A Year of Change

Lori and Dix made it here with no issues. We picked them up at 10am and loaded both along with a huge suitcase and walker into the car. Then it was off to Dicks Sporting Goods for some soccer cleats and shin guards for Jag. Next up was lunch at Elway’s before heading over to 240 Union for Al’s mom’s reception. Lunch was nice and so was the reception. Earl (Ali’s dad) seemed really sharp. He recognized all of us right away and asked how we like Vail and asked Lori how her job at the hospital was. He seemed to be taking everything well although we know from experience that losing a loved one usually hits you when you’re alone later. At one moment I saw him alone holding a picture of his wife looking at it. As Robin said the day before, can’t imagine being with someone for decades and then poof, they’re gone and you’re alone. Ali and Tom were hosting everyone best they could. Tom did a lot organizing everything and Ali was going through the motions of talking with everyone. May God Bless them all. Al’s back is killing her. Not sure what she can do about that.

We stayed an hour and then took Dixie to Greg and Jae’s. We made it there just in time as she was getting tired. Lori was really tired as she had like two hours sleep the night before.

Today Marty and Melanie are taking us on a float trip down the Colorado River. Should be fun. The boys will hang out as for the next week they’ll be hanging with Grandma. I’ll go get Dixie tomorrow morning and bring her up here for a couple days.

School starts soon, Lori goes back to California next Saturday, to take her mom home, and I leave elk hunting a week from Friday. Oh a week from Monday Ty goes whitewater kayaking for 3 days. Throw in a bunch of mountain bike and soccer practices and a few races and games and there you have it.

Time to get moving. Enjoy the day and God Bless.

Today Lori and Dixie arrive at DIA around 10 am. Then we have Ali’s moms service and reception. I guess the service is real small in a room in a church so we’re just going to the reception. I spoke to Ali and her back has flared up again and is giving her issues. Hope it’s better soon.

Yesterday was 9 years since Dad passed away. Time flies. Here’s Robi’s comment,

Robi says: August 16, 2019 at 4:13 pm

Sadly it’s been 9 years since dad died! I think with mom passing too, the focus has mainly been on her, but not a day goes by that I don’t think and pray about both of them, as I’m sure we all do. Wishing Ali’s mom service brings closure to her and her brothers and Earl. I was telling my friend this morning that I think the one hit the hardest is the surviving spouse. Think about it, being with the same person everyday for 40, 50, 60 years and one day they are gone, can’t imagine!

Couldn’t agree with her more. Again hard to believe it’s been 9 years.

Ty had practice in Eagle so I took some pictures of the house. It’s coming along. I need to get a large gun safe and ship it to the house so they can lift it in before the put the roof on the vault.

Ty rode 30 miles in 90 minutes which was 5 six mile loops on the Haymaker Trail. Then around 7 or so Harry made it here for a visit and dinner. He’s driving back to Colfax California and will be back mid-October. Jag had practice too and was home a few minutes before Ty and I.

Hope Dixie and Lori have a good flight. They are in First Class as it was essentially the same price as coach. I’m sure the flight will be fine it’s the getting to the airport that’s difficult. Lori just called and they’re at the airport, yea! Here’s a few more pictures of the house, not much to see but it’s coming along. It’s exciting to see our dream coming together. Hard to believe we’ve been living in this closet for 4 years now. It will be more like February at the earliest before it’s done though, ugh. Oh well, that’ll be here soon! God Bless

Yesterday was more of the same, Jag had soccer and then hung out with his friends, Ty had a long bike ride up Highway 24 towards Leadville, I worked my butt off and had two workouts at the gym, one in the morning and one late in the afternoon. I was 199.6 pounds this morning though so that’s good, ha.

Both dogs go to daycare today as we have Aunt Ali’s moms service tomorrow and have to pick up Grandma Dixie and Lori at the airport around 10 am. It’ll be a busy week with Dixie here and me in Seattle on Tuesday and Wednesday. Ty and I are going to Aspen today as I have to stop in Carbondale and drop some samples.

Lori is doing ok. It’s tough for her to work remotely and be gone. She’s critical to the Practice and there’s always an emergency, day and night. In California she’s been running errands with her Mom going to doctor appointments, lunches, dinners and more. Even though I’m off to Seattle for 36 hours Lori’s booked solid until a week from Monday, either flying here, taking care of her Mom or flying her Mom back to Sacramento a week from tomorrow. So we’re all busy busy.

