tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-106835752012-01-22T13:37:49.880-05:00Join Diane and Andy as we travel America in our RV. We've been "intermittent" explorers since 2004. Our hope is to visit as many National and State Parks as we can, while we can. This blog will go back to January of 2005, but for 2004 travels you can visit our website at www.diandy.comDianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.comBlogger5681100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-56410392027624504712012-01-22T13:37:00.001-05:002012-01-22T13:37:50.046-05:00

Around December 1st we noticed that Elizabeth was getting one of her molars.  By December 7th we realized that she wasn’t just getting one of her teeth – but five!  Four molars and an incisor.  It just didn’t seem fair that this little girl would have to go through so much pain.  It was a tough couple of weeks as they all cut through. Maybe that’s why she tended to walk around with toys in her

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-91558891847772872672012-01-15T22:08:00.001-05:002012-01-15T22:08:46.801-05:00

November was a very busy month for us.  We moved our business!  We moved from an office building to a retail storefront in our Olde Town Arvada – the main street shopping district in our city.  It’s amazing how much needs to be done before, during, and after moving a business.  But we are excited about the new opportunities this will (hopefully) bring us.  Wish us luck! In Elizabeth’s world,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-22983177430846810672011-11-26T13:43:00.001-05:002011-11-26T14:01:28.514-05:00

We celebrated Elizabeth’s birthday on her birthday (not always possible!) with lots of friends at our local Skyline Neighborhood Park.  We had beautiful weather, thankfully, which can always be iffy in the month of October.  A Colorado October can bring 80’s or snow and sometimes just days apart.  We were so happy to share this special day with some of Elizabeth’s closest friends and some new

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-18197179140686370132011-10-28T23:52:00.001-04:002011-10-29T10:45:20.881-04:00

We spent the first six days of September in sunny Florida (ok, it rained but we still loved it).  We stayed in a little hotel that was walking distance to the beach.  We’re finding that it works best if we can find a suite with the bedroom separate from the living area for Elizabeth’s nap time and early bedtime.  We also love having a kitchen available.  The smaller hotels have also been

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-53073781941373819062011-09-27T00:23:00.001-04:002011-09-27T00:23:48.544-04:00

Busy, busy, busy.  August just flew by before we knew it. Elizabeth’s second top front tooth came in on the eighth of the month.  I can’t even imagine how uncomfortable it must be to feel a tooth growing down your jaw and pop out thru the skin.  She gets so fussy for so long before and after a tooth actually cuts through I feel so bad for her (and us, since we lose a lot of sleep during these

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-8804756741751318892011-08-29T18:04:00.000-04:002011-08-30T18:05:01.597-04:00

July was a wonderful month…we got two great getaways in and a nice hike.  It was also a fascinating month for Elizabeth’s development.  Boy can things change rapidly at this age. Our first trip was to Estes Park for Fourth of July weekend.  Our hotel had a nice view of the creek in downtown Estes.  Eliz loved sitting out with us watching the cars, people, and water go by. The water level in

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-39185009583428534792011-07-17T23:56:00.001-04:002011-07-17T23:56:54.924-04:00

Ironically our illnesses that lasted 6 weeks were bookended by Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.  Our celebrations for those two holidays weren’t what we really had in mind…but all we cared about was being healthy again. Elizabeth continues to surprise us with new and exciting things.  Several new yoga poses she has been practicing include Cobra and (what I would call) Seated Big Toe.  She holds

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-4239205364170395492011-06-20T12:48:00.001-04:002011-06-20T12:48:36.325-04:00

May (and half of June) were a little challenging for us.  We have been learning just how difficult and exhausting it is to care for a sick child when we are sick as well.  The day before Mother’s Day was to be my present – a day hiking in Boulder with friends and then just hanging around Boulder shopping and eating - I put Elizabeth in the car seat and…projectile vomit soaked both of us. 

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-56971207002972645822011-05-14T16:49:00.001-04:002011-05-14T16:55:09.531-04:00

This month we tried out the new backpack carrier.  Our first big hike out with Elizabeth ended as a flop.  Or, should I say, “never happened”? This was the most fun she had on the hike… You may be saying, “What was the problem – she looks happy enough”, but every attempt to actually walk down the trail lead to loud screaming.  To the point where Andy tried to sell her off to other hikers…

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-32996258186108521702011-04-17T22:53:00.001-04:002011-04-17T22:59:37.603-04:00

March brought all new adventures for Elizabeth.  She really started to focus on sitting up and she discovered solid foods.  Once she started practicing sitting, she seemed to have totally forgotten about (or at least lost interest in) rolling over.  It’s even harder now then ever to get her to be on her tummy for tummy time practice. She has also learned several new yoga poses, so she now

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-79827189789367126182011-03-20T22:56:00.001-04:002011-03-20T22:56:47.997-04:00

Florida…here we come!!  Elizabeth was all ready for the sunshine and beach days before we flew to Fort Lauderdale.  She had her big hat and her snazzy new swim diaper…not to mention shorts and t-shirts and other clothes she had never worn before. We were so excited to see our dear friends. Ok, Elizabeth just looks sad in this picture with Melissa because Melissa was leaving ;) Eliz and I

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-56371649032448505792011-01-30T15:00:00.001-05:002011-01-30T21:49:14.841-05:00

January became a busy month for us because I started teaching yoga three nights a week.  Not only does this entail me preparing lesson plans in addition to teaching, but it also entails listening to Andy say “Hurry home!” three nights a week.  Even though teaching evening classes is best because of the business, it unfortunately is Elizabeth’s “fussy time” and bedtime.  So Andy is fully

