HMI

In another life, ages ago, I was a teacher and a wilderness expedition leader. I took high school kids on back country hiking, rafting, trail building and skiing trips across the western United States. During that time, I spent more than 365 nights in my sleeping bag, under the stars. I carried 70 pounds on my back almost everywhere I went. I taught real life skills like making coffee without a filter, map reading and leadership. Part of me still feels a little sad that I didn't stick with it longer. After five years, I was worn out, but once it was gone, it was probably gone forever, and I don't think I realized that when I made the decision to quit and walked into the local newspaper office, landing a job on the spot. The school recently posted some old photos on Flickr and I finally had a chance to look back at myself as I was then. Now I get to share those skills with my kids. I can't wait to take them on some of our own back country adventures.

Cooking dinner with Pam, my roomie in the tent and at home.

Facials after trail building.

I was barely older than the students back then. Some of them are already married with kids.

Making coffee the way nature intended.

Teaching class with an impromptu chalkboard.

Better than a salon. Washing my hair after two weeks in the Utah desert.

Birthday Bash, Take 2

I had a hard and fast rule in mind that we wouldn't have a really big birthday party for Sawyer (after his first) until he turned five. The second birthday was celebrated with family friends at the beach and the third birthday was an impromptu gathering of our closest family and friends at the local playground. But, this year, he was so excited about his birthday that — for the first time — we allowed him to invite friends from school. We applied the most basic rule — four years, four friends — and so he invited Luke, Andy, Cash and .... you guessed it: Sylvia.


I wanted to have a party that was fun for adults too, so we turned it into a barbecue at our house at 4 p.m. and invited each kid's family as well. Everyone was to bring bikes and outside toys and we blocked off the street so the kids could ride around the neighborhood. Of course, we had to invite the neighbors, who are living here for the summer. They are semi-retired but their two daughters and four grandchildren are here and the kids have been playing together almost nonstop. The total invite list quickly crept up to 30 people.


Scott had a platter of pulled pork from his catering job last weekend that we froze, and he made a huge thing of vinegar-based coleslaw that was to die for. He also marinated and barbecued some chicken and made the best baked beans I've ever had. For the kids there were hot dogs and chips. I saw almost everyone go back for a big plate of seconds.


This year, Scott outdid himself on the birthday cake. To be honest, things weren't looking so promising at 11:30 p.m. on the night before the party. High altitude baking is a challenge to say the least and Scott forgot to add flour and lower the oven temperature. The cakes sank in the middle and fell apart coming out of the pan. But when I came downstairs the following morning, the outlook was much improved.

There was a plan.


And things were shaping up quite nicely.


The finished project, complete with handmade tootsie roll fencing:


And happy faces.

The sound of 30 people singing "Happy Birthday" made Sawyer happier than I think I've ever seen him. This isn't the world's best video, I was trying to do three things at once. But the moment when everyone sings is well worth the wait.



Scott serves up cake.


More photos:

Birthday Bash, Take 1

As a kid, I always loved my birthday more than any other holiday all year long. It was the one day of the year that was all about M.E. Later in life, I chalked some of that up to the Aries in me. Sawyer — who is supposed to be a Cancer but is clearly a Leo (cusp baby) — has been talking about his fourth birthday since March. He decided then, well before Toy Story 3 was released, and for reasons I still don't quite understand since we don't catch the movie trailers on T.V., that he wanted a Buzz Lightyear and Woody birthday party this year.

He has been counting down the days ever since. My kid who just wants to grow up so fast. He's already bummed that all his friends are moving up to kindergarten and he's always talking about how things are going to be when he gets big. Every morning he comes downstairs and asks his dad to inspect his limbs to see how they've grow. Quite literally, some days, it seems he's grown overnight. Three inches of ankle peek out of pants that fit just yesterday.

So we went big this birthday. We opened some presents this morning and more presents this afternoon. We took pumpkin muffins to school and the whole day at school was Sawyer Day. We even took him out to a German restaurant with Scott's good friend Jim (Milt) who drove up from Leadville for the occasion (or maybe just the German food – it's his favorite restaurant). And, tonight, all the boys are camping downstairs on the floor (Sawyer in his new sleeping bag), eating popcorn and watching movies.

The celebration continues Saturday when I've taken the opportunity to invite half of Granby over to our house for a real party (adult beverages included). It's a good excuse to have some people over who we've been wanting to get to know a little better. We'll block off the street and the kids will ride bikes and play with sidewalk chalk and the such while us adults get our buzz on – Sawyer did say he wanted a "Buzz" party. I figured we'd have more fun doing that over beers and barbecue than playground and cake.

Oh, but there will be a cake. A Scott cake. With Buzz Lightyear and Woody. Somehow. He always pulls off the magical cake decorations, no matter how challenging (remember the Double Backflip Cake and the Lightening McQueen Cake).

