Christmas in Fruita, CO

This is a reminder that Christmas should be fun. That is the Grinch in the dinosaur's mouth.

Wontons

Last weekend was very cold and we were all sick, so we decided to stay in and make a big pot of wonton soup. It is simple, but folding all the wontons takes some time. It is the perfect thing to do on a cold winter afternoon. The hot gingery soup made us all feel better.

Snow and Ice

We have had almost two weeks of snow and ice on the ground and negative degree weather. Everyone keeps telling us that this has never happened in Grand Junction before. I am tired of scrapping ice every morning and nearly killing myself trying to walk from the car to the office. Today it was 30 degrees, so at least it is warming up. Hopefully this snow will melt before the next round comes. Clementine took the photo of the man in bathtub. This is one of the many statues downtown. James Dalton Trumbo who was from Grand Junction became a writer in Hollywood. His films include Roman Holiday and Spartacus. He was blacklisted for being Communist and served a year in prison. However, he continued to write under other names. He even won an Academy Award for a movie he wrote using an alias.

Happy Birthday Clementine!

Clementine turned 4 on Dec. 5th. We spent the day at the dinosaur museum in Fruita, CO. Clementine liked the spitting dinosaur the best. After the museum, we went hiking on Dinosaur Hill. In the late 1800's an almost complete skeleton of a Brontosaurus was found there.

Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving in the Denver area with family. We actually went to two Thanksgiving feasts. One with my family in Lakewood and one with Michael's family in Golden. We truly were stuffed by the end of the day. After our second meal, I went back to my cousin Jessie's house to play games and cards. It was a late night, but lots of fun with aunts, uncles, and cousins.
The day after Thanksgiving was a beautiful sunny day with record breaking 74 degree weather. Clementine and I went for a hike with our family visiting from Texas. I think we found the coldest place in Colorado. We went to a waterfall in a box canyon near Colorado Springs. The entire falls were ice and the sun had not shined in the canyon since summer. We were not dressed for the weather, but we bravely climbed the 300 plus stairs to the top. We all really appreciated the hot chocolate in the gift shop.

Halloween Fairy

Leaves

Arches and Moab

Exploring

One gray Saturday, we had to get out of the apartment. We decided to head south for the small town of Montrose. As we drove through downtown Montrose, we saw a sign for Black Canyon of the Gunnison. We had never heard of this national park. We were awed and surprised when we drove up to the edge of the canyon and peered down into an incredibly dark and tall canyon with only a sliver of the Gunnison River below.

Colorado National Monument

Grand Junction is in a valley set between two imposing, rock edifices. The strange and beautifully worn white Bookcliffs and the earthy red Colorado National Monument. The monument is minutes from downtown and is a mesa that has been eroded by water leaving canyons and rock formations. It is a wonderful place to hike and watch wildlife. Eagles and ravens soar overhead and lizards dart below. Most exciting are the bighorn sheep which were at one time close to extinction, but have now made a come back. They are incredibly nimble climbing up the soft red rocks.

Palisades Peaches

The Grand Junction area is full of peach orchards and roadside fruit stands. Clementine loved playing in the big corn bin at one of our favorite fruit stands. We arrived in Grand Junction at the height of peach season and it was a sweet welcome to our new home.

Grand Junction

Grand Junction is a small college town, as the theater billboard indicates. It has a lovely downtown with lots of trees and neat shops. There are sculptures on every corner and most of them are for sale. Once a year the sculptures are changed and new artists display their work. Our favorite things about downtown are the farmer's market, the bagel shop, and the gelato shop. The gelato is made fresh everyday with locally grown ingredients including lavender, peaches, corn, and pears. Our favorites are plum, hazelnut, and spicy chocolate. We have not tried the avocado flavor yet, but we hear it is good. The very best thing about downtown is we can walk there is a few minutes.

Castlewood Canyon

As soon as school was out, we took Clementine and her cousin Dylan to hike at one of our favorite spots. Castlewood canyon is not as beautiful or dramatic as other trails in Colorado, but it is a great hiking place for kids. There is a cool stream with a sandy bottom and lots of birds swooping down from the canyon walls. It is a great close to home retreat that lifts the spirits and reminds one of the joy of being a kid in summer. We are looking forward to finding more great hiking spots in Grand Junction.

Clementine's Creation

Clementine loves birthday cakes. This is one she made all by herself. She was so proud that she had to sing and blow out the candles.

Photos

Here are a few more photos from our trip to Europe.

Travels

It has been a busy Spring and Summer. In May my mom and I went for two weeks to England and Italy. That ws followed by a quick trip that Michael and I took to Portland, OR for a friend's wedding. The first week of June Michael started a new job in Grand Junction, CO and Clementine and I left to spend the summer in Louisiana.

Still Snowing

This is our third day of snow. We have over two feet and are expecting 5 to 10 more inches today. The good news is that this is the wettest snow we have had all year, perfect for making snowmen. The bad news is that this is the wettest snow, which means the trees are breaking under the weight and shoveling out will be a long and difficult task. In the meantime we are enjoying being snowed in with Michael's cousins Keith, Amy, and baby Luke. We are keeping a fire in the fireplace, reading books, and watching movies.

Thunder Snow

Spring weather in Colorado continues to amaze us. After many glorious days of record breaking high temperatures in the 70's, March finally turned cruel dumping almost two feet of snow last week. That was followed by thunder snow, similar to a thunder storm except with snow and ice. This morning Clementine and shoveled and scraped the three inches of snow and ice off the front steps. Luckily, the sun was back out and we did not even have to wear our coats. More snow is expected this weekend. This photo was taken on one of the last nice days. Clementine and I found this beautiful tumble weed at the park near our house.

Clementine Sayings

One of the most charming things about Clementine is that she has a very sly sense of humor. She loves to make plays on words. I only wish I could remember all of them. On one of our recent trips to the grocery store, I told her that the next thing on our list was butter. She smiles at me and says, "Well, you butter get it." We also recently saw a display of Easter items at the store and I was explaining to her that the Easter Bunny was coming and would bring treats. She was very excited and said, "He lives in the East." Now, whenever we talk about the Easter Bunny or directions she always mentions that the bunny lives in the East.

March

It has been so warm lately (in the 70's) that it feels as if Spring is here. March is usually the snowiest month in Colorado, but it has turned out to be a very dry month. We even had a brush fire in the backyard earlier in the month. Luckily, we live across the street from the fire department. They quickly put it out, but we were reminded how easily fires can start when it is windy and dry. Clementine and I are glad for the warm weather and have been able to spend lots of time at the park and taking walks along the creek in town. We have also seen lots of prairie dogs out sunning themselves. The grocery store was selling daffodils for a $1.40 a bunch, so we bought three. Clementine was not impressed at first, since all the flowers were closed tight in their buds. The next morning when she woke up she was so surprised to see a whole vase of happy yellow daffodils.

Gondola Ride

The weather has been unusually sunny and warm. We recently went for the day to Breckenridge with Michael's aunt and uncle from Detroit. We had a great time looking at all the shops and eating lunch outside with a gorgeous mountain view. We also took Clementine on her first gondola ride up to the main ski area. She loved watching all the skies, especially children, come racing down the mountain. It was a long day as you can tell from Michael's face, but we all had fun.

Baby Ballerinas

Clementine started ballet classes this week at the rec center in town. She had a great time tip toeing across the room and learning to touch her nose to her toes. Her teacher is a delightful grandmother, who manages to keep all fifteen of her 3 year old ballerinas entertained and moving.