Favorite Christmas Traditions

Some people delight in Martha Stewart type gift wrapping, some trees are decorated with such precision they could be in home decorating magazines. The activity of choice for our family is decorating Christmas cookies. Admittedly motherhood has toned my extravaganza down to four or five varieties. We also do cream cheese cookies, gingerbread cookies and peanut putter blossoms. The. I usually add in one or two that I find during that year. Here is the recipe for cream cheese cookies.

Grammy’s Cream Cheese Cookies

1/2 pound butter (two sticks)
8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

Cream butter and cheese until fluffy
Stir in sugar,eggs and vanilla
Combine flour and baking powder and stir into cheese
mixture
Chill dough overnight
Roll out a little at a time on floured board (keep
remaining dough chilled until ready to roll more and do not be surprised if you need a lot of flour to get it to roll!)
Cut with cookie cutters and place on cookie sheet
Bake in preheated 350 degree oven

Cookies take around 12 minutes depending on
size or shape -- I just do a lot of "checking" and lift a
cookie to make sure bottom is brown.

Icing- confectioners sugar, milk, vanilla (sometimes I also add melted butter)

These cookies have been part of my Christmas tradition since I was a child. I love these cookies and they are the perfect surface for yummy homemade icing. Here are some photos of this year's creations. It was really a fun year for cookie decoration because Laurel and Owen were so into it.

Packing for an Emergency

I must say I am feeling pretty old because I have already lived through my third so-called five hundred year flood. Actually this most recent event in Colorado has even been termed a thousand year flood! Since we moved here a little over a year ago we would often see these signs.

During the super dry first year that we lived here these signs almost seemed comical. We could not imagine these desert like areas with no water in sight to become raging rivers rather than quiet, curvy routes to the mountain. Boy was I wrong! While I grew up in a town that had an annual ritual of spring flooding, nothing could have prepared me to understand exactly how fast a flash flood can take over a town.
I must have thought the phrase-we are so lucky a thousand times. Every time I saw aerial photos, read news articles or saw damage first hand my mouth would hang open and I would think "we are so lucky". Many of the homes were in areas we seriously considered buying a home.

One of many good things that came out of this experience was when the national guard showed up two blocks from our house to begin evacuating our neighborhood. We decided maybe now was the time to pack for a quick exit. So we each spent about three minutes filling a bag. As it turned out the national guard told our neighbor we were safer staying put then trying to go anywhere so we never did have to leave our house. But at the moment it felt real and it was interesting to look back at what we packed. Later, when things settled down Laurel said to me, "Mom, you must really likes those sesame snacks. I noticed you put them in your emergency bag." I am sure Freud could have a good time with my emergency bag. Basically I had change of clothes (extra comfy of course), the book I was reading with Owen, the book I was reading with Laurel (as if we would have all sorts of down time to read our chapter books) my personal hygiene bag and many snacks- I did not want to get stuck eating wonder bread somewhere. While I am very grateful we never needed to use the bag, I am glad I experienced the act of packing a bag. It taught me two things: 1. When it comes down to it we need so little. 2. I could not think very clearly and could have been much better prepared. Since then I have made an emergency list so that if I ever need to pack a bag In the future I can use my list to guide me.

So here we are almost a month after the flood. Our town that is West of us still has not been able to open. Little by little more people get re-settled back to their homes, some lost their entire home. My colleague lost her dad. Entire roads are still washed away. But as with all bad things, there is always good that comes out of it. The compassion and determination in Longmont is amazing. This school district and town are a strong and resilient community that really pull together when the going gets tough.

Perfect Summer Day

It is that time of the summer again. I have been pretty good about tackling my chore list and catching up with friends and family. But all my dreams of lazy summer days are dissapearing as the school year awaits. So before summer totally slips away I called today Helen's Perfect Summer Day. When Laurel first heard about this she said, "So what do you mean- are you going out to breakfast? Are you getting a mani pedi? are you going shopping?" I said, "No- it is not my extravagant day- it is what I picture being a perfect summer day."

