i'm feeling quite behind the times, now that i have actually seen facebook--courtesy of colin, and i just read an article about it in real simple--by a woman who participates at arms length. blogging is pretty 21st century for me!
susan did a great job of chronicalling our week. it was very fun, very relaxing, and we laughed a lot. ruby and link loved having someone else around to get petted by, fun to finally have shelly and chris meet another sister, and great fun to talk about college and walk around the CU campus with some college kids who i know. lots of good food, just a little crap for colin on his birthday, and lots of discussion about susan and my fears of exposure and not using the ski lift guard in front of us.
i did have 2 root canals on monday, after a week of pain. so i had took M and tuesday off this week. then worked on wednesday, and it blizzarded on thursday. it started very early thursday, and i did go into work, but left by 11 am. they closed our office at noon, which was far too late--cuz the roads were horrible, and the wind made for white out driving. it took me an hour to get home--which is usually at 12 minute drive. so today we had a full snow day--got about 18" in our yard. lots of snorkeling by the dogs, and the snowblower got yet another workout. so i've had 2 short weeks at work. i have a briefcase full of work, but i didn't do too much today. it was far nicer to read magazines, and watch all my children, and do a bootcamp work out!
this weekend should be quiet--a lot of snow has melted so far. we are about to build a raised vegetable garden bed--i wanted to do it last year--before ms. obama--but we never got around to it last summer.
we're going to go see bruce springstein at the pepsi center on april 10, with a friend of mine from work. we'll be in the nosebloeed section, but i've finally convinced david that this could be our last chance to be rockers with the e street band.
we did watch W last weekend, which was pretty interesting. chalk up his political career to "i'll show mom and dad". wow.
well, time for pizza tonight. take care everyone--
love--michele, david, link and ruby
Friday, March 27, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Rating the Hotel Sornell
Hi Everyone-
I am finally sort of relaxing after our wonderful week in CO. We started out at 3:45AM on Saturday the 14th and left at 7:15, arriving in Denver promptly at 9:30AM. We were picked up by a beautiful black Silverado 4X4 which has a big cargo area for our five bags, 2 snowboard bags and 3 carryons. Saturday was pretty quiet. Sunday Michele took Bridget and I to her neighborhood exercise class that she told us later was really a boot camp type class taught by her personal trainer neighbor who does triathlons. That was followed by a walk with the dogs and a late lunch with Shelley and Chris. Monday we headed up to Boulder for some sightseeing and shopping. Tuesday, Jay, Colin and David spent the day fly fishing while the girls golfed and prepared a corned beef, cabbage and Smithwicks Ale dinner. Michele and David worked Wednesday, so we went to the golf course. We had a wonderful grilled steak dinner for Colin's birthday followed by an ice cream cake.
Thursday, we got up early again and headed to Denver to catch the ski train to Winterpark. The ride was beautiful and we got there about 9:30. The kids rented helmets and hit the slopes on their snowboards. Michele, Jay and I took the shuttle into town and then came back to the mountain where we faced our fears and took the ski lift up to the beautiful restaurant at 10,000 feet. High anxiety, but great views. We had a nice meal and came back down the mountain to meet up with a very tired Bridget and Colin to catch the train back to Denver.
Friday we lounged around for much of the morning, then all of us played another round of golf and went to the brew pub for dinner. Colin was happy to get carded and the waitress brought him a birthday treat.
Saturday we re-boarded the Silverado and headed to DIA for an easy flight home. The kids went back to Madison to catch up on "homework", they said. I think a week with the old folks was just about enough. It was so nice in ET that we did some yard work and put the pier in. Our boat lift guy comes early to Potters Lake so we knew we had that job to do as soon as the ice went out. We woke up to the pier being in this AM, so it worked out.
We got some more yard work in Sunday before I left to pick Bridget up and head to Dubuque. We stayed with Bob and Charleen and had a great visit with them, Cathy, Chris and Keri. The funeral was sad, but very nice and we had good visits with the Vandermillens, Barb and Dennis, Peter and Aunt Pat and some of Mom's old friends. We were glad we went. I drove Bridget back to Madison, helped her get some groceries and headed home.
I had heard from Susan Kneser Kearney before we left saying she would be in town so we met for dinner last night. We spent a couple of hours catching up and really enjoyed ourselves. So, I did alot of picking up around the house tonight and getting my paperwork in order. Jay starts his new job next Monday, so he is scurrying around getting stuff done for that.
We highly recommend the accomodations in Denver and the hosts can't be beat! They are fun, funny, upbeat even with tooth pain-Michele got 2 root canals the day after we left after being mis-diagnosed by her dentist and given pain meds. And the bed and hot tub are great.
Hope everyone else is doing well. It was good seeing the Wisconsinites that came to DBQ. Have a great week.
