Soccer and Ten Bears ~

 The Pirates played another great game on Saturday...they lost 4-5, but it was an exciting game and all the parents were going nuts on the sidelines :)  Jordyn played defense most of the game, but in the one quarter she was up front, she scored a goal, and here is that shot...

 At the end of the game, i lead the girls in a cheer for the other team...something i did when i was a kid in California.  Its not something they do here, but i liked that tradition from my childhood, so our team does it :)    Two - Four - Six - Eight - Who do we appreciate....(opposing team name here, in this games case it was the Banana Splits)  Banana Splits, Banana Splits, Yeah!

 Then they head out under an arch created by all the parents, and they high five the parents as they go through.  (this is a newer custom, that we didnt do as kids, but the parents and the kids seem to love it, and so do i)  Good Game Girls!

 And, of course, Jordyns #1 fan was there...Great Grandma Anita.  She tries to make it to most of Jordyns games, and that makes Jordyn super happy!  Jordyns other #1 fan, Christy, was also there to take all these great shots...Thanks Christy!

 On Valentines Day, i purchased a wine tasting visit to Ten Bears Winery for Christy and i, so after the game we headed over to the winery to check it out.

 It was such a gorgeous day, that we decided to take the table outside.  They brought out a little plate of strawberries, cheese and crackers, humus and chocolate to taste with the wines.

 We started with their sweet white called Symphony, then the Dry Riesling and then the Chardonnay.  Then we tried their reds... a Merlot, then Poudre River Red, and finally Nutty LaPorte (a dessert wine). 

 I dont normally like ports, but the combination of hazelnut and chocolate in the Nutty LaPorte, was sweet and tasty, so i bought a bottle for Justin, then grabbed a Riesling and a Poudre River red for me.

 Jordyn enjoyed playing in the rocks and creating some artwork...

 and as you can see by her face, she enjoyed some of the strawberries as well :)

 It was a great afternoon, and after those last few snowstorms, it was nice to sit in the sunshine!

That evening, Jordyn rescued this little hummingbird that was dragged into the house by one of our cats.  She carried him outside to set him free, but he sat on her hand for several minutes, enjoying the warmth of her hand and the safety from the cats.  It was a very cool moment, and i was thrilled to capture it in a photo!

May Day at the Black Bear ~

 Another SNOW DAY for Jordyn today...and quite frankly, im thrilled!!!  We needed it (the moisture and the down time), so its fine by me!  We have about 15 inches out there so far, and its still falling.

 It really looks gorgeous outside, but its nice to be cozy inside!  The power went out in the middle of the night and came back on around 8:30am, so we all enjoyed sleeping in for the first time in months.

 We are burning a lot of scrap wood to clean up the property a bit, and it makes for a warm fire!

 Of course, the hummingbirds showed up just less than a week ago, so they are busy fighting over feeders to keep warm and fed.

 The feeders keep getting a little icy, so i take turns bringing them in to warm the juice up a bit before putting them back outside.  It seems to be working, as they are swarming our feeders, and appear to be happy.

And speaking of happy.....HAPPY MAY DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pioneer Days at Red Feather ~

 It was Pioneer Day at Jordyns school on Friday, so we put together these outfits...but what they needed were bonnets, so i found this link on youtube and made these bonnets for us.  Now with our outfits complete, we were ready to go!

  I was invited to help at the quilt station, but was also there to take photos for the yearbook, so i ran around the event getting pictures of all i could, while also helping at the quilt station :)

 Besides the quilt station, there was square dancing, story time, and a one room school house. 

 They also enjoyed flapjacks with butter they made themselves and they also learned how to use a telegraph. 

It was great fun being a pioneer for a day...but i dont think i could do the dress and bonnet on a permanent basis!  In fact, it was great to suit up into my soccer mom clothes to go to practice afterwords!  Happy Trails Everyone ~

Another SNOW DAY!!!

 No school today...SNOW DAY!!!

And boy did it snow...and snow...and snow...

 Check out these icicle daggers coming right towards the house...like giant teeth about to eat the cabin! 

