Kale - It's Lovely

In Memory of my friend Lesley Swirhun

When Lesley said the word Kale, I instantly wanted to go out, buy some, and chow down.  You know what?  I absolutely hate Kale!  I’ve actually tried it three times, just because Lesley would say the word and explain how she prepared it.   Kale is bitter, super good for you and makes you strong. 

She had the same effect on me when she said the word Lovely.  It literally made me happier.  Rather than a spoon full of sugar to help the medicine go down, she was able to say Kale and it sounded lovely enough to convince you it really is good for you. 

Just like Kale, there are some pretty bitter things we all have to work through, whether it’s at work, in life or as a parent.  Lesley was able to show the silver lining and the holes in any situation.  By working through the situation with her, it was Lovely, you were stronger and a better person.

I can only hope that I can continue her legacy of being thorough at work and an awesome mom.  When I first met her when working on a design for the County, I would think, “She’s so frustrating with all her details, but she is sooo right.”  She certainly made me a better engineer and I can confidently say we were partners in crime when it came to ruffling feathers.  She thought through nearly every angle and I’m not too far behind her.

When it came to parenting, she was just as thoughtful and I will cherish her words of advice; Put big red shirts on for easy cleanup on spaghetti night, stand like a starfish and let someone else pull your child off you when they have a death grip hold and establish family only time. Lesley said that doing the unpredictable can help get a kids’ attention; leave a full grocery cart at the store if they become screaming monsters or walk home (if within a reasonable distance) when they won’t keep buckled up in the car.  It leaves your kids in shock and thinking, I can’t believe she did that.

Lesley was my best friend, dad, mom, sister, coworker, confidant and counselor all wrapped into one Lovely package.  I think there are hundreds of people that felt this same way.  She made my life and so many others’ lives better simply by her presence.   

Kale may be bitter but it can be made Lovely with a little bit of heart, ruffling of feathers and little bit of unpredictability.

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Lesley, I told you a quote once, “You and I are more than friends.  We’re like a really small gang.”  You’ll always be “Pest 1” to my “Pest 2”.  Thank you for letting me know it’s okay to rock the boat.  I will miss you.

Keys: A tribute to my Dad

Prologue:  As my Dad asked me what I wanted of his, I really didn’t have much that I could think of that I would want.  Out of nowhere, I remembered a box of keys.  The next day, I thought of how they relate to what he has done for me, my brother and others.

Keys
A Tribute to my Dad.

My Dad loves to collect things, and keep them.  Part of his collection is contained in dozens of old Dutch Masters cigar boxes.  You may remember these boxes, they have an image of six men that look like pilgrims, otherwise known as Rembrandt’s painting, The Syndics of the Drapers' Guild.  Who knew Dad would have something so sophisticated!?  Each of these boxes has a piece of tape at the bottom that was fashioned into a pull-tab and each box is meticulously labeled.

I pulled out one of those boxes once and asked Dad why he needed all of the keys in it.  He said to me, “You never know, one of them may open up that door.”  Indeed, my Dad opened many doors.

Dad took my brother and I skiing at an early age and we quickly learned to love skiing.  My brother replaced skiing with snowboarding and now he’s teaching his own sons how to snowboard.  Dad’s skiing trips took us many places including our first trip to Colorado.  I fell in love in Colorado and I am now happy to call it home. 

My brother and I spent quite a bit of time with Dad in the basement working on random woodworking projects.  I made a crib for my Little Ponies.  My brother and sister-in-law made a crib that Conner, Reece, Zachary and Wyatt have all slept in. 

I think I somehow absorbed knowledge about building houses, since he and my Mom built two before I turned ten.  That’s probably what gave me the confidence to do a little electrical work on one of my own homes.  I ran into a small problem when trying to replace one outlet that also needed to be tied into a light switch.  So, I called Dad up.  He’s walking through all the steps with me and just before I needed to connect it all up he asked if I turned the power off.  I promptly said yes, just as I got zapped with a bit of electricity.  Apparently I didn’t absorb enough about electric work.