I am finally sort of relaxing after our wonderful week in CO. We started out at 3:45AM on Saturday the 14th and left at 7:15, arriving in Denver promptly at 9:30AM. We were picked up by a beautiful black Silverado 4X4 which has a big cargo area for our five bags, 2 snowboard bags and 3 carryons. Saturday was pretty quiet. Sunday Michele took Bridget and I to her neighborhood exercise class that she told us later was really a boot camp type class taught by her personal trainer neighbor who does triathlons. That was followed by a walk with the dogs and a late lunch with Shelley and Chris. Monday we headed up to Boulder for some sightseeing and shopping. Tuesday, Jay, Colin and David spent the day fly fishing while the girls golfed and prepared a corned beef, cabbage and Smithwicks Ale dinner. Michele and David worked Wednesday, so we went to the golf course. We had a wonderful grilled steak dinner for Colin's birthday followed by an ice cream cake.
Thursday, we got up early again and headed to Denver to catch the ski train to Winterpark. The ride was beautiful and we got there about 9:30. The kids rented helmets and hit the slopes on their snowboards. Michele, Jay and I took the shuttle into town and then came back to the mountain where we faced our fears and took the ski lift up to the beautiful restaurant at 10,000 feet. High anxiety, but great views. We had a nice meal and came back down the mountain to meet up with a very tired Bridget and Colin to catch the train back to Denver.
Friday we lounged around for much of the morning, then all of us played another round of golf and went to the brew pub for dinner. Colin was happy to get carded and the waitress brought him a birthday treat.
Saturday we re-boarded the Silverado and headed to DIA for an easy flight home. The kids went back to Madison to catch up on "homework", they said. I think a week with the old folks was just about enough. It was so nice in ET that we did some yard work and put the pier in. Our boat lift guy comes early to Potters Lake so we knew we had that job to do as soon as the ice went out. We woke up to the pier being in this AM, so it worked out.
We got some more yard work in Sunday before I left to pick Bridget up and head to Dubuque. We stayed with Bob and Charleen and had a great visit with them, Cathy, Chris and Keri. The funeral was sad, but very nice and we had good visits with the Vandermillens, Barb and Dennis, Peter and Aunt Pat and some of Mom's old friends. We were glad we went. I drove Bridget back to Madison, helped her get some groceries and headed home.
I had heard from Susan Kneser Kearney before we left saying she would be in town so we met for dinner last night. We spent a couple of hours catching up and really enjoyed ourselves. So, I did alot of picking up around the house tonight and getting my paperwork in order. Jay starts his new job next Monday, so he is scurrying around getting stuff done for that.
We highly recommend the accomodations in Denver and the hosts can't be beat! They are fun, funny, upbeat even with tooth pain-Michele got 2 root canals the day after we left after being mis-diagnosed by her dentist and given pain meds. And the bed and hot tub are great.
Hope everyone else is doing well. It was good seeing the Wisconsinites that came to DBQ. Have a great week.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
hi everyone--i'll try this again. i am at home this monring, making sure that my remote access to the FS network is okay--after converting my laptop to windows xp. so far so good. i'm pretending i'm david--sitting around in my underwear drinking coffee--conducting business! he is in san antonio for the past 4 days--due home late tonight. so i have been batching it. i did go to my second dancing class last night--solo. i did okay. i danced a lot with the lady teacher--after she made herself start leading. didn't quite get the "cha cha cha", but i'm sure when i get my partner back next week, i'll be fine. david actually had a lot of fun the first week. he is quite a dancer, and he loves the ladies as you all know!
things here have been good. we had a fast but really nice visit with david and charlie. had a very nice weekend with M and D. a free day at the zoo--which was pretty overwhelming for me. but a fun way to spend my 52nd birthday. shelly went with us, which was also fun.
we are doing great with shelly--she just got a job at a local hospital, working full time in the emergency room, and going to school full time. she is making it on her own, and she and her dad have been doing very well after a rough fall with little communication. so that is all good!
i did apply for a job in albequerque-- a job i've been watching for 3 years, after the director retired, and the region decided what to do. it is the director of lands and minerals, a GS-14/15, which is rare, and david would still be able to keep his job with wagner, and work down in their office in alb. after much soul searching, and research, we decided to pull my application. our relocation service has changed, and of course, our house wouldn't have appraised out at what we'd like right now. so we are staying put. hard decision, but we are happy with it. we don't know what 2009 will bring for david. oil and gas has really tapered off in CO, and that has shown up in his 2008 salary. so, we're better off with fewer unknowns.
i've started a boot camp right in our neighborhood. one of our new neighbors is a personal trainer and we asked her if she would do a boot camp for her neighbors. we meet every sunday morning, and it is usually 4 or 8 of us. it has been very good--mainly lunges, free weights, exercise all stuff, steps. my tricips feel it today. but it is teaching me some new stuff i can do on my own--which is my favorite thing.
