJFwW3G3rHyzXpUJRZXvYisY2wXNW0UP-E37zsU5olgOm14AxcoRhpPEqqJsZ2CWRvsfKDpG0JYSu4WhDheMGf_Fp0XXfQtAYFqGtDjaHzBiTVpWhLY738QGlmiQ/w480-h640/IMG_4515.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>I just love attention to detail like this! We've yet to see a show at this iconic theater though.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl8DXgoCdreBIWymhRPAZu9O3YyCM9mh6uYPNsG4Zyr5fimuUetEuQCUS_4rS0n3113Bon2SiZkF588AwUa6h_wfsReK2vQKkmqO0WorM-9TCOHVsvcEYf_8Blq_O-_y_UZS_FdQ/s4032/IMG_4522.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl8DXgoCdreBIWymhRPAZu9O3YyCM9mh6uYPNsG4Zyr5fimuUetEuQCUS_4rS0n3113Bon2SiZkF588AwUa6h_wfsReK2vQKkmqO0WorM-9TCOHVsvcEYf_8Blq_O-_y_UZS_FdQ/w480-h640/IMG_4522.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>I just love the refrigerator in Gavin's apartment. It's the perfect place to write his two favorite formulas. And who doesn't love magnet letters?!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWsrBAknB1sM2hvXIAA6RybqIEa-b8afl2FwG0vR-jsx6mfTheU9KOUMabWVTD1lAza4upVzScFoR5VvDadiixBMIEKoY8Lv5TohbVOr2Bh6Ui8UGgtE2kSFA2tFKTMUoKN-c1wQ/s2000/IMG_4465.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1332" data-original-width="2000" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWsrBAknB1sM2hvXIAA6RybqIEa-b8afl2FwG0vR-jsx6mfTheU9KOUMabWVTD1lAza4upVzScFoR5VvDadiixBMIEKoY8Lv5TohbVOr2Bh6Ui8UGgtE2kSFA2tFKTMUoKN-c1wQ/w640-h426/IMG_4465.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Meanwhile....back home, my high school senior is fending for herself. The original plan was only to be gone one night and her friend would come and stay the night with her. Chloe is highly independent and very good at staying on her own. So we never usually worry about her. Even though our flight plans changed, her friend and her were easily able to adjust their plans. </p><p>The day we left, Chloe worked a 6 hour shift as did her friend. They met up at the house after work and both were exhausted. Except Chloe felt extra exhausted. And hot. And achy. She took some ibuprofen and felt a tad bit better. But by the next morning when her fever spiked to 101, she knew she was sick. Her friend left immediately (only to end up with the same thing 3 days later). </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH_ClUzTy_DOE4r_ytj9vnYUQM7Y92qVgXUrbsp9cQK46pswgwoDn2OgAm5eFxy7b3FRBbdrRq0riVpqdDUKRarvBm8cX0V-IOBiJ5I9SJPHBO1cZ20lTq3bZO-7TBfZUmMHTsMg/s4032/IMG_4551.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH_ClUzTy_DOE4r_ytj9vnYUQM7Y92qVgXUrbsp9cQK46pswgwoDn2OgAm5eFxy7b3FRBbdrRq0riVpqdDUKRarvBm8cX0V-IOBiJ5I9SJPHBO1cZ20lTq3bZO-7TBfZUmMHTsMg/w480-h640/IMG_4551.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>So there we are having a blast in Fargo while Chloe is lying in bed with a high fever, moaning in pain over her sore throat, achy body, and migraine and having to take care of herself and Ninja.To say I felt awful is an understatement! That's one of my main jobs as a mom - to nurse the kids when they're sick and carry that burden with them. No one likes to be sick alone. </p><p>We stayed in touch via text both days. Most of the time she didn't want to be bothered and slept the majority of the day - that's all she could do. Thankfully, Ninja kept her company and slept with her. She did such a hard thing all by herself. </p><p>Sadly, we still don't know what virus she had. She had been exposed to covid at school 3 times (based on the contact tracing done by the school who alerted us). And it appears something was going around at her work as well (we still don't know what that was either). It had all the signs of a sinus infection but also the signs of the delta variant of covid which is highly transmissible. She took a covid text the Thursday before we left and it was negative. We took another today and have yet to get the results (I'll update the post later when we finally know). That's the thing about living in the era of covid now, you have to eliminate that possibility first. </p><p>But we're so happy to have 2 seniors, both culminating their final years of learning in high school and college. What exciting times! Plus, they graduate 1 week apart next May! The end of an known era and the excitement of new beginnings!<br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-7710821254399528752021-07-17T17:36:00.002-05:002021-07-17T17:44:41.467-05:00San Diego Vacation - Take Two<div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWsO9DiWd-Vg-f63VcKKgsgV0oJB6Eq1kgPU85SacoT_7IMEcn7JHIVJMSX6zFg8INXwYxLrIXpJ2gHBypnU2ObK1uE0p90Wfc2bKCt4S8O1j1O0ivJwORgMtXqkseWiVGvGjiGg/s4032/IMG_3994.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWsO9DiWd-Vg-f63VcKKgsgV0oJB6Eq1kgPU85SacoT_7IMEcn7JHIVJMSX6zFg8INXwYxLrIXpJ2gHBypnU2ObK1uE0p90Wfc2bKCt4S8O1j1O0ivJwORgMtXqkseWiVGvGjiGg/w640-h480/IMG_3994.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>Last year, "The Year Of Covid," curtailed any and all travel plans. The whole year pretty much passed in a blur. We barely went any where and did practically nothing. We were supposed to go on this vacation last year, but alas, it was not meant to be. So we went this year instead - eleven years after the first time we visited. I'm going to be doing lots of flash backs here because it's so uncanny how time changes us all. The first time we went the kids didn't eat as much, have as many opinions, have cell phones, and were all able to sleep in one bed together. Not so this time. Not so! Each time was perfect for who we were and are and a perfect reflection of our family at each phase of life.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBWZFf8AunL95U3Hr38e5U-zv_WmJsLah-G7yPqR7GgCI2dFhYD768L-5aBqpZd1UWNu1WJXWLBShTjsH9H6CYs6Et6040SVWfVqwXqu6McRSAEyW-vZi29pl612gVTNG3TE75Q/s2048/DSC09284_0175_Original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBWZFf8AunL95U3Hr38e5U-zv_WmJsLah-G7yPqR7GgCI2dFhYD768L-5aBqpZd1UWNu1WJXWLBShTjsH9H6CYs6Et6040SVWfVqwXqu6McRSAEyW-vZi29pl612gVTNG3TE75Q/w640-h480/DSC09284_0175_Original.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>In 2010 we visited most of the same beaches, but did it more as parents with kids instead of a family of friends. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAodph6_ZhucXft_AhblIAzdYZ2OAVNIQxCDYjD8Cg4lbgkqhNVxUihGaJUUswbYfSYaDTL5YSziW11SL0KASZ-LNzdxY3jFSIu016CtdbkvdSzHE72Xv0VnNhkhgElk2smTj-Zg/s1440/13A4495D-4D5D-4637-B411-E5D1CF27D342.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1440" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAodph6_ZhucXft_AhblIAzdYZ2OAVNIQxCDYjD8Cg4lbgkqhNVxUihGaJUUswbYfSYaDTL5YSziW11SL0KASZ-LNzdxY3jFSIu016CtdbkvdSzHE72Xv0VnNhkhgElk2smTj-Zg/w640-h640/13A4495D-4D5D-4637-B411-E5D1CF27D342.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p>Here, the kids bought their own boogie board. Chloe was actually the first one in the freezing cold water encouraging the rest of us to join her. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6q6AFdaB9fc81x6ZgBUiuliDiJagl03r_pYqHSiohSBw5Y3MtK_BjPYmREIzNqErPtQtABK3gVpbZR73x4tUe7YLeWTb5nvcEjdtu6ic-OKrshRUiyvDvCVnokggigsfgWt1alw/s2048/DSC09264_0189_Original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6q6AFdaB9fc81x6ZgBUiuliDiJagl03r_pYqHSiohSBw5Y3MtK_BjPYmREIzNqErPtQtABK3gVpbZR73x4tUe7YLeWTb5nvcEjdtu6ic-OKrshRUiyvDvCVnokggigsfgWt1alw/w640-h480/DSC09264_0189_Original.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Back then, Chloe was a little bit scared of the thunderous waves. But they all had fun together...a trait that continued on this trip as well.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJQRm2C04LHr0i7d87DyjK9YKcT7D6go_0owUtVStp-4rmgoo2tEz5C_rCjBCfjaWS5iYDvT1bUS-HBJimpWklfGWwFV95QMiKwcytnPXD0a1z4iDArf84_lHSt30dDEOUMEHJA/s2048/DSC09227_0222_Original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZJQRm2C04LHr0i7d87DyjK9YKcT7D6go_0owUtVStp-4rmgoo2tEz5C_rCjBCfjaWS5iYDvT1bUS-HBJimpWklfGWwFV95QMiKwcytnPXD0a1z4iDArf84_lHSt30dDEOUMEHJA/w640-h480/DSC09227_0222_Original.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Chuck and I were 37 and tired alot, having the demands that come with a young family. We loved every minute of it, especially those years between 2009-2011, we lovingly refer to those as our "golden years of parenting" cuz our kids were so much fun to hang around. We'd yet to experience teenagers and learn that it gets even better!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG51WcEYM3g7-5QYuHl5EX7YYkmW9rr-ilugaggeKLW7DNFRkioESFje5TIhkP3THENaUWkaqW8IgnB6m9TZQ2eIoyZr-pQvDifoaTItGRI0B9dXFENe_YZ_a-mjaqgimac89mVg/s3088/IMG_2083.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG51WcEYM3g7-5QYuHl5EX7YYkmW9rr-ilugaggeKLW7DNFRkioESFje5TIhkP3THENaUWkaqW8IgnB6m9TZQ2eIoyZr-pQvDifoaTItGRI0B9dXFENe_YZ_a-mjaqgimac89mVg/w480-h640/IMG_2083.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><p>Now we're in our late forties and so much more comfortable in our own skin. We still love hanging out with our kids, but more as friends these days. Our experience in San Diego was completely different this time because we had to take into account their wants and likes and dislikes. Last time, I just made the plan and we all did it and liked it. This time we spent what felt like hours ironing out how the day should flow, where to eat, which beach to go to, should we walk or drive. Everyone has opinions!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7JN2mlm0vRHRk_UI6-mffj472zWzwofw7cDRveHsppRJ_mHJM6tXilZvvAQagY5Cg1chIbepRd-wN4XQh2JA77QjUPRGOhmxhjK0D5Pia7lg3ZwppSjNmdnsNnJR11Z2GUf4XWg/s2048/DSC09298_0164.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7JN2mlm0vRHRk_UI6-mffj472zWzwofw7cDRveHsppRJ_mHJM6tXilZvvAQagY5Cg1chIbepRd-wN4XQh2JA77QjUPRGOhmxhjK0D5Pia7lg3ZwppSjNmdnsNnJR11Z2GUf4XWg/w640-h480/DSC09298_0164.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Back then we kept it simple and didn't go too far out into the ocean.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe-_yFXIZpF4qnQiw6D4BuumDoFx1S-YVpTBTIfom14-jLNcAo_bV7b6GDPkUAwuJVA0vnI2IRfRdakDwQelJ8K3xK8B7oo2jERYsWfrCiGlnOv_F3dz0FO_W12bC5F4eaaLZc-A/s4032/IMG_4174.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe-_yFXIZpF4qnQiw6D4BuumDoFx1S-YVpTBTIfom14-jLNcAo_bV7b6GDPkUAwuJVA0vnI2IRfRdakDwQelJ8K3xK8B7oo2jERYsWfrCiGlnOv_F3dz0FO_W12bC5F4eaaLZc-A/w640-h480/IMG_4174.HEIC" width="640" /></a><br /></div><p>This time, the more dangerous, the better! They waded as far out as possible. At one point a life guard had to come and tell them to move to a different location because the rip tides were really dangerous where they were. In Carlsbad, the waves were the best! We learned that was where the boogie board was born. I LOVED boogie boarding. It was so exciting. It took me a little longer to get in the water than it did for the kids, but I was right there with them most of the time. I made the mistake of putting my back to the waves and getting whiplashed over and over again.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl3_ZzlBDG_SCNsB4sv3mXy44_OmhbF8WfD2imwSx_DfyOWkkNWhtPAePgYzLRm3wjUoZTFFfajE503518Jx4NeYcxHHMz10MoL8KRtxemdZ36piTTclpvze_FDpex8Oy90kzzmQ/s4032/IMG_4212.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl3_ZzlBDG_SCNsB4sv3mXy44_OmhbF8WfD2imwSx_DfyOWkkNWhtPAePgYzLRm3wjUoZTFFfajE503518Jx4NeYcxHHMz10MoL8KRtxemdZ36piTTclpvze_FDpex8Oy90kzzmQ/w480-h640/IMG_4212.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>Chuck usually plays so hard, he crashes whenever he comes in contact with a bed. Here, he was ready to go out for dinner, but couldn't hold his eyes open. I love that he plays his heart out!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgh5vibXvhIcpMevL-ng5NrAw3e4rej4XlnT6iue_kLoT7Bpmyedt9e-0gX9YuRuLGQrAT7GZfrxgFxF7p-ED9Dk7Tac1IDt64eHHmzatE_eJ3509vUflpX8EoeF6IizB2VsQT2g/s2048/DSC09329_0139.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgh5vibXvhIcpMevL-ng5NrAw3e4rej4XlnT6iue_kLoT7Bpmyedt9e-0gX9YuRuLGQrAT7GZfrxgFxF7p-ED9Dk7Tac1IDt64eHHmzatE_eJ3509vUflpX8EoeF6IizB2VsQT2g/w640-h480/DSC09329_0139.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">This is how we did it back in the old days. The kids would all share one bed. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnnvVzdg6nT5drLQHIBhpzkhQR5392iMfBKq0O0AtLWc5JJHpMJcW1jjl4zIpEhAaRMWM_MvA7kvW5pYmPsE63vUGKHYT8R77PVTdUDpZVIAKhet6mWQ-2Vu3Kbp0okT4U73dcA/s4032/IMG_3907.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnnvVzdg6nT5drLQHIBhpzkhQR5392iMfBKq0O0AtLWc5JJHpMJcW1jjl4zIpEhAaRMWM_MvA7kvW5pYmPsE63vUGKHYT8R77PVTdUDpZVIAKhet6mWQ-2Vu3Kbp0okT4U73dcA/w640-h480/IMG_3907.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>But this trip, we even splurged on two rooms at one hotel. Not the one pictured. This picture is of the hotel in Vegas. Chuck, Chloe and I shared a bed in this one. That was fun. Speaking of Vegas - it was insane. That is all I have to say about that. The kids liked it though.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLadtFulJu2UEjN37YVReWgXm1Udik_1J-P0zGeY5mqsZlHYCYBt6Px6OgiK4_8ItNm01S40qg2zj9bR8-xyYdDkhxLpR6HWstc9d-V0NM_y_y4gL974WGabHbh3yS1RurZ4ocvg/s4032/IMG_3939.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLadtFulJu2UEjN37YVReWgXm1Udik_1J-P0zGeY5mqsZlHYCYBt6Px6OgiK4_8ItNm01S40qg2zj9bR8-xyYdDkhxLpR6HWstc9d-V0NM_y_y4gL974WGabHbh3yS1RurZ4ocvg/w640-h480/IMG_3939.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>This was our hotel in Vegas. It was beautiful, but it was also massive and filled with the entire population of the rest of the world. After all Covid restrictions were lifted, everyone seemed to flock here in droves. I took this picture at 6:30 in the morning. I'm sure some people were just going to bed around that time. In retrospect, it probably wasn't the best move to plan our arriving in Las Veags on July 4th. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_h6xnxEiY5K2yhjDAb4Fiwf0TN1fo_ZLuZlZlPAmCwYGrJZV1-1dHd6FVaQ9E7y2H8iZwNVIvFKVio7z0XAKDJmuR7GWhlOneRlwkeobSJAYu4UqhyphenhyphenrGsNoeGsp7xOZ1DribWA/s4032/IMG_3932.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn_h6xnxEiY5K2yhjDAb4Fiwf0TN1fo_ZLuZlZlPAmCwYGrJZV1-1dHd6FVaQ9E7y2H8iZwNVIvFKVio7z0XAKDJmuR7GWhlOneRlwkeobSJAYu4UqhyphenhyphenrGsNoeGsp7xOZ1DribWA/w640-h480/IMG_3932.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On the bright side though, we did have a spectacular view on the roof to watch the fireworks. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirIQRJcLZ3i53Ko59e29M9mJ-5c9GvpujomxLferDdCuYvPuI8wOqbAL_Z6P8sjDWbrcSdWniMEVsgSdyFqVZhEL9N63MW7-InNlrtYGOiuudQr0Fslg3HKUZjgmIAoBQG_hjbQA/s4032/IMG_3933.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirIQRJcLZ3i53Ko59e29M9mJ-5c9GvpujomxLferDdCuYvPuI8wOqbAL_Z6P8sjDWbrcSdWniMEVsgSdyFqVZhEL9N63MW7-InNlrtYGOiuudQr0Fslg3HKUZjgmIAoBQG_hjbQA/w640-h480/IMG_3933.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">A perfect view of the strip.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEwz_84fiIWt6fXAWlHFkx-GJTjnyQzUd_6-uT6KX_ytvXWPHh4X3bLWgHyzdN0aBCi3Z_-d5YuBrlnntg9Cm8hnd1jzF_ZWgNk6HzroyRj7hprq7CQJBboCvlmNOBhbCYfG1IQ/s4032/IMG_3937.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEwz_84fiIWt6fXAWlHFkx-GJTjnyQzUd_6-uT6KX_ytvXWPHh4X3bLWgHyzdN0aBCi3Z_-d5YuBrlnntg9Cm8hnd1jzF_ZWgNk6HzroyRj7hprq7CQJBboCvlmNOBhbCYfG1IQ/w640-h480/IMG_3937.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div>Like the crazy people we are, we thought it would be fun to drive down the strip at night to see all the bright lights. We were fools. It took us an hour to drive 1 mile. No joke. </div><div> </div><div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPZoNhoj-h746AaJQhZeJf75p9Xht0VMwMEfWS90aT8d9WzkF83UrXzo-ofdi3Mr3s0tdcx1s15wJDy_EfJ5XtsZINX2R9Z_x1bfp9y4wOQYZefwI1UStSX7peQRkAxbLnDc4fg/s2048/DSC09100_0328.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIPZoNhoj-h746AaJQhZeJf75p9Xht0VMwMEfWS90aT8d9WzkF83UrXzo-ofdi3Mr3s0tdcx1s15wJDy_EfJ5XtsZINX2R9Z_x1bfp9y4wOQYZefwI1UStSX7peQRkAxbLnDc4fg/w640-h480/DSC09100_0328.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Chloe in 2010 - 6 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ9vysXwAp48TcEJ0P6_gkTbpqroexGc00qO7LCnEUsmk6DOH62uKKIw7Uab9TGRvDAEd2NQRCxfzW7Z-r5WfqMv9SyWKjnjBUOPfanxrg5gcyE9xrz5TbyEq10dN1l58Lqa907w/s4032/IMG_4056.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ9vysXwAp48TcEJ0P6_gkTbpqroexGc00qO7LCnEUsmk6DOH62uKKIw7Uab9TGRvDAEd2NQRCxfzW7Z-r5WfqMv9SyWKjnjBUOPfanxrg5gcyE9xrz5TbyEq10dN1l58Lqa907w/w480-h640/IMG_4056.