Jason's birthday is Cinco de Mayo, so we decided to stick around in Colorado to celebrate with my family. We had just returned from Panama and it still looked too cold and snowy back in Michigan, so Mom agreed to bake him his favorite cake, German chocolate, if we stayed. He'd been knocking items off of her 'honey do' list and she was thrilled to have us staying with her, so it was an easy decision to stick around a bit longer.
My brother Tom grilled hamburgers for us and we ate like royalty.
The rhubarb was already growing by the back fence and we had enough to make a fabulous rhubarb pie!
We were invited to spend the weekend at Jim and Holly's condo in Fraser with their family. The snow at the top of Berthoud Pass shows just how different the weather can be in the mountains as compared to in town.
Snowboarders and skiers hike up and squiggle their way down the freshly fallen snow.
Makes for a pretty vista in the Rocky Mountains.
At this altitude, I don't know how they can manage to climb to the top with their equipment and no lifts.
Icicles along the roofline at the pass.
Fraser used to be known as the 'Icebox of America'. The Fraser River flows just outside my brother's condo.
A plaid moose on a fence as we took a walk. My brother's nickname for me is "Mooose" so this caught my eye.
Jason and Jim on the walking path by the condo.
After the walk, I chose to soak in the hot tub and whirlpool at the clubhouse. Ahhhh, the warm water felt great!
I could do this for a while......
We took the kids to a playground to burn off some more energy, too. A pretty view.
The playground mimics an old west town.
You can see the ski area of Winter Park/Mary Jane from here. Jim and Holly got in a morning of skiing on the last day they were open while we were up there.
Holly knitting gift items for a planned cruise.
Scotty in a playground version of a dream catcher.
Jason dressed for the cold in Fraser.
Holly and the kids made Jason a chocolate birthday cake.
Jason is blowing out the candles at the condo. Abby looks on eagerly in case he needs her help.
Jason is claiming the rights to the cake and candle blowing.
Back at Mom's, he now has a German chocolate cake to devour, too. Tom assures him he'll help.
Mom and Jason, her good helper.
Wait, wasn't that cake just complete a moment ago? What happened to half of it?
Jason and I drove up to Florissant, CO to visit friends of ours we've known since Jason's MBA school days at University of Denver. We took a bus load of their day care/Head Start kids to visit the Florissant Fossil Beds National Park there. Jason is standing in front of a huge old petrified tree stump.
These trees were massive. The stumps were covered by Mother Nature and turned to stone over the centuries. When the soil eroded, the stumps were once again revealed.
Karen in front of one of the stumps. They are quite fragile and they keep them fenced off so folks won't pick them to pieces. The parks department also wrapped them with wire bands to hold them together so you can see the size of the actual tree trunks.
Some have been worn down again to nubs that just show above the ground.
Richard and Donna use their little school bus that they repainted to carry the kids on this field trip.
Any town that has a rock for a sign is ok by me.
We had a picnic lunch at the park, too.
That's Richard smiling as we head back home after two days in their mountain home. It was awesome and the kids they care for were a real treat to be around. They raise miniature goats and chickens so the kids can learn how to care for animals. And they've always had Newfs for as long as we've known them.
Some smooth rock formations as we left the area.
The rocks and valleys of the area
and that blue sky.
How one rock could remain pointy is beyond me.
On the way home, we drove past the site of the Hayman fire from ten years earlier.
It's still barren and burnt. Things don't recover so quickly at these altitudes.
Still looks harsh and barren after a decade.
Once we were in green trees again, it was noticeable
You can see the barren patches from a long way away.
A private river camp.
We stopped to enjoy the river view a bit further down the road.
I like the patterns the layers and gullies make during erosion.
And since Mother's Day was just a few days away, we decided once again to extend our stay. Me and Mom in her kitchen.
Jason and me, in the kitchen. Seems so much always happens in the kitchen.
Me and my pallet artwork in Tom's back yard. I painted this one to hide his utility box in a corner.
Tom made the flag pallet for Mom at her request and we all loved the way it turned out.
Jason 'helping' in the kitchen.
Mother's Day flowers from Tom.
A photo creation I made from 25 pictures I took and arranged for Mom. I combined them into meaningful rows and had the final product printed out on canvas as a gift for her. Each picture has a special meaning.
1 comment:
didn't realize you both were so artistic! Fun time with family. one of the things we also missed when out at sea!
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