By the way, Ty goes white water kayaking two weeks from Monday and I go hunting on the 30th and school starts two weeks from Thursday so we’re all really slammed until a day or two after Labor Day or about September 4th, ugh. At least we’re keeping busy!

That’s it, time to run, have a great day and God Bless.

When you live in the mountains, you can feel the changes in the seasons pretty easy in the morning. Well let me tell you, Fall is coming. There’s that small bite of cold around 6 am that wasn’t there last week. Not sure what kind of Winter they say is coming up but as I said, the season is beginning to change.

We managed to get Lori to the airport on time and after a stop or two I was back home around 2. Ty had his first mountain bike race at 6:51. Different groups go off at different times and that’s when his group started.

He’s such a good kid and just went out and joined the team on his own without having any experience or knowing many kids at all. He ended up just a few minutes behind the leader in his group and is getting stronger every day. Good for him. Meanwhile Jag was at soccer and home right before Ty was finished.

This morning Ty has Deb and Jag has soccer. I have lots of computer work to do. We had a bear roaming around outside last night as the neighbor’s trash can is turned over and the dogs were sniffing around this morning. You can also see tracks from his dirty paws. Luckily we don’t keep any food in our cars or they’d be a mess. There are lots of bears this year.

Time to get moving, I need to clean the garage today if I can find the time. Have a great day and God Bless.

We’re leaving in an hour for the airport for Lori’s flight to California. I hate it when she goes there as the State is a freaking mess. She’ll be there until Saturday am when she and Dixie will fly back. They’re both in First Class as it was the same price as coach, go figure.

Ty has his first mountain bike race this afternoon while Jag is practicing away at soccer. His leg is still sore and healing which makes it difficult to run. School starts in Denver today but up here the kids have a few more weeks.

I almost don’t want to say it out loud but there’s a chill in the air that’s reminiscent of the changing season. In other words, it feels like Fall is on the way. I can’t remember a year with no Spring and such a short summer. Hope winter is not as strong as last year.

That’s it, time to get moving as the dogs need to go out before we leave and I still have to shower. Be safe people and God Bless.

Nothing like clean sheets. We’d like them everyday but that’s not going to happen. I did clean a bunch yesterday though and one of the things I did was wash the sheets. Ty rearranged his room and cleaned pretty well. Jag did some cleaning too in between soccer practices. I focused on the kitchen, laundry and our bedroom.

The dogs are happy and home. Ty went bowling in Eagle to a sort of going away party for a friend going off to CU tomorrow. He has Deb (his tutor) this morning and then mountain bike practice tonight. I’m off to Denver for a couple meetings and need to pick up some wine for Al’s mom’s service this Saturday.

The big news of the day is grandma Dixie is coming to visit. Lori leaves tomorrow for California and will fly back with her on Saturday. Dixie will then be here for a week and Lori will then fly her back to California on the 24th. I’m gone the 20th and 21st in Seattle.

It’s suppose to be drier this week but has been a wet year. Wonder what kind of winter it’ll be. Time to get the boys moving and myself too. Lori is already in the shower. It’ll be September before we know it. Then it’s all downhill to 2020. Sounds weird huh, 2020!

Have a great day, be safe, watch your back and God Bless.

Yesterday we were dragging a bit. Getting home at 1 and to bed at 2 the night before just takes it right out of you. Lori joked thank God we don’t drink! She’s right!

We have a busy week coming up. Jag has soccer this morning, Ty has mountain biking tomorrow and Lori goes to Sacramento Wednesday. I have lots of work and am in Seattle a week from tomorrow for two days. The dogs come home today from doggie daycare and I have lots of cleaning to do around here.

We did go to dinner last night with Melanie and Marty for Mexican food. Then we settled in for a good nights sleep which we really needed.

We’re still in awe of the concert. Lots of people from Vail went, well over 50! It was so good and so much fun that like I said before, everyone will remember it forever. I’ll find some more pictures to put up soon. That’s about it for today. Hope everyone is well, take care, be safe and God Bless.

Hard to put last night into words, but it truly was epic!. We arrived at the stadium after having a bite to eat after the drive to Denver after meeting with our builder after working out. You can’t really explain it but for 2 hours last night it’s as if we were all frozen in time sharing and experiencing a microcosm of my life.