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Chloe in 2021 - 17 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9penEbZmKjLj25iNt_GwlFvVOxZfqABO90LNY1Ea9OPowqjeB2ZP_FNfx5zMQMcx55GqC-KqX7x4u4wBDel3c0pL4yqqRj10pX-s4AAMevXi6k040jJbC26opV84G3-AL-KzXQ/s2048/DSC09103_0325.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9penEbZmKjLj25iNt_GwlFvVOxZfqABO90LNY1Ea9OPowqjeB2ZP_FNfx5zMQMcx55GqC-KqX7x4u4wBDel3c0pL4yqqRj10pX-s4AAMevXi6k040jJbC26opV84G3-AL-KzXQ/w640-h480/DSC09103_0325.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Bennett in 2010 - 8 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOnvh69yf89I5Pa6m9dZ_XqJKrIMSAukm-MwS5naaQd8XSVt5Tj0FmSmZyKK4-WGFodByHNLDKlE-xnK8JwgcSYiPjJSNPFlOcjPZEFTwH2Nu1eoIdVSanYN8vNIIt16uGMmqGg/s4032/IMG_4233.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOnvh69yf89I5Pa6m9dZ_XqJKrIMSAukm-MwS5naaQd8XSVt5Tj0FmSmZyKK4-WGFodByHNLDKlE-xnK8JwgcSYiPjJSNPFlOcjPZEFTwH2Nu1eoIdVSanYN8vNIIt16uGMmqGg/w480-h640/IMG_4233.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Bennett in 2021 - 19 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp7NNF6zRUanG9DbimT2N-dxlwCNBs9XWoGVjQkI8SIX9jFIJI-auCL6iy4yWKDKOt-z_t-zkpk6lqX_8HYHJIyVFchzz_Ao5sXMeJ_oEFpsmvBJHxsRSt7RbAje6tkttb1A2udg/s2048/DSC09104_0324.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp7NNF6zRUanG9DbimT2N-dxlwCNBs9XWoGVjQkI8SIX9jFIJI-auCL6iy4yWKDKOt-z_t-zkpk6lqX_8HYHJIyVFchzz_Ao5sXMeJ_oEFpsmvBJHxsRSt7RbAje6tkttb1A2udg/w640-h480/DSC09104_0324.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Gavin in 2010 - 11 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPcqN4DQOz7qK6yFBB6-BFWR2Py2S22dKxB3qN825NDUVj1WT8d0bZYsLN2eHRMEXoAwRNFRLcmfqY7I2BPBQLbYpHVy3FmuZqGgcG_yNGlL3BOTrsBHMypwfmpoxisr7N3apcQ/s4032/IMG_4228.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPcqN4DQOz7qK6yFBB6-BFWR2Py2S22dKxB3qN825NDUVj1WT8d0bZYsLN2eHRMEXoAwRNFRLcmfqY7I2BPBQLbYpHVy3FmuZqGgcG_yNGlL3BOTrsBHMypwfmpoxisr7N3apcQ/w480-h640/IMG_4228.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Gavin in 2021 - 22 years old.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLvG9hBkuI5AqYlAWMJeylD-pJ0-qzwK9vqHoMiCl_pCro3HsODpY1HDQlxNaimViFRI9_BphRNYckaSWHCQqHDQebDnRa2WrAgpJgqqehYwt-wQhhNaXSIxHFK7RSTk5LWK2YEA/s2048/DSC08993_0422_Original.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLvG9hBkuI5AqYlAWMJeylD-pJ0-qzwK9vqHoMiCl_pCro3HsODpY1HDQlxNaimViFRI9_BphRNYckaSWHCQqHDQebDnRa2WrAgpJgqqehYwt-wQhhNaXSIxHFK7RSTk5LWK2YEA/w640-h480/DSC08993_0422_Original.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">We road-tripped it back then.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLtOfdTjJEdPQKdSsCDNWKH5q2j6aosXYL0CRyRFTCu9ez3h1znMB5BnIVH74INXeSdsBFlAiSmNFu7C4T7KloaJMmofPe8H7fN0JRq4kDK7pz9i8AmZ4rHtK76Jin6j5BiWQ-oQ/s2048/IMG_3881.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1539" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLtOfdTjJEdPQKdSsCDNWKH5q2j6aosXYL0CRyRFTCu9ez3h1znMB5BnIVH74INXeSdsBFlAiSmNFu7C4T7KloaJMmofPe8H7fN0JRq4kDK7pz9i8AmZ4rHtK76Jin6j5BiWQ-oQ/w640-h480/IMG_3881.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">And we did the same thing this go around.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCQinGGUcOem6aiQe9plh6bJdo9QErHSzwRBfIyU21G5Nm8pzBuxKKf7pDLOCfIPDC27Gba4ELg6XwSUDOOlqJ8PwcqqyrxT8MD2bw9gitGgCzWuB5QF3nNQUsQeru7Uqa4ERAvA/s4032/IMG_4276.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCQinGGUcOem6aiQe9plh6bJdo9QErHSzwRBfIyU21G5Nm8pzBuxKKf7pDLOCfIPDC27Gba4ELg6XwSUDOOlqJ8PwcqqyrxT8MD2bw9gitGgCzWuB5QF3nNQUsQeru7Uqa4ERAvA/w640-h480/IMG_4276.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">We watched more gorgeous sunsets.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvNt8-fkoWoTb0HIJgQAog3uRoMe-D_ZZYaSO-tnXuujEnN6cXUKLBaMoF9HYGcDNbUWdtTo5IOKBiQg7F7MJu6myUYzY8_e4IZ17ioQkllJ7mMrnhYpzm7zRwumCgh_2bSnsNA/s4032/IMG_4139.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvNt8-fkoWoTb0HIJgQAog3uRoMe-D_ZZYaSO-tnXuujEnN6cXUKLBaMoF9HYGcDNbUWdtTo5IOKBiQg7F7MJu6myUYzY8_e4IZ17ioQkllJ7mMrnhYpzm7zRwumCgh_2bSnsNA/w640-h480/IMG_4139.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div> </div><div>Multiple times. The kids couldn't understand if I saw a sunset last night, why I needed to see another one again the next night. But I stood my ground and saw my sunsets. </div><div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwq36A5qqjpVoSFDM-QMcFNSko3ZH0hJmiajG5GyrR4ziE7lTZBDMKW5Hd3nzHsRobxcjW8ai1UnBbrqszStK5p0DKzwAjzBHl0D-5IC_7n7MF5BBXVXCYqR6Ab_mq8-hHByxaQ/s4032/IMG_4047.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYwq36A5qqjpVoSFDM-QMcFNSko3ZH0hJmiajG5GyrR4ziE7lTZBDMKW5Hd3nzHsRobxcjW8ai1UnBbrqszStK5p0DKzwAjzBHl0D-5IC_7n7MF5BBXVXCYqR6Ab_mq8-hHByxaQ/w640-h480/IMG_4047.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">What's not to love about La Jolla?! My FAVORITE!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiLFaNxxfA0AasFNoxmIGPanPjYwTAmB1_5H7BR7gMUYMrH4NiqSLNr3kQwYl8XJ27_Lz6OA94BI21eya_IeFvyy5CzkKS-WV2eU1LeVwSC1apuw1j6zYs4UV3OurL4acx0WrelA/s4032/IMG_4193.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiLFaNxxfA0AasFNoxmIGPanPjYwTAmB1_5H7BR7gMUYMrH4NiqSLNr3kQwYl8XJ27_Lz6OA94BI21eya_IeFvyy5CzkKS-WV2eU1LeVwSC1apuw1j6zYs4UV3OurL4acx0WrelA/w480-h640/IMG_4193.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div> </div><div>We proved that we can be 48 and cool still! I don't think we embarrassed the kids too much!</div><div> </div><div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnj59F3MoBE0OPUKVa3AWarTPYsSqowQcjOLdN1vJi5OKmQCu2g2NeNtRsLkaqDJQM9MoLQP52Z0Fu9gmxEF1nkVtaNFIJWfTonOdcnZVKN7qZUZotmy3UEFzr5miwHjhpvKnH5A/s4032/IMG_4205.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnj59F3MoBE0OPUKVa3AWarTPYsSqowQcjOLdN1vJi5OKmQCu2g2NeNtRsLkaqDJQM9MoLQP52Z0Fu9gmxEF1nkVtaNFIJWfTonOdcnZVKN7qZUZotmy3UEFzr5miwHjhpvKnH5A/w640-h480/IMG_4205.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>An important side note is our love of ice cream on vacation. I think we had it almost every day. Sometimes it was in place of a meal. But there was one place that stole our hearts - Shoobie's in Carlsbad. So we went there twice. It was Nitrogen ice cream. We picked the type of milk (or non-dairy alternative) and toppings and they added nitrogen to the liquid ingredients and mixed the concoction together in front of our very own eyes and we loved every minute of it. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzzINWbpfyi6DTEi30UpvOgHZU6RdzPc9kMkTVaegVzx0yaGU7w58qOmLt5bc-8111CT8HkZ-Gf0jVALBmzEt17Xz1kXOPaAXc6KsAulXipyjJkzr5iEiRZ8I99ZEo18Q73p-3g/s4032/IMG_3965.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzzINWbpfyi6DTEi30UpvOgHZU6RdzPc9kMkTVaegVzx0yaGU7w58qOmLt5bc-8111CT8HkZ-Gf0jVALBmzEt17Xz1kXOPaAXc6KsAulXipyjJkzr5iEiRZ8I99ZEo18Q73p-3g/w640-h480/IMG_3965.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>We enjoyed many a hot tub at all our various hotels over the course of our 9 day trip.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3jJ8S2a-1f5SIvYo4DBFazOiaIFm5JswM5Rl18cBzm8E8GTu8lWaOzygjJCnHfC7xtZlr_SIpFCy0fcdkJpC7Nh6Hi-XhGiplOPBkEM79_cT36Mi4B-RKyIXJ4daz81mJ7Ds1Q/s4032/IMG_4006.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3jJ8S2a-1f5SIvYo4DBFazOiaIFm5JswM5Rl18cBzm8E8GTu8lWaOzygjJCnHfC7xtZlr_SIpFCy0fcdkJpC7Nh6Hi-XhGiplOPBkEM79_cT36Mi4B-RKyIXJ4daz81mJ7Ds1Q/w480-h640/IMG_4006.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>We also had the unfortunate luck of witnessing an almost dead seal on the beach. That is why Chloe is having a cow. She noticed that it wasn't dead, had a huge bite taken out of it, and was flopping around kind of pathetically. She was not pleased to be witness to this cycle of life event.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uxXFIUD2MTzfnzN9ytwK8f_v9bDwYmOEI4P3iDYUDsNI3UQ9VNk5dQ194alw4S1DVzMIrfWLPJS5YIPungE0-dh3j6rZPDYtQnwD4GHyD4ZaVxglnu33HGreEKsXQ4gboHGRdA/s4032/IMG_4065.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uxXFIUD2MTzfnzN9ytwK8f_v9bDwYmOEI4P3iDYUDsNI3UQ9VNk5dQ194alw4S1DVzMIrfWLPJS5YIPungE0-dh3j6rZPDYtQnwD4GHyD4ZaVxglnu33HGreEKsXQ4gboHGRdA/w640-h480/IMG_4065.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>We also had some HILARIOUS conversations regarding Bennett's need to workout. He let it be known that he still planned on working out while we were on vacation because it is "bulking season." Although, he didn't want to wake up early to do said workout. He wanted to try to plan it around our schedule (which there was none). This is a conversation we were having in a hotel lobby one night and it was so hilarious. I recorded a large chunk of it where Bennett is trying to explain what "bulking season" is and why he must continue even while on vacation. He couldn't seem to understand that vacation is just that...a break from our "norms." For the record, he never once worked out but was very peeved that he wasn't looking as strong because of it. And he did indulge in all our ice cream and In And Out Burger outings as well. Needless to say, we were laughing so hard, it was therapeutic. And "bulking season" became a big buzzword during our entire trip.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmsB0V4yZKkTFklJvvYXsySvRH7kSwG2I9GlufHzZ5YPdKnbXrf5_LpKCA3YIMohheVDXqv2MQc4VJTWwu6EY0Rjts92cV4dWYZANJ7dOV4iimS3tthODC7bxSb3ccyz9Nve1pg/s4032/IMG_3947.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmsB0V4yZKkTFklJvvYXsySvRH7kSwG2I9GlufHzZ5YPdKnbXrf5_LpKCA3YIMohheVDXqv2MQc4VJTWwu6EY0Rjts92cV4dWYZANJ7dOV4iimS3tthODC7bxSb3ccyz9Nve1pg/w640-h480/IMG_3947.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>It wasn't all sunshine and palm trees though, lest you think we had the perfect vacation. Oh no! Far from it. We actually ended up driving through the Mojave desert. This was never the plan, but happened none-the-less. A 5 hour drive turned into an 8 1/2 hour drive. So, this is why we got to see so many Joshua Trees. I never want to see them again. This trip caused me to reevaluate my appreciation of the desert lifestyle. My new opinion is - I don't like it. The end. We also had a horrible experience at our first hotel...it was a dump! Bugs in the windows and on the bed. Horrible restaurant food. But we made the most of it. I emptied a can of lysol on to all surfaces. And then someone was reminded of how this experience was just like an episode of Schitt's Creek - which it was exactly! So we watched it that night to help lighten the mood and commiserate with the actors on that show.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRSLCrzrn9uQSMAORNFPBLZZ5_3g8vBfghkNGbOj34ysSSje-pnVd3m4OSQjeqsv1eC1cuNdyH5oU0v_XOJZkZAKyqo59RY1zZKOfM773PMh0YN5PzzkwP8ENa9XlRTMrBskEowQ/s2048/DSC09334_0134.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRSLCrzrn9uQSMAORNFPBLZZ5_3g8vBfghkNGbOj34ysSSje-pnVd3m4OSQjeqsv1eC1cuNdyH5oU0v_XOJZkZAKyqo59RY1zZKOfM773PMh0YN5PzzkwP8ENa9XlRTMrBskEowQ/w640-h480/DSC09334_0134.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Last time we went to Legoland. It was awesome! The kids were the perfect age!<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM4ifA2uifT0IhO7SaQ7afeSlW2Pre_yUeZ0DTPlMbXUmnLo-rbN9zxQ4rQjoWeKX1vR1gFNYengENcGVnJsEYucOT9SU5NQnDm1EZxMyR5BmAQWz8Qi1OYVSn8KYQWhXReZBKSw/s4032/IMG_4159.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM4ifA2uifT0IhO7SaQ7afeSlW2Pre_yUeZ0DTPlMbXUmnLo-rbN9zxQ4rQjoWeKX1vR1gFNYengENcGVnJsEYucOT9SU5NQnDm1EZxMyR5BmAQWz8Qi1OYVSn8KYQWhXReZBKSw/w640-h480/IMG_4159.JPG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This time we went to Sea Life Aquariam at Legoland. Gavin reminded us that last time we went, there was no such thing as a selfie. Instead, we bought all the kids disposable cameras to use so we could see the trip through their eyes.<br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppCiH4P7JQ5p4H0GmUS0thXG0MTPA-AbdF3SRtdYHKz1z_pBFZ1o1wuHZ1uo3ja0QZDnAooyndUNxPI62txiLJ0oajuILVlG9DOOQvcboOFqLNYODbBAXYGsqeKASbFzuIuCF5g/s2579/IMG_4155.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2579" data-original-width="1934" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppCiH4P7JQ5p4H0GmUS0thXG0MTPA-AbdF3SRtdYHKz1z_pBFZ1o1wuHZ1uo3ja0QZDnAooyndUNxPI62txiLJ0oajuILVlG9DOOQvcboOFqLNYODbBAXYGsqeKASbFzuIuCF5g/w480-h640/IMG_4155.JPG" width="480" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Now</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBor74ocrS1lUKz2py3slxnoUuYQ1Co2FMH8ElQb3zkPpLSqLs25W-90PJIM5Ejq5YuvsDpZcaKfIjI-Jd7bUhDbT4KsGm4tTZoo43bJtuZMfHZcb0uwG-iOnA3NhNN3Qpc1uPQ/s2048/DSC09073_0350_Original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXBor74ocrS1lUKz2py3slxnoUuYQ1Co2FMH8ElQb3zkPpLSqLs25W-90PJIM5Ejq5YuvsDpZcaKfIjI-Jd7bUhDbT4KsGm4tTZoo43bJtuZMfHZcb0uwG-iOnA3NhNN3Qpc1uPQ/w640-h480/DSC09073_0350_Original.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Then</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoGm69x1yQ6brgt2kLzHnLRz8t11lbv1dZxcZHOTf9ppcGZI0fmE2SKgRdj5mS8dPKjeX-2PNM15zGKedxustAEYa_4btPNZI5q0v3eBoID1u9w407cCOMm_-bDrlZbY8lhSWdg/s2048/DSC09460_0017.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoGm69x1yQ6brgt2kLzHnLRz8t11lbv1dZxcZHOTf9ppcGZI0fmE2SKgRdj5mS8dPKjeX-2PNM15zGKedxustAEYa_4btPNZI5q0v3eBoID1u9w407cCOMm_-bDrlZbY8lhSWdg/w640-h480/DSC09460_0017.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Fam - 2010</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkQO4lshmBRGJoc6vnmH1ToMrdHhoTHPh_OmZl6YtUCRzhzcbz-zzaF86ZXKe7Q7ZmFXMFC6SRbV27cJBIXuq0FrKM4aNxM2BJWT4ggOnWDccgJAYXZwf6exLu_YDMsSZEa4BOZA/s4032/IMG_4057.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkQO4lshmBRGJoc6vnmH1ToMrdHhoTHPh_OmZl6YtUCRzhzcbz-zzaF86ZXKe7Q7ZmFXMFC6SRbV27cJBIXuq0FrKM4aNxM2BJWT4ggOnWDccgJAYXZwf6exLu_YDMsSZEa4BOZA/w640-h480/IMG_4057.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Fam - 2021. I love them both.<br /></div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-68373551844305557222021-06-29T08:00:00.006-05:002021-06-29T16:32:47.537-05:00Sticky Note Affirmations<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibKEBSLBpFyoFL9hW5DJFhFtRk8jBoS1q5da8It8iv2CFg5BsZsXxhLNt8QYqSdpVaNHzz_esTiZGwVNE01Yw94oIqn46vbZAAVnJEwGGwa4BG7fmZb7gcPvIqnmy5HGnux0IhkQ/s4032/IMG_3827.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibKEBSLBpFyoFL9hW5DJFhFtRk8jBoS1q5da8It8iv2CFg5BsZsXxhLNt8QYqSdpVaNHzz_esTiZGwVNE01Yw94oIqn46vbZAAVnJEwGGwa4BG7fmZb7gcPvIqnmy5HGnux0IhkQ/w480-h640/IMG_3827.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> This is Chloe's bathroom. We like to leave love notes for each other. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR7-y87RcuOJ1rPuC6NpmFJmOlbaPZe_Y0uip4cRFMCLuBTaDef_XGxIdc3BJE-zuAnXpFEosPo7WFAVbnFHYkSiVak2JVe-vIjPK4xzK4d0S_eGf4VaBFzfZCalRmuMKc5WhCJg/s4032/IMG_3828.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR7-y87RcuOJ1rPuC6NpmFJmOlbaPZe_Y0uip4cRFMCLuBTaDef_XGxIdc3BJE-zuAnXpFEosPo7WFAVbnFHYkSiVak2JVe-vIjPK4xzK4d0S_eGf4VaBFzfZCalRmuMKc5WhCJg/w480-h640/IMG_3828.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is the door to her bathroom. <br /></div><p></p><p></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinznZEhPs0pcBRimXvr_b0oPQsQsj7u5fNKvgHf2vT0kP2kKF7sffxXUccNcjqu_FOeeNSn9AWthNjlOfzKnEEUJhca-VfydmXV0qRjonxz9qwykgbQFHMI6b9ai1EnQzqbKeDLA/s4032/IMG_3829.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinznZEhPs0pcBRimXvr_b0oPQsQsj7u5fNKvgHf2vT0kP2kKF7sffxXUccNcjqu_FOeeNSn9AWthNjlOfzKnEEUJhca-VfydmXV0qRjonxz9qwykgbQFHMI6b9ai1EnQzqbKeDLA/w480-h640/IMG_3829.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is my side of the sink. I feel overwhelmed with gratitude by all the love coming off those sticky notes from all my people. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFMArgrHCoCi4uXa9qpAORNMHflQPOaKtNuGK3Brj6e_5eqt9vECYpMr8eM9cg8VcJGGlBNl1YJ-RyymghSCx1UdRkK3K8IipVED7pgozQ7ev332J9SAOKDLSLhWWhsn_LrxZpg/s4032/IMG_3830.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFMArgrHCoCi4uXa9qpAORNMHflQPOaKtNuGK3Brj6e_5eqt9vECYpMr8eM9cg8VcJGGlBNl1YJ-RyymghSCx1UdRkK3K8IipVED7pgozQ7ev332J9SAOKDLSLhWWhsn_LrxZpg/w480-h640/IMG_3830.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is Chuck's side of the sink. At first glance, one might see an inequity of sticky notes. But, how many dads have their very own poster board of their perfect likeness smothered in affirming sticky notes taped to the bathroom door? That's what I thought. So maybe the inequity isn't as