So here is how my perfect summer day goes: First I wake up around 5:30 and sneak in a chapter or two of the book i am reading and fall back asleep for twenty minutes. I love starting my day with a nap!
When I am really ready to wake up I pour a cup of coffee. I like to step outside and hear the birds and see what has ripened or blossomed over night. Sometimes I stand near the lavender and smell the calming scent. Other times I sit on the porch and watch the house finch feed his babies.
Before it gets too hot I go outside and pick a couple cups of raspberries. We got a ninja blender and have been enjoying smoothies. Usually I do half frozen fruit and half fresh fruit to have a nice cold smoothies that is not too thick. Now that the raspberries are ripe for picking I collect them while there is shade and add some fresh blueberries. Then I add frozen watermelon and bananas.... You know how once you cut a watermelon it fills up half your fridge? I put two cups in ziploc bags and throw about four of them in the freezer. (Sidenote: The frozen watermelon really comes in handy for this watermelon martini recipe). I do the same once the bunch of bananas ripen. I slice half a banana in a snack bag and then when I make a smoothie half my ingredients are all ready. To this I add a cup of fage fat free yogurt and half a cup of almond milk with chia seeds soaked in them. Yum!
Around 8o'clock L, O and I head over to the tennis courts. We play for about thirty minutes and then cross the street to the empty pool. Laurel and I do laps while Owen plays with the diving toys.
When we get home from the pool we spend some time on scout badges, the never ending summer math project and summer reading. Right now laurel and I are reading The Fault in Our Stars while Owen tries to keep up with the Grey Havens readings (That is the Tolkien Society meeting he attends.)
Before lunch I run to Costco. It really isn't a bad place to go when you are not fighting the weekend crowds! Even chores can be relaxing in the summer!
I really do like cooking when I am not too tired or busy, as is often the case when the school year and sports are in full swing. So with all the time today I can make a nice fresh salad with fresh cheese from the farmers market, chopped egg and avocado over a bed of arugula.
Now that my belly is full it just might be my favorite time of the day. I could never understand how my dad could possibly take a nap for ten minutes. Now I am just like him. I go upstairs, pull the room darkening shades, read on my nook app until my eyes get heavy and sleep for ten or fifteen minutes. I awake ready for the next shift! Of all the parts of my day the power nap might just be my favorite.
Now I come down to start dinner. Tonight we are grilling veggies and meat along with a homemade potato salad. While everything is cooking up Justin and I enjoy one of those muddled cocktails from an earlier post. We sit on the deck and have a few minutes of catching up before the whole family sits down for dinner. After dinner we hop on our bikes for a nice ride around town. I love all the bike trails and paths. We wrap up the night with a
board game or a movie- tonight we enjoyed Settlers of Catan. So there you have it- my idea of a perfect summer day. Hope you all get to have one before summer slips away!

Summer Hikes

This summer I tried to do at least one good hike a week. Below are the names of the hikes and a favorite picture from the hike.

Royal Arch- Chautauqua Park, Boulder

Flat iron one- Chautauqua Park, Boulder
View of the Indian Peaks at top of Flat Iron One

Brainerd Lake - summer road was still closed so we had to park at the winter parking area.

Lake Isabelle- Trailhead at Brainard Lake. I think this was my favorite hike of the summer.

NCAR- Trailhead is at the National Center for Atmospheric Research

Loch Vale- Glacier Gorge Trailhead in Rocky Mountain National Park

Willow

This weekend we got a new puppy. Her name is Willow and she is a goldendoodle. She was born June 2 and is 8 weeks old. Not much else to say other than we love her and if you don't see much blogging for awhile, assume it has something to do with this bundle of energy!

Weed Therapy

I am not a big fan of using chemicals and water to create a perfect lawn. But I have learned the hard way that I will need to do something. While we were in NJ for three weeks the bindweed took over our front lawn. At a quick glance I thought we had some cute little flowers that open to the sunlight and close to the shade....along the lines of Morning Glories. But these weeds curl themselves around all the good plants and strangle them. So for an hour a day I sit outside and pull weeds. Not quite as good as curling up with a good book but I have found it rather relaxing. Especially when someone sits outside to keep me company.

