Early Thanksgiving

Our youngest son not only gave us a wonderful daughter-in-law, he brought us some great friends in her her family members. Her brother Matt and his wife Heather moved to Longmont, a neighboring community not too long after we relocated to Loveland.

Last Sunday they invited us to their home to share an early Thanksgiving dinner with them and their five children. All I had to bring was dessert, and since baking is one of my favorite pastimes, it was a joy. I know the photos in my slide show are going to make Ruth homesick for her brother and his family, since she's so far away, but at least she can see their sweet smiles and share vicariously in a wonderful evening.

I have to say, we always have such a wonderful time when we get together with Matt's family. Their good people who always make me think of the expression "salt of the earth." It was a perfect meal, a perfect night, and they even sent us home with some leftovers. It doesn't get better than that.

Near the end of the evening, the twins must have decided that if the put their coats on, they'd get taken somewhere. They looked really cute, and didn't seem to mind that no outing followed their getting "snow ready."

The only other thing I should add is that I made pecan tarts and a pumpkin pie in a pecan crust, and will be putting both recipes up here within the next few days. Right now I've been cleaning and organizing cupboards. (You could come and help. I'll bake for you...)

Writer's Retreat and Snowfall

The November writer's retreat put on by the Northern Colorado Writer's group was small but powerful. We took up two cottages at the Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch, about nine miles from our home. A writer's retreat is different from a conference. You don't sit through how-to lectures and workshops as you would in a conference.

Each person goes to a quiet, private spot and writes. There are times for discussion and helping each other, popcorn and movie night, meals together and such, but the primary focus is on writing. Well, I was editing, but it amounts to the same thing, although I've found that writing is MUCH EASIER than editing!

I was delighted with our time there and the wonderful and focused women of the group. The grounds were beautiful as well, but never more so than after the snow began to fall. I ended up having a couple of hikes through the snow with my cameras while working through ways to handle advice I didn't want to follow on my manuscript edits. (Sometimes it's almost impossible to tell good advice from bad, especially on your first book.) When I have to think things through, I walk, and if it's snowing—I walk in beauty. Here's the proof.

Saying Goodbye, Returning Home

How can we stand to say goodbye to our children and grandchildren when the visits are so sweet and too infrequent? I've often said that I'm easier to love when I don't live too close. Is it really a joke? Probably not. Like most people, I have more than my share of quirks. Our visits might be short, but they're poignant and blessed, and saying goodbye is always hard.

We worked hard to give them wings, and although we still worry at times and keep them close in prayer and phone calls, some days the miles seem endless. So how exactly can we handle the goodbyes? The last few photos of this slide show pretty much say it all. When you see what we come home to after a visit, you'll understand our contentment with home and hearth. Our roots have been transplanted deeply into this good Colorado soil, and the foothills welcome us home with the deer and the sunsets. I wouldn't choose to live anywhere else.

Missing Those Little Girls

Today I called Ruth in Holland and I'm embarrassed to admit that I hardly said hello before I asked if Ashley was still awake and could I please talk to her... She laughed and put her on the phone, so I figure she probably understands that sometimes a grandma just needs to talk to one of her little girls.

We didn't talk for too long, but it was really great. I could hear Kate singing in the background, and Ashley let me know her little sister was learning to sing really good. Since Kate sings so amazingly for someone who won't be three until December, I imagine they'll be singing duets before too long. When I told her we've got snow on the ground and that the deer were really enjoying their new winter coats, she wanted to come here immediately to see them. (What's a few thousand miles to a two year old?)

I was glad to plant the seeds in her mind that Grandpa and I could babysit on the ship one day while we send her mama and dad off to explore for a few hours. (We're going on a cruise in May with them, from Venice down the coast to Athens and back, then flying back to Amsterdam—more on that later.) She said that sounded like lots of fun. It does to us, too.

Seeing Kate and Ashley in California was wonderful. I still have more photos to share, but here's the trip to the zoo. It was a big day for all of us, really special and memorable. Working on this slide show made me laugh and cry, just going over the memories by myself. I love those girls, and I'm so grateful they've been blessed with the parents they have. Ben and Ruth, you do such a fine job together.

Redesign

Obviously I don't have time to redesign my blog, but that's what I want to do. Originally, I just wanted to change the map. It's not that simple. The map won't go on the right, where it belongs. Maybe it would go there for someone else—someone who knew how to make it right justify. That person wouldn't be me. I guess I'll end up redesigning the entire blog to go with the new map.

But don't you love the map? It shows the last 1000 visitors, and you're the red dot... I love it.

Mojave Desert to Lake Isabella

Whenever we go through the Mojave Desert, headed toward Lake Isabella, as we did on our recent trip to California, something happens to my husband's driving. He reverts to his teenage years, straightening the road and becoming a lead foot. The only way I can slow him down is by frequently requesting stops to take photos.

Needless to say, I have MANY photos of these sections of road. Here's a slide show of our most recent trip through the area, a combination of shots taken over a couple of days heading in and out of Lake Isabella. You'll see the Mojave Desert, Lake Isabella and the Kern River.

Now that I've returned from my writing retreat, I'm back on track with making my slide shows for the blog, and need to get California out of the way, since I came back from the retreat with about 300 photos of the ranch where the retreat was held. We got about a foot of snow there this weekend, and it was beautiful. (I finally killed my old boots walking around with my cameras. They went right in the trash when I walked in the door at home.) The new photos have got to wait until I finish the California photos, so here's Mojave to Lake Isabella, in and out. Actually, that's the best way to see it: in and out.

Arguing With Idiots

This is so cool. It's one of the top ten finalists in Glenn Beck's new Arguing With Idiots contest. It's my pick to win. It gets one vote for each time it gets watched, so I'm posting it here. Enjoy.