We made our way into the stadium around 6:45 after meeting up with Tom and Jennifer and then Melanie and Marty. Buying floor seats was the right choice! We walked in with tens of thousands of people some in their 70’s and 80’s! By the time we made it to our seats, after hitting the souvenir stand, the opening act was starting. About an hour later the show began.

The lights went down, the crowd screamed and then an announcer came on and said “Ladies and Gentleman, The Rolling Stones!” Then Keith and Ronnie’s guitars belted out the opening riffs to Jumping Jack Flash! The crowd went crazy. This went on for two hours with Mick strutting around the stage like a 30 year old. He talked with the crowd like we were long lost friends saying how they first played Denver in 1965. He talked about the shows they played at the old Mile High Stadium and joked how they went to Casa Bonita earlier in the day to go cliff diving, (that’s an old famous restaurant in Lakewood), he also thanked us for our patience and understanding for having to reschedule the show due to his heart issue. You would have never known it the way he was. Mick didn’t miss a beat and hit all the notes. They played all their hits and Mick danced and pranced around like he has done for 50 years. There was a long catwalk that jutted out into the crowd close to us where at one point they set up a drum kit and acoustic guitars and all came out in the middle of the crowd and did an acoustic set. The kids were mesmerized. At one point Ty turned to me and said “this is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen in my life”. That right there was worth it. Finally the show ended and we made our way out with our friends who we took to the show. They were four rows ahead of us as that’s how our tickets ended up. It was like re-living my life with old friends for the past 50 years.

On the way home we searched our phones to see where they were playing as we’d go to a show again, it was that good! The kids soon fell asleep while I drove to Vail with Lori looking hot in her new Rolling Stones t-shirt sitting next to me, life is good. Around 1 am we pulled in. Jag had burned the skin off his thigh on an alpine slide the day before in Steamboat and needed the dressing changed. More on his trip tomorrow and the show but now it’s time to go.

As I said, the show was everything we could have hoped for and more. It’s like we were all one person for a moment in time. Lori looked at me during the show and said “we’re really good parents”, ha. That’s sort of an inside joke I’ll explain later. This was one of those moments everyone will remember for the rest of their lives, especially the kids. More tomorrow, God Bless.

Tonight at 7:30 we have an appointment with Mick, Keith, Ron, Charlie and the boys at Mile High Stadium! It’s supposed to rain a bit around 6:30 or 7 and then stop. Hope they’re right.

Lori and I both had doctor appointments yesterday while Ty hung out and Jag was having fun in Steamboat. Jag went skeet shooting and did really well. Earlier they heard a noise and there was a bear outside their front door! He also sent us a picture of him parallel parking! He’s sure having fun.

Ty made it to his first mountain bike practice where they rode 10 miles up on Beaver Creek. The coaches said he did great, especially since he was riding with all the kids who have been racing for years. I’ll bet he’s sore today.

Lori and I went to dinner with Jennifer and Tom who are building a 6800 square foot house in Edwards. It’s really nice and has three levels. There are a few things we did different but everyone has different tastes. They have three levels with winding stairs that might be a challenge but they did put in an elevator. Lori and I are meeting with our builder this morning to go over a few things. It’s exciting. It was a nice dinner and we like them a lot. They, along with Marty and Melanie are going to the concert with us tonight. We decided to just drive home after the show as we couldn’t find any hotels in Denver under $500 a room! We should be home by midnight.

Not sure what the rash on my leg is as they say it’s not poison ivy. Brooke gave me some really strong hydrocortisone which seems to be shrinking it, I hope. It’s so weird.

Jag should be home by 10 or so and with the rain forecast I think we’ll leave around 2 or 3. That’s it. Have a good day and remember, You Can’t Always Get What You Want! God Bless.

What a year, it seems more like Wisconsin than Colorado. Thankfully we live in the mountains. We could see rain a bit tomorrow during the concert, hope not.

Jag is having fun as far as we know. Ty has mountain bike practice today at 4:15 as he joined the Vail (VSSA) Mt. Bike Race Team. Of course this required a new bike but he was due anyhow. He decided to join the team instead of playing soccer which Jag does.

We have dinner tonight with Jennifer and Tom who are going to the Stones with us tomorrow. They’ve been building a new house for about a year longer than us so Lori is excited to pick her brain. Time to get moving so that’s it. Be safe and have a good weekend, God Bless.