Family Reunion Fun ~

 Family has flown in from all over the place to celebrate Great Grandma Anita's 90th birthday this weekend, so a whole day of activities was planned for Friday...golfing, bowling, and then some fun at Fort Fun!  We skipped the morning golf game...its not really our thing and it doesnt really keep the attention of a six year old...so we met up with the family at Chippers Lane for bowling instead!  The kids are always climbing on Uncle Todd...and as you can see, he hates every minute of it  :)

 This was Jordyns first time bowling, and she had a unique style all her own...but somehow she managed to get a few strikes in there anyways(hurray for the bumper walls).

 This was Enzo and Silvana's first time bowling too...it was fun to watch them throw...they throw a bowling ball the same way they throw a bocce ball...with their palms facing back instead of forward.

They were good sports though, and i think everyone seemed to have a great time.  The bowling alley wasnt that crowded, so we had most of the place to ourselves!  We decided to eat here, and i have to say, the food was really good!

 Back to more bowling...here is Justin and Todd doing some synchronized bowling...i think someone has Olympic fever!

 Here is a cute shot of Silvana and Jordyn...Jordyn wanted desperately to speak Italian with them, so we've decided to learn so that someday, if we get out to Italy for a visit, we can communicate without Marco having to translate!

 And here is Jordyns first bowling game score...mostly i posted this so you could see that i beat Justin by 10 whole points :)

 We shared stories and had fun catching up!  Anita was a little frustrated with her Italian though...she said she understands it just fine, but she was having a hard time finding the words to speak it.  She speaks Spanish so often here in the states that its put a crimp on her ability to speak Italian now.  

 After several games at the bowling alley, and the temperatures outside had cooled a bit, we headed over to Fort Fun for more family adventures.

 Half of the group wanted to play mini-golf (hey, they're golf addicts...what can i say)...

 while the rest of us decided to run around trying out all the other fun things there were to do!

Looks like we've kicked this reunion off in full style!  Now time to rest up for the big party at Dave and Lisa's tomorrow!

Memorial for Patrick

 I received an email from Jenny Dimon Rogers this week...her husband created a very unique and fitting memorial for her father, Patrick...and it was hidden in a place overlooking the canyon....the perfect place for Patrick, as he always knew everyone and everything that was going on in the Poudre :)

 Jordyn and i decided to pay him a visit this afternoon...and what a fabulous memorial it is...Patrick would have loved it!!!  Well done Justin!

Happy Birthday Marco ~

 Look at this beautiful cake that Silvana made for Marcos birthday.  Apparently, she was in the kitchen all morning making tasty things, and we were lucky enough to enjoy this cake when they came by this afternoon for a visit.

 Marco blew out the candles before my camera was ready...dont you hate it when that happens...anyways, after cake we took the family on a tour of the property...

 Enzo was excited about the size of the trout in the river and was ready to go fishing...but alas, they had no gear, so im sure they'll be back later this week to try their luck!  Meanwhile, Justin was showing them how he catches fish in the river...

 He almost had one too, but with the family heckling him from the bridge, i think it was spooked and swam away :)

 A visit to the black bear cabin isnt complete unless you climb the tree fort and bang the drum in the teepee....

We are actually making some headway in the language department...a word here, a gesture there...a little knowledge of Spanish helps, (and my knowledge of Spanish is very little :)...but given a few weeks, i think we would be good to go without our interpreter :)  (and im sure Marco would be thrilled with the break  :)
It was a lovely afternoon, until a torrential downpour broke up the party...but thats okay...i think a good time was had by all.

Happy Birthday Marco!

Italian Cousins ~

 The cousins are out from Italy for Great Grandma Anitas 90th birthday celebration next weekend...its their first time to the states, and they dont speak any English, so its a good thing their son Marco came along with them  :)   I was informed that i speak very fast, Marco said, "you dont speak like the rest of the people out here"...guess thats the city girl in me :)  Marco said, my parents dont speak any English, and they keep speaking Italian as if others will understand...to which i replied..."thats okay, your folks and i just had a great conversation in two languages, not understanding each other, but it was fun talking to each other just the same"  :)  Later, Enzo and Jordyn went out to pick some chokecherry berries, while Marco and Justin tested out the light sabers.

 Enzo and Silvana tested them out as well...gotta love Star Wars bridging the language gap!