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-42392241513713719332011-01-24T12:57:00.001-05:002011-01-30T21:42:50.482-05:00

I truly can’t believe it’s the end of January already…where did January AND December go?  Well, we were busy with company and a trip home to Philly.  So here’s a little recap of our December… It first started out that Andy’s Mom and sister were coming for a visit because Carol had a business meeting to attend in Denver.  Then our niece Christie called – she had a Med School interview in nearby

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-33779926172504180042010-11-21T21:43:00.000-05:002010-11-21T21:43:54.547-05:00

We’re both eager to start exercising again, but the best I’ve been able to do is a few walks on some local trails.  One of my favorites is the Ralston Creek Trail… One day we went downtown and walked along the Cherry Creek trail.  We came across the “crocheted garden fence” when we cut back onto the city streets.  A group of women made all of these beautiful crocheted flowers and planted this

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-12689402876540891232010-11-02T19:47:00.000-04:002010-11-21T18:47:52.561-05:00

My sister, Karen, came to visit and help us out for a week at the end of October.  It was great to have another pair of hands around the house.  She helped out with diaper duty, holding the little pumpkin, and household chores.  But we thought it was great just to have her visiting us and showing her some of our favorite spots.  One day we walked Pearl Street in Boulder and had lunch out. 

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-55588528126237297052010-10-20T21:58:00.001-04:002010-10-20T21:58:15.069-04:00

It’s been 2 1/2 weeks since Elizabeth has been in our lives.  We’ve gotten out for a couple of walks, but getting her on a trail felt like we were getting some semblance of normalcy back into our lives.  That may have been a short-lived exaggeration, but we still savored the time outside in nature. On her two-week birthday we took her to Lair O’ the Bear park because I had hoped the trails would

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-48691308484084313092010-10-05T19:39:00.001-04:002010-10-05T19:43:04.354-04:00

Elizabeth Rose Thomas joined our family this past Saturday.  We, of course, think she’s beautiful!  She surprised us not only with her size (7 lbs, 11 oz), but also this crazy mop of hair she arrived with! We’ve been enjoying getting to know her and hope you all will be able to get to meet her someday in the near future. Here are just a few photos to introduce you to our daughter... Outside

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-56553019267121857152010-09-23T22:55:00.000-04:002010-09-26T23:13:33.180-04:00

As I mentioned in the last post, we were able to squeak in a second trip up to Estes Park before the baby.  I attended the Yoga Journal Conference, and Andy squeezed in two hikes as his “retreat”.  How could he be in Estes Park / Rocky Mountain National Park and not hike??  Especially at this beautiful time of year. On Tuesday he found the Storm Pass Trailhead (in the Sprague Lake area).  It

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-77516623174172316722010-09-23T20:05:00.000-04:002010-09-26T20:33:09.110-04:00

I couldn’t believe my luck.  Last week I threw my name into the hat when Jade Yoga offered a free pass to the Anusara Grand Gathering at the Yoga Journal Conference in Estes Park.  This is a big yoga conference that I had wanted to sign up for, but didn’t because I knew it would be too close to my due date to risk.  So, wasn’t I shocked when I was contacted to say that I had won!  For days I

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-43780157298505291792010-09-12T15:07:00.001-04:002010-09-12T15:07:45.636-04:00

I didn’t realize how few photos of my growing belly I had until people starting asking for them!  Ok, here’s a couple: 28 weeks:   30 weeks: 35 weeks: and 36 weeks: I’ll try to add some more as we get closer and closer to the due date (Oct 4th).  So you can check my album (if you want!!) in a few weeks to see if there’s more:  Diane’s Baby Bump Album.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-60392112944167918972010-09-12T15:00:00.001-04:002010-09-12T15:00:17.486-04:00

This past Monday, as I was driving to the airport to pick up Andy, I noticed the plumes of a wildfire.  What worried me was the size and proximity to the front range.  It looked like it was just on the eastern edge of the foothills and somewhere north of Eldorado Canyon – which put it awfully close to Boulder. As I sat in the waiting lot of the airport, the plume of smoke started to approach DIA

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-54548020279860019152010-08-30T20:48:00.000-04:002010-09-05T21:21:02.442-04:00

Next week begins the 36th week of my pregnancy, which means that I need to stay within a reasonable radius of our home hospital in case the baby decides to come.  So we decided on a one-night getaway into the mountains as my “last hurrah”. We made it a wonderful loop trip.  We started out going north on the Peak to Peak Hwy thru Nederland and up to Estes Park.  I thought this formation on the

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-67306719490270777872010-08-17T23:03:00.000-04:002010-09-03T23:50:01.441-04:00

Our sunset walk on this night was a new trail for us.  It’s called the Beaver Brook Trail.  This trail starts at Windy Saddle on Lookout Mountain Road above Golden.  It’s only about 1.2 miles long inside this park, but goes for another 6 – 6.5 miles in the neighboring Genesee Mountain Park.  Genesee Park is where you can find a herd of Buffalo, too. This trail is so close to home that I really

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-10746079137374485722010-08-06T22:56:00.000-04:002010-08-22T23:05:42.305-04:00

We decided to take a sunset stroll through Red Rocks Park.  It’s a beautiful place, which we haven’t hiked recently.  We did the short and scenic Trading Post Trail, which is only a 1.4 mile loop trail. Here are just a few shots for you… This is the park that also has the Red Rocks Amphitheatre that has concerts in a rock setting.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-12039681447930053682010-07-31T22:55:00.000-04:002010-08-22T22:49:43.210-04:00

