Gateway to the West

The St Louis Arch is an amazing structure. Huge, steel, magnificent piece of art. The little white pod that takes you to the top is small (you feel like you were shoved in a pea pod with 4 other people) and kinda rickety but you just HAVE to do it anyways. Once your up there, it's hot and stuffy and the thing sways so you don't stay too awfully long. But the view, the view, is so worth it. After we came down our micro pea pod, we explored the museum under ground. It is chalked full of history about Lewis and Clark, the settling of the West, and was more than any one person can take in. This was a highlight for me. Another thing I can check of the list.

St Louis Arch. Check.

St. Louis

One thing I was determined to do this trip was to take the girls to the Arch. I went there as a child and I wanted my kids to see it too. The weather was great for a late November day. We headed into St. Louis excited for an adventure together.


And boy was I excited when we saw this! We had to stop, get our wine allotment, cereal, and chocolate advent calendars for the girls. I was sad to only buy 3 this year instead of 4. We thought of our missing appendage (Gabe) often during this trip.

First stop downtown... Marriott Hotel/ St. Louis Train station. This reminded me of Narnia. Gorgeous!

There is a mall inside this place too. And when did Lina get so tall??

These stair bannisters were screaming,"Slide down me!" So they did!

Lina found herself in a painting on the wall. Of course the young girl is eating ice cream. :)

Isn't this so Narnian? Okay... maybe it's my vision of the train station. This is the lobby to the Marriott. Beautiful, for sure.

My girls make me laugh. Bec and Boo are taking serious shots in the serious chair.

This was a great way to start our adventures. Next stop... Down Town!

Road Trip Thanksgiving

Day 1 of our Road Trip started off with lots of driving. 14 hours, maybe more. We were so excited to pick up Becca that we went straight there, grabbed her at 1 am and then off to St. Louis. We finally fell asleep around 3 in the morning.

The next morning we were headed to downtown St. Louis for a day of fun. I took the chance for some fun sister shots while T was checking out.

This is their new album, I mean CD over. This picture actually shows each personality to a tee. Hollywood out front, Serious but very funny (left), Calm and Steady (right).

Self-portrait time

We got T in on the action, a miracle in itself. This is the kids being Tree Huggers. Bahahaha!

And off to St. Louis where we enjoyed the fun city life for 24 hours. I love seeing new places and especially taking the kids. Life is full of adventure, don't ya know?

Fall in Louisville

just perfect.

Simple Woman's Daybook

Simple Woman's Daybook

November 21, 2010


Outside my window.... I have a view of the city of St. Louis. We are high up in the Downtown Hilton staying for the night.

I am thinking... how much I love seeing new places and traveling. Having my girls all together makes me happy. I only wish for my son too. Time changes things though and I'm entering a new chapter with our children. Not all of them will be together for each holiday anymore. okay.. that's sad just typing it.

I am thankful for... safe travels thus far, points by Marriott and Capital One miles that allows us to stay in fun destinations, today we went to Trader Joe's. I'm really thankful for the sense of smell. Oh my it was great in there!


From the learning rooms.. still working on the final project. We went up the St. Louis Arch today. I learned a little more about the Westward Expansion. Actually, there was information overload in the museum. I'd have to live here to take it all in.

From the kitchen... I canned applesauce this week. Thaaaaat's about it. LOL. I told you I'm not much in the kitchen. I did get a LOT of recipes from the exchange though. Some great new ones to try for sure..


I am wearing...my fav.or.ite leopard jammies. Rrrrr! .

I am reading... Craigslist ads (ha!), a Simple magazine, and my Bible.

I am going... to enjoy sleeping in a bed I don't have to make, watch a TV that isn't mine, and when I wake up, grab my family and head to Louisville for the week. That is after a great breakfast and a hot shower. Hot Diggity for family.

I am hoping... that I finish my project this week. I am also hoping for some motivation to get going on this marathon training I promised myself too.

I am hearing... a few cars out the window going by, the movie Fast and Furious coming from 2 rooms, and once in a whole Becca coughs.

Around the house... it's all clean and tidy. I like it that way before I travel. We have folks staying there this week while we travel.

A picture worth sharing..

The girls were jumping for a picture and tried to get T to join in. First try all they got was one arm and one leg. LOL... try two worked much better.

Senior Project

Procrastination should be a synonym for Senior Project. It is due in 4 weeks and I am so unmotivated! I just feel done already. So what have I been doing?? Cooking applesauce, cleaning my house, rearranging our bedroom, schooling Angelina, working, watching it snow, having coffee with friends, cuddling with my man, watching The Office. Lots of things other than what I should be doing. Time to get busy!

Simple Woman's Daybook

Simple Woman's Daybook November 12, 2010

Outside my window.... There is just a tiny bit of snow left on the ground. The sun is shining brightly but it is chilly out today.

I am thinking... lately my thoughts are going towards the Holiness of God. I've been really contemplating how a Cool Jesus resonates today with churches but somehow we forget that God is Holy. I am in awe this week of my Lord.

I am thankful for... family. I treasure my family and really miss my kids that are away for school this year. I love the joy each child brings to me and the blessing my husband is daily.


From the learning rooms.. oh this week I have been working on my senior project. Digging into the hows of it and finding challenges along the way. Lina is learning about Lively Verbs and Exponents this week. We started reading Voyages of the Dawn Treader together too. I want her to finish it before it hits the theatre.

