Wow, what a game, it was magical, it was electric, it was history. We left for the much anticipated event around 4pm with 50 chicken wings from Jimmy’s and some beers and cold waters in a cooler packed in the back of the truck. I was the designated driver so I opted for the water. By the time we arrived at the stadium a bit after 4:30 in the afternoon, it seemed as though we were the last ones to show up. We had some wings and cold beverages and at 5:30 headed into the stadium. After a few pre game festivities, the color guard trotted out and the entire stadium sang the national anthem and then four F 16 fighter jets flew right over us. Until you see these in person, you can’t experience the power and awe of these machines.

Finally the game starts. It’s back and forth for most of the first 3 quarters until finally our beloved Bronco’s and Peyton Manning put the game away. The oldest had a blast and I’m thankful that he witnessed history as he saw Peyton Manning’s 400th touchdown pass. I remember opening a box last Christmas from Grandma with the season tickets inside and even though we didn’t have Peyton then, it was still the best present ever. She’s always been very generous to give me the tickets each year. Thank you!

The only damper on the day was Grandma’s Green Bay Packers lost to the San Francisco 49’ers. Now I know we have a few 49’er fans here (Grandpa Bob and Grandma Annette) but no gloating allowed. They’re both two great teams and will be ok, it was just sad one of them had to lose.

We didn’t really buy anything at the stadium as everything is so expensive these days. A coke that used to cost about $1.50 is now $6.50! For a freakin soda pop! This should be no surprise as you might remember last year I mentioned in a post how I carried around a picture of a new Porsche in my wallet when I was 16, it then cost about $12,000. Guess what it costs today, $162,000! Food is more, clothes are more, housing, anything you can think of is more while the dollar buys less. Sorry to drift off into a economic rant but the coke at the stadium is indicative of everything in the World today. Those of you that are older will remember when you could go to the 5 and dime and actually buy something for 5 cents or 10 cents. Try that nowadays, you won’t get much!

Well it’s 7:30 and the boys need to get to school soon and then I have a couple of calls before Chip and I work on my computers. Then I’m dropping him downtown with his Steeler fan friends who flew in for the game, and he’ll spend the afternoon with them before jumping on a plane at 8pm. He’s all excited as he gets to wear his jersey through the airport while beaming with pride. I still can’t get over what a big game and victory this was. What a nice diversion from politics, finally!

God Bless you all and God Bless the Denver Broncos!

First, here’s a comment from Annette, thanks,

Good morning.  There’s not a cloud in the sky and I can feel the crisp Autumn air when I opened the door.  Twenty three hours and it will be Broncos vs. Steelers kick off.  They (the media) say this may be the most watched NFL game of all time.  The Mr. and the oldest are quite excited, as are the rest of us in Bronco Country.  The oldest is going to the game as we have mentioned before.  He’ll be wearing his #18 Manning shirt accented by his blue and orange striped cast. Maybe they’ll be on T.V.  The youngest and I will be watching and cheering from home, as will Grandma and Uncle T. GO BRONCOS!!!

Yesterday the Mr. took me to Lowes to pick up supplies for the “set construction” for the school dance.  The theme is “Monster Mash” a precursor to Halloween. The dance is a welcome back and welcome to our school for new families.  I’m making a creepy forest with dead tree branches with twinkling lights, an evil laboratory with coat hangers twisted into coils, a plasma lamp, beakers filled with water and glow lights,  cylindrical vases with colored water and body parts and Dracula’s Lair complete with an old fashioned coffin, candelabra and castle walls.  I hope it all turns out the way I have imagined.  Also, the oldest wants me to make him  a costume of a headless suit holding his head on a platter with a dome cover….good luck mommy!  I have talked the youngest into being a Vampire for the dance and making his Halloween costume…that should be a bit easier.

The oldest’s friend Jen came over after school followed by another girl, Shannon.  The four kids played outside until Shannon went home and then the three went down to Uncle T’s and Auntie B’s house.  Who knows what fun and what yummy treats they enjoyed down there.  I wish my Uncle Bill and his three kids would have lived five houses down the street from me. I did have my 12th birthday party at his house and he had a built in pool with a diving board and a slide.  Hurray!! I have to say… I was quite fortunate to have my Grandma live in the Mother in Law house that was connected to our house through a giant walk in closet with double locking doors.  She lived with us until I was twelve.  I would walk home from school (2 1/2 blocks) for lunch with her everyday.  Sometimes, Aunti Kristen (my best friend) would come home with me for lunch with Grandma.  Lunch was always so yummy…hamburger patties fried in bacon grease, cottage cheese and sliced peaches….  while talking with Grandma at the table with her “Stories” with T.V. on in the background.  I am going to check with LuLu to see if the boys can visit with her a few times a week.  It’ so much more fun to visit with no parents around. What are some of your childhood memories???  We are in need of some comments, loyal readers.