The Geeks came to Colorado to visit us.  They were on route to Oregon, and detoured out of their way to come spend a little time with their old Kayuba and RVing buddies.  We were tickled, especially knowing how quickly they need to travel from event to event. We talked about going hiking on Saturday, and they left the choice up to us.  We decided on Walker Ranch since the last time we hiked

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-73404050609680783522010-07-18T22:54:00.000-04:002010-08-22T22:09:41.011-04:00

We’ve gotten used to seeing dark skies that threaten rain.  And, a lot of times you’ll see bands of rain reaching for the earth, but the raindrops don’t always touch.  So, on this day I asked Andy if we should expect rain as we drove to the western trailheads in White Ranch, and he said not to worry – that we won’t get wet.  Well, ok, we didn’t get wet, but we did have to wait to make sure that

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-7272753833602462392010-07-17T22:47:00.000-04:002010-08-22T00:53:01.808-04:00

A heat wave had us experiencing 100-degree temperatures, but unlike Florida, we found it was easy to get away from the high temps.  A quick drive up Clear Creek Canyon provided shade and cooler temps coming down the mountains and from being next to the cold water creek.  It was a great reprieve just to sit on the rocks and enjoy the sounds of the creek and the coolness in the air.  Not to mention

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-30878621730132265012010-07-11T22:44:00.000-04:002010-08-22T00:49:23.080-04:00

One of my first of several successful garage sale finds… Now, I’m really starting to hope they are right that it’s going to be a girl…otherwise our baby boy will be dressed up in pink! I’ve been picking up a variety of items from Craigslist, too.  We’ve also been blessed with lots of friends loaning and giving us items, too.  I can’t thank them enough for their generosity – who knew kids

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-89755833092657027042010-07-07T22:36:00.000-04:002010-08-22T00:47:02.426-04:00

We had some visitors for the week of July 4th – Andy’s Mom, his sister Carol, niece Stephanie, and her boyfriend Evan.  We had a grand time.  I’m pretty sure we all left each other exhausted by the end of the week.  But, that’s how we like to spend our vacations – cramming as much fun stuff in as possible! Here’s a quick summary of some of our activities during their stay: Eldorado Canyon State

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-4789424056542209042010-06-26T22:34:00.000-04:002010-08-07T23:25:53.546-04:00

Just another great hike… This one was in Elk Meadow Park just outside Evergreen, CO. A solo female elk relaxing in the trees… This park also had a lot of Albert’s Squirrels (which are the black ones with tufted ears)…I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many in one area before. This trail had some nice variety along the way – from forests to meadows… Afterwards, we went into the town of

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-75364505617911935662010-06-14T22:30:00.000-04:002010-08-07T23:14:09.578-04:00

We took a quick trip back to Florida to take care of several things.  A detour to Tampa to take care of some things for my dad’s estate before going to Ft Lauderdale to do some work packing and shipping more stuff from storage out to Colorado since we’ll be staying in Colorado for another year now. But the highlight of our trip, of course, was seeing friends.  We joined our old Running Club for

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-71783231042376264092010-06-08T12:22:00.001-04:002010-06-08T12:22:54.892-04:00

Ok, this might be a long commute for some of you, but I invite you to join me for some of my upcoming yoga classes that I’m subbing for at Green Mountain Yoga… June 15th – Lunchtime Yoga 12:30-1:30 June 17th – Lunchtime Yoga 12:30-1:30 And, I’ll also be one of the teachers for the Kids Summer Camp program at Green Mountain Yoga which will introduce kids from 3yrs – 14yrs old to yoga.  These

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-66416266722958147942010-06-06T21:56:00.000-04:002010-06-07T21:59:06.788-04:00

Can I tell you all how proud I am of my husband?  He’s great.  Even though his training got thrown off schedule this past month with the news of our upcoming new addition to the family…and even though he couldn’t get his new wetsuit until the week before the race…and even though he had some major reservations about racing unprepared…he DID it!  And he did great!  His first triathlon since 2006,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-22574952313680427762010-05-30T20:27:00.000-04:002010-05-31T20:27:22.740-04:00

This was a big weekend in Boulder.  The Bolder Boulder 10k running race was going on on Memorial Day (this race is the second largest race, attracting 53,000 runners this year!).  We had wanted to race in it this year, but we’ll just have to wait til next year. I hadn’t mentioned this on the blog yet, but we just found out earlier this month that I’m pregnant.  This was just a ‘little’

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-34038325865084765162010-05-23T19:06:00.000-04:002010-05-31T19:16:41.012-04:00

I just love walking the path along Clear Creek in Golden.  It’s always so lively. If you look in the waves just under that small waterfall, you’ll see an upside down kayaker. The creek is really starting to flow now with the snow melt, so more and more kayakers are out enjoying it. On this visit, we walked along the path westward past the city campground.  The path becomes a soft-surface

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-47464265856010326512010-05-22T18:52:00.000-04:002010-05-31T18:59:58.403-04:00

We visited Chautauqua back in January and had attempted to reach Royal Arch then.  But an ice-covered trail and forgetting to bring our Yak Trax, put a quick end to that hike.  It was a pretty vertical climb even in perfect weather.  But the views and the arch were well worth the climb. Along the way, we passed a “cairn farm”.  I love seeing these groups of stacked rocks – they’re almost like

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-39766495082774889432010-05-09T18:34:00.000-04:002010-05-31T18:40:21.596-04:00

