Snowboarding It Is

Last year Aidan gave skiing a try, but he just didn't seem to like it much. This year, my buddy Catnip offered to give a couple private lessons to Aidan on the snowboard since kids just learn better from someone other than their parents.

Catnip is now Aidan's hero. They totally hit it off and Catnip is really good with wee people. Very patient, very well spoken, and knows his stuff. I've ridden with him several times and Catnip can butter with the best of them. Maybe it will rub off on Aidan. Oh, in case you're wondering Catnip got his nickname while hiking a whole summer in the Appalachian Mountains by drinking Catnip tea all the time, not by having "whiskers" as Aidan puts it.

Fall Is Ending

The last signs of fall are upon us in the Broadlands neighborhood. Our block has a few of these trees and my neighbor's tree is gorgeous this week. By Sunday, I don't expect to see anymore leaves. Of course, Jonatha was in the tree when I went out to take a picture. Where else would she be with warm weather and sunshine?

Puppet Show

Welcome to the greatest puppet show on earth! "Hi, my name is Max and this is my friend, uh, (whispers between Jonatha and Aidan) Duck.

(More whispers between Jonatha and Aidan)..."Want to fly with me, Duck? Yes, Max. Let's fly!"

The End. Take your bow. Bravo!

Boo...Give Me Some Candy Neighbor!

Happy Halloween...er...fall festival...er...autumn celebration...or whatever they call it these days. We call it Halloween. And that means meeting neighbors, enjoying a few pieces of candy and dressing up like fools. We had a blast.

Hick, Farm Girl, Spidey and Cave Girl hit the streets and partied like it's 1999. Yes, that's a Budweiser bottle in my front pocket. Every hick needs one ready, along with a bag of seeds. Farm girl looks hot in her locks and look at how buff Spidey has gotten lately (he's been working out). Cave girl got student of the month, so maybe it's all just an act.

Anyway, hope your trick-or-treating was fun, safe and memorable. Ours certainly was.

Taekwon-ween

Aidan's Taekwon-Do class had some fun today. Saturdays are always a day where kids are emphasized and being right before Halloween, they did class in their costumes.

Aidan had a blast today and seems to be enjoying Taekwon-Do a lot lately. He is learning more defensive moves and how to attack. Just up his alley.

First Snow

We received our first winter blessing this morning with some more to come this afternoon. It snowed heavily for about 4 hours at the house, but the ground is so warm (82 degrees yesterday afternoon), only a few inches accumulated. Still gorgeous.

Jonatha and Aidan were quite eager to get outside and start snowball wars and building a snowman. As I type, the snowman is under construction.

Hey, look here. My kids are getting along. Amazing!

Click HERE to see the first snow in 2005 at our house in North Platte. Kids grow so fast!

Family

My mom and step-dad visited this weekend. What a joy to see them. I haven't seen Bill for over two years and my mom for a year. Always a privilege. We had a great time relaxing, enjoying the sights of fall and visiting over coffee around the fire pit. We took in Estes and RMNP, as well as Eldorado State Park for a picnic and my favorite local pumpkin patch. Bill, Aidan & I even managed a few hours of college football on Saturday while the girls did girl stuff. Thanks for coming guys...we love you very much!

Taekwon-Do

Aidan is growing up! My son started Taekwon-Do last night. He is training at Sereff Taekwon-Do here in Broomfield, which is the headquarters for the United States Taekwon-Do Federation. Here, Aidan is in "Charyot" position which means "attention".

Grand Master Chuck Sereff has been teaching Taekwon-Do in Broomfield for over 34 years and in the Denver area for over 50 years. He trained under the Father of Taekwon-Do, Choi Hong Hi, who promoted Chuck personally to IX Dan Grand Master (one of only two in the world). Chuck is 78 and still teaches part-time. I think Aidan is in pretty good hands. The Sereffs are incredibly nice people and Grand Master Renee Sereff, Chuck's wife, personally gave Aidan a ton of attention and visited with us most of the night, despite having 25 people in class.

Aidan and one other new member got some personal teaching from a few lower level black belts on the secondary floor which was cool. Aidan liked the personal attention and not having to be in the big class all night with all the adults.

Here Aidan learns how to tie a proper knot on his uniform

Aidan even got to start "fighting" the very first night after learning a front snap kick and basic punch and block. He loved this part (no surprise)

And, of course, respect is king in Taekwon-Do. Students must bow before entering and exiting the floor and always before and after a match-up and all teachers must be referred to as "sir" or "ma'am". Way to go Aidan!

Flatirons

My close friend, Mitch, and I took off for a morning hike Saturday at the well-known flatirons. We started at Chautauqua Park base and headed up Ski Jump Trail, crossing over at its peak to Bluebell/Baird Trail where we then began our off-trail excursion up the slope between the 2nd and 3rd flatirons...

Here's a view of the 3rd Flatiron from our ascent through dense pines and boulder scrambles...