drastic as it appears. I wouldn't feel too sorry for him. He's feeling the love. Afterall, just look at that smile. <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWk8BaHrbxSQhH4EyaEO4D7hDxEIqf9731lZYZJwnocThGliXnoAtpW147HORphXnKY072-GsHjrmt6ekgqwlikCVVEUNju29tw4NwT9WJIZyeZdRLNxTuHJ147oIvvP-oIAP9fA/s4032/IMG_3864.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWk8BaHrbxSQhH4EyaEO4D7hDxEIqf9731lZYZJwnocThGliXnoAtpW147HORphXnKY072-GsHjrmt6ekgqwlikCVVEUNju29tw4NwT9WJIZyeZdRLNxTuHJ147oIvvP-oIAP9fA/w480-h640/IMG_3864.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div>One thing I know for sure, I treasure these little pieces of paper more than any one knows. Affirmations go a long way!<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /> <p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-33982995035786610172021-06-27T17:55:00.007-05:002021-06-27T22:00:38.326-05:00Work Fam<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMAcdMSiwCO81D_7zK5j0UyVtaZXVtNiGHVvVn6jMVzQQNsNzNHu4vo9GyGz_PaoWVTdka8V5JsG8B9cSDNkLG2Lcc2SEc-wQTbo1wLoRX0DtbeoxnReEpqfH_osgp4LRJ7YJbew/s4032/IMG_3834.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMAcdMSiwCO81D_7zK5j0UyVtaZXVtNiGHVvVn6jMVzQQNsNzNHu4vo9GyGz_PaoWVTdka8V5JsG8B9cSDNkLG2Lcc2SEc-wQTbo1wLoRX0DtbeoxnReEpqfH_osgp4LRJ7YJbew/w640-h480/IMG_3834.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Why am I so lucky?! I have THE BEST work family. Everyone is so supportive of each other and genuinely cares. When I was looking for a new job last year, I didn't anticipate also getting a family. What a beautiful bonus! It's taken me a long time to learn the business (medicare) and I ask at least a million questions a day, but they are each so patient with me. They are always teaching and I am always learning. The least I can do to show my thanks is feed them. <br /></p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmnvBt9Do6PBH1KwHnxcQpfiAQ6j-HTTob7TdCft9X_deKjpy9U9zZz4TUZ82rx6I3YGGWBU100ScljAYTODbNsyYi_29KEcR-FGPlhthG5ma-HraTD9YTEEd2MW5EdIAcVaydA/s4032/IMG_3841.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNmnvBt9Do6PBH1KwHnxcQpfiAQ6j-HTTob7TdCft9X_deKjpy9U9zZz4TUZ82rx6I3YGGWBU100ScljAYTODbNsyYi_29KEcR-FGPlhthG5ma-HraTD9YTEEd2MW5EdIAcVaydA/w480-h640/IMG_3841.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div><p>So, this weekend they came to my house to play with my family and me and they fit right in. We ate awesome tacos, drank delicious mocktails, and played ping pong, spike ball, corn hole, and Taboo. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGC9L7SHpuFyLha6dzgvHfRDtIKxv3GCKN9XVecoTcb6sJnRonCFOERXNDecufqCsD75DUzj_IsIlLgkDcz2BtOYNXeDvIii0KEzFYUCzGFhJAx6TN695h095JCcbUD_tfDV0Ig/s4032/IMG_3855.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpGC9L7SHpuFyLha6dzgvHfRDtIKxv3GCKN9XVecoTcb6sJnRonCFOERXNDecufqCsD75DUzj_IsIlLgkDcz2BtOYNXeDvIii0KEzFYUCzGFhJAx6TN695h095JCcbUD_tfDV0Ig/w640-h480/IMG_3855.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Families that play together, stay together. I love us! <br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-85098316280806930922021-06-23T15:41:00.003-05:002021-06-23T15:41:57.379-05:00Captain Fitness<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYhPDbZuOUSloon0wUXYfCZBk699t2tkDQrJp0AK0woV8EKq-le5oPby2DaCc6_9CmYmFIlsOTJGDs9kR0bpBms5n_beoGtbLT4JbYZArwFRkhyh9nCscIE5AsqagODLplGGh3sQ/s4032/IMG_3817.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYhPDbZuOUSloon0wUXYfCZBk699t2tkDQrJp0AK0woV8EKq-le5oPby2DaCc6_9CmYmFIlsOTJGDs9kR0bpBms5n_beoGtbLT4JbYZArwFRkhyh9nCscIE5AsqagODLplGGh3sQ/w480-h640/IMG_3817.JPG" width="480" /></a></div> <p></p><p>Look at this sweet girl being all muscular and stuff. She honestly has gotten very strong while working at The Little Gym. Not only from having to constantly pick up young children, but also from all the cleaning and moving of heavy mats and equipment she also does as part of her job. </p><p>But that's not what this story is about. Each week, the gym's classes are centered around a theme...exercise, castles., food. Stuff like that. One of those weeks, Chloe was tagged by her bosses as "Captain Fitness." And because these are such young little ones, they still blur the line between reality and fantasy most of the time. They called her Captain Fitness the rest of the day. She reveled in her new found heroism. </p><br />corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-29534367343050369412021-06-20T20:41:00.000-05:002021-06-20T20:41:04.860-05:00The Homeless Hotel<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZmZunpQATYjAmLoPKMQ41s0gMzgxV2DYEOSqBp_JWJ6c5G_7lFbNT7MGmWazhlzpD2ZYpoh4NCVlY7HzK3McYstzh7ShtQfeOxVWKAp6DpQjQgMOnxAWst2xiRUwYWK_za0JdQ/s4032/IMG_5232.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFZmZunpQATYjAmLoPKMQ41s0gMzgxV2DYEOSqBp_JWJ6c5G_7lFbNT7MGmWazhlzpD2ZYpoh4NCVlY7HzK3McYstzh7ShtQfeOxVWKAp6DpQjQgMOnxAWst2xiRUwYWK_za0JdQ/w480-h640/IMG_5232.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br />This was supposed to be a fun brother/sister trip to Tempe, AZ to check
out ASU together. Although Chloe and I had already been, Bennett wanted to see the area and Chloe wanted to go with him. But as you can tell from the title, it devolved into
something else entirely. So this is the text we get from Bennett after they checked into the hotel:<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOCRVvF4WUwtpzGML_eOSmTfiHdhSHuhSPcbCMbUkEqvPaIPOWyE7sxjpGUYVOXBVIPl4Vpk7KCbou4L9RnWkIitSUiMkaz5m2LnwRUR7RQrG25Vop2KHOVXqQq7DYB1Z8xW7eCw/s1334/IMG_3805.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOCRVvF4WUwtpzGML_eOSmTfiHdhSHuhSPcbCMbUkEqvPaIPOWyE7sxjpGUYVOXBVIPl4Vpk7KCbou4L9RnWkIitSUiMkaz5m2LnwRUR7RQrG25Vop2KHOVXqQq7DYB1Z8xW7eCw/w360-h640/IMG_3805.PNG" width="360" /></a></div><p></p><p>Since the kids aren't old enough to rent a car, they were dependent on the hotel shuttle to pick them up from the airport. I spent LOTS of time picking out just the right hotel. It had to be close to campus, close to the airport, offer a shuttle, have free breakfast, a great pool, a fitness center, and allow a 19 year old to reserve a room. Quite a lot of parameters, but I've never met a challenge I can't meet (okay, tbh, I've met quite a few...but none that involve researching and finding the perfect hotel for the amount I'm willing to spend). Ergo...because I spent so much time looking for just the right place, I was devastated to learn that it was so awful. The website mentioned some renovations, but nothing about no amenities whatsoever. 🤦 Then later that evening, Chloe texts us this message:<br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-Fc5WAqXEhy4a4nV12NczwakyE6EfLcm2yZktbxZ5cF7h6T9UjOBKc97vBmkoB4L7U0hlUa_CLscynkEAZp8s9fXEx3fCuPqu7aC3j4CYhKCOZM3YA3zHsdKOv5jsv2tcY_KRQ/s1334/IMG_3779.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI-Fc5WAqXEhy4a4nV12NczwakyE6EfLcm2yZktbxZ5cF7h6T9UjOBKc97vBmkoB4L7U0hlUa_CLscynkEAZp8s9fXEx3fCuPqu7aC3j4CYhKCOZM3YA3zHsdKOv5jsv2tcY_KRQ/w360-h640/IMG_3779.PNG" width="360" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">OMG! Stick a dagger in my heart already! I feel just awful! Aren't parents supposed to protect their young?! What have we done?! You can take us out of the running for the Parent of Year Award now. One more interesting twist...Do you see that fire truck on the far left
in the first picture? Yes, the fire alarm went off while they were there
and they had to go outside, through the homeless stairwell and wait
with all the homeless people for the firetruck to come check the
building and allow them back in. At this point, I just wanted to yell at
somebody. MY BABIES are stuck in a homeless hotel and I put them there
unknowingly! Arghhh!! Talk about feeling helpless. In my wisdom, and as
penance, I stayed up all night worrying. I left the ringer on my phone
and told the kids to call or text me any time of the night. My stomach
churned and my mind came up with all the worst case scenarios it could
think of. Typical Mom stuff. I thought about practicing my breathing
techniques I learned to calm down and lower my racing heart - but my
lungs were having none of it. I then tried praying, but that brought no
solace either. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_tXwpdleOlLa9LHJJC9LXo3lA0OmT6L_aqMMlqRI4dH6k7JWSTwHEpbEJw_fhljqQKqfQXR0o2ZIZTizyVqw4fMKBZ1UcWMCGaicBbN5io4XDbBMvsU41rsETOYYP8lRS4uI5Gg/s1334/IMG_3780.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_tXwpdleOlLa9LHJJC9LXo3lA0OmT6L_aqMMlqRI4dH6k7JWSTwHEpbEJw_fhljqQKqfQXR0o2ZIZTizyVqw4fMKBZ1UcWMCGaicBbN5io4XDbBMvsU41rsETOYYP8lRS4uI5Gg/w360-h640/IMG_3780.PNG" width="360" /></a></div><br />I love that the lesson Chloe saw in all of this was resilience. YES! Yes, Chloe...that's what I was hoping you would learn but was certainly not manipulating the circumstances to create this opportunity. But my heart is tickled that she saw it this way. She knew that she had a choice and they both chose to see the humor, the deeper character lesson, and make the most of their time together.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7tHxodKMhM7lWb2qOI5MvZXDkZbHihkvHjydpJOdZ9kSVMDW5Km8qMj2QaJLmLsHTzcLQFveOJKgHX5xF5bY-20yArioVCVRN3TcjvSQr-LHMeDckE76ZJBFSN4He2ZqxSRiJ_g/s4032/IMG_3803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7tHxodKMhM7lWb2qOI5MvZXDkZbHihkvHjydpJOdZ9kSVMDW5Km8qMj2QaJLmLsHTzcLQFveOJKgHX5xF5bY-20yArioVCVRN3TcjvSQr-LHMeDckE76ZJBFSN4He2ZqxSRiJ_g/w640-h480/IMG_3803.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>This is the "pretty at night" picture Chloe was talking about. The reason there are almost no day pictures is because of the other fact that made this trip insane is that it was 118 degrees both days they were there. That made being outside in the day close to impossible. And remember, they had to walk everywhere because they didn't have a car. There is no pool to cool off in. And the cold water didn't work in their shower.I mean, it totally looks like we sent them off to Phoenix and set this whole thing up so they wouldn't ever want to go back. We couldn't have planned this if we tried. It's so unbelievable, it's funny! Now they have a crazy story to share that will become mythical by the time they have kids of their own looking at colleges.<br /></p><p> <br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-31983225982367367382021-05-31T16:22:00.002-05:002021-05-31T16:22:14.848-05:00Chloe's Turn<div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhICM_snR855YEvjMtsqkG3GQ4J0qQ_s-E8U0fWA8_vCqMSTTBU3NfKBC5yIOlywFJgJOCU-In9LVOf90iXuaxK-ieHAwxh7FV8STPAOTWx_BppAdIQaNd7bAnsS_MT8QhfKeY0jg/s4032/IMG_3587.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhICM_snR855YEvjMtsqkG3GQ4J0qQ_s-E8U0fWA8_vCqMSTTBU3NfKBC5yIOlywFJgJOCU-In9LVOf90iXuaxK-ieHAwxh7FV8STPAOTWx_BppAdIQaNd7bAnsS_MT8QhfKeY0jg/w640-h480/IMG_3587.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">This is the dream. If she can achieve it, she will be one happy camper!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP30yEqteFc7XrV4hFeL3exfJDWXmHinyg0XrPDzIJCwzZvNPiU1TXHolSa3GKRRGV00WGBdoFLu4BhkYHNSzUorDGn9mD9P1XOo86yzSiYn0OQnNEzusXx7zpYDhKvPW-2Gtm5A/s4032/IMG_3590.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP30yEqteFc7XrV4hFeL3exfJDWXmHinyg0XrPDzIJCwzZvNPiU1TXHolSa3GKRRGV00WGBdoFLu4BhkYHNSzUorDGn9mD9P1XOo86yzSiYn0OQnNEzusXx7zpYDhKvPW-2Gtm5A/w640-h480/IMG_3590.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Palm trees and sun. Check. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMoj5X_k4JOKbs6CKW4jK0vTXFXl4X61zvvlROKzj2ipvUinsT1QnEyFQQangP-KD3LkpDPA4-0unaWvCljoYbCSrtqdAqrXfaY7aP1hh4dfsj0vjqTJkxhA-1MmjTZdtPBmmgw/s4032/IMG_3577.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMoj5X_k4JOKbs6CKW4jK0vTXFXl4X61zvvlROKzj2ipvUinsT1QnEyFQQangP-KD3LkpDPA4-0unaWvCljoYbCSrtqdAqrXfaY7aP1hh4dfsj0vjqTJkxhA-1MmjTZdtPBmmgw/w640-h480/IMG_3577.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">An inclusive motto and self-contained, beautiful campus. Check.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSl4LWqwrZFraRrmVZPi4WAfoltfyphM3MOfkuUsQyxWqepvzEIitGZUzuwBhHTv1Ft4QQ7NCzNPD8oIBc9plOW4sy33BCkKFAt53112D25h6_6IkU5KpOSG5FZTNHKDVp0MzfWw/s4032/IMG_3576.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSl4LWqwrZFraRrmVZPi4WAfoltfyphM3MOfkuUsQyxWqepvzEIitGZUzuwBhHTv1Ft4QQ7NCzNPD8oIBc9plOW4sy33BCkKFAt53112D25h6_6IkU5KpOSG5FZTNHKDVp0MzfWw/w480-h640/IMG_3576.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"> Applying with her best friend. Check.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEyi68ip8wZMRfFA4dXILhs7y2NpzuNQrnpMW-_5pINycte7fcL2HqhHrQnGZUKDqwZEcwO9Lvtvm8YNaxoM4Feac-loclUMRP5ycmks8bG6hoTmUV5j8-rKeKb6x6dXyzXbd0IQ/s4032/IMG_3564.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEyi68ip8wZMRfFA4dXILhs7y2NpzuNQrnpMW-_5pINycte7fcL2HqhHrQnGZUKDqwZEcwO9Lvtvm8YNaxoM4Feac-loclUMRP5ycmks8bG6hoTmUV5j8-rKeKb6x6dXyzXbd0IQ/w640-h480/IMG_3564.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Awesome dorms! Check.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8BaVu_g0wmUeGA1aMNKKuyjT-PNGj8PeNYgnt7JcKmw8z445_q3znubEvQmvNwjl7XnFcBehFyIe47T-K3B4qyB3Bs2sKxT2-6L66UPs2dQMJEzbK8uLYwVX6U84ZlsrVdedW2Q/s4032/IMG_3566.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8BaVu_g0wmUeGA1aMNKKuyjT-PNGj8PeNYgnt7JcKmw8z445_q3znubEvQmvNwjl7XnFcBehFyIe47T-K3B4qyB3Bs2sKxT2-6L66UPs2dQMJEzbK8uLYwVX6U84ZlsrVdedW2Q/w480-h640/IMG_3566.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Plenty of bathroom space in said dorms. Check.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAi97AXX9ZZX3qtfcr47VTeTg3Gi9t9ZBrQxesPaahldnGT4ROTmBawtKT8F7kFc0MRmqwlAAWU97l_tCijlPSBCbay_gaifrWVYo9WNylv0NcTZq8wZUmZi14zn9UxghEMKAEvA/s4032/IMG_3662.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAi97AXX9ZZX3qtfcr47VTeTg3Gi9t9ZBrQxesPaahldnGT4ROTmBawtKT8F7kFc0MRmqwlAAWU97l_tCijlPSBCbay_gaifrWVYo9WNylv0NcTZq8wZUmZi14zn9UxghEMKAEvA/w480-h640/IMG_3662.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">A best friend to share all the excitement, dreams, and time with. Check.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEbJrFuRWSmfQb4AzrFP2gouUmT9BSS11fn_6TFxZ_cdaNGc-KA_Wh-0EcAEnyun0Oj5BeOcvjNOzY4-ETQoSBdnCst9WDdzSyOFbX5GrPtzppL1cuPPBVTybcXGKblgX_VL7_hw/s4032/IMG_3611.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEbJrFuRWSmfQb4AzrFP2gouUmT9BSS11fn_6TFxZ_cdaNGc-KA_Wh-0EcAEnyun0Oj5BeOcvjNOzY4-ETQoSBdnCst9WDdzSyOFbX5GrPtzppL1cuPPBVTybcXGKblgX_VL7_hw/w480-h640/IMG_3611.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Since our visit to the ASU West Campus was the day after school got out, I thought it would be fun to stay at a nice hotel with an incredible pool so the three of us could relax in in the sun and melt out school year cares away. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFtnf5XtS5QbqCd9cRcdiKV8CDdgeqV4XeOamNO4pI6nFrAsCiURmjc12LMpivjHV1zMiz7kHVmlzedrz3sDTBlHVHjyY4JkFuELv1jH5agtDrj0ZsbRzYnlMkFg-bUZYoKGvyYg/s4032/IMG_3607.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFtnf5XtS5QbqCd9cRcdiKV8CDdgeqV4XeOamNO4pI6nFrAsCiURmjc12LMpivjHV1zMiz7kHVmlzedrz3sDTBlHVHjyY4JkFuELv1jH5agtDrj0ZsbRzYnlMkFg-bUZYoKGvyYg/w640-h480/IMG_3607.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>I ended up finding the most awesome hotel with not just one pool, but 8! We spent alot of time soaking up our much beloved sun under our much beloved palm trees.<br /></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcDNczcmJROEYSS5aY1A14w4-sfg2SMY5nkQVZpCz7VSOq-XG5oQ3mHv3Z6PS_tK5ENHmbU-SGjJ6uB2LtA2viNuqAU3I1gckwD7g4zdf1YKfM3vmA_1oeIGSVZKja6PZfWnbZdg/s3088/IMG_3604.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2320" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcDNczcmJROEYSS5aY1A14w4-sfg2SMY5nkQVZpCz7VSOq-XG5oQ3mHv3Z6PS_tK5ENHmbU-SGjJ6uB2LtA2viNuqAU3I1gckwD7g4zdf1YKfM3vmA_1oeIGSVZKja6PZfWnbZdg/w480-h640/IMG_3604.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">The best college visit I've ever been on - that's for sure!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Q3cMHD5G2iwwXCy4ztIsuAqJNO1JwZTwO_2iaLGJnUW9FNoki0VlXVs7zSZEKAbVXunjc_KIdiIQFW-Vhkm7J8pZT0RA4OSff9yXrFTtq8W8Q7cwmyXGca5P0BxbRwNAswEkZQ/s4032/IMG_3633.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Q3cMHD5G2iwwXCy4ztIsuAqJNO1JwZTwO_2iaLGJnUW9FNoki0VlXVs7zSZEKAbVXunjc_KIdiIQFW-Vhkm7J8pZT0RA4OSff9yXrFTtq8W8Q7cwmyXGca5P0BxbRwNAswEkZQ/w480-h640/IMG_3633.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Just because I love my sweet girl.