The Mr. got some much needed rest…asleep by 9 and he didn’t wake up until well after 7.  He is off to the gym and the kiddos are sitting next to me watching Saturday morning cartoons.  I am off to start on making pork green chili and swiffer the dog hair after that.

Have a great day and please post some memories

You  might not know it but earthquakes are way up all around the World. The disturbing part of this as that they’re on the tectonic plate boundaries or fault lines.

It’s interesting to note there have been an unusual number of quakes magnitude 5.0 or greater especially near the poles which isn’t good.

Here is a time-lapse daily map of earthquakes of Magnitude 5 or greater these past 7 days followed by an image of them all together.

A report from the volcanology office in Bandung (the capital of West Java province in Indonesia) shows that the activities of Krakatau (world famous volcano) has been on the rise over the past few days, reaching almost 90 eruptions per day prompting officials on Monday to issue a warning for local residents and tourists.

Update: SEP-4
16 magnitude 5 or greater earthquakes have occurred around the Philippines / Indonesia region. These are not just aftershocks, as they are located in many different areas. Something is going on here…

Update: SEP-5
One day later, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Costa Rica! Again, something out of the ‘usual’ is and has been happening of late.

Update: SEP-7

Lots of quakes in rural China in the last 24 hours. Not a lot of info as it’s China and it was in rural provinces. Still, more quakes

If you’re interested in geology, go to this link of the USGS which shows you on a daily basis what’s going on,

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map

Ok, now that you know what’s going on quake wise around the World, here’s what’s going on in Colorado!

Yesterday the oldest slept in and skipped inter-murals but will go today. I was once again in Boulder but home by 11am. I went for a walk at 4:30 am for 45 minutes around the neighborhood, it was really dark! Later in the morning the misses went for a walk with her good friend Carrie. We haven’t seem them much lately as with summer you’re always busy doing what your kids want to do and this year the boys are in different classes. We’ll have to get together with them sometime soon.

The big game is coming up Sunday night, the Broncos and the Steelers, whoo hoo. The oldest and I are going along with a friend from Seattle and one from Boulder. They say 30 million people will be watching on tv! It’s cooler today, only about 70 degrees outside which is the coolest in months. They say the winter will be hard and the trees are already turning in the mountains which is really really early.

I was out of the house early yesterday morning to drop off some wine for a catholic charity benefit tomorrow night and then for a fashion show last night. I also got a haircut at 9am. I try to be selective about who I donate wine to as everyone always asks and they all think their cause is the best. I just can’t help everybody even though I’d like to, so I try to spread it around.

This afternoon Jennifer (the oldest ones good friend) comes home with us as her Mom works until 5 downtown and her Grandma is somewhere. It’s 6am and the oldest just got up with me as he goes for the long jump and triple jump at 7. By the time Mom arrived home from book club, we were all asleep. Hence I have no report on what was discussed or any juicy news.

Let’s hope all those earthquakes are not a precursor or things to come. You may want to make sure your 3 day kit (3 days minimum of food and water) are up to date, just in case. I’m just saying, better to be prepared than not!

Take care and God Bless,

Ok, our main drama friends, who you’ve read about from time to time, had a few issues yesterday. They don’t live very close yet called me to help them with their broken car and a leaky faucet right before the football game was going to start! I had to tell them I just couldn’t come over right now to help but that I’d be glad to help tomorrow. It’s not like they were stuck on the road or something, their broken car was sitting in their driveway! She (the misses) seemed a little put off but I made a joke of it like, “lucky you’re not bleeding to death as I couldn’t come over until after the football game no matter what!”. Oh well, she’ll get over it.

The morning started off with me going to the gym and then hitting the phones. By 9am I was on the way to Boulder and back around 11:30 or 12 noon. I had to go to four accounts and made the loop around town in pretty good time. I’m actually back there this morning after I go to Cherry Creek for a 9am appointment. The misses headache seems to be back, that’s all I’ll say as she doesn’t like me to write about it.