Sawyer was perfectly wiped and overwhelmed tonight, but he did have a few more things to say:

Sunday drive

We took the kids for a Sunday drive up Trail Ridge Road — the highest continuous paved road in the nation — which bridges the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park with the east side. It was the best way to get them all above treeline and into the high alpine environment — wildflowers and all — that I adore. In fact, we were sweltering down in town. It was 80 degrees and like 10 percent humidity and we all thought we were going to MELT. It's all relative, right! Everywhere else in the state/country people were sweltering in 100 degree weather with 100 percent humidity — AND WE'RE COMPLAINING. So the drive above treeline had another advantage. It was about 64 degrees up there and it cooled us right down like a splash into the pool. We even had time for a few lessons — botany, geology, glaciology, biology and cartography.
Arden and I ran into a yellow bellied marmot (almost literally) and we saw an American pipet (one of the few song birds that loves the altitude). We also rediscovered Crunchy Granola Bars. Man, those are good.

To the Devil and Back.

In Virginia, I had a book club and a supper club. Here I have something of a hiking club. It started with just me and my coworker. We made a list at the beginning of the summer of all the hikes we wanted to do as the summer progresses, our group of women is growing. Our last hike to Devil's Thumb was by far the best.


The wildflowers are out in force - high alpine wildflowers in the spring is one of the things I missed about Colorado the most. (I feel like I say that about everything.) There are literally hundreds of wildflowers this time of year. Lupine, bluebells, columbine, indian paint brush, locoweed, orchids, lilies, the list goes on. I needed a book. I've forgotten more flower names than I ever knew. These are wild alpine sunflowers. Like real sunflowers, they stand up and face the sun.


When we got to the top there were still fields of snow and the cold wind was whipping.

All these hikes are building up to the summer pinnacle - Long's Peak, one of the more treacherous 14ers in the state. Treacherous, I think, because there's a lot of people trying to climb it, a lot of folks who probably shouldn't be up there. Next on the list, I think, is Byers Peak. It's the most prominent peak in town and can be seen from Granby and Winter Park. That's one that we'll have to park and then bike to the trailhead. Should be interesting!

Here's Devil's Thumb up close. I think it looks like a carved bear totem. Indian legend has it that there was a big battle in the valley here and when it was done, they buried the devil there, leaving only his thumb sticking up.

We're back

Our Internet went out about a week ago when a Comcast Cable guy showed up at the complex to work on the neighbor's cable. Despite my repeated attempts to convince people at customer service that the two things were somehow related, they insisted it was my modem and that I'd need to take it to a retail outlet and exchange it. Which I did. GUESS WHAT? My Internet still didn't work. Finally, I got somebody on the phone who saw things my way and submitted a service ticket for me. This is where living in a small town comes in handy. Having the service guy come to the house was going to require that an adult be home for at least four hours in the middle of a work day — you know the drill, right? "The service guy can be there some time between 1 and 5 p.m." You get there at 12 :45 but, of course, he doesn't show up until 5:15. In this case, I about fell out of my swivel chair at work when the tech called me at 9 a.m. and said: "I'm sitting in your driveway and I've fixed the problem." I could hear the chorus of angels singing in the background. "I installed the cable there initially," he said, "so when I saw the ticket I realized that the guy who went out there to disconnect the cable to Unit 100 accidentally disconnected the three paying customers as well." Seriously. When was the last time you had service like that? I'm almost inspired to write a letter. Except I think I should be credited for the week we went without and the 15 stupid people I talked to just to get to Mr. Right.

Happy Fourth

We have had such a wonderful Fourth. It's one of those weekends that has felt perfectly long and full. And I still have TOMORROW.


Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day — the three patriotic holidays — are by far my favorite holidays of the year. They are summer's capital letter, comma and period. Being holiday-bound to grill, drink and spend as much time outside as possible with friends and family, all in the name of history (one of my favorite topics) can't be a bad thing. And, while I don't always agree with the direction our country is headed and am sad when our nation's leadership can't function together; I know I am fortunate to have been born here — rather than, say, a vast desert in the middle of an impoverish, warring nation where women have to raise the kids, cook the meals, clean house, wash dishes and do the whole family's laundry on top of performing hard labor all day in the factories and fields ... ok, well that is kinda like here ... but, I would like to thank the Founding Fathers and those great American heroes that followed for creating a nation where it is possible for me to have a washing machine — in my house — and water that I can drink from the tap. I am grateful that my husband and I both have interesting jobs (for the moment) and that, when we didn't, my country didn't let us starve. I am fortunate that, on a day like today, my kids could ride their bikes around the neighborhood and the worst thing I had to fear was a skinned knee. Or that I can hike through the woods with my family anywhere in the nation and our worst enemies are the ticks, snakes and bears. I am lucky to have the luxury of worrying about whether we can pay the cell phone bill and cable bill. The summer trifecta celebrates those freedoms and those gifts from our ancestors. And, now for a little confession. Primarily because I'm getting sick of singing the only five songs I know at bedtime, I've been busting out a few patriotic tunes for the kids. After I sang the National Anthem for Sawyer at bedtime, screeching "land of the FREE" at the end and all, he told me I was a really good singer and should sing for other people, clearly indicating that he's inherited the tone-deafness from me and my father.

Laughing at the new designer Pampers.

I haven't bought diapers in months. I just had to say that out loud. NO MORE DIAPERS!!!!! (Not even at bedtime).