<br /></div><br /><div><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p></div>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-49761451769543985892021-05-26T16:41:00.000-05:002021-05-26T16:41:40.873-05:00Forever Friends<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjieP6KpzpkxNmGeHWXgbKz9-pYCrDNIcGpJ5D2NXDp5Ndv8p0V9Htw1Y50jCUynAPcQr17tEylmb-K3Pg9Az227boqv1TtlIc7HsvKAXe2920-BYHUJK4V4AJHpLy9BS2054sWEA/s3088/IMG_3273.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjieP6KpzpkxNmGeHWXgbKz9-pYCrDNIcGpJ5D2NXDp5Ndv8p0V9Htw1Y50jCUynAPcQr17tEylmb-K3Pg9Az227boqv1TtlIc7HsvKAXe2920-BYHUJK4V4AJHpLy9BS2054sWEA/w480-h640/IMG_3273.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>What a perfect way to start summer...with your oldest and dearest friends! And the best part is, the boys planned all of this all on their own. All I had to do was provide the food, bed, and car. Sweet deal! </p><p>These boys have been friends since elementary school. Gavin and Pranav met in 5th grade and Bennett and Vik met in 2nd grade. They've stayed close even after we moved to two different states and they each went off to different colleges. Every time they meet up, they pick up right where they left off. </p><p>Pranav started his visit with Gavin in North Dakota and then they flew to Colorado to spend the rest of the week adventuring around here. Vik flew straight into Colorado and hit the ground running. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbM9V3I1r9MG7oud6nSz0j94CPphJ_etPzrlTkECC7CRiis0FnlrlInOgUuEAmCEvP-ObmrXi8rYvtcdT5acmRDMxIvQqge0tqS5D2HhiUd1Xe3pYXFhtEJ2WiMCLMi_PAQ2dHGg/s4032/IMG_3501.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbM9V3I1r9MG7oud6nSz0j94CPphJ_etPzrlTkECC7CRiis0FnlrlInOgUuEAmCEvP-ObmrXi8rYvtcdT5acmRDMxIvQqge0tqS5D2HhiUd1Xe3pYXFhtEJ2WiMCLMi_PAQ2dHGg/w480-h640/IMG_3501.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">They experienced the bike pump track.<br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJTRuWT6tBJTQvJooWwH0lTP01SW7K3-yhyjm5ARl4lhvzsvz7dw-twvLZapvUgLJZqkjLKTpEAC4NjZKI-PkDxUNmmDxkJ-qI_4qfDID8og9u3_2BEZyVqzZTbRaWz-8OuFOMuQ/s4032/IMG_3499.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJTRuWT6tBJTQvJooWwH0lTP01SW7K3-yhyjm5ARl4lhvzsvz7dw-twvLZapvUgLJZqkjLKTpEAC4NjZKI-PkDxUNmmDxkJ-qI_4qfDID8og9u3_2BEZyVqzZTbRaWz-8OuFOMuQ/w640-h480/IMG_3499.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">It looks easy until you try it.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUaB2X4Cq8CVgoE7YHJ4QsuM-rc4K7IOBHwpdBj4AI1OyXlu3jLk3BsGy_G5I11ABKrHhTV9z72eGOydG3OunrCHCxwtleKo3gCHxITZV6AaMjGg0j06Z6qZWQJViMru7AmVzRfg/s4032/IMG_3539.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUaB2X4Cq8CVgoE7YHJ4QsuM-rc4K7IOBHwpdBj4AI1OyXlu3jLk3BsGy_G5I11ABKrHhTV9z72eGOydG3OunrCHCxwtleKo3gCHxITZV6AaMjGg0j06Z6qZWQJViMru7AmVzRfg/w480-h640/IMG_3539.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">They played at least 10 games of Marvel Villainous. And chess.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpeWWn2EOGomDkciM9NnUCY04gC0-phjxCs9Re-oVpNOp3tdF1sHqaYPiW9Gpl27Tb6VyiArQWAlw1QPm4ZUrg2nC6vGC9W8Gg3efdhrtmMNzSE8mTfEvW5Migut8AyhkAQjWBZw/s4032/IMG_3294.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpeWWn2EOGomDkciM9NnUCY04gC0-phjxCs9Re-oVpNOp3tdF1sHqaYPiW9Gpl27Tb6VyiArQWAlw1QPm4ZUrg2nC6vGC9W8Gg3efdhrtmMNzSE8mTfEvW5Migut8AyhkAQjWBZw/w640-h480/IMG_3294.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: left;">They climbed Horsetooth Mountain together. Speaking of mountains, Gavin and Pranav had their hearts set on climbing a 14er this time. They read up on it and tried to prepare the best they could. They even set off at 3:30 in the morning in order to drive the 2.5 hours it takes to get there so they can start early in the morning as is advised. However, the first mountain they tried to get to, Mt. Bierstadt, was closed. The road up there was blocked due to snow. So they googled the next closest 14er and drove to it. Gavin said the road was so bad they had to park 2 miles down the mountain because it was solid ice on the road up to the parking area. He said it got half way up and had to drive in reverse back down again. In the dark. At 5:30 in the morning. They got there the same time as a couple other people. He said they all hiked together and got about a 1/3 of the way up before they were forced to quit. Why were they forced to quit, you ask? Because the wind was about to blow them off the mountain and they were hiking in thigh-deep snow. Gavin's glasses were ripped right off his face and whipped down the mountain. Nature can be brutal.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha7kWyGoZOULVX7GEj_QiKlNIyRm1QikJKFlD_qkJglnbpve0_mKNaU3ysy3qmygQbxdSRYEH4CUM3S0HaDMIVaJtYiA5YGsibIHdqyR13gOojkUomDTbN0Y0Ge95bTlB-PEwYow/s4032/IMG_3514.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha7kWyGoZOULVX7GEj_QiKlNIyRm1QikJKFlD_qkJglnbpve0_mKNaU3ysy3qmygQbxdSRYEH4CUM3S0HaDMIVaJtYiA5YGsibIHdqyR13gOojkUomDTbN0Y0Ge95bTlB-PEwYow/w640-h480/IMG_3514.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;">Of course there was LOTS of spikeball!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64yNi48w_AkTE0E2YkQiGI9tDjbN8OWD5IZdJjT0sdi0R5vfVCPB2vjSvIurWf3hheoY5m3c-W2cYlKbM6KY7rdn-BYQdWSYc7LT5Qlj4pCqtW4qrRV9nHwo-89e0bPwSVuWgHg/s4032/IMG_3252.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi64yNi48w_AkTE0E2YkQiGI9tDjbN8OWD5IZdJjT0sdi0R5vfVCPB2vjSvIurWf3hheoY5m3c-W2cYlKbM6KY7rdn-BYQdWSYc7LT5Qlj4pCqtW4qrRV9nHwo-89e0bPwSVuWgHg/w640-h480/IMG_3252.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">As well as bouldering. There were many things I didn't get photos of such as our dinners and sitting around talking. Gavin and Pranav riding the pump track. All the games of raquetball they played. The many ice cream runs we made because...summer. The multiple trips to the store they took for me to replenish the vasts amounts of food necessary to feed 4 active young adult men.</p><p style="text-align: left;">It's such a joy to watch these beautiful friendships grow and deepen over the years. They each value what the other values. Many interests they share, many they don't but they make a point to show interest in what each other likes. That right there is the definition of friendship!<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-83950920516686931622021-05-14T08:56:00.003-05:002021-05-14T08:59:27.454-05:00Becoming<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kVoHBtTSpE6wLXbw-KkVe_QlX9jPn_wnWG4gitdhhZaJrIdERM8VNyrX6rsyeLT9S8fyuxsXDn13MW-kgi87vUh59h0J8d_UVJonDJM88BTiSbl1FTv3pFm3P6IBrGhW8labkA/s2048/jack-ray-kEj9xoOA_Hs-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2kVoHBtTSpE6wLXbw-KkVe_QlX9jPn_wnWG4gitdhhZaJrIdERM8VNyrX6rsyeLT9S8fyuxsXDn13MW-kgi87vUh59h0J8d_UVJonDJM88BTiSbl1FTv3pFm3P6IBrGhW8labkA/w640-h360/jack-ray-kEj9xoOA_Hs-unsplash.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@lxxself?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Jack Ray</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/a-flower-bud?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span>
<p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Almost</p><p style="text-align: center;">Not Quite</p><p style="text-align: center;">Not Yet</p><p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: center;">In Process <br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"> Progressing </p><p style="text-align: center;">Transforming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">All that was</p><p style="text-align: center;">All that is</p><p style="text-align: center;">All that will be</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Mindful</p><p style="text-align: center;">Curious</p><p style="text-align: center;">Conscious</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Listen</p><p style="text-align: center;">Watch</p><p style="text-align: center;">Wait</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">It all belongs</p><p style="text-align: center;">Let it be your guide</p><p style="text-align: center;">Everything is your teacher <br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Turn toward the light</p><p style="text-align: center;">Let the rain nourish you</p><p style="text-align: center;">Growth is happening</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Unseen</p><p style="text-align: center;">Underground</p><p style="text-align: center;">Unspoken</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Cyclical</p><p style="text-align: center;">Rebirth</p><p style="text-align: center;">Awakening</p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">Becoming<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"> <br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-78188822745038718512021-05-11T17:53:00.004-05:002021-05-11T17:53:31.531-05:00Mother's Day<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFEkV2CMSbVqhQGnLuviQNdpMIRdP6mwZ8jMG4ABejo8tUzMEg7AS4RC71dC-IeCBVr4MEhg5tOzEN0KCPs7fFIa7M_ZvcrCggc9-RMKOKLKwbr-VX-vuxROm9jS1NsFGJgq4LxA/s3855/IMG_3468.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3855" data-original-width="2891" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFEkV2CMSbVqhQGnLuviQNdpMIRdP6mwZ8jMG4ABejo8tUzMEg7AS4RC71dC-IeCBVr4MEhg5tOzEN0KCPs7fFIa7M_ZvcrCggc9-RMKOKLKwbr-VX-vuxROm9jS1NsFGJgq4LxA/w480-h640/IMG_3468.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>What a wonderful day it was! Even though I always ask that it be no big deal, Chuck and the kids always make it just perfect. This one was no exception. We headed down to Denver to eat at our favorite sushi joint - Hapa Sushi. Always a delicious treat! I only like to eat out at places where I can't replicate the food at home. And I definitely cannot replicate any of these incredible items.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSHASkTwu2TmfxFB6IJIRHxHGCzbwA4utzvMHvQvrUM0N0JgBhXQe8D1qUXcXK9wNbRFaboSUWhI1FpE0IbeZ3MGE9OoXO-nSvzZQE0xsTgj3uaGpWZ1oyqj5GnOwyIyjcSiAWA/s4032/IMG_3247.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSSHASkTwu2TmfxFB6IJIRHxHGCzbwA4utzvMHvQvrUM0N0JgBhXQe8D1qUXcXK9wNbRFaboSUWhI1FpE0IbeZ3MGE9OoXO-nSvzZQE0xsTgj3uaGpWZ1oyqj5GnOwyIyjcSiAWA/w480-h640/IMG_3247.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>These are called: Magic Mushrooms. They are neither mushrooms or sushi. They are a piece of cooked salmon wrapped around a piece of avocado, topped with a Japanese spicy aoli. Mmmm! My mouth is watering just writing about it! Thankfully, Bennett drove up from The Springs to join us for the special occasion and his first Hapa experience!<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-pnc3QERsvUsAoy9A7onXu86vClKOfQZgl2k9sUZnTyHNNGZj0X5rjnlI0eRb9O-XYg0Rtz6zb6fz2hxjx80Sm5TuEv2MQODkA6aQfInvcswlIH0jQrBUEnezw0r8qyzFvPMssA/s380/store.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="380" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-pnc3QERsvUsAoy9A7onXu86vClKOfQZgl2k9sUZnTyHNNGZj0X5rjnlI0eRb9O-XYg0Rtz6zb6fz2hxjx80Sm5TuEv2MQODkA6aQfInvcswlIH0jQrBUEnezw0r8qyzFvPMssA/w640-h640/store.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><p>This gorgeous store happened to be across the street from our restaurant. I had heard alot about it and always wanted to go and since it was Mother's Day, no one could say "no" to me. It was everything it was hyped up to me and more!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5jKAkeJXou5c4LTaGpCa61ilNm4DjgtXW5sQ7tzB_IZ-haoN30jAwgis3p_N0KmawHhxvYbXYyfXPl7IYI2uaTqAQZEYhjJJiNzFHmgI6wMhrAq3OXMi2oqF7BvJwrMtj5y-cQ/s3764/IMG_3459.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2823" data-original-width="3764" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5jKAkeJXou5c4LTaGpCa61ilNm4DjgtXW5sQ7tzB_IZ-haoN30jAwgis3p_N0KmawHhxvYbXYyfXPl7IYI2uaTqAQZEYhjJJiNzFHmgI6wMhrAq3OXMi2oqF7BvJwrMtj5y-cQ/w640-h480/IMG_3459.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Every space was meticulously decorated. The architecture of the building only added to it's grandeur. We had a blast walking through the 4 story store picking out our favorite things in each vignette. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiprQDLvY_DcmA16yWIMY03OX7ukVQdjvIiFahRXgSqKzJHBXHigtEFXcVA5MixyKCShN-hDXMJ3C0qfIS-YvNnDI9W_iwTMZcAXMZzM5FBFO305hWUzgl3VaIN8yTIb7_v0qriw/s4032/IMG_3452.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiprQDLvY_DcmA16yWIMY03OX7ukVQdjvIiFahRXgSqKzJHBXHigtEFXcVA5MixyKCShN-hDXMJ3C0qfIS-YvNnDI9W_iwTMZcAXMZzM5FBFO305hWUzgl3VaIN8yTIb7_v0qriw/w480-h640/IMG_3452.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We sat on exceptionally large sofas. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMiMFXUsBzUotrjjuDTjCZD4dqBV6QmGxM2jGAvmO798pZ_Wdcv4TREEILinnAc2130bJ8x2CoX3f-NJ8-4dEpsv91BseSMWGeMBNNGXE-kBy_bWj-j1kXCGO1l5HOuig5h9NzBQ/s4032/IMG_3469.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMiMFXUsBzUotrjjuDTjCZD4dqBV6QmGxM2jGAvmO798pZ_Wdcv4TREEILinnAc2130bJ8x2CoX3f-NJ8-4dEpsv91BseSMWGeMBNNGXE-kBy_bWj-j1kXCGO1l5HOuig5h9NzBQ/w480-h640/IMG_3469.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">We sat in gorgeous mock bathrooms.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3J9tmXi8glmQ8n9qssCxp59bHKP4YqyXbJqGZBn3Ix7t93C1KP8V7WcX6jhXX4cOcABCYcVTOaBA9YhmUZJUPKG1bkt2g_L6jfkLBAC3cQ9lSr4DpqwjBymo2oAejJx3Jr079mw/s4032/IMG_3455.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3J9tmXi8glmQ8n9qssCxp59bHKP4YqyXbJqGZBn3Ix7t93C1KP8V7WcX6jhXX4cOcABCYcVTOaBA9YhmUZJUPKG1bkt2g_L6jfkLBAC3cQ9lSr4DpqwjBymo2oAejJx3Jr079mw/w480-h640/IMG_3455.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">We pined for things we couldn't have, but wanted none-the-less.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGm_wa4z2GSQrN4RR5CKjfilGjN63_UKSK-h7EGDGeYFvbiuVGzsncV4qM719wiq_XVkBMdcGM80amT6FgRVISb3iiHFUq5EpCAuuniy7WRBW9dVet_J1a6yLAWnNAayeVkc7uYA/s4032/IMG_3463.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGm_wa4z2GSQrN4RR5CKjfilGjN63_UKSK-h7EGDGeYFvbiuVGzsncV4qM719wiq_XVkBMdcGM80amT6FgRVISb3iiHFUq5EpCAuuniy7WRBW9dVet_J1a6yLAWnNAayeVkc7uYA/w640-h480/IMG_3463.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">And we saw great art! Always a bonus in my book.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJy8EBvueEDvmT_ZTdFv5bSojOJshrZ0Vd2kpkt4RcHQqLkmFdychfmf6vk-0aVxxcfaMUh9aa_PDva9dW-LCjxZl0iFniYIkV194HqXZMVlOWAv1HJTG9fDXXrmlXfo-sD9ZznA/s4032/IMG_3474.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJy8EBvueEDvmT_ZTdFv5bSojOJshrZ0Vd2kpkt4RcHQqLkmFdychfmf6vk-0aVxxcfaMUh9aa_PDva9dW-LCjxZl0iFniYIkV194HqXZMVlOWAv1HJTG9fDXXrmlXfo-sD9ZznA/w480-h640/IMG_3474.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: left;">And the icing on the cake was this GORGEOUS rain coat Chuck and Chloe bought for me. It is truly a luxury (a soft, comfortable, name-brand one) that I will cherish for years to come! Believe it or not, it had either been raining or snowing so much this spring that a raincoat is was actually a very appropriate gift this season. </p><p style="text-align: left;">I typically despise this obligatory holiday marked on our calendars only because of Hallmark sentimentality. I cherish my kids beyond words and I know they love me - they show it every day in every way. I don't need a day to make it official. But I do so appreciate all the effort and care my sweet family puts into making it a special day out of the abundance of love in their collective hearts.<br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-73900008349744413352021-04-18T20:47:00.003-05:002021-04-18T20:47:36.370-05:00Spring Break In Miami<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLPF6s280Zeyoen_iRKGaJLwRosSahRXSFZ2shFQkOpHYkaajyHcd7McKfpjF3x9ASB1T97mwabu6g2AUi8Hh-FzmWySK_vjL_tZshdKbAVUP8D-y1KMNIQZv7DrQOgJvqV8WIWA/s1104/IMG_3258.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1104" data-original-width="828" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLPF6s280Zeyoen_iRKGaJLwRosSahRXSFZ2shFQkOpHYkaajyHcd7McKfpjF3x9ASB1T97mwabu6g2AUi8Hh-FzmWySK_vjL_tZshdKbAVUP8D-y1KMNIQZv7DrQOgJvqV8WIWA/w480-h640/IMG_3258.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>This is what Spring Break at 16 looks like when you and your best friend proposed, planned, saved, and waited for two whole months. </p><p>Back on January 2nd, the girls, feeling they had SAD put together an adorable powerpoint presentation proposing a spring break trip to Miami to help them deal with their disorder. </p><p>They proposed saving for, planning, spending all their own money, as well as following stringent COVID safety protocol. Plus, they wouldn't be going solo, they'd be with Maggie's Mom and sister.