Tonight she’s going to a book club, I have no idea what she’s reading n’or do I even know the lady’s house she’s going to. I think it’s someone from one of the boys classes like the Mom of one of their friends. Oh well, I hope she has fun.

We did get the youngest guy some new shoes yesterday and I couldn’t believe that they cost almost $60! I mean where does Nike get off, kids grow out of them inside of 6 months.

Hard to believe it’s September. It’ll be Halloween, then Thanksgiving, then Christmas, before you know it. Uncle T has probably started Christmas shopping already.

We didn’t get any comments yesterday or for that matter, for the past few days. Hope the headlines don’t turn you off. Just think you should know what’s happening around the World.

I know, let’s take a vote, who’s better off today than they were 4 years ago? Anyone? Let us know and we’ll publish the results in a few days.

Here’s a few quotes to ponder,

A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul. -George Bernard Shaw

Sounds familiar huh, that’s the democrats plan in a nutshell, and

“Have more than thou showest; Speak less than thou knowest.” – William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616), King Lear, Act I, Scene IV

That’s a good one, especially these days. it’s called OPSEC or operational security meaning don’t tell people your business. Google it for more information, maintaining OPSEC is a must these days.

Alright, time to run, have a good day and God Bless.

Hard to believe that the NFL football season starts tonight. It’ll be the Giants and the Cowboys. I can’t remember a Wednesday night game before. Lot’s going on around here, school’s in full swing as is work. The weather is also changing as we’re expecting cooler temps this weekend.

Here’s a couple of headlines from the news today, check it out,

New “Geo Fence” Technology Lets DHS, FBI and Apple Command Your Phone’s Camera and Microphone,

Now why does the government need to turn on your phones camera and microphone? Why would this be valuable to them, talk about Big Brother or 1984, wow!

Meanwhile over the pond,

Breakdown: Three Tons of Food Looted From Grocery Stores In Spain As Millions Struggle

People are leaving Spain en mass. The wealthy are pulling their money out of the banks (while they still can) and leaving the country, while others are taking food while they can. The police can’t stop them as there’s just too many of them, wow!

Economic shock: global food prices jump 10%

Now this one we are all well aware of. For a few years, companies have just been shrinking their packaging so we think we’re getting the same food for the same money (like we’re stupid) but they can no longer continue to do this and are now raising prices on smaller boxes, talk about a double whammy, wow!

and finally,

June Foodstamp Recipients Hit All Time High As Three Times As Many Americans Enter Poverty As Find Jobs

We left Steamboat around 8:30 am and made it home a bit after 11. We pretty much missed the traffic except for the last half hour when we hit I-70. It took a few hours to unpack and clean up around here and I finally finished the laundry late last night. After a trip to the grocery store, we had Grandma over for some bbq chicken, corn on the cob, salad and home made peach cobbler which is the misses new killer dessert.

The boys played after helping unload the car as all their friends arrived home around the same time. This morning we’re back at it. School, work, blah blah blah. The oldest is having a bowl of Frosted Flakes as he has inter-murals at 7am. They are extra p.e. classes at 7 each morning that he signed up for. Today is the discus and the shot put. The youngest is still sleeping.

Not a lot else going on except we feel like we need a vacation from our vacation. I just noticed they have flu shots at the doctor (on the news) so we’ll have go get one asap. It’s supposed to be cooler later in the week (the 70’s) but is still going to be in the 90’s today.

Time to run, hope everyone is well and had a great last weekend of summer, take care and God Bless.

Ok, everyone on our trip (both family’s) want to move to Steamboat! It’s hard not to want to live in such a beautiful place with such a sense of community. The towns big enough to have all the necessities like good schools, doctors, restaurants, hospitals and an airport (just out of town) with flights to major cities all over the country, yet is small enough so you see people on the street that you know. The weather and scenery is beyond compare and the air is so fresh you can feel it in your lungs. Who knows, maybe someday we’ll end up here.

Yesterday morning we started our day with a side trip 3.5 miles out of town to Fish Creek Falls. It was breathtaking and the kids climbed and climbed all through the rocks and stream below the picturesque falls above them. It was packed being Labor Day weekend. Later in the day after some lunch we took them down to play in the Yampa River. We decided to skip the bull riding as it would have been over $200 for us all to get in which was not in the budget. We finished up our trip with dinner at Carl’s Tavern down by the river, sitting outside and finishing up just in time before the thunderstorms came. A little more pool time by the kids and finally the day was done.