From the kitchen...This week I made a turkey for lunch meat. I feel accomplished having that in the freezer. I baked a Pecan Pie.. just baked, not prepared. :) It was so tasty! And my next challenge is to can pumpkin and apples.


I am wearing... jeans, a shirt that is really comfy but I wonder if I people think I'm pregnant. Being short and wearing an empire waist doesn't always go together. Eh.. let them think. I'm comfortable. And I'm wearing my most comfortable brown boots.

I am reading... This week I started a book study on the book of Revelation for my quiet time. I am also reading Suze Orman. We are determined to be completely debt-free and live that way. We're getting there slowly and surely. Yep.. found her books at the Thrift store. SCoooRE!

I am going... to some friends for a tri-monthly gathering. We love to get together but can't seem to make it happen more than 3 times a year. Not much else going on this weekend. Ahhh...

I am hoping... that my uncle is completely well when we see him soon. He is my favorite uncle and has been kind of under the weather. Well, his heart has been. I'm looking forward to seeing them all in a few weeks and getting a BIG family fix.

I am hearing... my husband's Pandora playing beautiful jazz and my daughter's Ipod playing Rock n Roll.

Around the house... oh we've done a lot lately. We organized the storage room, purged once again, set up my desk and I cleaned out the laundry room too. It was out of control and so unsightly. Not anymore!

A picture worth sharing..

Today I picked up some pumpkins and apples from a gal at our church. They have a pumpkin patch every fall and I was very exctied to get some leftovers. The apples were a special surprise. I went there to get pumpkins and came home with a bunch of apples for applesauce and apple butter!

So It Goes in Colorado

Summer one day, Winter the next. Our first storm came through and now we are pulling out the jackets and drinking lots more coffee. It smells like Christmas outside!

The Red Barn

There is this red barn by the Greenland Open Space, out where I take Charley to run and me to walk. I just love this old barn. It is the type I would build if I ever built a barn. Not that it will ever happen so I claim this as my red barn. Okay.. it belongs to the farm but I can pretend.

Today the weather is changing so I hurried to take Charley for a run and get some laps in myself before we are both home bound. I grabbed my camera on the way out the door and snapped a few pictures. If I have my way, you'll see this barn in our family pictures next month.

Freedom!

For Boo that is! Today she got her Colorado drivers license. It was no easy feat, for sure. One year of holding a permit. 50 hours of driving. 6 hours of driving behind the wheel with a "professional" coach. (All that means is that "they" own a company that owns a car that drive kids around for 6 hours and charge you 300 plus dollars. ) And after paying way too much money for all this we waited in DMV for 2 hours. While there we saw one lady collapse on the ground, a couple eager teenagers take a driving test, many MANY people on their cell phones passing time, and all the while waiting for our number to be called. I wonder when the car was invented if Mr. Ford knew the DMV would become a bureaucracy full of slow people. Hmmm...

5 more years and I get to do this all over again.... for the last time.

A Warm November Day. Really?

So warm in fact, that we had on shorts, flip flops, and soaked up the sun! Charley was thrilled to be out front while T washed and waxed our car and truck.

Boo was the BIG helper today with the project and as you can see here can't wait until Monday. She will be a new licensed driver!

My husband is Mr. Handy. You name it, he can do it. I, on the other hand, don't wax cars but today was an exception. I got out there for a few minutes to "wax off" . I was not the big helper Boo was but I did my 10 minutes of work. It was a glorious day! I wonder how long this amazing Colorado weather will last?

School is Closing in on One Word: Finished

I am happy to say after two years of being back in school, studying and writing more than I have in years, I am just about Finito. Finished. Done.

It is absolutely amazing to complete my biggest goal of finishing college and at 43 years old to finally say, "I Did It!" I am ready to be done. Ready to not have writing deadlines. Ready to re-focus on a few areas that are lacking in my life right about now. Ready to move on to the next goal. Ready to read books for pleasure. Oh my, that will be a sweet day for sure. It has been a good ride. I know this is one season of my life I will always remember. It's had its challenges as well as its rewards. I never would have thought, ev-er, that 4 of us in my family would be in college at the same time. Four! Do you know how many textbooks that is per semester? I love learning and I don't take for granted the education I have received. I love learning along side my kids. That is the beauty of education, you never stop learning. I could shout that out real loud today.

My family has been so supportive and even handed me a Kleenex as I finished College Algebra. That was a very big day for me.

I can only say YIPPEEE!!!

Graduation is December 18th, 2010. I will wear a cap and gown. I will take my tassel and move it over when they say and I will cheer a BIG cheer. And I am sure as my name is Mrs. Jones, I will cry. My kids will all be there. My parents will be there and my biggest fan, my husband, will be there.

Here's to December 2010!

To Kill a Spider, You Must Break a Fan

Last night, Lina and I were attempting to kill a spider on her ceiling. I was working on knocking it off with a flip flop and she would go in for the kill after it landed in the carpet. Annnd here is the result. I barely and I mean BARELY tapped the blade on the fan. Okay, so my aim was off a little.. the blade snapped off and came flying down.

If there is one thing I've learned in Colorado, it's that we have no humidity other than what we create ourselves. Here at 7000 feet, we apparently need a little more than I thought. Not sure how old this fan is but it should not have snapped so easily.

And yes, we did get the spider.

Halloween 2010