Crazy Weather Calls for Indoor Measures (Tuesday, January 10th, 2017)

The weather around the country has been crazy since the start of the new year.  Floods in California and Nevada, and huge amounts of snow in Colorado.  It has snowed almost non-stop since the first day of January, and we've had huge wind for the past few days. Monday on I-25 (the main north - south highway through Colorado) was closed for hours because multiple semis blew off the road. 

Today, I-70 (the main east-west highway) was closed for hours because of an avalanche that came down over the highway.  This photo is compliments of 9-News here in Denver.

A-Basin, Crested Butte and Monarch ski areas had to close because of too much snow, and many of the mountain towns are completely snowed in.  We've never heard of that before! Tonight the news says that more snow is on the way.  Wow, what a month so far!

We're tired of being cooped up because of bad weather, so we decided it was time to get out and about, so we spent the day at the National Western Stock Show.  The snow has all melted here in town, but the wind is still blowing like crazy so it's nice to find somewhere nice and calm to walk around.

The stock show has everything related to farming and ranching that you could ever want to see, and so much food, both inside and out.

Our first stop was the cattle judging.  They are all so fluffy but other than that, we couldn't tell what the judges were looking for. 

Then we checked out what the vendors had for sale.  This is probably too big for our yard, so we'll have to keep looking.

But a Treager grill might be nice!  Oh yeah, we're de-cluttering.  I guess we'll have to just keep looking.

They even had some birds of pray.

This trailer held four horses, and still had living quarters for their owners up front.  Do you think it gets a little stinky after awhile?

It took us awhile, but we finally found the livestock.

This goat is getting groomed.  I don't think he's thrilled.

Once they are groomed, they get these pretty coats to keep them clean.

Then we headed clear upstairs to the petting farm and pony rides. Our youngest daughter really wanted to ride a pony, but I think I finally convinced her that her feet would drag.

There was even a bee keeper in the hall of education.  He took the time to find his queen bee for us.  It's somewhere in this picture, but I can't find it now.

Then we made a quick stop in the Clydesdale barn.  They are huge horses!

The most exciting part of our day was watching the tractor head out to groom the arena.  OK, maybe not!

When we checked the arena again before we left, there was a pinning competition going on.  Three cowboys have to separate three specific cows out of the herd, without getting any of the others.

The stock show was a fun way to get out of all the crazy weather we have been having, and to enjoy something that we don't often see.  We did have a little trouble with allergies in the enclosed arenas, but it was a lot of fun!

Simplifying is Very Complicated (Sunday, January 8th, 2017)

It seems like the new year should bring another retirement update, and the big movement in our house has been cleaning out.  Steve and I have spent the last year and a half trying to simplify our lives. It seems that as we were raising kids and working, we tended to spend our time just trying to keep our heads above water.  When we weren't at work; kids activities, healthy meals and keeping our house and yard under control seemed to take every spare minute we had, but once the kids left the house, we have found ourselves with a lot more free time.

We started out just getting rid of our kids old toys, clothes and school supplies that they no longer needed.  But then we just continued on, going through every room in the house, one by one, getting rid of things that we obviously didn't need.  

Once we made our way through the entire house once (including the really scary storage room), we started noticing that there were still things that we should really be getting rid of.  This time it was things that were a little more sentimental, but still, we were just holding on to them with no plan to do anything with them.  

We eventually realized that cleaning out our house was a lot like peeling an onion.  It happened in layers, a little bit at a time, until we finally reduced our stuff to things that we use pretty regularly. 

Some of it we just threw away, but much of it we donated to various non-profit organizations, including furniture that was just too big to give to our kids.

When we finally were rid of everything that we thought none of us would ever want, then we started talking to our kids about what they might want.  Our oldest daughter and her husband were starting their first home and were ready for some of our furniture, so we let them take what they wanted.  Our youngest daughter is still in college and not ready for furniture yet, so we told her we would continue to store all of her furniture for her until she is ready for it.  We can't think of a better way or time to get rid of things than when they are still useful (and actually appreciated) by our kids.

With a house clean of clutter, a storage room that is practically empty and a garage that can fit our cars, we have had a huge burden lifted.  

It  has taken a year and a half so far, but it is an amazing feeling. We can walk through our whole house and admire all of the open space.  And when we need something, we can actually find it. We have kept all our sentimental family heirlooms, to go through or use when we want, but none of the "junk" that we used to hold on to.

I once heard a saying, cluttered life, cluttered mind, and I now understand what it means.  We all too often become a slave to our things (and I'm not going to say that we have completely overcome that), but we have definitely made a huge dent in it.  When you're tripping over things (even in just one room or one cabinet), or can't find what you need, when you need it, it is stressful and it bothers you, cluttering your mind with something that doesn't need to be there.

I don't think we are completely done with our clean out, and in fact, I think it will continue to be an on-going process as life continues to evolve, but we are finding that simpler is better, contrary to what we used to think.  It gives us more time to enjoy life, instead of taking care of our stock piles.  

Happy New Year 2017 (Saturday, December 31st, 2016)

Happy New Year 2017!

Our wonderful neighbors have started a tradition of a progressive dinner on New Years Eve.  With the houses still beautifully decorated for the holidays, and all within walking distance of home, it is the perfect way to spend the evening.  

Everyone pitched in with appetizers and sides, while our wonderful first hosts prepared a fabulous dinner of beef filet, baked potatoes and asparagus.  

One of our neighbors brought some sparkly vodka jello shots. They were a hit with everyone!

And then for dessert, another neighbor brought these amazing chocolate brownie, ice cream New Year Globes to our final house. They were beautiful and so tasty!

We have a great neighborhood with very fun people.  There were only 10 of us together for New Years, but it was such a good time.

After ringing in the new year and enjoying some great karaoke, we all called it a night, and walked home for a good night's sleep.

On New Years Day for lunch, we had our customary black eyed peas to bring us good luck for the new year.  It's a tradition that I had never heard of before I married Steve, but now it's a must!  I have to admit that we don't eat them throughout the year, but I have looked forward to them every year for the last 31 years.   

We had a great time at our neighborhood get together.  It gave us a chance to catch up and enjoy a fun and relaxed evening with no driving involved.  We hope all of you found the perfect way to ring in the new year as well. Happy 2017!