D@#& Wind!

I'm not usually one to complain about the wind, but uggh that d@#&
WIND!
I couldn't sleep a wink last night, I tossed and turned throughout the night,
WIND!
I tried to picture myself in a quiet place, a place without,
WIND!
Thoughts of dragging my queen bed mattress onto the floor in the basement sounded like an option and maybe then I could sleep without the
WIND!
They call Chicago the wind city???? Ha!
WIND!
I'm sure the whole town will be grumpy now, the dirt is flying, this place is not fit for anyone,
WIND!
Curse you WIND!

Merry Christmas!

For our family the day has finally arrived. We've always opened presents on Christmas Eve. Not just one present, but all of them. Oh sure, Santa brings a few left overs the next day but in general the big show is tonight. C and T are so excited. I am too. I have a new pair of glasses under the tree that I've tried out two times before they went under the tree. Then there is the shampoo and conditioner that I wrapped for myself too. Santa use to always forget to bring me something, so he finally got smart and wrapped a little something up for me. One package for C never did arrive on time so I'm closed up in the office trying to find a picture of the present that has yet to arrive. C knows it's not here and seems to be taking it pretty well. We'll see if those Ipod touches I bought will take the sting off of the missing present.

To kill time today, we went and saw the movie, "The Day the Earth Stood Still." Not a bad movie. I had no preconceived expectations so therefore I left the movie feeling fulfilled. I'm sure that during the break, we will take in a ton of movies and eat our fair share of theater popcorn, my favorite.

We've made our usual plans for New Year's with our friends and look forward to our annual traditions. I know change is good, but I sure love to sit back and enjoy all the familiar feeling of holidays gone by and I love to think back at all the good times we've had. I'm pretty lucky!

Here's the pictures from the other day that I couldn't get to load.

Merry Christmas everyone.

Oops!

The pictures won't upload so they will have to wait until later. Guess I'll try tomorrow.

Counting Down the Days

The boys are just itchin' to have Christmas come. While we wrapped presents today they grilled me about the who, what ,where and when for their gifts. Big T and I have told them every crazy thing in the book. We've convinced them that we bought all their presents back in August, and we also told them that we haven't even started shopping. It was lots of fun to put one of B's presents in a box and wrap it right in front of him. C is the worst, at 13 he's still no different than when he was five year old. Little T thinks he knows everything and tries to convince his brothers that he does.

The boys Christmas concerts were great! His dad, brothers and grandma and grandpa were able to attend. B had his the same night that I had mine at my school so I didn't get to go, but I always think he looks so handsome in his tux. The first time my dad saw him in his tux, he got a little teary eyed at the sight of such a grown up man standing in front of him.

The picture of little T at his concert is a little grainy and I apologize, but it such a great picture of him concentrating, being ready and giving it his all. He was such a joy to watch and as always his music teacher put on a spectacular show.

Little T and I always make a gingerbread house each year. This year he hardly needed help from me, and probably could have finished the project himself.

C is suffering from a bad right arm. He has "Wii arm!" This is when you play the Wii too much, too long with too much vigor. This IS actually painful and not very funny. I know, I boxed the other night and my right arm was killing me the next day. C is a "pro" tennis player so I'm sure he'll need surgery for his tennis elbow soon. Little T played so hard that he hit his knee with the controller and left a mark that is a perfect square from the control. That's some serious playing!

Christmas Preparations

Christmas is coming the goose is getting fat...OK I'm the one getting fat. So I've started a colon cleanse to see if I can feel better. I'm also trying to cut back on coffee. This is a struggle for me since I've discovered that coffee is not just about taste but instead it's about holding the cup like a security blanket. So anyway, the Christmas decorations are going up and Christmas card are almost done. Here's the fun at our house.

Wyoming Weather

Getting to my dad's retirement was the biggest part of the journey. When we woke up at 5:30 am. the road between Cheyenne and Laramie was closed. What now??? My brother N suggested that we come to Ft. Collins and take 287 around and get back on I-80 after Laramie. When we got on I-25 headed to C.O, the wind was howling, causing a white out. We kept wondering why the road was still open, but at the same time we were glad because we knew my dad would be crushed if we didn't make it to the retirement party.

It took us nine hours to get to Evanston which should have only taken six. I'm so thankful to have a DVD player in the van, the boys where so good! It also could have been the fact that we had a ton of snacks also. I took a video of the white conditions on my cell phone, so I've got to see how to get that video off my phone and onto the computer.

But the pictures above show the progression of the weather conditions as we traveled through C.O. and W.Y.

After we safely made it to Evanston, B decided that we should take a quick trip to Utah since we were so close. So B and I drove three miles and take a picture of world wind trip through three states!

Dad's Retirement!

The big day has finally arrived. After 40 years in the WY State Forestery, my dad has decided to retire. He has been very emotional this last week and he's already starting to drive my mother crazy. To begin the celebration we traveled to Evanston for the annual state forestry meeting. Unita county firefighters put together the celebration and did a great job.

They roasted my dad, showered him with gifts and made a slide show filled with pictures from the last 40 years! My brothers, my mom and my family all traveled on Friday to get to the party.