Dad loves to tinker, with just about everything, and my brother was often next to him helping.  They fixed up one of the tractors and painted it with flames on either side.  I swear that tractor is older than I am and it still manages to run.  For some reason, we also liked to stand underneath the snow blower on the tractor to get bombarded with rocks.  Did I mention we had a gravel driveway?  Not sure what doors that opened up for us.

As early as I can remember, we were on bikes riding without much fear.  One of my earliest memories is from a bike ride we took from the Hootie Hoot Retreat, my Uncle’s Cabin near Winter, WI.  I got pretty worn out from the hills.  Dad fashioned a rope between his bike and mine and he helped pull me up the hills.  I thought we biked all the way to Winter, which was 22 miles, I think my 40-year old memory is starting to fail me!  Regardless, all of his grandsons are learning or have learned to ride bikes.  I can’t imagine not getting them out on their bikes as early as possible!  It gave us such freedom to go anywhere.  We even managed to bike to our good friend’s home, The Stipeks, from Highway K to SH 178 south of Cornell, WI.  Really, we biked along 178?  Crazy.

We had an awesome fort at our home on the Chippewa River.  Dad built a platform and hung it by chains to four different pine trees.  He put an A-frame roof on it, just like our home, and a trap door that had a rope ladder to get into the fort.  To bad the door was closed on that fort.  Maybe I wouldn’t have been a speckled mess of mosquito bites from my overnight stay.

Dad definitely made sure I was prepared for traveling.  He made sure I knew not only how to change a tire, but how to rotate tires by the time I was 15.  I had barely had my license for five months and he made me drive in downtown Denver and over the snowy Monarch Pass.  Nothing like being afraid of heights and driving over a mountain pass that is snowy and icy.  (I think he just didn’t like to drive in those areas himself)  To top it off, I am all about reading maps.  He taught me so well, that when my flight from the southern beaches of Thailand to Bangkok was canceled, I hitched a ride with two Canadians that would have been seriously lost if it weren’t for my map skills.  And I have never been stuck at the side of the road because of a flat tire and that drive in Denver opened the door to some of my racecar driving (Have to keep up with big city traffic!). 

My stepbrother and stepsister were treated to many snowshoeing, hiking, kayak and canoe trips and got to see how natural it was to him.  He marked up maps with each trail length and shared so much knowledge of the paths and loops on hiking trails in Eau Claire.  Today, they still enjoy the outdoors and all it has to offer.

For others he has shown them his patience, teaching, encouragement and attention through years of leading church youth groups, pie rides, building and renovating trails, and so much more.

I always told my boyfriends that Dad is going to ask lots of questions.  He’s not doing an interrogation, he just naturally asks lots of questions.  When I was in college I asked him why he did this.  He told me that people like to talk about themselves and I like to hear about them.  That’s probably why those that meet him feel like they matter. 

Whether Dad was teaching, woodworking, hiking, tinkering with tractors, avoiding driving in annoying conditions or listening to friends, strangers and family, he has given so many others and me the key to open the doors to so many experiences, lifetime of memories, and qualities that can only be attributed to him.

 

Super... Dog? But I want SuperNanny!

Per the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary,

Adventurous
1  a :  disposed to seek adventure or to cope with the new and unknown
    b :  innovative
2:  characterized by unknown dangers and risks

Mom (Mother)
1  a :  a female parent
    b (1) :  a woman in authority; specifically :  the superior of a religious community of women
       (2) :  an old or elderly woman
2:  source, origin

3:  maternal tenderness or affection

It seems to me that if I were to run out the door screaming to get away from my toddler and baby that my wish to be an adventurous mom went out a different door.  I'm no longer "coping" with the new and unknown and am trying to shred the idea of being a female parent with maternal tenderness and affection!

Exhibit A:  November 2014 Tantrum

It is absolutely amazing to me how a two year old can make a fully grown, nearly 40 year old, mother crumble to the ground, want to crawl under her bed and never come out.  How is it that they can make a simple 30 second change into pajamas into an 1-1/2 hour excursion of screaming, kicking, hitting, WITH four timeouts?  To make it worse, your baby is crying in bed because, that's what they do when they don't want to go to bed.  Alas... the two year old's crying and screaming just mask the baby, so you're saved!!!