After two days of watering the grass I noticed many of the weeds were not looking so good. I told Laurel that I was really surprised that watering is making such a difference. Laurel said, "Of course. Weeds are made to live in bad conditions. When you make the conditions good it makes the grass happy and the weeds sad." I told her I wished she gave me this weed knowledge last month. And then as I pulled weeds in solitude I thought over her comment and decided it is pretty good parenting advice. Rather than worrying about all the bad things that can happen, just keep watering the good stuff and it will be a lot harder for the weeds to creep in.

Muddled Summer Cocktails

I am a sucker for muddled cocktails. But even better than paying $8 or more for one of these while I am out, I like reading cocktail menus for ideas and making my own versions at home. For me the ritual of muddling is half the fun of having the drink. Right now there are so many mint leaves and fresh raspberries in my back yard it just seems a waste not to make a fresh muddled cocktail! Every summer I seem to gravitate towards a couple of stand bys. Here are a few that I have enjoyed this season.

Helentini
Muddled Watermelon and mint, fresh lime , vodka, splash of lemon soda

Strawberry Mojito
Muddled strawberries and mint leaves, rum, splash of lemon soda

Blueberry Lemonade
Muddled blueberries and mint and fresh lime with gin and lemonade

Summer Sunset
Muddled garden fresh raspberries with lemon vodka and lemonade- best enjoyed while watching the sun go down over the mountains.

Note: I do not like my drinks sweet so I do 2oz alcohol, 3 oz of the lemonade or other beverage and anywhere between a half to a whole lime because I like citrus. This may be too much lime for some. I also choose to leave crushed iced in my drink rather than strain it because, after all, hydration is important.

This is not a muddled drink but if you want a tasty garnish for a bloodytini, use a basil leaf with a garden picked cherry tomato or an olive. I had some fresh mozzarella so I added that too.

Top Ten Things I Love About Colorado

I just had an awesome visit in NJ with friends and family. It was such a great time and I really wish I could get them all to move out to CO with me. Then there would be no more goodbyes. But I know that is not possible so I will hope something better than United comes along to get us back and forth to each other. After sitting on the runway for over two hours in Newsrk I am really thinking next time my route will be Route 80 but maybe I will settle down soon.

So now that I have been away from home for awhile I am thinking of what I miss in Colorado. Here are some of my favorite things about my new state:

Farmers market: I just love the produce and bread and chips and salsa we get at the farmers market. I also like the view of the mountains while I stroll and the live musical that entertains us. It is big but not too big and the crowds are always just enough to make it feel festive.

Mountain views: I wonder if I will ever tire of the mountain views. I love driving west on Highway 66 with such a wide open view of Longs Peak. Somehow those huge mountains help me keep things in perspective. No matter what I am struggling with, I look up at the view and feel renewed.

Helpfulness: There are helpful people everywhere. Without a doubt NJ locals- do not take offense- it is not a contest and you are plenty helpful. But I find strangers or near strangers are much more helpful in CO. When we were moving into our house someone I work with called and said I have two strong boys, a strong husband and a helpful daughter, we also have a trailer. We can help you move into your house today. Wow! This entire family of five spent their Sunday helping this family they hardly knew move into a house. I felt like the grinch that day when his heart grew three sizes because of the love of others.

Prospect Eats and other outdoors gatherings: Every Monday about a dozen gourmet food trucks surround the perimeter of a park and sell dinner and dessert while a band performs. It is just a happy gathering of people out to hang with friends, enjoy good food and music and enjoy the great outdoors. Sometimes these food trucks also frequent micro brews, parks and festivals. It is a fun way to enjoy great food and the great outdoors at the same time.

Paths: It is so nice to have a planned neighborhood with walking and biking paths. It is fun to walk for miles without dealing with obnoxious cars who have no respect for people trying to get some exercise.

