On The Way To Our Parker AZ Park

 Well then, our road to Parker was a fun ride, we took our time, drove during the day only and actually spent the nights in dog friendly hotels...found some OK ones too.
Driving through the  mountains of CO is pretty awesome

 Especially with the snow capped tops

One of our stops to exercise the dogs and play in the snow ourselves.  All three boys enjoyed trudging through the snow...and not only did the little boys 'pee' but David is off to the trees to do the same himself!

 HA a picture with me in it...doesn't happen very often!

So darned gorgeous.  While driving through Vail I looked really really hard for someone famous but nope didn't spot anyone...isn't Vail where all of the rich and famous go to ski and stuff?

Oh dear and then there is Utah

 This is a state that we really need to spend some time in

 Love those formations and the colors

We spent our last night on the road with Rachel who was kind enough to not only invite us to spend a night but she cooked the first home made meal we had had since our wonderful Christmas meal.  Those that know Rach know she is a great cook...there is just something to be said for knowing what spices to use.  The next morning she sent us off with tummy's full of scrambled eggs and toast oh and coffee as well.  Thanks a ton for the hospitality Rachel.

So the very first thing that we did upon arriving in Parker was to hit the urgent care facility.  I was feeling pretty awful and was sure that I had a great big sinus infection which I am sure was exacerbated by the altitude.  I have been on antibiotics for 6 days and finally, today, I feel better.  I really haven't done much of anything other than wait for this crazy stuff to clear up, but watch out New Year's Eve...here we come haha.  The park has a dinner and dance to celebrate and although we don't dance we do eat.  Our neighbors will join us and maybe, just maybe, we will be awake past midnight....or not.

So, I hope that you all had a nice Christmas and have a safe and happy new year.

Christmas In Minnesota

Before we left for our winter home and Len, Kel and girls went to Michigan to spend Christmas with Kel's family we had our Christmas together.  Great food, good fun, presents and BS and family, what more can one ask.
Grandpa decided we should save decorating the cutouts until we could do them with the girls.

Shelby spread the frosting onto her cookie and then..... 

 Decided it was much better eaten that spreading on a stupid cookie:)

 Here the girls are decorating away

 While Shelby ate her frosting, Julia and Grandpa decorated

 There isn't much sweeter for a grandma than watching her grandkids in their Christmas program.  It just so happened that the girls were on the opposite end of the stage than we were but I did get a few shots

Julia in her skit with her 'classmates'

Shelby did just fine until she spotted her Momma and Daddy.

Lenny in the kitchen preparing another wonderful meal.  Kelly cooked as well she just didn't get in the picture.  We had home made egg rolls stuffed with feta cheese, sun dried tomatoes and something else...what is it guys?  There was home made turkey/cranberry ravioli, shrimp wrapped in bacon, ahi tuna with home made wasabi-oh dear I know I am missing something and it was all good.  Grandma Loi, who is a tad picky, really liked the ravioli.

Speaking of Momma/Grandma Loi here she is opening the wall hanging that I quilted for her.

 And Auntie Kelly playing with the Lincoln Logs that she bought because she never had them when she was a kid:)

 Julia was the official gift hander outer as well as the 'I will help you open your present' gal

Shelby Marie running to Grandpa to show him the cell phone that she got

Even Tigger got into the act

 Shelby's favorite might have been her Elmo and friends set and Julia loved her drawing pad

I cant decide if the look on Shelby's face says that she likes this dolly or if she wonders why it isn't talking to her like all of her other friends at daycare do.

And here they are our two little MN Christmas angels

The night before we opened presents I listened to my son tell his daughter how Santa was going to come down the chimeny, eat the cookies, drink the milk and deliver the gifts-precious.
AND another too good to not share story.  Shelby needed her diaper changed and when she was asked if she did in fact need it changed off she went to the bathroom, moved the foot stool to the toilet, pulled her pants down and hoped up onto the toilet.  Never mind that her diaper was already wet....she's got at least part of the idea.  Oh yes, even though she didn't 'pee' in the potty she did grab toilet paper, wiped, flushed the toilet and asked to wash her hands (by going to the sink holding her hands out).  AND THEN later Kelly caught her pulling her pants down attempting to sit on the itty bitty Barbie toilet in the living room...really Shelby??????  Kids are great, especially when they are your grands.
It was another wonderful early Christmas.  Thank you so much Len and Kel for hosting, now have a great time with Grandma Sherry and Grandpa Tim.

Busy? Hell Yes!

My sewing room and I have become pretty close these past few weeks, so close in fact that I got pretty darned sick of that room.  However the projects are done, and sometimes I think it would be much easier and quicker to get all of our gifts from the stores.  Nah, I really do enjoy my sewing room and creating new things.  Here some of them are:

A Christmas table runner for one of my favorite people

 A soft cuddly blanket for a special young boy

 A Dresden plate quilted wall hanging for a lady who deserves so much more

 And a card table playhouse for two very special girls and because it was on their 'Dear Santa' list

I have decided that I will be starting my next year's Christmas gifts this January....but then I know me, I will start and put them off until next November...dear Mary why oh why did you give me this procrastination habit? 

We don't have much of a winter wonderland this year but I was able to get a few 'sort of winter' shots on a few drives

 A wet snow fall day

 We lured this gorgeous eagle to our back yard with David's deer hide.  We were both surprised that we didn't have a few more of these birds of prey on that hide.

 Cat tails and reeds make for a great winter picture

 Oh and just one more thing that I have been doing....with David's help.  We baked 7 different kinds of Christmas cookies to take to Prior Lake this coming weekend.  Because I wanted to get my gifts done David offered (after i suggested) to help me bake cookies.  A fine job he did do, the cookies look tasty, the kitchen not so much HA.  Those Woelperns are great cooks but they do know how to make a mess in the process.

 Oh yes our auction is set for May 5th 2012.  As my friend Mary says, "It sounds so finale".  We are actually glad to have it all set up.  Our auction folks,the Dauks, will make it a fun day.  They are great people and we both wish we could have gotten to know them sooner.  We have actually been to many of their auctions and some of the things they will have on our auction bill are items that we have purchased at other auctions they have done.  So it seems that after May 5th we will be without a stick house...well we may still have the house but their will be nothing in it.  I suspect that is when we will officially become full timers?  The house itself is not going on the auction block, we are still hoping that it gets sold sooner than later.  It will happen.  We are lucky that we have no mortgage makes this process much easier.

Off to Prior Lake tomorrow to spend a few last days with the Leonard clan and an early Christmas.  Monday we begin our two day drive to AZ.  Yep, we are planning on driving straight through once again.  Crazy is as crazy does.