Seriously, how does one get through this horrendous period in a toddler's life and then pick herself up to go through it all over with the second child just as the oldest gets better (or I hope gets better)?  There are so many books, websites, etc. out there to help.  How is a mom supposed to find the time for all these great resources when you're collapsing to the ground after finally getting them into bed an hour after they were supposed to be in bed?

Maybe there's such a thing as a SuperDog (Cat?) that takes all your cares away and helps teach you deal with them.....

Oh, that's right, they're too busy pulling food off the counter, eating the cat's food, harfing up hairballs, clawing your legs and deciding to poop in the play room because even though you have a dog door, that's their way of telling you, hey, you pissed me off.

January 22^nd… Number Four?!!?

Hard to believe Anniversary No. 4 has arrived! 

Three and a half years after I wrote to my Grandma telling her about this wonderful man named Kevin, he married me.  Now, we have two wonderful boys wrapped in her baby quilts that patiently sat and waited for their arrival.

September 12, 2007

Dear Grandma,

……..I started dating a new man about a month ago.  He has deep black hair, bluish hazel eyes, and awesome smile, and is about 5’10” tall.  His name is Kevin Obendorf and he is from Ithaca, New York.  He has one older brother that lives in Washington D.C.   He has a degree in environmental studies and biology from the University of Montana-Missoula.  He works as a landscaper and has a pretty extensive knowledge regarding sprinkler systems. It has been fun to talk to him about my yard and what to plant.  I met him through a computer dating service call match.com.  We both believe in preserving the environment & have similar political beliefs.  He has been very kind to me and really seems to enjoy my company.  He has a miniature dachshund dog, named Zula and a longhaired black cat named Oso.  Both the dog and cat try to get my attention.  Zula is so cute, you would adore her. She is such a happy dog. I like Kevin quite a bit because he respects who I am and hasn’t tried to place me in a box of how he thinks I should be.  I can’t even express how much he makes me smile and laugh.  Since I met him, I have felt that I have gotten my old self back and I haven’t been so down in the dumps.  I hope it continues to go well……..

… and the rest is history!

Smiling face make you happy and good news makes you feel better. ~ Proverbs 15:30

Today, My husband's, cousin's husband posted a remembrance of his grandmother.  It quickly reminded me of my Grandma, Myrtle Lillian Harp, and how much she meant to me.  I was absolutely honored when my Mom, Uncle Dennis, and Aunt Darlene asked me to give her eulogy for her funeral.  She was 90 years young.

This is what I had to say on September 21st, 2007....

Grandma Harp with Conner, May 2007

Smiling faces make you happy and good news makes you feel better.  ~Proverbs 15:30

When I was in the 3rd grade, I received my first bible.  During the church sermon, I opened the bible up and this verse burst out to me.  These words have been with me ever since and have become even more imprinted within my soul these past few weeks.  I have heard of many people comment ton their fondest memory of Grandma... her smile.  Smiling faces make you happy...

Often times when someone of such great importance in our life passes away, we think of what their legacy may be.  I truly believe that Grandma's legacy starts with her smile.  Each time she held one of us grand kids for the first time and then the great grandchildren the smile not only came from her lips, but from her eyes.  Each time she watched a squirrel try to outsmart a bird feeder, she'd hate the squirrel but be laughing and smiling at how comical it was.  Every picture I've seen with her and Grandpa, is highlighted with her smile.

Another part of her legacy, or at least, one of my favorites, was her great baking.  She has the best banana bread, strawberry shortcake, Special K bars, strawberry jam and rolls.  If you ask my Mom, she may to have include her fruitcake.  I have tried to mimic her roll recipe and she definitely had a knack for those because each time I make them, they taste right, but they bottom out your stomach with a big "thunk".