</p><p>We agreed to said proposal on one condition....grades must be at a certain level. If that could be maintained, then Miami - here they come!</p><p>It was very dicey on the grade front...even after Chloe purchased her ticket. But she pulled through in the 11th hour and managed to find herself sitting on the plane next to Maggie.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKnBhisZ2hUUD1_pZ0-QvA9fXgmcuhuRQ40nvgYM_CKu-ZTgVu8CspUKjlayHgo8ZsWM67M6pfeMVVAm3QO8kn-Ba4szpfdmfuPOZA0gTCWWuwNoc5bKHtPLheKb9ViQlQwwSUA/s4032/63883903539__7FA4196C-819D-4AE8-8352-2DA4B2BB1C5D.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKnBhisZ2hUUD1_pZ0-QvA9fXgmcuhuRQ40nvgYM_CKu-ZTgVu8CspUKjlayHgo8ZsWM67M6pfeMVVAm3QO8kn-Ba4szpfdmfuPOZA0gTCWWuwNoc5bKHtPLheKb9ViQlQwwSUA/w480-h640/63883903539__7FA4196C-819D-4AE8-8352-2DA4B2BB1C5D.jpeg" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was promised sunrise pictures, but to no avail. There would be no one awake at sunrise! Ever! <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8YSR4vm9TWXeG3dnw2Ot3FOixjUEKb_GJve4ksWimuU77_krr9SABGAJ0bP0yOc9rzYBLgbLDg04SDBtsN6dgMQr8EVsPIh0s0ugPInnqcFxHtxP3dhCVmn8Iivprf4BbxSZUw/s4032/63880960752__71D91D5E-8A2B-490D-8025-D35FAC93B774.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8YSR4vm9TWXeG3dnw2Ot3FOixjUEKb_GJve4ksWimuU77_krr9SABGAJ0bP0yOc9rzYBLgbLDg04SDBtsN6dgMQr8EVsPIh0s0ugPInnqcFxHtxP3dhCVmn8Iivprf4BbxSZUw/w480-h640/63880960752__71D91D5E-8A2B-490D-8025-D35FAC93B774.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>Look at that white sand beach! And those tomato red feet! Although they put sunscreen on the first hour of the first day, they forgot to ever reapply. They paid a very steep price for that little oversight. As did we. We heard about how itchy and painful the whole episode of molting was for an entire two weeks following the World's Worst Sunburn Ever!<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRx7Kn1wvuLHdmxYw8Yrd917SuVe-Qvh5rIpB8lqHk69HgcP-cOrHl7BKYxd18-a_uo9becb6iQKcx-HeOuhZTKnBDB-gVj-DeHLMf04Ni1yHBqs6CnRSvBmH6dhnNzonl0STTQA/s4032/63881211316__DB17A052-52FB-4D9D-98B5-654B1F57FD85.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRx7Kn1wvuLHdmxYw8Yrd917SuVe-Qvh5rIpB8lqHk69HgcP-cOrHl7BKYxd18-a_uo9becb6iQKcx-HeOuhZTKnBDB-gVj-DeHLMf04Ni1yHBqs6CnRSvBmH6dhnNzonl0STTQA/w480-h640/63881211316__DB17A052-52FB-4D9D-98B5-654B1F57FD85.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p>But the whole vacation did serve to fill up Chloe's soul. We all need time in nature soaking up the sun, waves, beauty, and fresh air! And all the better when we get to spend it with our favorite person! We are thrilled the girls were able to achieve their goal...it's that much sweeter after working so hard!<br /></p><p> <br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-83187958024065145702021-04-08T22:47:00.001-05:002021-04-08T22:49:46.126-05:00Celebrating Seventeen<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwbcGRQgahG4txOgQlkLeTbpEyDvrhxfYvE7xPm5R7-Uv4Rgkg-GQ0i0Sr3OhCQBSgrVBKRh-LEvuZtDA_bkid2TUD5LmhSpu_SpeMh2igXkocBEEB30USmv8MaAerzq9a7izBUg/s4032/IMG_3344.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwbcGRQgahG4txOgQlkLeTbpEyDvrhxfYvE7xPm5R7-Uv4Rgkg-GQ0i0Sr3OhCQBSgrVBKRh-LEvuZtDA_bkid2TUD5LmhSpu_SpeMh2igXkocBEEB30USmv8MaAerzq9a7izBUg/w480-h640/IMG_3344.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>What a difference a year makes! Last year we couldn't wait to surprise Chloe with her car. It was the one thing we looked forward to all quarantine. This year, life is filled with much more hope, expectation, and fun. We haven't gotten our vaccine yet, but it's just around the corner. We've lived safely with masks, social distancing, and an abundance of caution for over a year now. And just like that my baby turned 17. It doesn't seem possible...it feels like we somehow lost a year.</p><p>I usually get all reminiscent and melancholy on the kids birthdays because: time. I feel like my life is being played out at 1.5x or 2x speed. It's literally flying! And because I've been through two other kids' 17 year old birthdays, I'm intimately aware of how incredibly fast this last year of Chloe living with us will evaporate. This saddened me beyond words this year. It was a heavy ache in my heart. I already miss Chloe and she hasn't even left yet!</p><p>But the sadness coexists with my immense joy for her to begin flying on her own as she leaves the nest. Each of the kids are leaving fully equipped and ready for the world. I share the joy, excitement, and hesitancy. It's all good. It's all normal. We can carry all those emotions at the same time. </p><p>Okay...now for the explanation about the ridiculous brown car cake in the picture above. Chloe requested a race car cake. I tried talking her into a race track cake with little matchbox cars on top of it. Nope. She wanted the <i>cake</i> to be the race car. End of story. No negotiations. So....this is the best I could do. It looks a little more like...I don't know. I've never seen a car, much less a race car, that looks like this. But it did have fancy racing stripes and numbers on each side. And my sweet girl was happy...so that's all that matters.</p><p>Speaking of race cars. We also went indoor go-kart speed racing a few days before Chloe's birthday.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEBydXYs7WS9-adF-AwwmCcFNZLOHWO5TZqO5bwhHrowpB3d-q0_IUcl4Mrcj6TVWb3rBUGeo950T0W0U528Z1eMy2Q5jn70dlaHKt7EkUb-qG9So_SEGq3yQoOyWujiLGf0UA1g/s4032/IMG_3270.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEBydXYs7WS9-adF-AwwmCcFNZLOHWO5TZqO5bwhHrowpB3d-q0_IUcl4Mrcj6TVWb3rBUGeo950T0W0U528Z1eMy2Q5jn70dlaHKt7EkUb-qG9So_SEGq3yQoOyWujiLGf0UA1g/w640-h480/IMG_3270.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Here's our little speed demon coming out of the gate. I think these only went like 35 mph. But when you're that close to the ground and taking hair pin turns, it feels more like 60mph.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm83mUtaF6YdkkF2yKs1kaC6yx2nF-5SJtGI1hH4BTJRWE2FZt_gHkIBlThXAyQWQiwiDOCsB7n-CoE9qJax4WonFzYwF-vpHFhgqYIiJvay8h1XTyu3I7osK5lZ033hyphenhyphenVOzW00g/s4032/IMG_1296.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm83mUtaF6YdkkF2yKs1kaC6yx2nF-5SJtGI1hH4BTJRWE2FZt_gHkIBlThXAyQWQiwiDOCsB7n-CoE9qJax4WonFzYwF-vpHFhgqYIiJvay8h1XTyu3I7osK5lZ033hyphenhyphenVOzW00g/w480-h640/IMG_1296.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p>Chloe's best friend, Maggie, joined us for the festivities. Maggie beat Chloe twice, btw.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3p7scHagFPaSAls7ZlOdFJyMT_oFbXtsUhT968ajDJ_2CplnScLcQfTG2WLnkRFjWzka5RBpKLi6GwNIAsS2HtReFiMtl3ICQYJd9Njxltm4oN07CgciA1JAU3MUIwYAuEVxnA/s4032/IMG_3279.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv3p7scHagFPaSAls7ZlOdFJyMT_oFbXtsUhT968ajDJ_2CplnScLcQfTG2WLnkRFjWzka5RBpKLi6GwNIAsS2HtReFiMtl3ICQYJd9Njxltm4oN07CgciA1JAU3MUIwYAuEVxnA/w640-h480/IMG_3279.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>We capped off our fun day of racing with lunch at Chuy's. A nice treat, since eating out is a rarity any more. Plus, we had the added bonus of Bennett coming up from The Springs to join our festivities.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8BgF-qik_rYv8dhib1X8358D0T8eldKbe06PmfLXOk3XSKnBnF8xY2PjOw8hHZrRPvr9PR7TxlYIL24_IDsHfsaJgcSgVVvTX3AU99oHT2CSAnDgaq8WL_AsqKEWv_SYkMrrjfg/s4032/IMG_3350.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8BgF-qik_rYv8dhib1X8358D0T8eldKbe06PmfLXOk3XSKnBnF8xY2PjOw8hHZrRPvr9PR7TxlYIL24_IDsHfsaJgcSgVVvTX3AU99oHT2CSAnDgaq8WL_AsqKEWv_SYkMrrjfg/w640-h480/IMG_3350.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Both of the boys were able to join us via zoom for The Opening Of The Gifts after school. It was as if we were all hanging out in the living room together. We had so much fun. Gavin gave Chloe a pocket knife. Bennett gave her some anklets. We gave her a Lululemon gift card. She was in heaven. What more does a 17 year old need?<br /></p><p>On Chloe's actual birthday night, the three of us took a relaxing stroll around Windsor Lake. It was pitch black by time we finished, but the views during the first half of the walk were spectacular. A beautiful end to a very special day!<br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-55238735337871012092021-03-31T23:25:00.001-05:002021-03-31T23:25:07.650-05:00The Stash<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2cfS629b9EF78i1zjTFM5vwAf432iu0h3pDE-g6deCitB9O2FbZCNwdlGpo_NNM9wU1yvMTYDwgvMYvKQINWpcn_JHxVnZLsLBLoOfq7J_Vayr9VBIwop1gSwOBcqX2KE9jgl1A/s4032/IMG_3191.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2cfS629b9EF78i1zjTFM5vwAf432iu0h3pDE-g6deCitB9O2FbZCNwdlGpo_NNM9wU1yvMTYDwgvMYvKQINWpcn_JHxVnZLsLBLoOfq7J_Vayr9VBIwop1gSwOBcqX2KE9jgl1A/w480-h640/IMG_3191.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div>The other day I was in a cleaning mood. I vacuumed all the floors, made all the beds - even Chloe's. And to my surprise, found this behind her bed. You know my brain went wild with questions: <i>Why? Why 4 boxes? Are all the boxes empty? Does she not know how to recycle boxes? Who needs that many cheese-its? When is she eating these? Why am I just now learning about this? Does she have a cheese-it fetish? Also, why ramen still in a bag? Has she read any of those books propping up her food stash? Should I be concerned? At what point do we need to have a cheese-it intervention for her? </i>I could go on, but I'll spare you because: Chloe. There are no answers. It is what it is. SMH. #facepalm<br /> <p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-84001015754976924092021-03-31T23:09:00.000-05:002021-03-31T23:09:00.953-05:00Bennett's Turf<div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwxb0aJ4xESuJDUJxXEGGb2ESv-hce7M2-TTuI1Wx5LCoyx_6ot4eKoFu-L7TLYasCTQx1uIYcg__FkvlGWny4mHXnSbo-ITxL6aOTE3gMXS7tou8NjVg2dwiLaV_x7PZa2uEkpw/s4032/IMG_3236.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwxb0aJ4xESuJDUJxXEGGb2ESv-hce7M2-TTuI1Wx5LCoyx_6ot4eKoFu-L7TLYasCTQx1uIYcg__FkvlGWny4mHXnSbo-ITxL6aOTE3gMXS7tou8NjVg2dwiLaV_x7PZa2uEkpw/w640-h480/IMG_3236.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div>This past weekend, while Chloe was off enjoying Florida, Chuck and I road tripped it to The Springs to visit Bennett at school. He has adapted to his new home quite nicely.<br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMjeHvy2m8rzS08h2QFl2MgVpWjDvTQPAp1RsAF1KHv-mdeki6QEXK7AlcHx90UPCDVJk71j9TpuiZssRtsLIzEryyjl6SLb9RjZwV_QWICj3mDGiK_4K1E31est7CCSOFmZ9_w/s4032/IMG_3212.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjMjeHvy2m8rzS08h2QFl2MgVpWjDvTQPAp1RsAF1KHv-mdeki6QEXK7AlcHx90UPCDVJk71j9TpuiZssRtsLIzEryyjl6SLb9RjZwV_QWICj3mDGiK_4K1E31est7CCSOFmZ9_w/w480-h640/IMG_3212.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>Luckily, we got there just in time to enjoy breakfast in one of the most beautiful school cafeterias I've ever seen. And the food was good, too - unlike my memories of college cafeteria food.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguTVVoPxX-mCt_BDO93Hcn7-fxr8vIFAD2deCELqwc6K0HSnpsW14rlWD1656ERSicAwaw88REL0i1GCGpgaT8DhriRd-IDn6Kdf3vSjlihkhntVdACaUu7V9ilendTlKXM_l0IQ/s4032/IMG_3214.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguTVVoPxX-mCt_BDO93Hcn7-fxr8vIFAD2deCELqwc6K0HSnpsW14rlWD1656ERSicAwaw88REL0i1GCGpgaT8DhriRd-IDn6Kdf3vSjlihkhntVdACaUu7V9ilendTlKXM_l0IQ/w640-h480/IMG_3214.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>And it was a good thing we had such a hearty breakfast because we sure needed it to climb this little formation. This is called Pulpit Rock and it's right in the middle of Colorado Springs. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsny6XA9NGgc7jb6RgWm9YK2U2eIO8qpY1xFpIgcALvyW4sbTc2epj76HZ_6QES_oushhOMz7Oo7uQOw4jq61ShhpF9QFkaL10559E34-ad5-FDpq2RnZ6YMOH_kEYPy4KxJEmA/s4032/IMG_3215.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsny6XA9NGgc7jb6RgWm9YK2U2eIO8qpY1xFpIgcALvyW4sbTc2epj76HZ_6QES_oushhOMz7Oo7uQOw4jq61ShhpF9QFkaL10559E34-ad5-FDpq2RnZ6YMOH_kEYPy4KxJEmA/w640-h480/IMG_3215.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Bennett told us there are three ways up - the boring way, the easy way, or the "fun" way. It was a no-brainer that we would be taking the "fun" way, especially since Bennett was our trail guide. Come to find out, he's only ever hiked this trail at night. This would be his first day time excursion. I imagine the "fun" way to be even "funner" in the pitch dark. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2WACakOQ3zVZhaUN_Xefi8i2DqDk6tUPjwgmYs1yOXmJ7dBiUWFH32hwBadqdt9ztUXjpPBsKbIXMVP76T01AABQCVG_jKnMMf7DYV6MBFLKZBNFwrFjmfLbgopXCwTlw-5MQFA/s4032/IMG_3248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2WACakOQ3zVZhaUN_Xefi8i2DqDk6tUPjwgmYs1yOXmJ7dBiUWFH32hwBadqdt9ztUXjpPBsKbIXMVP76T01AABQCVG_jKnMMf7DYV6MBFLKZBNFwrFjmfLbgopXCwTlw-5MQFA/w480-h640/IMG_3248.JPG" width="480" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It wasn't a long hike, but it did go straight up, required lots of huffing and puffing and many rest stops (at least it did for me), and sometimes outright climbing up rocks. We are not known for doing things the easy way. However, we made it to the top, with these photos as proof. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0D-G-EWdvx4sK3IeILS4lejX3m6QFjerDn6ugkad2SCeJwl1celmQyTPaLTvKQTorNiM7qwIdTx6c2gUT0fnVbL1qJEIfiEyAI-LLDkNP7oFIeWwgLvXiO_LbYDcEaii_TXkOw/s4032/IMG_3237.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0D-G-EWdvx4sK3IeILS4lejX3m6QFjerDn6ugkad2SCeJwl1celmQyTPaLTvKQTorNiM7qwIdTx6c2gUT0fnVbL1qJEIfiEyAI-LLDkNP7oFIeWwgLvXiO_LbYDcEaii_TXkOw/w480-h640/IMG_3237.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A pretty perfect day for a hike. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWT3JFJhls8JB8Acau3NvZB5TKBx1EnWnp8-UVe-ctWckf-CVyeJgDBZblDdwM4ENzPOKI4Sicg60XJ95nTiEGe0Jdr_G1maOXnXqbCQS3hZKHnu_rEeaAWqGI1lZxoRAZdLlwcg/s4032/IMG_3238.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWT3JFJhls8JB8Acau3NvZB5TKBx1EnWnp8-UVe-ctWckf-CVyeJgDBZblDdwM4ENzPOKI4Sicg60XJ95nTiEGe0Jdr_G1maOXnXqbCQS3hZKHnu_rEeaAWqGI1lZxoRAZdLlwcg/w480-h640/IMG_3238.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div>Don't know why we wore out backpacks...there was no place to set up our hammocks. But we are ever ready, just in case. We wear them when we don't need to and forget them when we need them - the story of our life. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MwtX17Fd8V1BRzUWMkvTahZPQcZdB5iOsPYVyzJZ5M5-1vVu532Y5ZKuSb2a4Sr4Llf1-Nq7OAYvORwgNfR2CYfzNY4dTyC1287TIfLSjDsb1amoFeDUxXTjaTmDfWlSk9jvjw/s4032/IMG_3220.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MwtX17Fd8V1BRzUWMkvTahZPQcZdB5iOsPYVyzJZ5M5-1vVu532Y5ZKuSb2a4Sr4Llf1-Nq7OAYvORwgNfR2CYfzNY4dTyC1287TIfLSjDsb1amoFeDUxXTjaTmDfWlSk9jvjw/w480-h640/IMG_3220.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">My sweet boy.<br /></div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirbVk19524sU1REKtl6xEHOgdu2ehPnddR4N1MH4ItZnjhEZ9FzG6UnIkYiiExnjsoFww7xWth5Mna6l-D20ziDRnf-pdHAms0LJc_xYGjGbBKPWTvRTLqTrwKADhMgN7x0X78xw/s4032/IMG_3240.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirbVk19524sU1REKtl6xEHOgdu2ehPnddR4N1MH4ItZnjhEZ9FzG6UnIkYiiExnjsoFww7xWth5Mna6l-D20ziDRnf-pdHAms0LJc_xYGjGbBKPWTvRTLqTrwKADhMgN7x0X78xw/w480-h640/IMG_3240.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>Right after the first hike, we took a second hike up the bluffs behind the school. We were treated to a set of pull up bars once we reached the top - just what I was hoping for. As if he needed to prove his youth and invincibility to us, Bennett did a set of 10 pull ups immediately upon making it to the top without so much as a huff or a puff or any sweating. I found the nearest thing to sit on and promptly sat my shaking legs down and gasped for air.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvhpyktDQbnyyo5rNzlFJKLbNp-LfZbgVgYtaQlehYIWqypWjCk1wbt_FHD9A2BLDE19-3bhUZyLPnhxxTvOyXifTZeIDfeV4IrkA6e6GHJEePLSVBTDRXNQ2kQf9GBOr8PfiqHA/s4032/IMG_3243.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvhpyktDQbnyyo5rNzlFJKLbNp-LfZbgVgYtaQlehYIWqypWjCk1wbt_FHD9A2BLDE19-3bhUZyLPnhxxTvOyXifTZeIDfeV4IrkA6e6GHJEePLSVBTDRXNQ2kQf9GBOr8PfiqHA/w640-h480/IMG_3243.