A Year of Change

It’s here! The 48th Super Bowl! 10 hours from now we will kick off the big game. Peyton Manning won the MVP and Offensive Player of the Year last night and God willing, will be the first player to win Super Bowls with 2 different teams. We all sure hope so.

It’s about zero degrees outside right now, too bad the game isn’t here! We’re heading over to Jeff and Tina’s house for the big game around 2pm. Lori texted her yesterday and there will only be 13 people including Lori and I and our friends Ty and Aime, who are coming with us. The boys too are coming unless Jagger goes to Jennifer’s. We’ll find out this morning what he’s doing.

Yesterday the big news of the day was that Mom cleaned out Ty’s room. This may not sound like much but trust me, it would have been easier to clean up a hazardous waste site than to clean out his room. She didn’t spare a corner and this is the first time we’ve seen his window siles since we moved in some 14 years ago. We now also have proof that the floor IS wood under his bed. Hopefully he will keep it this way. But wait, she didn’t stop there, next up she tackled Jagger’s closet. You might not know it, but it’s swallowed up things such as miscellaneous shoes and boots, some missing pots and pans from the kitchen, and word has it, even some small farm animals, just like a black hole in space! I don’t think she’s finished but is almost there. Quite the undertaking, if she can do that, the Bronco’s can surely win the Super Bowl!

I must have shoveled the walk and driveway at least 3 times yesterday as it snowed most of the day. Ty had D.I. from 3:30 until 5:30 and then I bbq’d up some buffalo strip steak which surprisingly, the boys gobbled down. It’s higher in iron (and cheaper) than normal beef so I bought some for Lori although she didn’t look too tired yesterday. She and the boys are all still sleeping though.

Not sure if you know it but beef prices are at a 63 year high. This is due to the  herds being culled or thinned out over the last two years by ranchers not being able to afford to feed them. Time to start our cattle herd. The stock market also had its worst month in 5 years since 2009. Russia has suspended cash withdrawals from banks. Countries in Europe like Spain and Italy have passed laws saying people cannot protest (this will not work) while others who tried this like the Ukraine, repealed laws against protesting to prevent civil war and their leader has gone on an indefinite sick leave. Folks, don’t think you’re safe. I’ve abstained from politics (I sound like a politician using the word “folks” don’t I?), 2014 is going to be hell. I ran into a Vice President of a major bank in Denver yesterday who told a bunch of us (we were all at our local gun shop cops use waiting for a local police department we know to bring in a bunch of confiscated guns from their evidence locker to sell cheap) and he said take any spare cash and turn it into something of value. His exact words were to “buy guns, ammo and canned food”! I most of you all, and most people in general are in denial and think nothing can or will happen, especially  to you, and that our gov and society will take care of us but sadly it is not capable of doing so. So, I don’t care where you live or what you think, next time you are at the grocery store, you need to buy some extra food. It doesn’t take that much money to throw in a few extra cans of spaghetti or boxes of macaroni. Just buy things you’re already eating. You won’t be sorry. I could go on and on with warnings or tell you things I’ve heard from reputable people in and out of the system, but I won’t. Suffice it to say, things are changing and not for the better. Don’t be fooled by the talking heads on tv telling you the economy is getting better. Do you really expect the Pres to get on tv and say things are falling apart? Come on now, wake up and think for yourself.

Ok, that’s it, I think I pretty much took it easy considering the state of the union (ha ha) and the fact that I haven’t talked politics for a long long time. Trust me, I could have been much worse!

In closing, today is a day for football, pray for the Broncos and for a safe celebration afterwards. A bunch of guys that I know from various agency’s (Federal, State and Local departments) have all been called in to work to prevent what they think will be big riots, win or lose. I think the cold will keep things calm but they’re not taking any chances.

Oh well, we’ll be safe, I’m going to be the designated driver today and Lori won’t drink more than 1 cocktail if that, so we’ll be fine. Wish the game started earlier but it is what it is.

God Bless you all and God Bless the Denver Broncos!

That’s right, last night we had another 3 or 4 inches of the white stuff fall from the sky. This cold spell reminds me of living in the mountains where it would snow on top of snow, almost every night. It looks really pretty outside and apparently will be with us for a week or so as that’s how long the temperatures are supposed to be hanging around the 30’s.

I slept in until 6 or so and am heading to the gym after my coffee and the blog. We all went up to my Mom’s yesterday to celebrate her birthday and had a great time. Ty had his chess tournament after school and won all of his matches, yea!