 Our neighbor, Mena, came over to play with Jordyn and build a snowman...er, snowgirl...first one we've been able to build all winter.  There was never enough snow, or it wasnt the right kind of snow, so we are happy to have a snow sculpture in the yard today :)

Just got a call from the school again...looks like Jordyn gets another SNOW DAY tomorrow...that makes three in a row!  Yeah for Colorado...after the fires last summer, we could use the moisture!  :)

Stuck in Denver ~

 Here's that Spring snowstorm i mentioned earlier...Justin called to tell me we had a foot of snow at our place, so i was hesitant to drive home...then it really started to come down in Denver too...and pretty soon there was 15 inches on the ground...so we were definitely staying in Denver for another night....oh darn!  :)

 It worked out great though, as Jordyn's school had a snow day, and Connie covered for me at the store, so we were good to go!  Thanks Connie!  Jordyn read her new books all afternoon, while Christy and i visited....then Christy and Jordyn went outside to bang some snow off the trees, which naturally turned into a snow fight!

That evening we ordered Chinese food, watched a movie and enjoyed some wine.  Thanks for letting us hang at your place Christy...we had a blast!

  

We headed home around noon today, which was perfect timing.  That seemed to be the only time there wasnt any snow coming down.  We pulled into our driveway around 2:30, and it immediately started to snow again, so i was thankful it waited till we were home.  Its been coming down pretty heavy all day, so i wasnt looking forward to driving in it tomorrow.  Oh,  i just got a call from Poudre School District...SNOW DAY TOMORROW...NO SCHOOL....Hooray!!!!

Looking forward to sleeping in :)

High Tea at the Brown Palace ~

We had an absolutely fabulous time at the Brown Palace on Sunday!  My cousin has always wanted to do tea there for her birthday, but it has never come about...so this year she made reservations, and im soooo glad she did!  Im not a fancy-smancy kind of gal, but i have always wanted to go to the Brown Palace, so i was excited to check it out!  Jen heard about the fun and decided to join us, which was great, because we finally finished her quilt :)
She cried before she ever even took it out of the bag.  Her favorite color is red, so naturally she loves it.  We started this for her when she was in the hospital after her accident, but only recently got around to finishing it  :)  We love ya Jen!

 The Brown Palace was built in 1892,  and is one of the first atrium-style hotels ever built.  Christy's Grandparents honeymooned there in the late 1920's, and they said it was the tallest building in Denver at the time.  Apparently they drove out from Nebraska during a snow storm, and the family never heard from them and assumed they died on the trip over, so they were surprised to see them when they arrived home 2 weeks later. 

 Jordyn was thrilled at the idea of a "real" tea party!  She dressed up in her new spring dress and shiny black shoes and was quite the little lady.

 The architecture of this building was gorgeous, and no matter where you looked, there was something interesting to see...like this stained glass ceiling, which brought in all kinds of natural light.

 Time for tea...look how excited Jordyn is to be getting her first fancy cup of tea...

 and lets not forget the sandwiches and desserts...

 There were scones and imported Devonshire Cream (yum), cucumber sandwiches, tuna sandwiches, egg salad in pastries, and of course a full dessert plate on top.

 and of course, champagne! 

 As you can see, Jordyn and i both really liked that Devonshire Cream!  Her scone is smothered in it, as was mine below (but i ate it all off )   :)

 Im not much of a dessert person, but i did try two things...the truffle and the cheesecake.  The truffle was very rich, and delicious, and Jordyns favorite was the cheesecake...in fact, she wanted to take a photo of her cheesecake, so here it is.....

 she loved that it was topped off with real gold :)

 After tea, we decided to take a stroll through the hotel...naturally we had to walk up all these gorgeous stairs to get to the top...and the view was just as stunning from above as it was from below!

 There's our big round table in the bottom right hand corner...in fact, you can see Gwen and Christy still sitting at the table.

 

Happy early Birthday Christy!  And thank you for treating us all to a wonderful memory we will always cherish!  We love you!

 After tea we went to the O'keefe exhibit at the Denver Art Museum.

 Since we couldnt take photos inside the exhibit, i took a picture of Jordyn by the elevator ad for the show...this was her favorite piece in the exhibit.  (a river scene, just like our backyard...why does that not surprise me :) 

After the museum, we all went to our favorite pub for a cocktail, and then headed home. (to Christys that is).  There was talk of a snowstorm coming, so we went to Barnes & Noble to get a good book to curl up with, and Jordyn picked out a new chapter book series called Magic Kitten.   It was an incredible day!