i'm taking it a little easier on walking the dogs. link just has such a hard time with his hips if we walk every day. so our walks are shorter. and i keep him on the leash, so he doesn't run as much. i did sneak out with ruby by ourselves last week, and he barked (i'm sure) the whole time we were gone. he'll be 12 next month, and he's an old man with the heart of a puppy! ruby is feisty as ever--just got a spring haircut, and is now speaking for her meals. she loves to kindof gurgle, so i'm having her do it every day. it always makes us laugh! we are so easily entertained.
saw slumdog millionaire, and gran torino lately.
well, i'd better get over to my office now that i know that everything works!
we love youu all.
love--michele, david, link, and ruby
things here have been good. we had a fast but really nice visit with david and charlie. had a very nice weekend with M and D. a free day at the zoo--which was pretty overwhelming for me. but a fun way to spend my 52nd birthday. shelly went with us, which was also fun.
we are doing great with shelly--she just got a job at a local hospital, working full time in the emergency room, and going to school full time. she is making it on her own, and she and her dad have been doing very well after a rough fall with little communication. so that is all good!
i did apply for a job in albequerque-- a job i've been watching for 3 years, after the director retired, and the region decided what to do. it is the director of lands and minerals, a GS-14/15, which is rare, and david would still be able to keep his job with wagner, and work down in their office in alb. after much soul searching, and research, we decided to pull my application. our relocation service has changed, and of course, our house wouldn't have appraised out at what we'd like right now. so we are staying put. hard decision, but we are happy with it. we don't know what 2009 will bring for david. oil and gas has really tapered off in CO, and that has shown up in his 2008 salary. so, we're better off with fewer unknowns.
i've started a boot camp right in our neighborhood. one of our new neighbors is a personal trainer and we asked her if she would do a boot camp for her neighbors. we meet every sunday morning, and it is usually 4 or 8 of us. it has been very good--mainly lunges, free weights, exercise all stuff, steps. my tricips feel it today. but it is teaching me some new stuff i can do on my own--which is my favorite thing.
i'm taking it a little easier on walking the dogs. link just has such a hard time with his hips if we walk every day. so our walks are shorter. and i keep him on the leash, so he doesn't run as much. i did sneak out with ruby by ourselves last week, and he barked (i'm sure) the whole time we were gone. he'll be 12 next month, and he's an old man with the heart of a puppy! ruby is feisty as ever--just got a spring haircut, and is now speaking for her meals. she loves to kindof gurgle, so i'm having her do it every day. it always makes us laugh! we are so easily entertained.
saw slumdog millionaire, and gran torino lately.
well, i'd better get over to my office now that i know that everything works!
we love youu all.
love--michele, david, link, and ruby
Friday, March 6, 2009
Hi Everyone- I think we are living in an alternative universe right now. I think I hope we are, anyway. So far, no layoffs at Aurora, but freezes on management positions, two of which I was in line for, no merit increase for managers and above, and a new initiative to cut $4mil out of the Behavioral Health budget system wide, which means huge, but as yet unknown changes for our department. I think my job is pretty safe, but I was really hoping to jump ship. It may still happen, but I wish it was right now. Jay is still waiting for a few things, a state job in the prison system and a federal job with the Census bureau which both look promising. We are all talking about how this is not where we expected to be at this time in our lives. I know very well it could be alot worse, so there is definitely gratitude for that, but what a weird world right now.
Looking forward to escaping to Denver next weekend to stay at the Sornell Spa. Both kids are pretty burned out on Madison classes, so are looking forward to some combination of golf, snowboarding, shopping, hiking, and celebrating Colin's 21st. At this point, I don't care if I spend the whole week in the hot tub looking at the sky and turning into a prune.
Well, have to get back to my Keith Olberman/Rachel Maddow addiction. We did hit an ET basketball game last night with some friends which was fun. ET won and they play CMH in Wilmot tomorrow night. Thats about an hour south of us, so we may not go, but it would be fun, even without being able to watch Colin.
We're hoping that our sumps keep up with tomorrow's rain and that we can get our battery backup sumps in place before we leave. The lake is really high. Love to all, Susan
Looking forward to escaping to Denver next weekend to stay at the Sornell Spa. Both kids are pretty burned out on Madison classes, so are looking forward to some combination of golf, snowboarding, shopping, hiking, and celebrating Colin's 21st. At this point, I don't care if I spend the whole week in the hot tub looking at the sky and turning into a prune.
Well, have to get back to my Keith Olberman/Rachel Maddow addiction. We did hit an ET basketball game last night with some friends which was fun. ET won and they play CMH in Wilmot tomorrow night. Thats about an hour south of us, so we may not go, but it would be fun, even without being able to watch Colin.
We're hoping that our sumps keep up with tomorrow's rain and that we can get our battery backup sumps in place before we leave. The lake is really high. Love to all, Susan
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