Eldorado Canyon State Park is one of those rare places that offers a visual impact just driving in.  We’ve been here before, but wanted to tackle the Eldorado Canyon Trail on the northside of the park this visit. Just one of the many varieties of wildflowers now in bloom A view from an upper portion of the trail A view of the Continental Divide We enjoy watching the mountain

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-32902478102249774002010-05-02T18:24:00.000-04:002010-05-31T18:25:33.204-04:00

Our niece, Rosie, and Brian got married on May 1st of this year.  It might’ve been the best weather Avalon, NJ has ever had.  Actually, it was the perfect weekend all the way around.  Great weather and surrounded by family and friends – what more could a person want?  Well, you could throw in the perfect wedding weekend celebration, too.  Several days of hanging togehter, a beautiful church,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-27996274264933642832010-04-15T17:36:00.000-04:002010-05-31T17:53:46.038-04:00

Our friend, Dorota from Ft Lauderdale, came out to visit in April.  We had talked about doing “the usual” get together…such as dinner in or dinner out, but then we decided on a hike.  It’s the perfect opportunity to get together and chat.  I find that I get “twitchy” if I don’t get into the hills every week or two, and this was one of those times I was getting twitchy for a hike anyway.  Good

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-14008683561929815392010-04-05T21:41:00.000-04:002010-04-05T21:45:26.213-04:00

We joined some of our new friends from the Arvada Tri-Club for a morning run.  Several of them are in training for upcoming marathons so they were going to run 10-12 miles.  I’m so rusty, but I thought “Why not?”  I can run whatever distance I want on this out-and-back trail run.  And the fact that they were running on a trail and in Waterton Canyon was my inspiration.  I love running in nature.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-2822935353769030832010-04-02T20:48:00.001-04:002010-04-02T20:48:28.079-04:00

RoadTrip Journal is a helpful website to check out for any traveler – whether RVing or being a road warrior via car travel.  They post articles and blog posts about the different places you can stop and visit along your travels. Some of my prior blog posts, while we were RVing, are on their site.  But since we’ve settled down in Colorado and have been focusing on building up Harmony, my blog

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-30561316476228469102010-03-29T21:01:00.000-04:002010-04-05T21:03:38.700-04:00

My first intention was to go to Lair O’ the Bear Park (which is a JeffCo Open Space), but then I saw it… “Panorama Point” in neighboring Corwina Park.  So easily swayed by a name, I know. Corwina is a Denver Mountain Park, and is sometimes referred to as Corwina – O’Fallon – Pence Park, since these three Denver Mountain Parks border each other.  Corwina borders Lair O’ The Bear, too.  These

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-51082658829954377142010-03-21T23:31:00.001-04:002010-03-21T23:32:26.958-04:00

I was in yoga teacher training this weekend, so it was Andy’s turn to be home alone.  He texted me this afternoon to tell me that it was his turn to go to Centennial Cone… His visit looked quite a bit different than mine considering we just had over 6” of snow fall on Friday and Saturday.  But it hit the 60’s again today, so quite a bit of it had melted…well, at least in town… When I left

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-49527097472379258912010-03-20T22:01:00.000-04:002010-03-21T22:58:19.228-04:00

Aaaah, the first day of Spring.  I can’t tell you how long I’ve waited for this day.  So what’s with all this snow on the ground??  The nice thing about March has been the warm days sprinkled in between the snow days.  I was afraid it was going to be a false-spring.  It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that it can be high-50’s and 60’s for several days, sunny and glorious, and then

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-40255924126386115722010-03-12T21:49:00.000-05:002010-03-21T23:12:03.501-04:00

The last time we visited White Ranch, we had gone in from the western entrance which is further up in the foothills.  At that time, I saw there was an eastern entrance off of Hwy 93. So, when I wanted to go for a trail run one day, I thought of White Ranch.  My assumption was that the first mile and a half of the trail would be in the flatlands between Hwy 93 and the foothills.  Wrong!  The

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-50453420017853050262010-03-10T21:04:00.000-05:002010-03-21T23:34:02.555-04:00

It was a beautiful day.  I was frustrated sitting at my computer.  What more of an excuse do I need to hop into my car and head into the hills?  If you can’t get something done well, you need to back away from it and do something that’ll adjust the attitude.  And that’s what I did. Andy was out of town – he made a quick trip to Chicago to be with his mom and sister – so this was another solo

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-23989198044687196572010-02-01T21:52:00.000-05:002010-02-10T21:54:19.848-05:00

Five months.  I still can’t believe it took us over five months to get up to Rocky Mountain National Park.  I just love the town of Estes Park and, of course, the National Park.  Even the the drive to Estes is a beauty. We were so fortunate to have such a perfect day to hike:  crystal clear, blue skies, and warm temps in the 40’s. Due to snow conditions further up Trail Ridge Road, we stayed

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-52318639397959157802010-01-24T23:51:00.001-05:002010-01-24T23:51:59.113-05:00

White Ranch Open Space is just about 9 miles outside Golden.  We accessed the hiking trails from the west parking lots.  There is a parking lot off of Hwy 93, too, but we wanted instant mountains. What we didn’t expect was instant *wind*.  The wind was really blowing and the temperatures had dropped quite a bit compared to home.  We actually hesitated inside the warm car for a minute debating

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-17084265668100733062010-01-20T10:56:00.002-05:002010-01-20T11:01:59.384-05:00

I've been getting spammed unmercifully on my comments, so I've had to turn on the "word verification" to see if that will help deter the spammers. Sorry, I hate those things myself! How many times do you look at that jumbled box and can't decipher what letters they are??Hopefully this will be short term...till those Ruskies find some other blog to annoy.I do have fun things to share and write