Many of us know how much Grandma loves to eat and made darn sure that anyone and everyone sitting at her table never left hungry.  I don't think anyone else can ever convince me to actually have thirds and possibly fourths when sitting down for dinner. One of my favorite memories of Grandma was her "run in" with Robin's friend, Dan, at my Mom's Christmas Dinner.  As usual, Grandma wanted to make sure all had enough to eat.  Dan turned to her and asked if she wanted anymore mashed potatoes.  She respectfully declined as he quickly scooped up a big spoon of potatoes and placed them on her plate while telling her, "Here ya go Grandma!"  She looked at him and smiled back with all she had and laughed as he teased her.

One of the last last pieces of her legacy was that she's a mea
n card player.  If you had to have teams for a card game, she was the gal to have on your team.  Unfortunately, she and my brother somehow ended up on the same team, a lot.  Need I say, I'm not that great?  I never understood how someone with even the smallest cards for a game of 500, could still manage to win. She knew her stuff.

Last evening, I was trying to come up with a way to express who Grandma was.  I re-read a poem I wrote for my own Mom several years ago and it also fit Grandma perfectly.  This isn't too surprising since there are so many similarities between my Mom and Grandma.

Phenomenal

Her eyes twinkle like stars.
Her smile shines like the sun.
Her laugh is infectious.

Her heart is immense.
Her love is everlasting.
Her soul is beautiful.

Her strength is enormous.
Her will is unstoppable.
Her passions are strong.

Her patience is boundless.
Her kindness embraces all.
Her calmness is comforting.

She is a Phenomenal Grandma.


Follow-up Note....
Something I will never forget about that day is when my cousin Ryan came up to me and asked how I was doing and if I was o.k. because he knew how much she meant to me.  Thank you Ryan for your kindness.

How do I get back to "Adventurous"?

Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt," John Muir

How do I get back to "Adventurous"?  Before the "yard" part of my life, I traveled/backpacked in S. America for four months, traveled in Thailand for two weeks, hiked Colorado trails all the time, got in a couple 14ers, and definitely camped.  I took a one week camping trip to Maine & New Hampshire.  Several of my adventures were also by myself.  Not to mention forcing myself up Elitch's "drop" ride, TWICE!  I am so afraid of heights that I was crying by the time we dropped down to earth.   

I would say my definition of adventurous ended when I purchased a home with a yard.  With that yard came a lot more space for Aspen to roam around and all sorts of gardening & landscaping.  It was awesome!  I think I went on one backpack trip that year.  

It ended even more when I moved further away from work and was just worn out from that.  Then... Zachary was born.  I could barely get him fed healthy foods let alone venturing into the mountains.  We did get out on one adventure just outside of Estes Park for a two night camping trip.  It was so nice and Zachary loved it, even if he couldn't walk yet.

Now, we live in a place with a much larger yard with pasture land and we have kid number two.  We definitely don't eat healthy now.  Wow, even with working 3/4 time, I'm still scrambling to get out the door.  We did manage to go camping up to Chambers Lake, west of Fort Collins, with both kids.  Wyatt was two months old.  It was an adventure in patience and frustration.  We went home early because our campsite flooded and I couldn't handle much more of the crying and whining. 

So... again how do I get back to Adventurous, when I feel I can barely breathe?  And even more important, how do I make sure that my children go on paths in which I "make sure a few of them are dirt"?  What does that look like now?  How do I fit that back into our lives? 

Maybe my first baby step is remembering it hasn't disappeared, it just looks different.  Now I just need to figure out what it's new definition means.

Huh, Overall Project Manager, who would've thunk?

After being on  maternity leave and getting up to speed on new and old projects through an over abundance of meetings, I made it out to my bridge construction project.  Man was I grateful to be out there and it made me realize that when we're designing, I need to get out there even more!

This particular bridge project has made me cry, lose sleep, and bring joy like never expected.  I was even on the Denver's Fox31 evening news because of the eagles in the vicinity of this project.