Free camping away from it all: I like the back to basics camping without the sounds of generators. It feels good to see the stars so bright without light pollution dimming them.

Live music: So far my favorite place is Planet Bluegrass in Lyons. I like the Friday night bluegrass in the autumn with a big campfire along the creek. Even more than the live music, I like to see so many people gathered together with genuine happiness and appreciation for the little things- gathering with friends, laughing and dancing.

Cool sessions: This probably has nothing to do specifically with Colorado. But because we cleared our calendar of a lot of commitments by starting in a whole new area it gave us time to explore some new things. The Grey Havens Society is a group of Tolkien readers who meet weekly to discuss all things Middle Earth. We take turns bringing our son who loves the ninety minute conversations. As an added bonus, I find it to bond us and we continue to discuss talking points through out the week. I also enjoy the variety of Yoga classes. In the east my classes were rather sterile, simply progressing through the poses. These classes are almost like a mini retreat with as much nurturing for my spirit as for my muscles.

Manners: Generally speaking I have found my CO students much more polite than the ones in NJ. (Of course dozens of my NJ students were the most rewarding people I could work with. But I have yet to encounter the entitlement of some of the parents and students.) I cannot count how many times my Colorado students have said thank you when I really felt I was just doing my job. They also will sincerely ask about my family or weekends and they really like to hear all about things, just as I do.

I feel connected. Even people like the girl at the coffee shop will say- so do you have anything fun planned for today? And they want to hear. It also makes me realize how expected it is to find time for fun..., it is not all about work. As my colleague said- in the east they live to work, here we work to live and then we go home and LIVE.

Not everything is perfect. Two things I could totally do without are: Weight on license and black smoke. If I had know my weight was actually going to be printed on the front of my license I would not have been so honest! And what is up with these huge gas guzzling trucks that pour out all this black smoke at the red lights. So not cool!

Robbins Family Awards Night

I read about this idea in a magazine and I thought it was a good way to celebrate the end of a very successful school year for Laurel and Owen. The magazine said to do an awards night along the line of school awards nights. I kept it simple.
Owen got this award: Read more than the librarian award. He really did- he read the entire Greggor Overland series, entire Maximum Ride series, at least two dozen other books- including The Hobbit with Justin and the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, new Origami Yoda book and the start of the Infinity Ring series.
Laurel got this award: Making the Nicest Friends award.... She is a natural and already has more of a social life in Colorado than I do. I know at this age friends can hold a lot of weight. I am so impressed that she not only made many more friends than I have. But she also picks such nice friends for all the right reasons. Please, let this be a lasting talent:)

After we awarded the certificates we celebrated with a trip for ice cream. They really appreciated the recognition and celebrated the end of their first school year in a new state.

Then I took the awards one step further. I told them they had the weekend to come up with three summer goals: One Academic, one Physical and one Family contribution goal. Below is a screen shot of what we came up with. We will check in each week to see how we all are progressing!

Remembering Dad

Before I start writing my Father's Day blog I have to mention one of my favorite blogs that I have been reading: succesify. Good daily doses of inspiration.

With Father's Day coming up I figured I would do a little tribute to my dad. My father passed away in 2004. Two things that surprise me are how daily his little words of advice pop into my head and how much I wish I could have the long chats that I totally did not enjoy when they were happening.

One piece of advice that really sticks out was given to me in 1989. I had headed off to college and I was extremely homesick. I would only get to call home once a week because long distance phone calls at the pay phone were really expensive. Usually when I called I secretly hoped my mom would pick up but it was almost always that my dad would answer. I figured I would try to have a heart to heart with him and tell my dad how much I missed home. His advice rather shocked me. This is what he said: "You know Helen, it's time to either shit or get off the pot." Wow! That was not the warm words I expected. But looking back I am so glad he said that. Basically I had an opportunity so many only dream of- going off to college. And from my dad's point of view I either needed to live it and embrace it or change the plan but he was tired of my sad phone calls every week. I have since used his advice often. If ever I am not happy with what I am doing I either change my attitude or change my situation. But I don't just stay stuck. Thanks Dad for always saying it like it is. We need more of that kind of parenting these days!