On our way up, we encountered fresh cougar tracks which led directly into this den...we decided we were a little stupid for hanging around this spot too long, but it was a rush. September brings multiple sightings of bear and mountain lions and there have been sightings on this path earlier in the week. Department of Wildlife had some of this park closed just 2 days prior due to both bear and lion activity...

Good example of the terrain we encountered. I love scrambling rock and getting into the off-trail experience. It allows you to be away from people and be challenged to try new things...

Here, Mitch shows off his studly rock-climbing skills as he ascends the base of the 1st flatiron early in our hike. We decided he should promptly exit to the west, as the slope gets much steeper right above where he is in this photo. That was good, too, as it led us off-trail and a route between the 2nd and 3rd slabs...

And the reward. We sat atop the 2nd Flatiron for stunning views of Boulder, Front Range valley, and Indian Peaks Wilderness to the west. Longs and Meeker Peaks were in full view also. It's always worth the pain when you hit the peak and can sit back and take it all in. God is certainly creative and his skills are displayed quite nicely in our great state of Colorado. Good times.

Garden of the gods

I had the privilege to hang solo with the kids today while Jan pulled a 12 hour shift, so we drove down to the Springs and took in Garden of the gods for the afternoon.

Of course, I snapped many photos, but here are a few for you to enjoy. Kids here on other side of two slabs of red rock as you enter the park.

Quite a variety of formations. Massive slabs and stacked, doubled over red rock with some cool vegetation and rugged terrain. We didn't have time to get off the beaten path too much, but did manage to find some trails off park a little.

Kids were figuring it would be boring, but I assured them they would enjoy the visit.

Afterwards, Jonatha said this was one of her favorite Colorado spots now. Both kids had a blast.

B-Fast

Jonatha got up this morning and made me and Aidan breakfast. She got every box of cereal we have out on the table, washed and presented apples and peaches and had OJ and milk ready. Thank you Jonatha!

Labor Day Labor

Labor Day included a little labor...fun labor anyway. We hiked Loveland Pass to the western rim and took in the view of miles of beautiful Colorado. Great day.

Jan's sister, Kari, joined us for the weekend a came along for the hike before heading back for Nebraska. Thanks for coming out to see us Kari!

The kids are shown here at the rock pile where people place their rock to show they humped it up to the top. We're only about 12,540 ft, so no 14'er accolades for this one. Easy hike and stunning views. Good times.

The Madness Begins

It's officially fall around here...school has begun. Jonatha began 1st grade this morning. First go at full-day classes. She seemed a little nervous, but knowing Jonatha, she'll be all set in about 1 hour.

Aidan will begin his preschooling at home with us, just as we did with Jonatha. He got dressed up for his big sissy today, so we stopped at the park to take a picture of him by the flowers.

We were impressed with one important factor...the Principal at Coyote Ridge commits to learning every student's name, all 520 of them. The office secretary, who met us in June, remembered Jonatha's name on Thursday at the Open House. I think that deserves an A+.

Colorado Sunset

Ahhh...Colorado. Greatest state in the country for many reasons. This picture is just one. I love sunsets, especially in Colorado.

After the sun started to go down and the temp dropped oh...25 degrees...Bob took this photo of us. Thank you Slies for treating us to the game and for coming to hang with us for the weekend!

Lakeside Fun

The kiddos are doing a summer reading program with some pretty nice rewards every week. This week was unlimited ride passes at Ghettoside...er...Lakeside in Denver. It was a hot, but fun day for the wee Tighes.

Aidan never mustered the courage for the roller coaster, but he did think the cars were cool. Once Jonatha hopped on the roller coaster, she never got off.
Jan and I watched & laughed much as the kids hit up the park...good times.

Colorado Weather

Here's the video I took before I got to get out and start a hike. I didn't think I'd get to go while sitting at the pass trail head at 12,000 ft. But, it opened up and the sun came out for a couple of hours and I enjoyed a great hike on the Continental Divide (see photos below).

Loveland Pass

I am a bachelor for the weekend, so after doing some painting at the house, I decided to get out and head for the Pass today for a solo hike. I left the Front Range in sunny & hot conditions and arrived at Loveland Pass in 43 degree temperature with hail (glad I packed warm clothes). After the storm cleared, I hit the trail and hiked the ridge, which rewards greatly with stunning views of A-Basin, Keystone and Breckenridge all in one panorama.

I was planning to hike the ridge all the way around which would be about a 6-7 hour hike. However, another storm was looming and the wind was picking up rapidly. I didn't want to be left alone in bear country at 13,000 ft. because of a storm. Still a great time and about 2 hours of hiking. Oh, and I almost forgot...on the way down the pass I had to dodge a ton of rock slide debris, a result of all the rain. Managed to grab one I could actually pick up for my patio. Kids will love it.

Family Times

My dad and his wife Chan came to visit us this past week. It was great to see them (doesn't happen enough)...

We made stops in Estes Park and Boulder Falls one day which was nice...

I love taking pictures with an old 35mm camera...so much more natural to me than my digital.