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-4690549484862183602010-01-11T23:25:00.000-05:002010-01-24T23:28:20.193-05:00

Chautauqua.  Not only is it hard to spell, it’s hard to remember how to say it!  But this park is just on the edge of the city of Boulder and encompasses the well-known “Flat Irons” – three stunning rock formations. We took a trip up to the park on a beautiful sunny day.  We weren’t familiar with the park, so we stopped at the ranger station to ask about hikes.  I asked the ranger about hiking

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-50163164109264443112010-01-04T13:08:00.001-05:002010-01-04T13:08:16.644-05:00

Sorry I haven’t written.  We were in Philly for the Holidays and now we’re playing catch-up, of course.  It was a great trip, but unfortunately we weren’t able to see as many friends this year as usual.  Being home over holidays, when everyone is pulled in so many different directions, makes it hard to have get-togethers.  But we spent a lot of time with family which was perfect. I just realized

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-49718791279056651852009-12-21T15:44:00.001-05:002009-12-21T15:44:03.475-05:00

My cousin forwarded this to me.  I thought it was quite appropriate for the holiday…but who knew Silent Monks could sing? Merry Christmas!  And a Happy, Healthy, and Adventurous New Year to all!

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-51639273688895137412009-12-19T22:15:00.001-05:002009-12-19T22:15:54.671-05:00

Today we just played tourists.  A quick scenic drive up Lookout Mountain, which is part of the Lariat Loop Scenic Byway.   We hit some of the tourist spots along the way, too.  I did this drive in 2005 when we were staying in Golden.  I remembered loving this view from a parking lot in Windy Saddle Park (another JeffCo Open Space we haven’t explored by foot yet). Lookout Mountain Road is

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-23782399990527147602009-12-15T21:28:00.000-05:002009-12-19T21:46:41.290-05:00

This past Sunday we decided on a quick hike into Mt Galbraith Park.  The mountains were expecting some more heavy snows and we didn’t want to get caught up in that.  So we chose Mt Galbraith because it is in the foothills but is only 2 miles west of Hwy 93.  So close! It was still chilly and snow-covered…yes, that masked man is my wonderful hubby… We had to keep a close eye on the storm

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-59285311676691499832009-12-09T22:02:00.000-05:002009-12-13T22:03:40.876-05:00

When we went Christmas Tree shopping at a Lowes, we were disappointed to see that most of the trees were still bailed.  I can’t pick out a tree when it’s still tied up!  So we searched thru the choices and decided to cut the string on one tree that looked to be the perfect height.  And weren’t we surprised when the tree branches didn’t even budge after being freed!  It was frozen! Realizing that

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-59729481195235573782009-12-06T13:00:00.000-05:002009-12-13T21:50:34.774-05:00

Last night we went downtown to see the Denver Christmas Parade.  I gotta say, it was nothing like watching the Ft Lauderdale Christmas Boat Parade.  Oh sure, there were big crowds and lots of pretty lights but I don’t remember ever dressing like this… Our feet still froze, but it was a nice night. It was neat to see how the marching bands decorated themselves and their instruments with lights

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-81274902345381083682009-11-27T15:26:00.000-05:002009-12-05T15:54:29.637-05:00

What a great way to spend Thanksgiving!  We took another great hike in snow…and thanked God for offering such beauty to soothe our souls.  (I’m starting to think there are no bad hikes here in Colorado!)  But I thought that since we weren’t going to spend today surrounded by family and friends, I wanted to spend the day in “The Hills”.  We weren’t the only ones, either.  There were families and

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-86129226158010989632009-11-23T19:40:00.000-05:002009-12-05T15:20:01.058-05:00

On Sunday, November 22nd (yes, I’m flashing back! b/c today is actually Dec 5th, sorry!) we took a great hike in a Boulder County Open Space.  This park was on the western border of Eldorado Canyon State Park and the trails will take you into both parks. It was a beautiful hike with rock outcroppings, trails that wandered alongside Boulder Creek, and high up on ridges with great views of the

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-47909233681455313052009-11-15T16:39:00.001-05:002009-11-15T16:39:37.900-05:00

Last week was beautiful – in the 60’s and 70’s and sunny.  We decided to take advantage of it a couple of days, knowing that the temps were going to change radically this weekend. So Wednesday we took our mountain bikes to Standley Lake.  I have to get comfortable on these beginner trails before we try anything more aggressive.  Plus, we didn’t have that much time and Standley is close by with

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-50672435838427356822009-11-15T16:13:00.001-05:002009-11-15T18:11:30.361-05:00

Just thought I’d share some pictures of our new place.  The second bedroom/office isn’t furnished yet except Andy’s desk (and he was working), so there are no pictures of that room. Yes, that’s a snow drift on our porch! We still need to add pictures, and some other odds and ends, but we’re getting there.  Our gas F/P has been in heavy use since moving in. We’re right across the street

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-61279798681867218042009-11-15T15:59:00.001-05:002009-11-15T15:59:54.683-05:00

Last Sunday we took a quick trip to Alderfer/Three Sisters Open Space for a hike in the mountains.  This JeffCo park is just outside Evergreen, which is about a 30-35 min drive away.  We had our choice of, oh I’d say, about 10 parks!  What a pretty area, and so close! I chose Three Sisters mostly because I had heard the name before (recommended to us for mountain biking), because I didn’t want

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-49462572897149027672009-11-15T13:33:00.001-05:002009-11-15T13:33:38.145-05:00

This is a photo of the sunrise the morning after we got back from our Florida trip…remember, Denver had 2’ of snow during our trip that delayed us two days.  We got to enjoy the beauty for a couple of days before it all melted. Not a bad “Welcome Home”, eh?