Yesterday we were all awaiting the mail delivery as the letters from The Manning School, where Jagger applied were being delivered. We knew they were coming as some other people who get the mail before we do, called Lori. The Manning School is in the top 5 out of 1000 in the state and is an option school. This means they don’t have to take kids based on where they live. It’s really academically superior and challenging, and as they told us in the orientation, not for everyone. Its like applying for college or something, all at 12 years old! Anyhow it’s where Jagger wanted to go, even though some of his friends chose other schools because they thought they were not ready for the academic standards and 3 or 4 hours of homework a night that the school has. The next step is Jagger studying for honors class placement on April 8th in math and reading. We have a great math tutor that the boys have used before that he’ll go see to brush up, but we need to find a writing tutor. I’m fine with him just taking regular classes instead but Mom thinks we should try to get him in the honors program. They say kids that go to Manning have a real leg up on others when they get to high school. It’ll be good for Jag to be challenged and I’m sure will be a wake up call as he pretty much breezes through his homework and school now.

Some of his friends too were accepted but Jennifer, his close friend since kindergarten, didn’t get in! She’s number 54 on the waiting list and was in tears when she opened her letter. They have a second round in a month or two but she’ll need some luck to get in. 54 kids will have to decide not to accept for her to get in. We feel really bad for her as we would be crushed if Jag wasn’t chosen. To me it’s unbelievable that at 12 years old you have to go into a lottery to get in to the school of your choice. I, Aunt Robi and Uncle T went to Manning but back then it was just a regular school and you went there because you lived in the district. We sure hope she gets in. We know of a few other kids that got in but I’m sure we’ll find out of others who didn’t in the coming days. One of his classmates was accepted but is not going to go there because of how hard it’s supposed to be, so who knows, maybe 54 will pass and go to another school. At the first of the year we, and most other parents, applied to 3 or 4 schools to cover yourself. This way if you were not chosen by one school, hopefully the odds were you got into another. Anyhow we’re lucky Jag did and thrilled. Lori was a wreck waiting for the mail all day long.

Tomorrow’s the big game, you all better be cheering for the Bronco’s. How could you not cheer for Peyton Manning? Well that’s it for me for the day, lots to do, take care and God Bless, time to shovel more snow and hit the gym, Go Broncos!

Most schools are closed today due to the snow but ours is open. Ty is thrilled as he has a big party at school and his teacher Mr. Tharp, who has been gone all month on maternity leave, is coming in and bringing his new little daughter to meet the class. He comes back full time Tuesday (Lori said the boys are off this coming Monday, don’t know why?) for good.

Yesterday was sort of a blur. I do so much every day I loose track of all I do! I did make it to the grocery store, went up and visited my Mom with my friend Jon Newmark from Seattle who flew down to watch the game in Denver, cleaned the house a bit before the house cleaners showed up and was on the computer a bunch. Throw in taking and picking up the kids and an extra trip to school to bring Ty some forgotten papers and that was it.

Lori was tired, so tired she spent the day on the couch or in bed. She needs to build her strength back up as she is really weak. Thankfully she is getting stronger by the minute. I grilled her up a steak last night and made sure she had some sushi and chicken for lunch. I’m trying to get foods with iron into her to help produce more blood faster!

Mojo is laying at our feet and I think now realizes Lacey is not coming back. He’s been looking around and wondering the past few days, you can just tell. He will be ok, just like all of us, but still miss Lacey very much.

Today is my Mom’s birthday, Happy Birthday Mom! I think we’re all going up for some cake but that’s about it. She said she didn’t want to go to dinner or anything. She looks great for her young age of 81 and is getting on just fine. Hope I’m doing as well as she when I’m that old!

Time to run, hope everyone is well, it’s February 1st tomorrow, wow, take care and God Bless.

First off, thanks for all your calls and comments about Lacey, it’s still hard but hopefully will get better each day.

The day started off pretty normal with lots of work and the boys in school. I touched base with Lori more than usual as she had a doctor appointment at 2:45 as she has had a really bad monthly cycle. By the time she made it to the doctor, thankfully, her blood count was so low that they were really scared and rushed her to the hospital for emergency surgery! She called me and told me and I couldn’t believe it! I could tell she was a little freaked out as she said the doctor (who was the one who delivered both boys) was really worried. They had her in the operating room within 30 minutes and 15 minutes later after some sort of D&C (I think that’s what they called it) she was in recovery.

She had lost so much blood her blood was almost peach colored when they pricked her finger. Luckily I forced her to call the doctor Monday for an appointment and bought her iron supplements 3 or 4 days ago. The doctor said that if she had waited even through the night, she would have been coming to the hospital in an ambulance and it could have been touch and go! Unfreakinbelievable! All this, and the day after Lacey.  Anyhow almost immediately her color came back and she looked much better. The doctor said it’ll be two weeks before her blood count gets built back up to normal. Thankfully she didn’t have to have a transfusion but they had called the blood bank and had it ready just in case. She’ll just be tired for a while and needs to eat lots of protein and take it easy. I’ll need to go buy some steaks for her today. The doctor asked her if she was feeling bad when she arrived and she said “no, just a little tired”. They were shocked to say the least. Also no driving for a few days (thankfully she didn’t pass out at the wheel yesterday) so she’ll be laying low at home. I screwed up a little not making her go to the doctor last week when I thought she should but she kept telling me she was fine. Last time I’ll listen to her! She asked me if I wanted to trade her in on a new model and I said, “no way, first off I couldn’t afford a new model and besides, I’ve got this one (meaning her) all fixed up”.

