Tonight's Sunset

Spectacular

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Now is the time

This week has been one of the nicest of the summer.
Even though it is now fall.
Our summer weather was odd.
And now our fall weather is odd - in a nice way.
The sun has decided to shine her smiling face and warm us up as we prepare for the cold.
Even though I would like to see the snow accumulating up in the mountains. I know it will come.
I'm trusting Mama Nature to do it up right this winter and give us a glorious spanking of snow on a daily basis. Please.

Out of respect for all of Miss Nature's efforts in boggling our minds with exceptional days, beautiful colors and nights that still beg for windows to be left open so she can wander in and out of rooms gathering a last glimpse before we shut our windows to Winter, I have been playing...

B and I took out the motorbikes and cruised 178 miles
Smiles and smiles all on dirt roads through the mountains

I took a day trip to a lake with a new friend.
No kids. Gosset champagne. Sunny skies. Warm gentle breeze.

She laughed when she saw me taking these pictures, but not as hard as when I pulled out the glassware. Silly girl thought we would be enjoying our beverage out of paper cups.
Ewwwwwww ~ Indeed NOT!
I may have been born and lived my whole life here in the sparse world of amenities and refinement. But I know how to have a good time and that we did.

The trees are just starting to show us their colors.
Disrobing just for us.
I tried not to stare, but that was hardly possible.
Such beauty all around us.
Each time we rounded another bend in the road and caught a new glimpse of the lake we remarked about the beauty of where we live.
Stunning really. Living here in this general place my whole life I forget to take it all in on a daily basis and revel in the place that is my home.

We sat for a long time talking and sitting in comfortable silence listening to the 'waves' lapping at the shore. I made mental notes to bring the family here next summer. Many times. It is so worth the drive.
We ate lunch at a great little dive restaurant with a quirky menu and an even more interesting wine list.
Made a quick stop into a brewery. Had the worst flavored beer I have ever tried. I just don't understand the whole fruit in beer crap. I'll take hops. Lots of them, please.

On the drive home got stuck for just under and hour as the brilliant ranchers moved several hundred head of cows across the highway (2 lanes) and then proceeded to have to chase several juveniles who had decided that they would skip out of the herd.
Perhaps on a Wednesday at 4:30pm is NOT the time to do this. There isn't a whole hell of a lot of rush hour traffic, but I'm thinking 1o:30 in the morning when school buses are not trying to take kids home and folks are not trying to get home from town might be a better option. Just saying. I'm no rancher, but...
This nutty mayhem resulted in my missing of my boys soccer game and my friend being very late to pick up her boy from his sitters.
Thankfully we were laughing the whole time. Not much else we could do. Getting all pissy wouldn't have helped the cows cooperate any better. So we had fun.

Fall is nearly here....then comes WINTER!

{ my boy heading up the trail}

This summer we have spent many hours walking trails, riding bikes, floating rivers, climbing rocks, sitting stream-side, going to the lake and best of all being together.
It has been fun to have the both kids at an age where they can walk into the mountain lakes, ride for miles and we all have fun.
The complaining is very minimal.
Which is SO nice.
Makes me want to get up early pack up our packs with food, water and GO.
I like going.
A lot.

On this particular day we headed up a trail for a walk, it was only a few miles into our destination so Chaco's were the footwear needed instead of heavy duty hiking boots. Plus we needed water worthy shoes, for we were headed to the most amazing natural water slides.
Well, maybe not the most amazing.
I have seen photographs of natural water slides on tropical islands. And those, with their warm water, SMOOTH rocks and tropical flowers blooming, must be most amazing.
But for us and where we live, we were excited to go slide down bumpy granite slabs of rock and splash into icy cold pools.
On a hot day and after a 3 mile hike they sure seemed amazing to me.
Or maybe that was the nips of Sauza while trekking up the trail.
Who knows.

What fun we had!
In the midst of all the fun, I forgot to take pictures of the water slides.
Oh, well.

At least we didn't leave our sunglasses sitting on a bed of moss along side the trail.
The Boy was concerned for the person who had left them.
Sweet he is.





After we had all the cold water we could take, we headed down the trail towards home.

I love the contrast between the rocks on the trail and foliage of the trees.
Hard and cold. Soft and warm.

My trail gear...sun hat, backpack, water bottle, sun glasses and camera.

This summer has been great.

Thank you summer. We have enjoyed playing with you.




(I am starting to look forward to winter.....SKIING!!!!!)

Remember when I

said that there were no forests fires.
Well, we now have several.
Great. Let the sneezing and watering eyes begin.
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Thursday Sunset

Laundry on the line.
Sun setting across the valley.
Beautiful.
What a spectacular way to end a fine day.

We took in another hike up into the mountains today. Splashed in the icy waters and hung out.
Maybe pictures later, who knows.

On belay? Belay on. Climbing! Climb on.

After they braved the 40 minute drive up the side of the mountain. Navigated all of the switch-backs and managed to park their cars...
We asked them to walk out to the overlook and hang out till we started the wedding.

The topic at hand...where was the groom??!?

Of course, I knew.
I was smiling.

I knew that 70 feet below the ledge, my man was roping up*, getting ready to make his final climb as a single man. His good friend JB had surprised him by making the trip from the east coast to belay* him on our wedding day.
B was surprised. I was delighted*.

(* B had wanted to solo the climb that day, meaning climb up with no ropes. No protection.
I said "what the hell are you thinking????!!!!!!!!!!!! No way in HELL are you doing any such thing!"
Then, I quickly got on the phone and enlisted help from his climbing partners)


I know many of the activities B loves involve risk. A lot of risk.
I'm okay with that.
I was not okay with that kind of risk on our wedding day.
Nope, I'm an odd one that way.




After what seemed like an eternity, this is what everybody saw.
(And when my snot started flowing)

His Grandmothers wanted to kill him and smother him with kisses all at once.
I was proud and anxious to have him next to me.
We had told no one of this plan, the climb.
People freaked out, but in a good way.


B in a tux, harness, shoes and a chalk bag = SEXY!


Our wedding day is still discussed and talked about by all who were there.
It was all rather unusual, but then so are B & I.
We like it that way.

This one is for you Eleanor, thanks for asking!

Okay, so I can't count

(a peek at our wedding day) (14years + 1 day)

On the 16th I said only 9 days left. Should have been 8 days. Must have not been using both hands to count on. Geesh. [Perhaps I should rethink this home schooling thing]

For us it was the perfect setting. On an overlook's edge, looking out into the wilderness.

A place where we fell in love.

A place where I worked harder than any other job. InMyLife!!

See the ledge behind us, right below my elbow...B climbed up that to me.

I know. I know! Awesome.

I should show you B in his tux, climbing harness and shoes...just coming over the ridge. My favorite moment of the wedding.