My dad loved to tell a story. Sometimes he told the same story again and again. For example, just about every Thanksgiving we could be sure to hear about the time he was homesick traveling in England during Thanksgiving and he asked for pumpkin pie. Anyone in my family can tell the rest of this story it has been told so many times. The waitress replied "Pumpkin Pie! You mean those huge orange squashes? You make pie out of them!" To this day anyone in my family can say the words pumpkin pie with a British accent and we all break out laughing with memories of Dad.

My dad was always full of surprises. One time he told me a story about a guy with the nickname eggshell. He was so well known by this nickname that all you needed to do was draw a picture of an eggshell followed by Poughkeepsie, NY and the zip code and no mater where in the world you mailed your letter, he would get it. This impressed me for three big reasons:
1. My dad drew an amazing eggshell- It was probably the only drawing I ever saw him do but it really impressed me.
2. How cool was it to live in a town where some guy could be known by the whole post office as eggshell and that drawing would get all his mail to his house!.
3. It made me wonder if I could ever pull off a picture nickname. I would often wonder which picture I would try to get to take off. This thought entertained for many long car rides!

My dad loved to eat a good meal. I used to love to watch him eat. He had such a face of contentment. His engineering mind really showed while he ate. He could cut meat with such precision- almost like a grid of graph paper one square at a time. Vegetables also took on an interesting ritual. For example, first he would eat the bottom inch of each asparagus spear, then the next inch and so on until he was left with the tips. I recall he really did not like casseroles. He liked order on his plate!

Compliments from my dad were few and far between. As a result the times I got them I really treasured them. One time after college I said I would make dinner. I made vegetable soup with a food processor. I really went crazy with the chopping and it was almost like baby food. My dad said, "That soup was really good. I liked that the vegetables were cut so small." It is true that a daughter loves to hear praises from her father. I felt so proud!

My dad taught me Mark Twain's quote- "Never let schoolwork interfere with your education." We valued schoolwork and were expected to behave and learn while at school. But about once a year out of no where my dad would say, "Want to go to New York for the day?" It would usually be a Wednesday and we would catch a matinee. On an especially memorable trip we walked out of the Big River matinee and got right back on the half price line to see The Tap Dance Kid. I loved our broadway show outings. Some of the many shows I saw with my dad included: Annie, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, 42nd Street, Chorus Line, Big River, I Remember Mama, Tap Dance Kid, Phantom of the Opera, Les Mis, Blood Brothers, Miss Saigon, Starlight Express and My Fair Lady.

Well I could go on and on but these are some of my top dad memories. Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!

Why Did You Move?

At least once a week someone will ask us what brought us to Colorado. It is both a hard and an easy question to answer. In some ways it would have been so much easier to say "my husband was transferred". Then you can kind of blame the company as the bad guy and just tell the kids, "We had to move." But we actually CHOSE to move which has pros and cons. Best off- it means we got to PICK where we wanted to live. But the harder part was that when the going got tough and l or o would ask, "Why did we even have to move anyway? Everything was fine in Denville", I did not have a nice simple answer like: "Daddy's work told him we had to move."

The simple answer was that we were looking for a better quality of life- less rushing, more enjoying. But now that I have moved and met others who moved for the same reasons, I can see that even the better quality of life reason was not the main reason we moved. Some friends and family took this move personal, as if we were moving because they were not a good enough reason to stay. I realize one thing they do not know about me if they feel this way: I just had this nagging feeling that NJ was not where we were meant to be. For us, there was just this need to move. I loved my days in Denville but I just knew there was more in the world and I wanted our family to see it. And I knew I did not want to wait until retirement to move.

It is really interesting how many other transplants I have met who moved here for the same reasons we had.... Just had this pull. Some people gave in right out of high school. Some came after college. Some came like us pretty far into life. And others yet came out after retirement. But all of us had this pull to come here. And as a result I feel this neat mix of a bunch of kindred souls who all found their way here one way or another and now we already have that in common.