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">But the views sure are nice from the top!<br /></div><div><p><br /></p></div>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-76485360288322791562021-03-31T22:47:00.000-05:002021-03-31T22:47:36.213-05:00Spring Break Happiness<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJznlLX4oRPDONOVyAfxwUxHIXmQX9ixvtyOLLU0hhBpqzo6GZRw_PWKCWqn0u8qkUk7tmXzBXl67KpylNcw3aaQlD6LAxQHELKbSry5bmAEAyVV2kR0FAU_arSqE-Nx59MesQA/s2701/IMG_3173.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1864" data-original-width="2701" height="442" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJznlLX4oRPDONOVyAfxwUxHIXmQX9ixvtyOLLU0hhBpqzo6GZRw_PWKCWqn0u8qkUk7tmXzBXl67KpylNcw3aaQlD6LAxQHELKbSry5bmAEAyVV2kR0FAU_arSqE-Nx59MesQA/w640-h442/IMG_3173.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>This crazy group of people right here is all I need. This was a special, unexpected treat! We didn't think we'd all be back together again until this summer. Then suddenly, we got two whole days all together this March and there was lots of love, happiness, and laughter abounding again. The house is so quiet nowadays that I welcome the chaos, late bedtimes, noise, lots of groceries, and activity that comes with a full house again.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh380y2LwX7qDSxBEBawzmgpEQGhB0s8TyPaFR-TfMF4UMRY0-XjwJkNmMWW90l7e8DEH-h2vkVoVDFMXrmR8cmpmA-Z0uvgHFfmLXMlZOaNTeIhuMJk68Kb0K77ilTY2iV7g3cWQ/s4032/IMG_3080.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh380y2LwX7qDSxBEBawzmgpEQGhB0s8TyPaFR-TfMF4UMRY0-XjwJkNmMWW90l7e8DEH-h2vkVoVDFMXrmR8cmpmA-Z0uvgHFfmLXMlZOaNTeIhuMJk68Kb0K77ilTY2iV7g3cWQ/w640-h480/IMG_3080.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Turns out Gavin was able to join us for the last few days of his spring break and was flying into town the exact same day his roommate and friend Collin had already planned on coming to town to visit Estes Park for a class project. The three of us had an awesome day exploring the entire town.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVJhDlIVT75QIAIxTspdhYFkF8Ok63P0L8xlhKRaLagGf5GGpUEKUZZ4vwNPkh7uqkhjWBvVgzgzDJ6x3Dk-F4MCtn35uTD7GFV0AKai8NZCt6dUWQoboEdZDGNgZA_URQtLnKkA/s4032/IMG_3102.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVJhDlIVT75QIAIxTspdhYFkF8Ok63P0L8xlhKRaLagGf5GGpUEKUZZ4vwNPkh7uqkhjWBvVgzgzDJ6x3Dk-F4MCtn35uTD7GFV0AKai8NZCt6dUWQoboEdZDGNgZA_URQtLnKkA/w640-h480/IMG_3102.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div></div><p>The weather was perfect, the company fun, and the town perfectly uncrowded (a rarity).</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYLvBYqMkAoZFIpAnyo-4EX5QQF8wwd6krcdupgutGRJniwHnOxViuA8u7FUxyZdRTn2uVd8apJfKN40YPIZbwFyTvUMgBOGqVCCRRnsKEFJIqKYAJrV2QUVM6VVt_HsflE0Nkyg/s4032/IMG_3113.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYLvBYqMkAoZFIpAnyo-4EX5QQF8wwd6krcdupgutGRJniwHnOxViuA8u7FUxyZdRTn2uVd8apJfKN40YPIZbwFyTvUMgBOGqVCCRRnsKEFJIqKYAJrV2QUVM6VVt_HsflE0Nkyg/w480-h640/IMG_3113.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Collin and I even bought matching sweatshirts. We're twining! <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wKcpc_-aBgZnmUn1P-YjStKx66uEK265y-RG2gnbDB2Z0umGHb53CycxxF0q3-LV6ZHbsQJdyMK0g9kUsEwvdcpEzH4AC9nEBaCT4maswCTrfkkDFRux1aODVWIyse4xGSPUnQ/s4032/IMG_3115.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8wKcpc_-aBgZnmUn1P-YjStKx66uEK265y-RG2gnbDB2Z0umGHb53CycxxF0q3-LV6ZHbsQJdyMK0g9kUsEwvdcpEzH4AC9nEBaCT4maswCTrfkkDFRux1aODVWIyse4xGSPUnQ/w640-h480/IMG_3115.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>The rest of the time was spent in conversation and/or chess competitions. I opted out of chess, but the boys sure did enjoy it.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqucg1_AR8qX3quFYV72cO8EZqDvpTFW45LM3dK8VaXgEGDlG56WResMURjUPFyeXMcP9moFOEbGT2dLR2-dunAFXRsHK7geByo0FLOgLX0FQ8CzsDhIkh-eECEkIWF24sx6sVA/s4032/IMG_3185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqucg1_AR8qX3quFYV72cO8EZqDvpTFW45LM3dK8VaXgEGDlG56WResMURjUPFyeXMcP9moFOEbGT2dLR2-dunAFXRsHK7geByo0FLOgLX0FQ8CzsDhIkh-eECEkIWF24sx6sVA/w480-h640/IMG_3185.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>The following day we enjoyed ice cream in Old Town and the CSU Art Museum (Chloe was at work).<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtjVgdjJ-OTAdNAq9462iGCj98Q4o92lUh3UrgZPnHJYrhNsC_16JC69S1be1_L9YIaQmDB7WG0_OuEFCU8vTS44buiXalGZP9m79T42cYw9w6O-dZA-3Pe6YtzKwFF_Xs2ZNWRA/s4032/IMG_3167.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtjVgdjJ-OTAdNAq9462iGCj98Q4o92lUh3UrgZPnHJYrhNsC_16JC69S1be1_L9YIaQmDB7WG0_OuEFCU8vTS44buiXalGZP9m79T42cYw9w6O-dZA-3Pe6YtzKwFF_Xs2ZNWRA/w640-h480/IMG_3167.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p>Getting any type of pictures together was like pulling teeth. I just wanted a simple memory of all of us together and it digressed into a complete charade. But what they didn't know was that I treasure any picture together - crazy, posed, or candid - I just love remembering our time together.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5j8Btz5Y4oCOQ9eKuwrW9awCOAH91UyNAqu8QFnXzgy6dIYXaqIluAhyphenhyphenYZPp0aSn0-XTFow-XL7qiol_-0OS27jlUTwn6joiofAfl7Sx17e7X_5zVUtC4bTmKGYKcskipVUCE9g/s4032/IMG_3168.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5j8Btz5Y4oCOQ9eKuwrW9awCOAH91UyNAqu8QFnXzgy6dIYXaqIluAhyphenhyphenYZPp0aSn0-XTFow-XL7qiol_-0OS27jlUTwn6joiofAfl7Sx17e7X_5zVUtC4bTmKGYKcskipVUCE9g/w640-h480/IMG_3168.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>These people are my absolute favorite! The older the kids get, the better this parenting gig gets. They are the best! We like each other. We want to be together. They are fun (if not a little crazy and stay up way too late!). Time together is a gift I will always treasure and never take for granted. As they grow and go down their own paths, I take such joy in watching them come into their own and thrive in this world. We are cheering them on from afar, and when we can, close together. <br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-20750624133062561272021-03-27T21:16:00.000-05:002021-03-27T21:16:21.641-05:00The Blizzard<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc2xDhVY1_FyyXB_Xefs-e2qFXoFNHdIR79NR2xK-D-Dj4qU4ssaGAZrR6KJEE0TgsZoJp5nWQFUDU9juE7W04vXZwlFU5QaxbQ1-5uiSGxiR7mQaEtTBS5jIDpfpHWdT9YMxa-Q/s4032/IMG_1233.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc2xDhVY1_FyyXB_Xefs-e2qFXoFNHdIR79NR2xK-D-Dj4qU4ssaGAZrR6KJEE0TgsZoJp5nWQFUDU9juE7W04vXZwlFU5QaxbQ1-5uiSGxiR7mQaEtTBS5jIDpfpHWdT9YMxa-Q/w480-h640/IMG_1233.JPG" width="480" /></a></div> <p></p><p>Two weeks ago we were hit with one of the largest snow dumps I can remember seeing. It snowed from Saturday afternoon through Sunday night. We ended up with 17.5 inches at our house. Other towns along the Front Range ended up with up to 24 inches. It shut the Denver airport down for 2 days straight. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbl8tMURjfAhlfdeNNX0dNlDFd4d1Y0xLG8oYZDrpJZmU1fWdsulpGpobrc88U_mV9Ducqk0NEJYw5PQz6rfOpIOhh571DkI0nSS-UJrBC_kLuDPYKD8reE65caJg6CYpiGqavWg/s4032/IMG_3026.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2NPsWHBR7IwoC-Okb2pD9yndY2ZqQviMlxxh9gtIW1QEYJpI-EB23erNZs7Pd6MlSSrefab9YNnhJc0Ng-wCEUNdT5emK7qJu4aGPeCZ1oEuoGb3S_Y_wf3gkkNN5muqsCgMNgg/s4032/IMG_3040.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2NPsWHBR7IwoC-Okb2pD9yndY2ZqQviMlxxh9gtIW1QEYJpI-EB23erNZs7Pd6MlSSrefab9YNnhJc0Ng-wCEUNdT5emK7qJu4aGPeCZ1oEuoGb3S_Y_wf3gkkNN5muqsCgMNgg/w480-h640/IMG_3040.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The thing you can't see in the picture is the 30 mile an hour winds pummeling us from the north. The snow stung your face as you were getting pelted by it. The wind froze anything wet and exposed. That's why we had to wear ski goggles to go outside and play. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6keBt-CNMksb6USp-Z5kgEo5r4Vxu4KxA74kkHXuT4Uq7W3pH5qrtjfZWR0nkQPakzs8moHbKfdHwfz1AVXKuSmgW5-S3P3wngjRfBZ3VG_mO6BTKXX9FgS3dUrlnCUIjYrenrA/s4032/IMG_3032.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6keBt-CNMksb6USp-Z5kgEo5r4Vxu4KxA74kkHXuT4Uq7W3pH5qrtjfZWR0nkQPakzs8moHbKfdHwfz1AVXKuSmgW5-S3P3wngjRfBZ3VG_mO6BTKXX9FgS3dUrlnCUIjYrenrA/w480-h640/IMG_3032.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We all handled it our own way. Chloe preferred the crawl into a ball and lay in the snow method along with a healthy dose of the disgust look.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AJXsvsS1F-xwgWieH_FS2jE4uLGyEZyNTSlsQ62UTnqTw9izl24laYilXghfu4faHTQx3kG0gfnjPtiq_T74OYOAlHhdAOuGn2Jp5oY1v9gAhx9U9fMK6pkmYp5oq1nXg3OkwA/s4032/IMG_3028.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AJXsvsS1F-xwgWieH_FS2jE4uLGyEZyNTSlsQ62UTnqTw9izl24laYilXghfu4faHTQx3kG0gfnjPtiq_T74OYOAlHhdAOuGn2Jp5oY1v9gAhx9U9fMK6pkmYp5oq1nXg3OkwA/w480-h640/IMG_3028.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>Chuck and I played. He had better luck fashioning balls that stayed together for our snowman. Actually, I think he pretty much built it single-handedly. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE7pQfIkZ25a_GBW-tDYFUQAZscTJh3fzCq6EGUx-XybaQcqZLB3yp_3P8A1vBRPEI735NEkqRINNEznBH5n9lBvQJAwlHnxdAQn6yXmjYYBM2nCoU6RtGlQ_lJK6rT-Q3ZU6D0A/s4032/IMG_3021.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE7pQfIkZ25a_GBW-tDYFUQAZscTJh3fzCq6EGUx-XybaQcqZLB3yp_3P8A1vBRPEI735NEkqRINNEznBH5n9lBvQJAwlHnxdAQn6yXmjYYBM2nCoU6RtGlQ_lJK6rT-Q3ZU6D0A/w480-h640/IMG_3021.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>This was the back deck before Chuck shoveled so that Ninja could go out. This was actually on Sunday morning when we woke up. It only got worse the rest of the day. And the worst part of it all was how heavy the snow was. It took forever to shovel!</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqkdPLAYZiIj0ZiQv76y2sslRTbIeEdKXWum_fKRXQSqhTvj38Mpp83qRDH3hqi5IpxdNl_93lZY46-JGvuCunTckNr9-Qk1UMp2IyOAc65y3zPSapUm7Hus0h75h8njpflvKSwg/s4032/IMG_3051.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqkdPLAYZiIj0ZiQv76y2sslRTbIeEdKXWum_fKRXQSqhTvj38Mpp83qRDH3hqi5IpxdNl_93lZY46-JGvuCunTckNr9-Qk1UMp2IyOAc65y3zPSapUm7Hus0h75h8njpflvKSwg/w480-h640/IMG_3051.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Mission accomplished. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg54WruF5VmkoQceuCNfTlEILHYpzXjhhVIVfUbLSb5bSoQJfR8hIH5d58Rv0Xx7cuvLVaH6uTon7YQxLpbV6-djX2ku0oRezhnbiMaTnpgjf96ATQt54v3crEp-dKjdkNQhX_rA/s4032/IMG_3046.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg54WruF5VmkoQceuCNfTlEILHYpzXjhhVIVfUbLSb5bSoQJfR8hIH5d58Rv0Xx7cuvLVaH6uTon7YQxLpbV6-djX2ku0oRezhnbiMaTnpgjf96ATQt54v3crEp-dKjdkNQhX_rA/w480-h640/IMG_3046.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p>Ninja was made for this. She loves the snow so much. Even though she's an old lady now, she still prances around in the snow, tunnels her nose around, chases snowballs, snaps at the snow. It's so fun watching her have fun.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8e_FUroqkdU4I4CPrh1iCilZNTATkVrnYsCHuIm3sjHt6Q8Pe1sEBZ09QPHfg_5MVuUlTJxyqrL7u-gr-BgVa_X63iFhy8PL4otZwZgYlA7cWzoTjQxfokejl1DHj3MD3xV9hQ/s4032/IMG_3061.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8e_FUroqkdU4I4CPrh1iCilZNTATkVrnYsCHuIm3sjHt6Q8Pe1sEBZ09QPHfg_5MVuUlTJxyqrL7u-gr-BgVa_X63iFhy8PL4otZwZgYlA7cWzoTjQxfokejl1DHj3MD3xV9hQ/w480-h640/IMG_3061.HEIC" width="480" /> </a> <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here was the driveway Monday morning. There was no going anywhere. The sad thing was, this was supposed to be Chloe's first week back in school in person all 5 days a week since a year ago March when the quarantine started. They ended up having two snow days this week because the snow was so hard to plow.<br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ihHbvY3K2Le_7U0ZzH16GF8bf5v7ttTYyfsw7-iDfiyMYTEJG580hVDvEnhT8ra4dvu454rgJSVHlYxgBIDTyTOISaukCQnaPGMjqKRuLCETDB17Av3SkR_bnjKkHRLYD_ndXg/s4032/IMG_3062.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ihHbvY3K2Le_7U0ZzH16GF8bf5v7ttTYyfsw7-iDfiyMYTEJG580hVDvEnhT8ra4dvu454rgJSVHlYxgBIDTyTOISaukCQnaPGMjqKRuLCETDB17Av3SkR_bnjKkHRLYD_ndXg/w480-h640/IMG_3062.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This was my paltry attempt at shoveling for 45 minutes. Did I mention how heavy it was?! That small portion left me exhausted and sore the rest of the day. I have no idea how Chuck endured doing the entire driveway and back deck.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-81597551875608951142021-03-25T09:05:00.004-05:002021-03-25T09:05:30.121-05:00The Flat<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyqmfKCVcuWbGAieRV-jaa-EQn0s6QhSKpLOdk1zNejVFlQ-Bi7yD4lyRemwGyj-hVsm-Cmst1vTVyIhXOFngH1vO-bg-hfv916MeyYauG1ZvddQH2YBtAx1lo2IMtqF7RdfzCzw/s2048/flat+tire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyqmfKCVcuWbGAieRV-jaa-EQn0s6QhSKpLOdk1zNejVFlQ-Bi7yD4lyRemwGyj-hVsm-Cmst1vTVyIhXOFngH1vO-bg-hfv916MeyYauG1ZvddQH2YBtAx1lo2IMtqF7RdfzCzw/w640-h480/flat+tire.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <p></p><p>A few Sundays ago Bennett called us at 9:30 at night. That's when we usually go to bed. He knows that, so getting a call from him at that time would be an oddity. He's like, "Ya, so I got a flat tire. Don't worry. I pulled into a parking lot. I can change it, I just don't know how. So Dad, you could please walk me through it?" </p><p>So many questions: <i>How did you get a flat? Where are you? Did you run into a curb again? Are any of your friends with you or close by? </i></p><p>Long story short, he was just out for a lovely little night drive while all his friends were somewhere else. He has a hard time avoiding curbs. He veered into one and popped his tire. This would be the second time this has happened. The first time, Chuck could drive up to where he was and rescue him. The second time, Chuck was two hours away and could only walk him through it over the phone. This is a herculean task.</p><p>Luckily for us, Bennett has 70% battery power on his phone. Unluckily for us, bedtime has been obliterated. Bedtime occurs once we know our boy is back to his dorm safe and sound. We ask him if he can call a friend to come out and help him or at the very least hold a flash light for him since he's in a very dark parking lot with no lights. He says he wants to do it all by himself. Great timing for choosing complete independence!</p><p>Chuck texts his brother, John, and alerts him to the situation around 10pm. John lives 50 minutes from where Bennett is and can get to him sooner than we can if need be. He's okay with being on stand-by. He offers help in the form of sending YouTube videos to Bennett to watch on "How To Change a Tire." </p><p>Thus begins a 3 hour long ordeal. 61 texts, numerous phone calls and 1 YouTube video later it is finished. It was HARD! It took over an hour just for him to figure out how to get the spare tire out of its resting place in the back of his Forerunner. It also took forever for him to pull the old tire off. It eventually came off but the force of it threw him backwards with the tire landing on him. By the very end he was down to 1% battery. This was the part that scared us the most. If anything went sideways, we would have no idea.</p><p>Finally, he made it back to his dorm a little after 12:30am. He did a hard thing all by himself. He persevered. He grew. That's what you hope for as parents.<br /></p><p> <br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-61195873028707896922021-03-15T20:54:00.006-05:002021-03-15T20:54:56.655-05:00Quarantine - A Year Later<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZhv1WU6VS9lM0jnY6jN32iueb3dFynWbIkHsZGIltU9ZKy3RYtZfUgyJkqqarLRp4zGV_9PDCsZt9us8JHZGVgoTM15B_9OtNkYXvq_RvUxILjvHz3YjGxs0oUt_HCVU8m7bpg/s800/later.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiZhv1WU6VS9lM0jnY6jN32iueb3dFynWbIkHsZGIltU9ZKy3RYtZfUgyJkqqarLRp4zGV_9PDCsZt9us8JHZGVgoTM15B_9OtNkYXvq_RvUxILjvHz3YjGxs0oUt_HCVU8m7bpg/w640-h480/later.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>So much has changed in a year! Yet, it also seems like March 2020 was just last month. How can that be?! Life is a paradox. A year ago when we were told that it could be at least a year, maybe a year and a half, before we had a vaccine for covid-19 and life could get back to "normal." It didn't really compute. I was almost 100% positive that the drastic measures we were all taking by hunkering down in our houses, closing the world, and isolating ourselves from all other human beings would most definitely bring a much sooner end to this virus.