 After dinner we enjoyed music and stories...poor Marco will be wiped out translating for the next few weeks, but im so glad theyre here.  Marco came out 5 years ago for Anitas 85th birthday celebration when Jordyn was just One years old...so its great to see him again and catch up.  Silvana said, "since they made the trip out there, and she has a huge fear of flying, its our turn to visit next"...i hope she's serious...i have always dreamed of going to Italy! 

 Looking forward to spending some time with family over the next week...stay tuned for more photos!

Rogue Camp : Day Four

 Sunday rolled around, and several folks were packing up to go...but not before breakfast, second breakfast and elevensies :)  Here is chef Talan working on second breakfast, while ann plays some Native American melodies on the flute.

 As you can see...there was a lot of power lounging going on...

 Ian keeps his nutter butters close at hand, while the rest of us pig out on breakfast burritos...

 Wonderful conversation, laughter and good times...for me, Rogue Camp is a beautiful chance to relax with friends, some we only see once a year, so we make the best with the time we have together, sharing stories and creating new memories!

 And speaking of memories...3 years ago Eric buried this flask of rum out on the island for one of the treasure hunts, but when he came back up months later to lay out the treasure clues, he couldnt find the flask anywhere and had to buy a new bottle of rum to replace it.  Well, this year, Pete found the bottle, half unburied, down on the island by his tent...and all this time we thought some thirsty fisherman came along and found it  :)  What a great surprise!

 Most of the Rogues headed out that afternoon, but a few die hards remained for one more night.  Witold made dinner for all of us, and we had a quiet evening around the table.  The next morning i made breakfast, the only time i had to cook all weekend (gotta love that), and we toasted with the last Rogues, Witold and Savina, as they pulled out of here at 2:30 on Monday afternoon.  Travel safe my friends...until next time!  Many hugs ~

Rogue Camp : Day Three

 Day Three...off to a bit of a slow start...at least for me, that is :)  I did, however take a three hour nap later that afternoon, so that was fabulous!  Meanwhile, while i was being a sloth, Rachel was sewing away on her hand crank sewing machine, making neck coolers....and what a great day for it...i love mine!  She made one for everybody....thanks Rachel, that was awesome!

 I wandered down onto the island to catch the end of combat croquet...a fun game, where there are no rules...theyre more like guidelines :)  It usually takes them most of the day to complete the game, due to rough terrain and several breaks to refill drinks.

 Next on Saturdays list of activities...the treasure hunt!  This years treasure hunt was designed using compasses, which was very entertaining!  There were three teams, and each team had a different set of coordinates to get to the final treasure. 

 Unfortunately, while these guys were diligently working on the last of their clues...

Team Donovan, Ann, Cyndy and David were already pillaging the treasure chest!

 They enjoyed the many goodies  inside the chest, (rock candy, chocolate pearls, inflatable swords, eye patches, and gold coins) then proceeded to the bridge gloating to the treasure hunt losers!

 But still...a great time was had by all!  Thanks for setting up the treasure hunt this year Jon...even though you couldnt make it out this year, everyone had a great time with your hunt!

 Naturally, after all that activity, the pirates were ravenous...which was fine, because there was plenty to munch on!

 Saturday is usually fajita night, but as you can see, there were more than just fajitas to pig out on!

 When the night settled in, it was time for more dancing and fun down by the fire.  Due to fire restrictions, we had a propane fire...and instead of tiki torches, we had over 500 glow sticks and glowing balloons illuminating the trail, along with about 50 solar lights too...it was a magical experience walking the trail at night with a slew of colored lights and balloons lighting the way!  A fantasy land, indeed!

 Naturally we enjoyed some Jedi training down by the fire...here is Cookie putting on a light show with the blue light saber...while Witold demonstrates grace with the red light saber!

 Pete and Kathryn enjoy some cuddle time by the fire with a bottle of cinnamon whiskey...careful guys...that stuff is dangerous!  :)

 But cuddle time was over, and it was time for the pygmies to start a glow stick war...there were glow sticks flying all around the fire, taking out instruments, cocktails and the occasional dancer!

 And when they got tired of glow sticks...they dragged out glitter bombs...little plastic eggs filled with glitter...and pretty soon, everyone was sparkling by the fire!

 Pete fell victim to the last of the silly string, thus being the most decorative person down on the island, complete with glitter adorned head and silly string hair :)

 We may not be able to stay up as late as we used to, but we still no how to have a great time!!!

 Oops...i spoke too soon...justin and i were the last ones up when the sun came out...here he is on "dawn patrol" (around 5 am) playing a little didgeridoo for all the sleeping campers  :)  Our neighbors must love us during rogue camp!