So, what a close call, thank God for watching over her and us. Thanks to Uncle T and Aunt Ali for taking the boys. They were fine until right before we picked them up on the way home from the hospital. Ty is still really upset about Lacey as is Jag, but he handles it much better. They too knew something was going on with Mom but didn’t know what, which didn’t help.

Oh well, at least now, hopefully, we can have a few normal days and relax. I just had to laugh as we’re swimming in medical bills (I was actually getting calls from doctors offices asking about payments while I was at the hospital, ha ha) and now there just piling on. Oh well, it’s only money.

Take care and God Bless.

Yesterday we lost our beloved puppy of almost 15 years, Lacey. When we woke up she wouldn’t eat and her breathing was very heavy. She ended up falling asleep in Mom’s arms with me by her side a little before noon. Needless to say then, and even now as I write this, the tears were flowing. She was such a good dog and was such a big part of all of our lives. I won’t go into the kids emotions as I have a hard enough time dealing with my own while writing this post. I remember when Lori and I picked her out right after we met 14 some years ago. We selected her out of a group of 6 or 8 puppies. She was so cute and funny stumbling over her brothers and sisters trying to get to us. I could go on and on about the great memories we had with her but just can’t do it right now. I think those of you that knew Lacey know what I’m talking about. We pray she is resting in peace and like Ty said, playing ball with Grandpa in heaven. We’ll all miss her very very much.

That’s all I have for today as I can’t write anymore right now, take care and God Bless.

It must be zero outside with the wind chill even lower. Lori was up first with Lacey and I then followed and boy is it cold downstairs.

Today the boys will need to bundle up as it’ll be 15 degrees or so at lunchtime. The kids had lots of homework yesterday as I think they’re ramping them up a bit at school. Lori might go to the office today but I’m not sure.

Lori needs the computer and I’m pre-occupied with work so that’s it for today. We hope everyone is doing well, take care and God Bless.

Yesterday we all were busy as I said the day before. I bagged 18 pheasants and my buddy Matt is going to cook them all up by wrapping them in bacon with some jalapeno’s and something else, all I know is they sure are good! Mom and Ty made a volcano and came home covered in paper mache and Jag and I went to see the movie Lone Survivor about the Navy Seals in Afghanistan. It had special meaning as the Mom of one of the 4 guys in the movie (that didn’t make it back) gets her hair done where Lori and I go. A few weeks ago she was having a fundraiser while I was getting my haircut and was asking for $20 donations for a book she wrote and her foundation. I said I’d donate the $20 but didn’t need the book but they insisted I take the book. I started reading it on the plane to New York a week and a half ago and it gave me some special insight to the movie. The book wasn’t about her sons missions while being a Seal but rather about his life and how he got there from the time he was born up until he died. These kids, and I say kids as most of them are in their 20’s or 30’s at most, really are the closest things we have today as true hero’s. Their training seems to take away all fear and when shot or in harms way, tends to make them more determined to win. Anyhow the movie I’m sure embellished things a bit (as my buddy who was in the military who  knew a guy or two that died on one of the missions told me how it really happened) was chocked full of non stop action and a little heavy but Jag handled it fine. I kept checking with him during the show to see if anything was bothering him. We talked after the movie about war in general and why countries and people have wars and he’s a lot more mature than you’d think he is.

We made it home before Mom and Ty and hung out waiting for them. Lacey was fine while we were gone as I made her go out 3 times before we left but she must have walked over to the bathroom in the middle of the night and did her business there as I stepped right in it this morning. She’s drinking tons of water and I’m afraid some of her organs are failing. Looks like I’ll need to take her in to the vet again.

There’s a little snow outside this morning but I just used a broom to sweep off the walk. It’ll be cool and warm on and off all week. I’m really trying to stay away from politics but it’s really hard! It’s really dry in our house as our humidifier broke 3 months ago and we haven’t had the cash to buy a new one. I need to get that done soon.

Tomorrow Lori is going to Mama Mia with her friend Aime. That should be fun for her.  Not sure if Lori is going into the office today or not. I have a long conference call and then will get on cleaning the basement.

That’s about it, my back is a little sore from walking for 3 hours carrying a shotgun and wearing a vest full of 4 pound roosters but all good. Hope everyone is doing well, Super Bowl this weekend, Go Bronco’s!