So to answer the question- why did you move! It was just something we had to do. What I would say is if you feel perfectly content where you are, by all means stay there. But if a voice keeps saying- there is more, then follow the quote below and follow your heart. It won't be easy. And it won't be smooth. But it WILL be worth it!

A Very Memorable Mother's Day

I love Mother's day as a day to honor my mother. My mom is amazing. The only bad thing about my mom is she is so great that it is impossible for me to ever feel I am as good a mother as she is. But I am eternally grateful that my mom and I have always enjoyed each other (except for a few of those teen drama moments when it was all me causing the tension). And I love celebrating her greatness on Mother's Day.

But I must be honest that after becoming a mom myself I had a love-hate relationship with Mother's Day. My biggest beef is that in order to be "eligible" to celebrate Mother's Day there was not a whole lot you could do to celebrate. I found the expectation of this "perfect day for mom" is unrealistically high and it almost always led to a let-down.. (Even my own perfect mom got a little fed up with the high expectations of a happy day as remembered by the infamous "jelly donut incident" In which my sister bit into a donut she thought was jelly and it turned out to be cream. My sister's great disappointment was only worsened when my brother guffawed, pointing his finger at her. Then my dad did what all dads seem to do on Mother's Day: He yelled and screamed and told everyone to be nice to each other because it is Mother's Day. My mom had the best and most reasonable reaction of all. She said "I am going for a walk" and dissappered for several hours.)

I preface this entry by all of this because I do not want to be one of those moms that writes of perfection and encourages congratulatory pats on the back. I think we as Team Mothers do ourselves a great disservice pretending all is perfect. It is great to celebrate our highs, as this post will do, while also acknowledging our lows and disappointments. This way we celebrate each others joys while also supporting each others challenges.

So now that I have given all this background, I do want to write the details of a most wonderful Mother's Day. This Mother's Day was very different from others. It is the first time since I became a mom that I was not with my mom. I cannot recall if I would be home in time when I was in college by it was certainly the norm for me to be celebrating with my mom just about every single Mother's Day. I was a little nervous about being apart from my mom this year. But I decided rather than dwell on the missing part I would just postpone celebrating mom and focus on having a good day myself. (I was also able to start my Mother's Day with a nice FaceTime session with my mom which helped.)

It was always a tradition growing up to spend Mother's Day working on the yard. We decided we would begin this tradition n Colorado. Laurel said she wanted to plan all the meals for the day so I could focus on the flowers and yard. On Friday I took her to the store so she could get the ingredients.

First thing Sunday morning I went to church. No one else wanted to go, but that was fine. I enjoyed the peaceful start to the day. When I got home there was a wonderful spread for breakfast. Laurel made homemade banana muffins for breakfast along with a protein smoothie. After a hearty breakfast we all went outside to work on the yard. Laurel prepared the herb garden for planting while Owen and I planted annuals out front. Justin put together the new lawn mower. After a few hours of everyone pitching in, the outside was looking pretty good. Laurel made a delicious fried rice meal for lunch while I got ready for a two hour yoga class. After the yoga class Laurel and Owen and I went swimming in the heated neighborhood pool that is only a block from our house. Laurel was planning to make dinner too but we were having so much fun at the pool we decided to do takeout and then Laurel made the dinner meal (salad and pizza) one night during the week when I had to work late.

The best part of the day was that everyone was helpful and happy. I really enjoyed spending the day together, contributing to the yard as a family and getting a day off from the never ending question: What's for dinner?

Summer Reading

Some students dread the thought of summer reading. But for me one of my favorite springtime rituals is making the decision of what my summer reads will be. Around this time of year I start making my list and checking it twice. I also spend the first month of summer vacation taking a break from young adult literature. While I really do enjoy most of my school related reading, by the end of each school year I look forward to reading with some adult characters, themes or topics. So here is what I have so far:

I am not a fast reader at all so really this list is a little over-zealous for a month...but even if I do not get to all these books, I still like that luxurious feeling that I will be getting some down time to read early in the morning, at the pool and even on a hike, rather than right before bed when I get so tired that I fall asleep after five pages.