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-21489028678412626772009-11-15T13:25:00.001-05:002009-11-15T13:25:47.527-05:00

I just uploaded my pictures from our visit to Pine Valley Open Space last month.  So I thought I’d share a couple… We’ll have to go back now that I feel better.  It offered a creek, a lake, trails, and colorful rocks…a peaceful place.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-17910322181199862122009-11-10T18:28:00.001-05:002009-11-10T18:28:22.091-05:00

I found this link on the Weather Channel’s website by accident, but thought both the pictures and the airline facts are worthy of sharing…enjoy!

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-62391754258180761042009-11-07T16:11:00.001-05:002009-11-07T16:11:30.520-05:00

We’re starting to feel a little more settled.  Or at least feel that a sense of normalcy is on the horizon.  Lots has changed recently, and it’ll be nice to have some sort of routine again in our lives. We’ve closed on our new condo, we’ve moved in and now have it furnished enough to feel comfortable, and we’ve sold our Spirit.  It was a sad day for us to hand over the keys to someone else, yet

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-75449216324968741862009-10-17T14:10:00.001-04:002009-10-17T14:10:37.221-04:00

Swine flu.  Eight days and counting.  The first four days felt like death, but I think I’m finally over the hump now. It started innocently enough last Saturday morning – an odd hollow feeling in the chest.  By 3:00 pm I was in bed.  For days.  They say it comes on “suddenly”.  Boy, they weren’t kidding. Andy took me to Pine Valley Open Space yesterday so I could sit and read (or sit and sleep!

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-51614039111958302882009-10-05T22:44:00.000-04:002009-10-08T23:10:07.148-04:00

On Saturday we chose Eldorado Canyon State Park as our new place to explore.  South of Boulder, and just 3 miles west of Hwy 93, it’s one of the closest State Parks to us.  The beauty of this rock canyon grabs you as you drive through the tiny dirt-road town of Eldorado Springs and approach the entrance to the state park.  It’s a rock-climber’s dream, and they frequent this park year-round from

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-49867564944706534452009-10-01T15:57:00.001-04:002009-10-01T15:57:56.004-04:00

I can’t believe I’m typing those words.  But we have officially listed our RV for sale.  Our wonderful Spirit, who has given us so much fun and adventure over the last five years. As you may already know, our RVing adventures started out as a “once in a lifetime opportunity to take one year off and explore the country”.  It became addictive and for the last three years we have been trying to

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-8728541504239249772009-09-28T22:22:00.000-04:002009-10-01T14:30:59.667-04:00

…would be the lack of humidity.  We’re finding that running in 9% humidity can be just as  difficult as running in 90% humidity.  Just different.  Nose, throats and lungs burn from the dryness.  Allergies and asthma can kick in.  Apparently the optimum humidity for outdoor exercise is between 30% and 65%.   Who knew? So will this make us stronger?  Running at the extremes in humidity levels? 

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-67170049285910019912009-09-28T14:29:00.000-04:002009-10-01T14:30:20.573-04:00

Most couples would spend the day doing something romantic, right?  We, on the other hand, go for a 34-mile bike ride.  And I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Fourteen years, and I’m still happy to say that Andy is my best friend and the love of my life.  We have a lot of the same interests and enjoy doing it together.  So spending a few hours biking around town was a perfect way to celebrate

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-18545509952526530482009-09-27T13:36:00.000-04:002009-10-01T14:17:52.154-04:00

Aspens and snow.  Those were the two primary reasons for dragging my husband out on a 168-mile day trip into the mountains.  We drove a loop drive via I-70 to Breckenridge, then across Boreas Pass via a 16.5 mile dirt road, and back to Denver via US 285. It was a beautiful day, but lots of driving.  Next time we’ll spend the night in Frisco or Breckenridge to get in some hiking and biking.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-66750015563147875682009-09-22T21:06:00.001-04:002009-09-23T11:15:35.230-04:00

Mark your calendars! Acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns has created a sweeping documentary film about our national parks. The National Parks: America's Best Idea, a six-episode series, will premiere September 27th on PBS stations. Celebrate this beautiful film and our national parks by joining us in preserving our nation’s natural, historic, and cultural heritage for generations to come. The

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-30247661644689112792009-09-21T16:33:00.000-04:002009-09-22T20:47:15.963-04:00

A cold front moved in and today was a biting, damp 49 degrees.  I want to know where this “dry cold” is that everyone tells me about?!  Granted it was raining, but I’m still waiting for a cold day that doesn’t go through to my bones. But seeing snow on the foothills…now that is a beautiful sight. Snow in the foothills, on the last day of summer…wow. Here’s tonight’s sunset.  The storms add a

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-49122100661703883822009-09-20T20:47:00.000-04:002009-09-22T20:47:48.951-04:00

It was an accidental finding.  An approaching storm had us drop our awning, which meant moving our bird feeder to the ground.  Since the day I hung the feeder, I’ve had a whopping ‘zero’ birds visit it.  So we were surprised when it looked like something was eating the bird seed from the ground.  It only took a short while to realize it was the resident rabbits.  We dumped some seed into a pile,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-7750539911359317282009-09-19T16:35:00.000-04:002009-09-22T20:32:33.009-04:00

I searched all morning for “beginner” mountain biking trails.  I didn’t want a paved path.  I was looking for an easy single-track with a scenic opportunity.  I wanted to *experience* a little Colorado.  We’ve been so busy all week, I just needed some scenic mountain fun. Well, we found it at South Valley Park.  This Jeffco Open Space is south of Morrison – where the Red Rocks Amphitheatre is. 