We’ll try to get out of here by 9am to avoid the traffic on I-70 as it’ll be packed. Another side benefit of being up here is you just don’t watch much tv. So no politics as we’ve been too busy doing outdoor activities to stay caught up! I’m sure I didn’t miss anything, did I.

Hope everyone is well and had a great holiday, Enjoy the final day of rest before we all head back to work. God Bless.

Good morning.  The air is crisp with just enough chill in it to be oh, so refreshing.  I’m sitting outside on the deck breathing in deeply and watching the mist rise from the tips of the mountains. Stunning.

We woke early….the Mr. woke early to ask me, “what time it was”….5:40a.m….then asked, “where are the quarters for the showers”…followed by, “where is the key to the bathrooms. ” The kids chimed in with”Good Morning Mommy and Daddy”  5:40a.m….it is.

The lake was gorgeous….mist, mist and more mist!  The water was absolutely still.  Not a ripple to be seen and the mist was eerily rising up from the water.  I thought a dragon might fly over or the Lockness monster would rear her pretty, little head at any time.  We showered (free) made really thick black coffee and headed off to breakfast at the Road House. YUM!!  On the way back we saw a sheep herder’s trailer…yep a real sheep drive!

Ok, fast forward to Sunday am, the misses is making breakfast in our 4 bedroom, 4 bath, condo in Steamboat. To finish up what the misses was saying, it was a real sheep drive! There must have been over 200 sheep with dogs on each side of the herd and a couple guys on horses behind the pack. The boys stood in the middle of them as they went right around them, it was quite a sight. We loaded up the truck after breakfast and were out of the cabin by 11am. An hour later we were checking into the condo where we are now. The afternoon was spent with the kids at the pool and getting settled into our place. We opened a bottle of wine at 5pm and then after a glass, headed out to our friends restaurant Slopeside which is right on the ski slopes. Billy and Michelle met us there at a bit after 6 and the rest of the night is a blur. Billy had arranged a special table under an awning to protect us from the mountain sun and we ate and drank and laughed for the next 4 hours or so. The evening was interrupted by our friends 8 year old getting sort of lost. The kids were playing hide and seek as there’s the ski slopes right outside the restaurant so all the kids play out front while the parents sit and eat. It was dark and the misses jumped into protective mother bear mode and within minutes had servers and bartenders not only from our restaurant but also from the Shearton, looking for him. We soon found him as he was pretending he was camping and building a tepee and stick fire (without matches) under a tree. His Mom was freaked out too. We had just went through this the day before with our youngest and him taking off up at the cabins on a hike also! I told all kids this morning, no more running off as they will be charged for the next search party we have to put together.

I’ve already walked down the road to the store for eggs and bacon this morning. I took the boys with me and we saw a hot air balloon taking off. It’s gorgeous 65 degrees out. Today I think we’re going up to Fish Creek Falls and then maybe to let the kids play in the Yampa River. From 11 to 3 there’s the chili challenge in town with chili cooks from all over the west trying to wine the tope award of the best chile. We’ll have to be trying them all! Tonight we’re supposed to go at 6 to the PBR which is the Pro Bull Riders event at the fairgrounds with Billy and Michelle and their friend who is a bull rider from Walden of all places. We then have dinner reservations at another friends place at 8:30. So a big day’s in store. Time to eat breakfast and then get cleaned up for the day.

Tomorrow am we’ll head down the hill trying to beat most of the traffic but will most likely get stuck in it. Have a great day and take care, God Bless and we’ll talk tomorrow.

We made it up to our cabin by about 4pm after stopping in Steamboat for a bit and picking up some chairs. It was raining just about the time we arrived but we unpacked and set up camp. Our friends were a few hours behind us and arrived around 7:15. For dinner we had green chili , s’mores and salad and boy was it good!

Everyone settled in to bed pretty early for the big day tomorrow. We were up early and made a huge breakfast. The boys of course were infatuated with chopping wood and helping start the fire. We made it to the boat and spent the next 4 hours on the lake. More on this later as I’m short on time. The rest of the day was also fun and steaks, green beans and potato’s for dinner with peach cobbler made in the dutch oven in the fire. This morning we’re having breakfast at the road house. i didn’t know it but we’re only 20 miles from Encampment Wyoming but the catch is the road is only open in the summer time.

More later but eggs are arriving so time to run.

God Bless,