The kids and I also set aside some books for group reads and one on one reads.... But that will be for another day:)

So.... What do you think? If anyone has a suggestion of something else, please tell me. I love to hear about great reads.

Worrier or warrior?

My son is a bit of a worrier. So I had this bright idea to collect cute sayings from Pinterest and print them out as a little inspiration area in his room. I was all excited to show him my little captions. The last one was this:

He read it and without a moment's pause he said, "I think for me they are roommates." I never cease to be amazed how perfectly kids can so clearly say it like it is.
So... Maybe my quotes are not foolproof but here are two more I liked:

One final note: The book below is not so much related to worrying but it is a good anchor for talking about striving to be your best.

Spring has Sprung

Once again I start my blog off with the usual start... It has been awhile. But we have lots to update on. First off, for those who enjoy reading other blogs, these are two of my current favorites:
3 things for mom
This blog always picks a theme and then has a truth, a tip and a find related to that theme. It mostly keeps things in perspective and reminds us all to stop and smell the roses.
away for the weekend
This is a blog that my cousin's wife creates. Even though I was in fifth grade when they got married, I feel like I am finally catching up to them and enjoy the country photos and casual feel of the entries... Kind of like having a cup of tea with a good friend.

Our new state agrees with us. As hard as it was to move, I feel it was more than worth it. Now that weekends are more about enjoying the great area we live in, my soul feels like priorities are starting to get back in place. I treasure the calm and the simplicity. All four of us enjoy seeing the snowy mountains while we explore different ski resorts. We also enjoy the variety of hiking trails on the warmer days.

We just had a wonderful visit with Grammy. We enjoyed seeing the Celestial Seasonings factory, visiting Frisco, Breckenridge, A-Basin, Nederland, Boulder and Lyons. It was so good to catch up on hugs and stories. But it was also comforting to see the strong bonds we had before this move can handle the miles.
Now we are heading in to the fun days... School will be out in a month, longer days, farmers market and food trucks. Yeah! One thing I really want to experience is a concert at Red Rocks.

Home Sweet Home

I am finally down to one set of house keys.... No more whaleback waddy keys, no more apartment keys, just keys for our home. Even though we have only been living here for a week it already feels like a home. Each night we get a few more boxes unpacked. Yesterday I went to the COOLEST store looking for bookshelves. It is called Front Range Flea Market and it is like walking into a general store from the 1940's. Luckily I was pressed for time so I simply bought what I went there for- 2 bookshelves. But I can't wait for a mother daughter date to take a more leisurely stroll through that place.
Last night I filled up one of the shelves with all our photo albums. Then Justin and I started watching a movie. I could not figure out why O kept going up and down the stairs. Then I saw a big pile of photo books in his room. He said, "mom- when I look at these photos I think how lucky I am." Awwwwww- he is so cute.

Welcome Home

This week I feel like our move became a little more official. We closed on a house. We are all so excited to start putting down roots and making our new place feel like home. Living in a two bedroom apartment has been a great experience but I think we all would agree it will be a little easier when we are not dealing with each other in such tight quarters. I am also looking forward to unpacking some of those boxes from six months ago.

Moving is not an easy activity and I am amazed by people who do it every couple years. But at the same time, as long as we are going through all the packing, selling and buying, I am glad it was for a big change like this. I loved my years in NJ but I am equally excited for this new phase with so much to see and explore right nearby.

Soon we will be settled and ready for visitors. Basically if you read this blog, consider it an open invite. And if airfare prevents full family visits, consider vacations the "dubbels" way. My parents started taking just one child someplace. I loved my one on one trip to Virginia and also NZ and Australia with my mom. I equally loved my trips to Ireland, Tennessee and England with my dad. I have continued the tradition by visiting Renate first with Laurel then with Owen. I know it Is not easy to plan and take a trip without the whole family- but I am guessing once you do it once you may realize it is the best vacation ever.