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-45325204788869978332009-09-14T16:34:00.000-04:002009-09-22T19:48:03.999-04:00

We’ve been here for weeks and finally got into the mountains.  It  was an incredibly clear day and we wanted to take advantage of it I took Andy to Golden Gate Canyon State Park.  This is where I did my solo hike in 2005.  I thought I’d show it off to him and take him up to Panorama Point and do the trail up there.  That’s when we remembered that I took him up there in 2005…and did the same

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-86234386522084171982009-09-13T20:58:00.001-04:002009-09-13T20:58:03.603-04:00

Last Monday (Labor Day) we decided to take a break from my computer woes and get on our road bikes to explore the trail system.  We hopped on the Clear Creek trail and went northeast.  The plan was to connect to the South Platte River Trail to take us south into downtown Denver.  Of course, we got a little lost on the way…the trails are great, but there are numerous trails and spurs and they

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-19693522784282156032009-09-13T19:59:00.001-04:002009-09-13T19:59:41.979-04:00

Kansas may be the Sunflower State, but Colorado does have it’s share of these sunny yellow flowers.  Both the small wild varieties and the huge farmed sunflowers – which are planted in acres and acres.  They’re beautiful, but I’m not sure how much longer they’ll be lasting….

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-8360821874644512782009-09-13T00:10:00.001-04:002009-09-13T00:10:26.632-04:00

We’ve really been taking advantage of the Clear Creek Trail.  Sometimes we just go out for a morning walk before sitting down at our desks, sometimes a run or a quick bike ride, and one day we even took a long bike ride into the city via the CCT (but that’ll be another post). What I’ve really enjoyed about this trail is the wildlife.  Ducks, herons, and Canadian geese are common.  But it’s been

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-20651180447862130162009-09-12T23:35:00.001-04:002009-09-12T23:43:45.719-04:00

We arrived here in Wheat Ridge approximately one month after a bad hail storm.  The RV Park manager warned us on the phone when we made reservations that they were still recovering.  Neighbors told us stories after we arrived.  The damage from the hail was still evident – RVs had dimpled sides and dimpled roofs, awnings were pocked with holes, vents and skylights were shattered or duct taped,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-35060126822146837812009-09-07T20:23:00.001-04:002009-09-08T11:00:32.834-04:00

Ok, I’m almost back….bought a new computer, bought a cable to transfer data, fought through Vista Permission issues (you’ll know what I mean if you ever have to transfer files to Vista), transferred data, and now tweaking settings, etc.  For five long days. Wow, this says something about those backup systems that’ll back up operating systems, software programs, and data.  A worthy investment...

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-8922837604443147992009-09-04T22:28:00.002-04:002009-09-07T20:16:53.830-04:00

Just a quick note to let you all know that my computer crashed. It'll be a few days before I'm back, so don't think I'm ignoring emails...I gotta find a way to transfer my data (hopefully, it's possible to do so!). Talk to you later....

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-90841444077231992282009-08-30T18:43:00.000-04:002009-08-30T18:46:11.852-04:00

We hope to be here in Colorado til late October or whenever the cold weather chases us out.  Wheat Ridge is a suburb of Denver.  It's on the west side, halfway to Golden, CO (where we've stayed in years past).  The RV Park itself isn't fancy, but we chose it because of it's location. It borders an Open Space, and has immediate access to the Clear Creek Trail.  We could go from Golden to downtown

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-79747596667611523812009-08-27T17:52:00.000-04:002009-08-30T17:53:28.951-04:00

Before leaving Oakley, we were treated to two special sightings. One, was the sunrise - we got to see the sun come over the horizon before it slipped into the clouds above. And the other surprise was to have a Nighthawk land on our picnic table and stay with us for a half hour or so. These remain one of my favorite birds - they are elegant in flight with their long, narrow wings; their

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-20396811632665473682009-08-26T14:02:00.000-04:002009-08-29T14:02:34.181-04:00

Reviewing RV Parks can be awfully difficult sometimes.  The last place we were at was new and clean and well-maintained.  But I couldn't enjoy our patio because they didn't have enough picnic tables to go around.  That might not be a big deal to everyone, but I usually work outside.  I find that I can get claustrophobic inside the RV after several hours at a small desk.  But that wasn't all -

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-18919004561752953172009-08-25T13:46:00.000-04:002009-08-29T13:47:09.832-04:00

Lake Shawnee was just a couple of miles down the road from our RV Park making it awfully convenient for exercise.  One day we walked, another we ran the loop around the lake (6.8 miles +/-), and another day we went and explored the gardens and to bike the loop. Sometimes Andy's planning works out beautifully...We get miserable quickly when we don't have an interesting place to explore by

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-22706081237997305702009-08-24T22:31:00.000-04:002009-08-27T22:33:37.267-04:00

The Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site is located in the old Monroe School - the school where the suit was filed. It was another beautiful center with lots of video screens and a movie theatre that had multiple screens hung from the ceiling.  Very modern and high-tech.  And good information and informative rangers, too.   It was interesting to be reminded (or to learn?),

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-67141402426459437612009-08-24T22:11:00.000-04:002009-08-27T22:14:31.752-04:00