All the work, frustration, anger, etc. made it all worth it when I was able to tell one of the workers, "I am THE overall project manager of this entire project."  Not in a million years did I expect to say something so neat and empowering.  I think I wowed the guy even more because I was a younger woman.  It was a liberating thought and am glad I got this far.  It's times like these that I need to remind myself, I am a good engineer and a good mom.  No need to ever doubt myself (course perfectionism runs in the blood too!)

The third week... 15 more to go??? Fudgesicles.

So, I'm finally into the third week of my marathon training and I have already thought....

• What am I doing with all this training?
• Do I really need to qualify for Boston?
• One of the FAQ questions is, can I transfer my registration between the marathon and half marathon.....hmmm, Good question.
• Why do I want to do this?
• Can I just decide to finish?
• What if I switch from the Advanced I training program down to the Intermediate I training program?  Then I wouldn't have to run as much.
• Why am I training in the winter to only qualify for another race that has me training in the winter?

Can you tell that I am extremely discouraged.  But, alas, I made it running again last night.  I just swore a lot as I ran.  The best part is that despite the black ice which shone in the moonlit night, I had a great running pace.  So, I'm thinking that when I'm running in warmer temperatures down to sea level from 5280, I'm going to kick some ass!!  I need to stick to this goal, and need to be reminded of this often, because I need to learn not to give up when it gets tough.    

San Diego Rock'n'Roll finally released their course today.  We start in downtown, run through Balboa Park and end at Sea World.  I will have the best coach in the world cheering me on as I run, my Mom.

So, my fourth week looms and I think I really need to find friends to run with.  Anything to motivate me to run other than the chance to swear a lot!  

ONWARD!

San Diego Marathon Training Begins!!

Today, I started week one of my 18-week Marathon training.  At least I did the workout, sort of.

I had decided last week that I would start getting up, ON TIME, to do my training runs before I even got to work.  Well, my alarm went off at 5:00 and 5:12 this morning, I got out of bed with a few explicitives at 6:00 a.m.  Off to a grand start, aren't I?  Ugh, I'm still in a dilemma of whether I should train in the morning before my day gets away from me and I'm so exhausted I don't want to lift a finger.  On the other hand, running after work is warmer, more likely in the daylight hours, and I can leave work by 4:00.  Ugh, such decisions, huh.  I am thankful I don't have tougher decisions to make.

I finally made it to the gym after a really long day.  Unfortunately, due to my IT band, my first day of training was spent on an elliptical training.  I was quite pleased how good of a work out it ended up being though.  So, day one is done.

To go along with my great training, I scarfed down a huge "caramelita" bar from Ideal Market (aka Whole Foods), a chocolate drop bar from Breadworks, and I think I managed to get some other chocolate in there.  How on earth am I going to cut my cholesterol down with that kind of diet.  That caramelita bar was so damn'd good though...caramel, chocolate chips, oatmeal (see some whole grains!)... YUMMY!  I can guarantee my friend Jeannine is cringing at this diet of mine.

I need to get back to my goal of planning my meals and bringing my snacks and lunch with me.  I did really well two weeks in a row and blew it the last week and a half!

What was my other goal??  Oh yeah.... Financial self in order... Got my taxes done and I'm getting a rebate!

Need to figure out an adventure for this week...any ideas?

Well, now that my day is completely over and I have at least 20 books/magazines in my pile to learn how to run, how to eat, and how to save.. I should call it a night.

Can't believe I seem to have New Year Goals!

I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions, but it seems that I have inadvertently started a few.

Goal 1: Get my financial self in order. I started reading Suze Orman's book Women & Money last week and all of a sudden, I seem to want to improve my whole financial plan. Leave it to this gal to get me motivated to pay attention to my finances! So, I seem to be on a mission to save more, get my personal papers in order, and understand all the money lingo better.

Goal 2: Run the San Diego Marathon and qualify for Boston. This goal began in September, but will truly start at the end of January. I ran a really good race in September and my time improved tremendously from the last race I ran. I haven't felt this good about running since I was a sophomore in high school and my 2nd Senior year at college. I got this hair-brained idea that well... if I am able to qualify for Boston (which I thought was a long lost cause) this may be the time to do it. So, I've signed up for the San Diego Rock'n'Roll marathon which will fall right around the time I turn 35! Now.. just to get my body in shape to kick some a$$. The only down fall to this is that the last three weeks I have been fighting off a stomach flu that sent me to the ER and a cold. Argh.