</p><p>The initial quarantine and shut down was scary, unnerving, unknown, and indefinite. There was an invisible enemy lurking about outside our houses and we didn't know enough about it. This enemy upended the lives of everyone in the entire world. We all became used to new normals...wearing face masks, standing 6 feet apart, not shaking hands, not socializing with friends, not eating out or going to movies. We were in collective shock. And those are the people that had it easy. We didn't even get the virus, nor did any of our immediate or extended family members. A few friends got it, but recovered quickly. But so many others didn't. It brought devastation to millions of families with (as of now) over 550,000 deaths in the US. </p><p>But oddly enough, it also brought us closer. We spent lots of time talking, either on zoom, on the phone, or FaceTime. We got to really take time for people and give them our full attention because...what else was there to do? We had time for creativity, more reading, rest, spending time out in nature, games, and binge watching Netflix. We enjoyed time together, yet we also knew when to each go to our own rooms if we needed to be alone. It definitely tested relationships, for good and bad. </p><p>I felt horrible for kids and grandparents during this entire season. Kids, especially teens, desperately need time with their friends. I saw and felt the loss of this and it made me so sad. Also, the loss of time in school and learning. The kids finished the 2020/2021 school year at home with online learning. Which...to be honest, was not a great experience. No education system was ready for something of this magnitude. To overhaul how you teach on the fly is an enormous task for any organization to make. Sadly, many kids suffered the loss of much learning time. I imagine many grandparents felt so isolated and lonely. They were in the most vulnerable age category. This virus seemed to have a preference for the old and overweight. </p><p>So many lost jobs. The number is obscenely high. It will take years for many families and for the economy to recover. However, in the midst of this, I was able to find a job (shockingly) and even one that I enjoyed at that! Amazingly, UCCS allowed their freshman to come live on campus at the start of the school year. Bennett's first year of college was a resounding success. He made incredible friends and memories. Even though he lost so many rights of passage of his senior year, it wasn't all bad. Gavin has been at NDSU now for 6 semesters....3 semesters of in person classes and 3 semesters of on-line only classes. Chloe had a hybrid system since Fall 2020 where she went in person 2 days a week and online 3 days a week. All the kids are going to LOVE going back to in person learning. You can't recreate the energy of a class on line. The teachers and students need that time together. </p><p>Thankfully, Chuck's job stayed in tact the entire time, even though he just started at a new company the month before the world shut down. He went to NJ (where his job is) when he got hired in February and hasn't been back since. He's definitely looking forward to getting back to the office and traveling more frequently. We realize we are the lucky ones, not losing our source of income, still being able to afford our mortgage, our groceries. We definitely found ways to help those who weren't as fortunate. </p><p>As of now, President Biden say every US adult will be able to get a vaccine by May 1st. I can't wait! We've already re-planned last year's vacation to San Diego that we had to cancel. Bennett and I have re-planned his senior trip for 2022 that we had to cancel (even though he'll be a college sophomore). I think having something to look forward to is the most wonderful thing of all. For the past year, everything ahead of us just looked bleak. There was nothing to look forward to, no vacation, no last minute getaway, no work trips. It was just an open calendar of nothingness. There is much to be learned from this revelation, I'm just not ready to unpack that quite yet.</p><p>In the end...we made it through to the other side. We collectively kept putting one foot in front of the other every day. One day at a time. So much good of humanity shone through. We all learned so much about ourselves. Was it good or was it bad? Only time will tell. Maybe it was both and we can learn to be okay with holding the tension between the two.<br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-11063559686692334892021-02-25T22:29:00.003-06:002021-02-25T22:29:54.421-06:00I Listen To You Now<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqeD7nP9-MxYVzg2QztCF5Fy_osN77-LBifp311TefFtMoV5ebi_bMWInHYoO09UfVaUcU6Bjl3wBRsmpmBMTE_f2CifbR-MMAZPG1c4HlugTRCCmcwSoQkQTypnisu6QLsNjBiQ/s4032/IMG_0277.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqeD7nP9-MxYVzg2QztCF5Fy_osN77-LBifp311TefFtMoV5ebi_bMWInHYoO09UfVaUcU6Bjl3wBRsmpmBMTE_f2CifbR-MMAZPG1c4HlugTRCCmcwSoQkQTypnisu6QLsNjBiQ/w640-h480/IMG_0277.JPG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Those were Chloe's exact words: "I listen to you now." And this is how I feel. :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I don't know what prompted this decision other than the fact that Chloe made a choice and felt the need to inform us. It came out accidentally at first in response to a question, something like, "....well, I wouldn't do that cuz I listen to you now." </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>Oh Really?! Do you now? Hmmmm.....do tell...<br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i> </i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And that is just the way life is with Chloe. She was blessed with....shall we call it...<strike>stubbornness</strike><i> </i>I mean, persistence (the positive spin). When she sets her mind to something, she does it. The other side of the coin is, you can't talk that girl into nothing! There is zero manipulation, cajoling, suggesting, or any other such nonsense. She knows what she wants - or doesn't want - end of story. It has been this way with her since she was a wee baby. I have spent the past 16 years learning how to be the parent she needs and how to trust this deepest of instincts she has.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Come to find out. All I had to do was wait long enough and she would decide to listen to me on her own time. I asked her what prompted this decision after 16 years and she said, "You're normally right. So I decided to listen. And I've been doing it now for 3 weeks and things have been going good for me."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, there you have it. It appears listening is good after all and there are actual positive benefits to the practice. It's actually rather comical because from the very beginning of our parenthood, "listening" was one of the words we put great importance on.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUGrTk0i9Ej3PZCtPoV5FMrSqvThk1X7MY1QKIUUIN-uO3M8rQ0bAkk_RGpvB4qG6odkGwSDID9IECWm_0BVASraTa2s2Q8KW3IC8Zm-tcqK-cxCSB0Li1q_GWGsFf4QSPXT4KNQ/s203/gavinDesk%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="203" data-original-width="151" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUGrTk0i9Ej3PZCtPoV5FMrSqvThk1X7MY1QKIUUIN-uO3M8rQ0bAkk_RGpvB4qG6odkGwSDID9IECWm_0BVASraTa2s2Q8KW3IC8Zm-tcqK-cxCSB0Li1q_GWGsFf4QSPXT4KNQ/w298-h400/gavinDesk%25281%2529.jpg" width="298" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here's a picture of our very first protege showing us "listening." We decided it would be easier to communicate with this little human by using very rudimentary sign language. Gavin latched on to that like a bee to honey. Little did we know his penchant for learning that would come to define his life. This is a photo taken when he was 15 months old for a photo shoot of all the sign language he knew. We'd say the word behind the camera, Gavin would demonstrate, and the photographer would capture it. Gavin didn't speak a word of English at the time, just sign language. As parents, it was incredible! He could express himself to us and show us he understood what we were saying. This was a big deal for two novice parents as ourselves.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then came Bennett, this is the only sign language we got out of him:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOeeKiBwUCNSqbTrikXfUVKKhQp_TZI_jJ9Za3jMvcpokaXEUSmJfLciLK7jOlbG4WwamKdKRoWZm1usqyrBVcmBycmJZb-0YJVeR9iLJETfJh8H7tgjEyI5ykJwwEOUB_etiDQ/s611/benTheLook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="416" data-original-width="611" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOeeKiBwUCNSqbTrikXfUVKKhQp_TZI_jJ9Za3jMvcpokaXEUSmJfLciLK7jOlbG4WwamKdKRoWZm1usqyrBVcmBycmJZb-0YJVeR9iLJETfJh8H7tgjEyI5ykJwwEOUB_etiDQ/w400-h272/benTheLook.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We lovingly referred to it as "the look." He definitely didn't do "listen." Out of desperation we got him to do "more" and "please" which weren't true to form, but we knew what he meant - some lazy, generic slapping his hand against his belly. And then came Chloe.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigNenIjWNQAWJpDJiDn1G5SGDANUl71hCrGnxSRVBFOPoDL8NQFl12BVtGHR4Ut1McS_NzsWieOe64jLABbsQAO3naXhO50Fpa4Y6qKRMaLB9eJPEfxyy5RhLK2_dRNzUiJSdN2w/s2048/IMG_0089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigNenIjWNQAWJpDJiDn1G5SGDANUl71hCrGnxSRVBFOPoDL8NQFl12BVtGHR4Ut1McS_NzsWieOe64jLABbsQAO3naXhO50Fpa4Y6qKRMaLB9eJPEfxyy5RhLK2_dRNzUiJSdN2w/w400-h300/IMG_0089.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><p>How can you deny that precious baby face <i>anything?!</i> She had us wrapped around that chubby little finger of hers from day one. Guess what her first word was...."no." I'm not joking. Her first sentence was, "Bee lellow tuck" (translation: big yellow truck.) This girl was in charge of her own self, thank you very much. She held her own with her brothers. She might have been the youngest, but that never stopped her from keeping up with them. If they were superheroes, she as a superhero. If they rode bikes, she rode a bike. If they were reading, she was reading. But the ONE thing she didn't do was any of that sign language tom foolery. No sir! She would have none of it. We couldn't bribe her with anything. All effort on our part yielded exactly zero results in the Teach Chloe Sign Language program. So we did what every parent would do...we quit trying. She won. Like I said, I've been learning how to parent Chloe for 16 years. And turns out all I had to do was....wait. I should have known. I should have seen this pattern from the beginning. </p><p> </p><p>And this is why I'll never be asked to write a parenting book. The secret is out...I have no clue what I'm doing. I'm learning as I go. I'm re-writing the parenting manual with each kid. I push when I should wait. I wait when I shouldn't. I learn after-the-fact. And I have no answers. But oh how I love these people of mine. They've taught me everything in the world that is important. I don't want all the answers, I just want them. We're learning and growing together. That's the beauty of life!<br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /> </div><br /> <p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-19455962736300598252021-02-23T09:08:00.003-06:002021-02-23T16:59:19.991-06:00A Weekend With Bennett<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFYP7qCoi3BrUAbHdQi7DSgyJNYp8SCerl-f5RrEGzRCazII8xRtrsJXMNmEvEWZYsgcQHO5nJW5tU4f6URN2jPo-mVVImNyJ0USsexAlw1LcfLedHvAD-OzVrFDaVTeVCRadQg/s1334/IMG_2927.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1334" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFYP7qCoi3BrUAbHdQi7DSgyJNYp8SCerl-f5RrEGzRCazII8xRtrsJXMNmEvEWZYsgcQHO5nJW5tU4f6URN2jPo-mVVImNyJ0USsexAlw1LcfLedHvAD-OzVrFDaVTeVCRadQg/w640-h360/IMG_2927.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>So this is the ONLY photo I received from Chloe from her Weekend With Bennett down at UCCS this past weekend. This is what I get when I ask her to take "fun" photos to document their time together. Obviously, I was not clear enough in my directive. She went all out here. At least she lowered her sunglasses to her chin. <p></p><p>Despite the lack of pictures proving otherwise, Chloe said her first solo trip down to The Springs to visit her brother was fun (she didn't elaborate much beyond that one descriptive word). They ate...a lot...at the cafeteria. Bennett lives for each meal time where they offer an "eat as much as you want" option. So that pretty much keeps him happy. Between meals (Chloe said she's never eaten so much), he took her to The Garden of The Gods to hike (without hiking shoes - and probably coats, mind you.) It was very windy, cold, with lots of slushy snow still on the ground, so they couldn't get too far. </p><p>Bennett also took her on a tour around campus. They had a snack in between their all-you-can-eat dining experience at the Shake Shack. They hung out in his dorm. That's been the one great things about the pandemic. Bennett gets a whole room to himself whereas he normally would have had to share the tiny space with another person. So, he had an extra bed for Chloe to sleep in (at her own risk). </p><p>This was the first time Chloe has driven a long distance on the highway by her self. 25 is a very scary, dangerous freeway. But this girl LOVES to drive. And she loves to drive fast. She often declares, "I think I'll just go for a drive" like it's fun to do - because for her it is and it somehow relaxes her. So the drive didn't stress her out nearly as much as it did us. But we had complete confidence in her. However, we were very relieved when she texted us upon arrival. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYcdsXFdSuEAq_Ym4DabzPbdNGeJyOQ3aqZKXO8g5dMJLH49YZSzj-6U3o5a47PR9_tKmT_jIxZiDdURSyBUOctVrBeeGbTWQe3T4MN4tZytmhdKhoHjxw0Rd_3xoEqM3qQCjnA/s2048/DSC01692.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaYcdsXFdSuEAq_Ym4DabzPbdNGeJyOQ3aqZKXO8g5dMJLH49YZSzj-6U3o5a47PR9_tKmT_jIxZiDdURSyBUOctVrBeeGbTWQe3T4MN4tZytmhdKhoHjxw0Rd_3xoEqM3qQCjnA/w640-h480/DSC01692.JPG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">However, for the life of me, it's hard not to see these two at this age every time I look at my grown kids. At 6 and 4, they were riding safely in a bus with a professional driver. At this time of life, I couldn't have imagined a time of life without my precious children always surrounding me and needing every second of my time and joyfully giving it to them. The future seemed 100 years away. Come to find out it was actually only 13 years away. I'm so thankful they are friends. That they want to spend time together. That they enjoy each other's company. <br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-15780142128795741702021-02-21T19:27:00.005-06:002021-02-21T19:27:40.735-06:00Happy Boy<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwzjnL_Bg8LD0SbneFFzPHuhb0siiu9YXVgdBQvqXALPNGKhzWKnZkMM5aLaC27KITjWmJYN35M7HHttp5oVozVD6FwfJcGlG7U_Y-evG8vRjurOLaoiPjZr3PVxxRKTQysotfQ/s4032/IMG_2872.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwzjnL_Bg8LD0SbneFFzPHuhb0siiu9YXVgdBQvqXALPNGKhzWKnZkMM5aLaC27KITjWmJYN35M7HHttp5oVozVD6FwfJcGlG7U_Y-evG8vRjurOLaoiPjZr3PVxxRKTQysotfQ/w640-h480/IMG_2872.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>This is what you do when you really, really, want to ride your new mountain bike but it's 30 degrees, snowy, icy, and gray out with 30 mile an hour winds. You just wear your helmet inside. </p><p>Actually, Chuck just got his helmet in the mail on this fine day. This was actually the third helmet he ordered. He tried it on to make sure that this one was THE one. He ended up wearing it all day because...you can do that when you work from home.</p><p>I'm so happy that Chuck found the thing that fills his soul - mountain biking - not working with his bike helmet on.<br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-20716103598768196502021-02-14T13:32:00.001-06:002021-02-14T13:43:55.328-06:00Coat Wars<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieB7kAAxeIbZduFlrk8lCafxin77G87OUBpG7eDk4KSo-8Ev2spCQ7NtP8X2KisaT3aXkLSHnaSSM0i4rNoxRJP_KpHGjRy_ybCNR3iJoI-TBDWf1pBbJzCvol7ZFIAKcrm6p9ug/s4032/IMG_2867.