Sunday, December 29, 2013

Family ...Dinner Italian Style

Family....

We love having dinner with all of our  kids. Many nights we will sit around the table with ALMOST all of them and break bread together. With three of the four children working, we had to get our calendars out to find a day to make a date to actually go out and share a meal. I guess that's what happens when your children grow up; coordinating schedules becomes a regular part of life.  We also love Downtown Denver. And Italian food. So today I blew off the GF  lifestyle and shared a family style meal with everyone. It was de-lic-ous! We had more than we could eat and well, who doesn't love leftovers!!


We are family!






















Gabe and Sarahh


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I am always, always grateful for the time together with our children and treasure each memory we have together.

Psalm 127:3

Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Climb Every Mountain.. or just one.

 

The Incline
 
 Scary. Intimidating. Hard. Breath-Sucker. 2000ft Gain. Muscle-Maker. Worth It! 


 The last time I did this, I swore that was it. It almost killed me; and that was only half-way up. After time away from this beast, I rethought the mountain and my wimpy 'tude and decided I could do it again. Kind of like having a baby; you forget the pain and go for it one more time! This time though T convinced the youngest to join in. It took some coaxing but she came along, with a smile on her face. Hollywood underestimates herself and her physical ability. She's much tougher than she lets on.


With ear buds in and BeyoncĂ© singin to me, I climbed. It didn't take long before I was remembering the pain of this mountain. Cough, cough, cough. Oh wintertime exercise and coughing! But it is so worth it. Fresh air, warm temperatures and the beauty of Colorado. Honestly, we couldn't believe it was December. My sweet girls would wait for me and I would wave them on. T on the other hand was just climbing! His new bionic hip is serving my man well. He did awesome! I turned off at Bar Trail, same place I stopped last time, which is about the half-way point. The hike down from there is wonderful and the views amazing.


But these two.. whoo hoo!  They kept climbing. Just look at all those stairs!

 
 

 Half way point.... made it!



And she did it!!! Hollywood's first time and she did it! If you looked at ALL her hashtags on Instagram you'd think she was dying. Does she look like she's dying?  Her sister, the great motivator, kept her going and I think she's ready to go again!


T took this photo and text it to me while he waited at the top for his girls. Someone decorated a tree at the top of the mountain. How cool is this? I keep thinking about their backpack full of ornaments trudging up the mountain. A nice way to end a Christmas climb.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Denver at Christmastime



T and I  love spending time away and downtown Denver happens to be one of our favorite spots. The culture is so much more me than Monument. I even told T that I can think and relax downtown. This is our state courthouse building. The have a full manger scene on the steps, yes you read right, and signs that shout Merry Christmas. For such a liberal state, this one they got right. 

Monday, December 9, 2013

The children need to run!!!

The children are back at school and it's still mighty cold. Those two things mean only one thing...sooo much energy in 15  six and seven year olds!  They would love to go outside but Morher Nature says,"I don't think so." Come on temperatures, please go up!!! 

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Anniversary 24






Twenty-Four, 24, yes.... TWENTY-FOUR years. October 28, 1989 was, is, and always will be a day that changed two peoples lives forever.

I'm not as young as I was then.....

I'm not as thin as I was then....

I'm not as naive as I was then....

I'm not as playful as I was then....

But.....

I am more in love today, more in tune with his needs, more aware of mine, and totally see God's greatness.

The journey of two lives intertwining into one has created a love for each other, a joy with each other, and a walk through life that only we share together. God has become more real because of my marriage and this journey called life. I never thought that the longer I would be married, the more I would see my LORD. But it's true. God has revealed himself in so many circumstances that I would not have experienced had it not been this walk hand in hand with my man.

Together we created a family; we are blessed with four amazing children and a life of smiles and trials. Both have made us who we are today.

Can't wait to see what the next chapter holds.  Let the Adventure continue!

I love you SHJ.