Goal 3: Plan my meals and grocery list. The idea behind this is to plan a weekly eating menu in order to save money and eat better. I did well the first week on the plan. Last week I gorged myself while on vacation in San Diego with my boyfriend's family. What a good time though! Maybe this will help me with my four-month check-up on my cholesterol. A gal can only hope.

Goal 4:  Get the Adventure back into Kristine K's Adventures!

So, I guess I have some work to do! Have to find a good marathon training program this evening and lay out my financial game plan.

Merry Christmas (and Happy New Year too)

Wholly Cow, another year zipped by, and what a year it was! I had a great year and still enjoy living in Longmont, which has a similar feel to Chippewa Falls & Eau Claire. Kevin & I are doing great and I am so blessed to have such a great guy in my life.

This past year, I spent even more time on my house, in particular, my yard. Kevin & I installed sod in the backyard and, with Kevin’s oversight, Dad & I put irrigation in my front yard in order to seed it. Even though Aspen loves the yard, I think she misses the hiking that was taken over by gardening. I have planted an insane amount of trees, shrubs, and perennials and even have a small garden of herbs, strawberries and raspberries. This coming spring should be exciting for my garden. A few of the shrubs I put in last year bloom in the early spring and therefore I haven’t seen their full color yet.

Kevin & I went camping, mountain biking, and hiking in the Snowy Range of Wyoming for a Fourth of July getaway. Kevin and I enjoyed looking at all the wildflowers. Over Labor Day weekend, we traveled to Washington D.C. to spend some time with Kevin’s family. I had a wonderful and relaxing weekend with them and got to see some parts of D.C. I never saw before.

My family joined Kevin & I for Thanksgiving this year. It was great to have them all out and even better to have Conner running around my house. The last time I saw him, he was barely scooting backwards and now he’s walking and talking!! His word for everything he can’t say wais Dooahh, therefore that is my name. We all went up to Estes Park for the holiday parade which was so pretty with all the lit floats.

In June, I jumped to the other side and now work for the government. I am the Boulder County Regional Trails Planner in the Transportation Department. I really enjoy my new job and like to think it’s more suited for my personality. I am talking so much more with the public, other agencies, etc. than ever before. I think I also have a knack for planning and coordinating things (whatever it is) and enjoy doing that rather than always being behind my desk.

Have a wonderful New Year and God Bless!

~Kristine

Fourth of July in the Snowy Range

Kevin & I had a really nice camping weekend. We headed up to Medicine Bow National Forest just outside of Centennial, WY.

We weren't too quick about getting out of town on Wednesday morning. We drove through Cheyenne on our way up thinking it'd be cool to stop at the Sierra Trading Post. We were both pretty disappointed and figured we should have just stopped at REI in Fort Collins. Oh well, now we know. We found a dispersed camping spot that was pretty close to some of the National Forest campgrounds. So, we got to camp for free and were close enough to some water and vault toilets. We found a site that was next to Libby Creek and it was very nice.

Thursday morning, we got our mountain bikes out and rode all over the area. We had a few hills we couldn't go up, or down, due to the rocks, but it was fun otherwise. The mosquitoes weren't too bad and we REALLY enjoyed trying to figure out all the flowers and shrubs we saw. Kevin bought a rocky mountain plant life book. So, we were pulling that out quite frequently. We probably logged about 15 miles throughout the day. We had a nice evening by the fire and he taught me how to play backgammon.