Yesterday around 10:30, Peggy, Lori, the boys and I headed for the Stock Show. Lori called my Mom but she had a call scheduled with Robi or something. We arrived about a half hour after the rodeo had started but rodeo tickets were $1 more than general admission so we chose those. We were in the very top row but the view was good. After watching for an hour or so we decided to head out to the stock yards as Jag was sneezing from all the dust. In fact I took him to the medical tent for some Zyrtec which is an antihistamine. We then walked around and the boys had bbq turkey legs (their favorite) and we looked at the animals. By the time we arrived home it was 3pm or so.

We decided to just stay home for dinner and invited the Harris’s over to join us. We had a good time and wrapped things up around 9 or so.

Lacey woke Lori up sometime during the night, I know as she knocked something (I think a toy) off the stairs and I heard it come crashing down. When I woke up at 5:15, she had peed on the last bed we have (she ruined another one yesterday during the day) and then had an accident from the other end, right after she came in from us letting her out, while Lori was cleaning things up. I’m afraid she’s losing control of her bladder.

Today I’m heading out to hunt some chukar and pheasants while Lori is going to Destination Imagination to build a life size paper mache volcano! I should be home by 1 at the latest. Peggy is headed back home to Aspen sometime this morning.

That’s about it, not sure where we’ll put Lacey while we’re both gone as we’re out of dog beds. Hope you all are well, take care and God Bless.

Did you know there’s not much on tv at 4:30 am on Saturday morning? I thought there would be more choices, but no, not much going on. Lori came down at 4:15 to move Lacey to her bed but 5 minutes later she was barking again so down I went. I tried to go back to sleep but just couldn’t, oh well, it gives me more time to write the blog and surf the net before heading to the gym.

Today we’re headed to the Stock Show. I think we’ll skip the car show event tonight but Peggy will be staying with us another night before driving home to Aspen tomorrow morning. Hope her event was fun last night.

Ty went to Vinny’s house last night after school for a quick 2 hour playdate while Lori, Jag and I watched Captain Phillips, the movie with Tom Hanks in it. After that we had a quick dinner and I think were all in bed by 8:30 or 9. My sales meeting went well as usual and Lori was at the office until about 2, that’s about it, not much else going on. The stock market has been tanking but I’ll stay away from economics and politics as once I start, you know I can’t stop!

Take care and God Bless.

Boy the week sure went fast! I’m trying to decide what to do with the boys this weekend. Ty and Lori have D.I. on Sunday from 1 to 4 and I’m pheasant hunting early Sunday morning. So tomorrow, Saturday, is the day for play. I might take the boys snowboarding in the morning as we’re supposed to go to an event that’s a combination car show/party with our friend Peggy (who owns the house in Belize) tomorrow night.

Peggy came down from Aspen last night and arrived around 6:30. She spent the night with us and will check into the Westin tonight as she’s going to some gala with some guy who took her to the Peach Bowl on New Years Eve. Poor Peggy broke her arm falling in the Denver airport parking lot on New Years Day when she flew home from the football game in Atlanta. Then she drove all the way to Aspen with a broken arm! She knew it was broken but figured she’d just get home and go to her local hospital. Anyhow she broke her left arm right below her shoulder so they can’t put it in a cast but had to just put it in a sling.

Lacey woke me up at 4:45 (had Lori up at 2am!) and I noticed Peggy’s light was on. She’s just laying in bed as her arm hurt which I guess woke her up, poor girl.

Today I have a sales meeting at the distributor at 10:30. I’ll be done at 10:40 and then head home. Lori has to go to the office but then I think is going to go to Peggy’s hotel and help her with her hair as she can’t even brush it with her broken arm.

Jag and Ty had a great day at school and then played after doing their homework. I noticed what look like new swords from the days of King Arthur, made out of paper, taped to each of their bedroom doors. They must have been up to something.

The house is the cleanest it’s been in a long long time, like since before Christmas. I cleaned everything up and then Elvia, our cleaning lady who hasn’t been here forever so we could save money, showed up at noon to deep clean what I just cleaned. I traded her one of the old bicycles in our garage for cleaning for the day. I had it listed on Craigslist for $75 but had no action so trading it to Elvia for $115 worth of house cleaning seemed like a pretty good deal. We also gave her a bunch of old clothes of the boys and some old toys for her kids that Lori cleaned out of Ty’s closet. Its good to donate things to someone you know when possible instead of some organization that then re-sells your stuff.

It’s now 5:15, anybody else get up early? I think I’ll get to cleaning the basement or maybe  head to the gym or maybe just relax, not sure, but time to go as I’m out of stuff to write about. Lori is headache free, knock on wood! She’ll finish up her first full week of working at the office everyday. I told her at least she only has to work 4 hours a day. She made some comment about being stupid and I said she can’t be stupid because she married me! That made her laugh.

Take care and God Bless.