One of the main reasons we chose to stop in Topeka on our route was because it was a Capitol city.  (We've bagged 11 Capitols now.)  And a beautiful capitol it is.  Even as it is going through a major interior 11-year renovation...it remains stunning. The details, wow!  From the woodwork, to the ornate hinges (comparable to TX), to the multiple colors of marble, the metalwork, the murals,

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-60256886173404833752009-08-23T19:52:00.000-04:002009-08-27T22:41:32.085-04:00

After reading about this man and his beliefs, I wish I had the opportunity to have met him. George Washington Carver was born into slavery but rose above the obstacles to become a scientist, an educator, and a philosopher. At the GW Carver National Monument we read through many of his touching quotes.  We were very impressed with the National Monument itself - the science classroom and lots of

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-45322214397698342492009-08-23T19:07:00.000-04:002009-08-27T19:08:10.491-04:00

I kept mixing up the name of this 16-mile trail that runs from Carthage to Joplin, MO.  It is the Ruby Jack Trail.  We attempted a bike ride on it.  The website warned it is a rough ride, and indeed it is. Large gravel (uncomfortable to ride on) led to a portion of the trail with lots of plants growing over the path.  It was natural on both sides of the trail, which was nice but offered no views

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-48353172192595092222009-08-22T18:57:00.000-04:002009-08-27T18:58:58.655-04:00

The Jasper County Courthouse is a stunning Romanesque building that was built in 1895.  We took a break one afternoon and drove the few miles into town to see it before they closed at 5pm.  Once inside, Andy couldn't resist himself when he saw the 107 year old cage elevator....he pushed the call button! And, what do you think happened next?  The elevator came...with a live human operator

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-58916065728801968132009-08-21T15:42:00.000-04:002009-08-22T15:47:04.145-04:00

Our initial plan was to only stay in Van Buren one night.  But after seeing that our RV park was right on the Current River (and it looked perfect for kayaking or tubing), we ended up staying for three nights. Here's the pavilion which was our special place for happy hours and for working (WIFI was unreliable at our camp site) - not a bad office, though! We were practically within the Ozark

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-35321016677315763142009-08-19T22:21:00.000-04:002009-08-21T22:21:43.684-04:00

During one of the several storms that passed through on our visit here, I decided to take my camera up to the pavilion to try and get some pictures.  I'll have to try again to get some better ones some day, but it was a great show to watch.

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-14748752897687410822009-08-18T21:57:00.002-04:002009-08-23T08:49:47.938-04:00

We crossed the Ohio River into Missouri at US-60/62 on an old bridge.  But then we made the mistake of turning left and having to use the Cairo Mississippi Bridge to cross the Mississippi ....this was one of those moments when Andy spurts out - "For the love of God!"   Sharing this bridge with semi-tractor trailers was as unnerving as the two bridges we crossed at Land Between the Lakes.  So

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-14624730140120550622009-08-17T17:37:00.001-04:002009-08-17T17:37:21.924-04:00

Sunday morning we got up early and went for a road bike ride.  The main north-south road in LBL is called The Trace (French for "path" since it's an old Indian path).  Although it has good road surface for riding, we decided to do more of the secondary roads to avoid traffic - although traffic seemed minimal, it still offered no shoulder and high speed traffic on The Trace.  We rode 29 miles by

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-34613415973116027652009-08-17T17:31:00.001-04:002009-08-17T17:31:28.232-04:00

We finally made our way out of Tennessee.  We're now in a town just outside of The Land Between the Lakes Nat'l Rec Area.  We found it using our normal mapping skills and talents - we saw a big green spot on the map and said, "Hey, what's that place?"  And here we are. This National Recreation Area is managed by the USFS, so biking, hunting, ATVs and the such are permitted here.  There are a lot

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-68378189098633664002009-08-17T17:27:00.001-04:002009-08-17T17:27:41.896-04:00

...now where am I? We feel like somebody threw us on spin-cycle and we're still spinning.  The ASD trade show in Vegas was a worthwhile trip for us.  The business seminars we attended were very informative and we picked up some new product ideas for RollingSands Harmony.  My sister always teases me, though, that we are probably the only two people that go to Vegas and avoid the Strip. 

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-33517554217447344712009-08-17T17:26:00.001-04:002009-08-30T18:06:40.693-04:00

Our campground's Internet has been terribly slow.  It's satellite-based WIFI and he's being fapped by a bandwidth-hog.  So we've resorted to using the local Lebanon Library.  This sometimes works out fine - roomy tables, quiet rooms - so it doesn't bother us except for the loss of time driving back and forth.  The bonus in Lebanon was finding The Cuckoo's Nest - a great little eatery a few blocks

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-1296017774852398362009-08-06T19:38:00.000-04:002009-08-07T15:39:14.217-04:00

We pulled out of Rocky Top around 11 am.  We had to say our goodbyes to co-workampers and friends, exchange phone numbers, and take pictures of each other.  We were fortunate to have met such wonderful people during our stay here.  Thank you all for making us feel so welcome in your lives! Andy and I had to take turns driving - with and without the toad attached.  It's been almost two years

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10683575.post-3840923020425775942009-08-05T15:19:00.000-04:002009-08-07T15:21:16.045-04:00

We really had two things we wanted to do before pulling out of Rocky Top - one was to hike to the firetower in Bays Mountain Park, and the other was to actually bike on the mountain bike trails in Warrior Path SP (we've just been running on those trails). At least we squeezed in the quick hike to the firetower...the day before we left.   We enjoy hiking to the tops of these towers, but this

Dianehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13802175658055940464noreply@blogger.com0