Friday, we head up to the pass and the views were absolutely wonderful! WE wanted to do some hiking, but a lot of it was cut short because there was still quite a bit of snow everywhere. They didn't even open up a lot of the roads or campgrounds because there was so much snow and they don't have enough funds to plow everything. They just have to wait for it to melt. We ended up going on a few short hikes and to some of the observation points. We then drove down to Saratoga Springs. We were going to go to the free Hobo Hot Springs but decided it was too darn'd hot. So, we paid $2/each to use the municipal pool and showers. It was so nice to cool off after such a hot day. We ate some food in town and had a margarita before heading back up over the pass. Oh, on the way down to Saratoga, we did see a moose! :) We got back to the site and enjoyed the campfire for quite a while. We had one neighbor that just got a new chain saw. He decided to use it Thursday night, all day Friday. He was a little weird. He also decided to thump his music the entire time. Dah.

Saturday morning, I was pretty lazy while Kevin read his book. We finally decided we'd had enough of thumping base from our neighbor and packed up camp about 2:00 or so. We headed up to a trail where we tried to do some more mountain biking. I think we ended up walking more than riding on the way up. There were about a half dozen trees or so that covered the trail. I was pretty tired of lifting my bike over them. It was pretty rocky too. Since we're not very experienced mtn. bikers, it was a bit tougher. Coming down was pretty fun though. Probably more so for Kevin since he loves downhillls. We ended up going about five of the nine miles of the trail. We then decided to just head back to Loveland. We drove back via 287 from Laramie to Fort Collins. That road is so beautiful and the scenery was amazing. We headed to Adalitas for some margaritas. It was a nice evening.

Yesterday, we just took it easy and got things cleaned up and regained our bearings before heading back to work today. We got some breakfast before picking up the dogs. I ran into Travis from college! Couldn't believe it. He had his little girl with him and their expecting a second pretty soon. They now live in Loveland. I told him we should get together soon. What are the chances of seeing him at that coffee shop? Aspen & Zula were pretty happy to be with us yesterday. Aspen's still wigging out from the fireworks, but she'll be back to normal once the banging & popping stops. Kevin & I also managed to go to the nursery for some new plants and then we grilled out hamburgers and enjoyed the evening. I headed home and unpacked all of my junk.

It was a great weekend even though the pollen was out of control. I felt pretty claustrophobic because I was so clogged up in my nose and throat. EVERYTHING had a nice yellow hue. It was crazy!

My favorite animal..um... NOT REALLY!

I'm not sure why this occurred this past summer, but it did. I have NEVER seen so many snakes in the "wild" until this summer. They were all in my yard. I had one afternoon when I saw three of them within a 10-20 minute period. I am very lucky that I made it through the summer without a heart attack. I'm also wondering if my neighbors will just simply ignore my terrifying screams if it really counts in the future. On more than one occasion, my neighbors have saved me by removing the pesky little things from my yard. I've had some doozy greetings. Here's a few stories..

I, often times, leave my back door open to let the breeze through and to allow easy access to my deck and yard. One evening I was a little freaked out but figured I had nothing to worry about since Snakes can't climb up onto a deck, right? WRONG! One morning I saw something coming up between the cracks in my deck. No way, I thought. Sure enough, it was a tinty gardner snake trying to come up through the snakes. LIttle did he know that he was too big and got stuck. Therefore, ended up dying via squished body and sizzling between the heat soaked boards of my deck. It took me three, yes three, days before I even went outside. I wasn't about to go anywhere outside until I new it was dead. What a joy it was trying to put it into the trash.

Another incident occured while I had a few of my close friends over for a barbeque. I was showing them my great and finished backyard from my upstairs windows. About the same time I looked out the window was about the same time that Aspen grabbed a hold of a snake from the fence, pulled it out to the yard, and proceeded to slam her body into it as she rolled in it. I think she wanted to play with it. Fortunately, my boyfriend saved the day be removing it from my backyard.

I believe I had a whole snake family in my yard and hopefully they won't come back next year. I don't think I can handle another year of snakes, ugh. My local nursery swears by the "Snake Repellent" that I purchased from them. I would love to put a huge border of spray around my entire yard..problem is.. if they're in your yard and you spray it, they're then stuck in your yard. Sounds like a party... wait, I don't think so!!

To make things even more interesting, my neighbor put in a water feature. Gardner snakes love water... guess it will be a while before I'm rid of them!