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieB7kAAxeIbZduFlrk8lCafxin77G87OUBpG7eDk4KSo-8Ev2spCQ7NtP8X2KisaT3aXkLSHnaSSM0i4rNoxRJP_KpHGjRy_ybCNR3iJoI-TBDWf1pBbJzCvol7ZFIAKcrm6p9ug/w480-h640/IMG_2867.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is what happens when I ask Chloe to wear a coat. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_snwPe6r51XKV1O2jGdwfFYqzajjPUHC15E5Ft5pv-M6n28ADu6QOp7RG9n4JxfQSHl5NBTZeyHgi9LpkqWt2XObOU63qTENZKobwfTuUQ8Lym7cQnsW6i8C_CJXkAK6I1nIBoQ/s4032/IMG_2868.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_snwPe6r51XKV1O2jGdwfFYqzajjPUHC15E5Ft5pv-M6n28ADu6QOp7RG9n4JxfQSHl5NBTZeyHgi9LpkqWt2XObOU63qTENZKobwfTuUQ8Lym7cQnsW6i8C_CJXkAK6I1nIBoQ/w480-h640/IMG_2868.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Every. Single. Time. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBOsMkfZOxrCgk0GW132wdAF5QataFPAu2hbPaVg39WKUOTY2et6BdI6Qpd_SDVUjdTEX1r3xqSZ7nOD8OJJusTb4Ictr-zMc-FarJ1tjPQZOsQp6N4U-hRN3oOU1YlYWQeg6vlg/s4032/IMG_2869.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBOsMkfZOxrCgk0GW132wdAF5QataFPAu2hbPaVg39WKUOTY2et6BdI6Qpd_SDVUjdTEX1r3xqSZ7nOD8OJJusTb4Ictr-zMc-FarJ1tjPQZOsQp6N4U-hRN3oOU1YlYWQeg6vlg/w480-h640/IMG_2869.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But today, I won. Because it's -2 degrees out and feels like -15. There is a line for me and Chloe just crossed it. I am willing to die on this hill. If she is mad at me the rest of the day, fine - I can deal with it. Apparently, it's unreasonable for a parent to ask a teenager to wear a coat. And it is worthy of the biggest of melt-downs, temper-tantrums, and all around disgust on the part of the required coat wearer.<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I get that teens hate to look "poofy" and that jackets do exactly that. I'm willing to negotiate when the weather is a balmy 20 or 30 degrees. But I would be neglecting my parental duties if I allowed my daughter with .01% body fat to keep her warm, to head out into the polar vortex without protection. Even at the cost of her possibly looking "poofy." I HAD to play the parent card. And as you can tell, I won! She simply can't understand why she would possibly need a jacket to run from her car to the gym in -2 degree weather. Ahhh, the invincibility of youth. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And so that Chloe doesn't feel singled out. This same scenario played itself out too many times to mention with both Gavin and Bennett when they were teenagers while living in both Minnesota and Colorado. Somehow, coats and jackets are seen as a badge of shame, weakness, the extreme of uncool. How could parents not see this?! At the most important time of your life when you can NEVER not look cool - parents are out there forcing their will on kids because they don't want to see them die of hypothermia on the way to school. Can you believe how unsympathetic parents are sometimes?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And if you don't have teenagers yet and can't possibly imagine yourself in this scenario, just wait. At one time, many moons ago, when my flock were all under the age of 10, they all wore coats outside when it was cold. And that was when we lived in Texas and thought cold meant 50 degrees. How innocently naive we were. They were happy to oblige their dictatorial mother and don the poofiest jacket in the closet as long as they could roam and play outside in the "frigid" weather. In my wildest dreams I couldn't have imagined they would turn on me with such animosity and choose to die on this hill of jacket wearing. This came as much of a shock to me as to anyone. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">However, if this is the depth of teenage rebellion we have to deal with, so be it. The teenage years are supposed to be a clash of wills. Your adolescent just wants to prove to you that they can do everything without your help or input. That's normal. I'm okay with that. I've learned to not impose my will on my teens (most of the time). We talk things through (negotiate), ask questions (get them to think through the consequences), and share stories of past experiences. The wise parents before us advised us to choose our battles. I choose the Wear A Jacket In Zero Degrees Or Below Battle. And I will every time. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-28822181692894316242021-02-05T18:57:00.001-06:002021-02-05T18:59:03.584-06:00Tea Snobs<p> <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicUR8Z9KqOk5Wa9xaausmXjI8-ZUzAup4eWMBY3liUeUsfjV5Osi3pw9-D9MabrbZEJyZeu1n2vOPWGTf07f0jZsa_v2OQh3m2587whVOVoc-xmL5MXPuDEDGXSJA9DMg_mj33fw/s4032/IMG_2745.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicUR8Z9KqOk5Wa9xaausmXjI8-ZUzAup4eWMBY3liUeUsfjV5Osi3pw9-D9MabrbZEJyZeu1n2vOPWGTf07f0jZsa_v2OQh3m2587whVOVoc-xmL5MXPuDEDGXSJA9DMg_mj33fw/w640-h480/IMG_2745.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is my actual cupboard. <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNRnU-JA8SgV3EWYhL2sVCbdyx4hebcC6qK5V6jLlRp9gR3kZT_kMDrE2wZ8pMBYUfvNsryxeVFvG3ZNfYa6v2I_pjIN995jljlhWzeHVuIdBexxIwxxibr7uwqp8rSkyi__HPQ/s4032/IMG_2746.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNRnU-JA8SgV3EWYhL2sVCbdyx4hebcC6qK5V6jLlRp9gR3kZT_kMDrE2wZ8pMBYUfvNsryxeVFvG3ZNfYa6v2I_pjIN995jljlhWzeHVuIdBexxIwxxibr7uwqp8rSkyi__HPQ/w640-h480/IMG_2746.HEIC" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And these are all the teas laid out neatly in all their glory for all to behold.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I'm going to go out on a limb here and say: we have a tea problem. Nobody in their right mind - unless they own a tea shop - needs that many tea offerings. We have green tea, black tea, herbal tea, loose-leaf tea, Indian tea, Canadian tea, Boulder tea, and British tea. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I think our family is single-handedly responsible for keeping the tea industry afloat in the U.S. Your welcome. Because of our vast purchasing power, we have lowered the cost for the general public. You know it's bad when America doesn't have enough tea options and you have to start ordering your tea online from Canada. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Our trip to Victoria, British Columbia last year is responsible for this new trend. We happened upon a tea shop during our day trip to this most quaint of Canadian towns, and accidentally found ourselves in the oldest tea establishment in the province. It was love at first sip. Both of us were hooked. Now we are forced to order our over-priced tea online once a month. I guess it's a slightly cheaper habit than say, being wine connoisseurs. <br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Please know, whenever you come visit us, you might want to spend some quality time previewing the photos on this blog first so you won't be overwhelmed when we offer you a friendly, warm cuppa tea. <br /></div><p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-45777731212656668462021-02-01T20:21:00.000-06:002021-02-01T20:21:07.098-06:00Every Morning<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8DFKIrbPPUDtGvZSvwTSlm2lTGS5ySH7p8ccqVOUCL57pzWTc-gMiNa6cUsKmLuI7adVyf_kkP4f6W1WK2E9kGZXodO_gD6Wm_Z5avKtwjYHRkQKLcBuGOl-y9BIMrAuYKaA2w/s4032/IMG_2796.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS8DFKIrbPPUDtGvZSvwTSlm2lTGS5ySH7p8ccqVOUCL57pzWTc-gMiNa6cUsKmLuI7adVyf_kkP4f6W1WK2E9kGZXodO_gD6Wm_Z5avKtwjYHRkQKLcBuGOl-y9BIMrAuYKaA2w/w640-h480/IMG_2796.HEIC" width="640" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is the view from my back patio. I usually wake up with the sun. My bedroom window faces east, so I can see the early morning rays peaking through my blinds. As soon as I catch a glimmer of pink through my barely open eyes, I literally jump out of bed. I actually run to the back door, phone in hand, and stand in awe of each new dawning day. I get the biggest, goofiest grin on my face, and clap with excitement. I am SOOOO happy to see the sunrise each and every morning. I take a picture almost every day. How can I not when this is what I see?! It fills my heart to bursting! This is my sacred moment. This is my contemplative time. This is when I feel the closest to God. I always think: <i>I can't believe I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of this gift. </i> <br /></div><p></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6947127.post-90332532051988439012021-01-31T22:47:00.005-06:002021-01-31T22:51:39.427-06:00#NewBikeDay<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFV3lW3RLdkaWuEKiXs145NCuPrft6ceCoXjSHeL_lVp8qq5kprFoJnk16HvScxbvIc2wZiNzEl5JNQikqx3tw0iEALR3LTMe10tSe0Grt-WgnDqKuRmKqm6T3DnGlf2KcF1lymw/s3024/5FAE8F26-4168-4B6F-8105-1FA693E1ACAB_Original.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFV3lW3RLdkaWuEKiXs145NCuPrft6ceCoXjSHeL_lVp8qq5kprFoJnk16HvScxbvIc2wZiNzEl5JNQikqx3tw0iEALR3LTMe10tSe0Grt-WgnDqKuRmKqm6T3DnGlf2KcF1lymw/w640-h640/5FAE8F26-4168-4B6F-8105-1FA693E1ACAB_Original.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>Chuck has been waiting for this day for a very long time! Ever since that fateful day in 2014 when his beloved <a href="http://mommystories.blogspot.com/2014/09/on-wing-and-prayer.html">bike was stolen</a>. He has done research. He's watched countless bike videos on YouTube. He even has a detailed spreadsheet of all the features he wants listed by bike manufacturer and price point. The only thing he was undecided about was the timing. He thought he'd buy the bike closer to the end of Spring when the weather was nicer for riding. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5xIBjAgmYws5Ao7WEGefqad8YdMVjXxBgVTQIIhozEhUxx2lDwdH6A8YNyeRHOcFvPaP6zFeMC7OlbspgfWH3rRw55_KmxFSpVZVVmvUhzPviVJtW8zaOBPQX3YjLMTK_poBFdg/s380/bike.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="380" data-original-width="253" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5xIBjAgmYws5Ao7WEGefqad8YdMVjXxBgVTQIIhozEhUxx2lDwdH6A8YNyeRHOcFvPaP6zFeMC7OlbspgfWH3rRw55_KmxFSpVZVVmvUhzPviVJtW8zaOBPQX3YjLMTK_poBFdg/w426-h640/bike.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><p>But we now live in a town known for biking. There are trails EVERYWHERE. And a quick google search lists at least 30 bike shops. People are crazy for cycling here. What better place to start his search. He would often go out at lunch and look at bike shops, talk to sales reps, and gather more intel for his Bike Buying Spreadsheet (Do people even have spreadsheets any more? Is that even a thing?). During the course of one such scavenger hunt, he came across some very disturbing news. The bike supply is reaching a dangerous level of scarcity. The pandemic created a drastic rise in demand for bikes since it was considered a safe social distance activity to do outside. He was told that if he ordered a bike today, because of such low supply, any new bike wouldn't be available until the beginning of next year! What?!? Not acceptable! This was not fitting in the time frame calculations on his Bike Buying Spreadsheet. </p><p>Suddenly he was afraid that there might not be any bikes left to purchase come springtime. So, we did what we always do. We talked about it and realized we'd have to just be flexible. That course of action has always seemed to work best for us. We make plans, but stay flexible. In this instance it meant moving the "buy date" up a few months so he could get the bike he really had his eye on. </p><p>So this past Friday, we went to one of the 30 bike shops around town and ordered the bike his heart desired. Luckily, they had one in stock in his size (yes, bikes come in sizes....I had no idea) it was just still in the box. The sales rep offered to get it to show us the color since that was the only thing he couldn't really see very well from the online pictures. Come to find out, it was even more perfect that he could have imagined. What guy doesn't want a Matte Nautical Navy Trek bike?! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzyzRsHfAf-4NpKfieEkx92RVGCOlEcsgdVZy1-syp8EYPj9FSHpCb6-Utq1DVGca08SwtsTV1X8HNvRgbm39UUsOlPo2wLopZWZ9L3QpBqxMD-PWtvFFWS-UZTZrFq2OHjS0ksA/s4032/IMG_2807.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzyzRsHfAf-4NpKfieEkx92RVGCOlEcsgdVZy1-syp8EYPj9FSHpCb6-Utq1DVGca08SwtsTV1X8HNvRgbm39UUsOlPo2wLopZWZ9L3QpBqxMD-PWtvFFWS-UZTZrFq2OHjS0ksA/w480-h640/IMG_2807.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;">I present to you, the happy researcher with his newly purchased wheels. Actually, this was yesterday, the day we got to pick up the bike. It took the service team a full day to assemble and align the bike. While we were at the store I asked Chuck if maybe we should put the bike he was looking for me on hold since there was a shortage problem. Yes, this was a two person event! We like to have fun together and what better way than to ride around our beautiful town on gorgeous days getting tons of fresh air and exercise. We vacillated between two different bike styles and sizes for me. But ultimately it came down to the color. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsL3tLi7mkptDL0sWNu4zT9spYqyHYAQ9pMLlcBGL8PL4_3dMBHgDiJYJwyyR__dYcakGKT-NA3d34Qk_oHBQucQjxiu3M7Jd7GfNZs9Ca-2nqXONDOYjH8MmgzcFOZ8lVcN2bA/s4032/IMG_1101.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsL3tLi7mkptDL0sWNu4zT9spYqyHYAQ9pMLlcBGL8PL4_3dMBHgDiJYJwyyR__dYcakGKT-NA3d34Qk_oHBQucQjxiu3M7Jd7GfNZs9Ca-2nqXONDOYjH8MmgzcFOZ8lVcN2bA/w480-h640/IMG_1101.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>Because I love pink! And we found a pink one in my size only an hour away. So we headed up to Evergreen in the mountains to pick up my bike on the same day we got Chuck's. It was #NewBikeDay for both of us. What a fun turn of events! This is the guy at the bike store who calibrated my bike and made sure it was a good fit for me.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrSEXwybUG2eghyaXKvOU_Y0wNZdpRj0Bu9qwbY_tyr1CZqW38r6oGRVuF_4Q1K8fjiSFqoLkEINYlZqLaG2w4nmtDvgyb-rG9nJy4sB3BJMrT6m-SMUATOWQb9d0Wjyp7rDuvAA/s4032/IMG_2806.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrSEXwybUG2eghyaXKvOU_Y0wNZdpRj0Bu9qwbY_tyr1CZqW38r6oGRVuF_4Q1K8fjiSFqoLkEINYlZqLaG2w4nmtDvgyb-rG9nJy4sB3BJMrT6m-SMUATOWQb9d0Wjyp7rDuvAA/w640-h480/IMG_2806.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To our wonder and excitement, we happened to spot this quaint little sign in the same parking lot as the bike store. It piqued our Mexican Food Interest. It was the best spur of the moment eating experience we have ever had! <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6cDjyyfgYYFTys3MKGtp673CmY_LF4cld28dptw90XmEK7UV3099MQ8pNXVtRh9n3IBgv0L-055PAewWZ9fCFRdpslTbet0NOFdt-_6n2gQ2i0Vqh_B65Fq72xjtH2C88IV1TaQ/s4032/IMG_2805.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6cDjyyfgYYFTys3MKGtp673CmY_LF4cld28dptw90XmEK7UV3099MQ8pNXVtRh9n3IBgv0L-055PAewWZ9fCFRdpslTbet0NOFdt-_6n2gQ2i0Vqh_B65Fq72xjtH2C88IV1TaQ/w640-h480/IMG_2805.HEIC" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is the real deal. These were the best tacos I've had in YEARS. And all on #NewBikeDay. This was shaping up to be the #BestDayEver! <br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0YT9tdzVTliRRyQ640MFar3INGtsfBmF2ADCinT34MqEv4RSsNFmcR_hA3PeucFi74Tfgnn89-BoNDViyvkXPhjYzH7h43lUFlip7SC_XjbOMflFNjvDuFrouVlVjGMBDXVSzFQ/s4032/IMG_2803.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0YT9tdzVTliRRyQ640MFar3INGtsfBmF2ADCinT34MqEv4RSsNFmcR_hA3PeucFi74Tfgnn89-BoNDViyvkXPhjYzH7h43lUFlip7SC_XjbOMflFNjvDuFrouVlVjGMBDXVSzFQ/w480-h640/IMG_2803.HEIC" width="480" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This restaurant spoke our love language - homemade chips and salsa. Plus, we've hardly gone out to eat during the pandemic. It just seemed fortuitous. The spreadsheet can now be filed away. The bikes safely parked in the garage. And we can dream of delicious Mexican food in the mountains while picking up our mountain bikes. The perfect ending to the perfect day!<br /></div><br /><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><p><br /></p>corihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269641533974005502noreply@blogger.com