Meet our new neighbor

Scott caught this little guy on film while he was out scrounging for food in our backyard Friday. He was young, alone and harmless, but after posting a similar photo on Facebook, my mother couldn't resist sending me THIS.

In Like a Lion

This video is messed up. Will repair and repost.

If there haven't been enough obstacles to Scott's westward move to date, a huge winter storm — with lightening — swept through the area at the precise moment he was crossing the 11.315 foot Berthoud Pass with a fully loaded truck and trailer. It had yet to snow in Granby proper, but today we had sun, rain, sleet, snow, pea-sized hail, wind, lightening and thunder in the course of an hour. And on Thursday the Middle Park Times predicted: "mostly sunny, warmer with highs in the 50s." It was a weather anomaly for the record books. What a way to arrive!

The other half

While we are having these GRAND COUNTY adventures, Scott is still in Pierce-ville dealing with cleaning the house, packing up the last of the stuff and taking care of a rather long 'honey-do' list on the house before the renters move in Oct. 10. He's feeling left behind (stranded in Pierce-ville as he writes) and is bummed to be missing all the firsts - first hike, first snow, first sight of Colorado peaks. But, he shouldn't be too bummed to be missing first night of High Altitude Insomnia or the second night, or the third. Nor should he feel too bummed to be missing out on Arden's first week sleeping on a mattress on the floor (a.k.a. trampoline). Or Sawyer's long stream (excuse the pun) of potty accidents this week. I'm sure it's not fun place to be, left behind to scrape the sticky stuff off the refrigerator shelves. There's no glory in hauling trash and bagging up empty hangers off the closet rods. I have to give him props too, because he's already made one haul across country to rent the house and move all our stuff in so that when we arrived last Saturday we could pretty much just lay down our heads. (And his reward for getting all that crap done will be the opportunity to make a second haul across country with a truck that has 180,000 miles pulling a trailer!) We are routing for him to get it all done this week and to sell those last few anchors weighing him down in order to get on the road! He has mountains to conquer in the process, both literal and metaphorical, but it will be well worth it in the end. Here's a little cheer from the stands. Go Daddy Go!



ps - Mimi's birthday is in January and Pop Pop's is in August. So go figure.

SAHM - day three of four

I'm getting a taste of this SAHM thing, and I need some Scope. I signed Sawyer up for the "Little Red School" Monday and, lucky me, the following night was parent's night. I had to make a ceramic mug for Sawyer to use on special occasions. It'll be a miracle if the thing holds water. Everyone else had goblets with dinosaur designs and I basically made him a test tube with his name scratched into it, only the rim wasn't straight so it'll be a challenge not to pour water all over himself. One woman I met invited me to join a mom's group, which meets within sight of my house.

The kids and I headed over this morning and we met a whole bunch of young-ins Sawyer's and Arden's ages. But it was basically a business meeting. They were filling their calendar for the month of October and it was like: Monday we'll go on a hike and Tuesday we'll make Indian headbands and Wednesday - should we go to the pool or the park? hmmmm . . . and who's interested in making soup together next Friday? I was all: Sign me up for wine night! But, I'll probably never be able to do any of the other stuff. This whole Stay At Home Mom thing is a bizarre deal if you ask me . . . no offense to all you all out there who choose to do it and do it well. I just feel like the chick in a business suit at a Dead Show sitting around these intense parents with their crafts boxes and binders full of . . . WHAT? exactly.

Now, the mom I want to meet is the one that asked to bring a 13-year-old blind wolf in to school for her kid's show-and-tell. I'd could have a glass of wine with her!

Along with my not-so-great parenting shtick, Arden rolled off the back of the couch this afternoon and landed on a wood box. No, I did not have my eyes glued like a hawk on the kids, who were supposed to be watching a movie while I put some boxes in the basement. And, no, I did not have a ready supply of frozen peas in the freezer or ibuprofen in the medicine cabinet. So, after a quick head to toe assessment, and determining that her lip, once again, was the mass casualty of the day, we raced to the store, where I discovered that there was a widespread power outage (that would explain the dark freezer at my house). We bought Popsicles and Advil and raced back home. Arden had three pops, which I hope will deplete the swelling. But, once again, my girl looks like the Million Dollar Baby:



ps - that little 'emergency' officially broke my no driving to the store streak.

SAHM - day one of four.

One of the little perks of this move is that I get to be a SAHM for one week. Actually, four days, if you don't count Sunday. It's Monday, and this SAHM thing has already kicked my ass. I am wholly exhausted and it's not even 9 p.m. We visited three schools today (one twice), and Sawyer walked away from one stating: That's my school. (I agreed but, sadly Arden can't go there for another year.) It was, of course, the most expensive school and it follows the regular school year calendar (i.e. inconvienant). But, it's in a little red schoolhouse for Heaven's sake. After the school tours, we went to look for horses because Sawyer decided when he woke up this morning that his mission was to talk to a horse. We didn't see any close up but I did find him some in a field, which he yelled at. We explored YET ANOTHER awesome playground, ate lunch at Dairy King (which kicks Dairy Queens ass by the way) and then played in the driveway for the remainder of the day. And, I still managed to get a P.O. Box, which was my number one mission. I had to drag the kids inside (one kicking and screaming) and into the bath, and I haven't looked but I'm sure there's a filthy ring around the tub dirty as they were. I spent almost an hour on the phone talking to red schoolhouse teacher tonight, and now I'm going to collapse. But before I do, here's a photo I took from the driveway:

First Day

After a less than perfect night of sleep (compliments of Arden) the kids and I stretched our cold Colorado bones slowly this morning, taking in the better part of a Disney movie nestled under blankets on the couch before walking back to the store for coffee and a few more essentials. Now that I live within walking distance of City Market, I'm going to see how long I can go without actually driving to the grocery store. Then the kids and I headed to town (a whopping five minute drive) and started the day's adventures with a stop at the Granby Train Depot. It's just a little platform, but it was bustling this morning. An Amish? family was getting off the train, making me feel like I'd stepped back in time. The conductor was pulling suitcases out of the luggage car, and the kids and I sat, watched and waved to the engineer, who honked his horn, rang his bell, and flashed his lights at us, pretty much making Sawyer's life complete. Then we went to explore the playground and discovered three within walking distance. We tested out at each one before I managed to trick the kids into loading back up in the car to go see Mary - Arden's teacher and my friend from Kilmarnock - who happened to be in Denver this weekend visiting friends. Everybody happily took a short nap in the car before Mary arrived. We headed to Fraser for a hike in the Experimental Forest. Sawyer was an amazing hiker. Not one complaint. Went the whole way talking and singing to himself. Arden walked some, but melted down at the end when she took a digger in the dirt. We ended the day with Mexican food. Seriously. The only way that day would have been better is if I'd had a margarita with dinner. Everybody else took lots of photos on the hike, so I guess I'll have to wait to post them. Baths and bed by 6:45. I put the kids down in the same bedroom again on two crib mattresses side by side on the floor, but was having a difficult time getting Arden to stay put without a crib. After 30 minutes of Arden wailing and me struggling to get her to lie down, Sawyer said: "I don't want to live here anymore." I was heartbroken until the next moment when he said: "I want a different bed." I honestly couldn't blame him. I moved him into the queen bed I was saving for Justin and guests, at least temporarily. Everybody calmed down and went to sleep. Ahhh. . . . Now – Boxes.