Poudre Canyon Quilt Show

 It was time for the annual craft fair and quilt show in the Poudre Canyon last weekend, and once again, there were a lot of lovely quilts to be seen!

 

I try to participate each year, but it doesnt always happen.  This year was a perfect example...although i had a few new quilts to show, i was crazy busy and never found the time to enter them.  Jordyn was disappointed, as she likes to show her quilts that i make her, but she'll just have to wait till next year.

 They had a new display this year showing all the quilts they were donating to Baby Haven...it was an impressive display, each one a treasure!

 This is the quilt i chose for best in show, and it just so happened to win this year....but then again, Barb's quilts win quite often...and theres no wonder why!  She really does lovely work, all by hand, and lots of applique!  Shes a neighbor of mine, and has offered to teach a class, and included Jordyn too...which i thought was sweet.  Im looking forward to learning from her this fall.  Just look at the detail of this quilt.

 and this was the quilt they raffled off...which they do every year, though i was particularly fond of this one....alas, i didnt win :(

 And this was another favorite of mine...Roonie always does wonderful quilts too...and ive always wanted to try a stack n' wack.  Maybe one of these years ill get around to it :)

Anyways, i hope you enjoyed the quick stroll through our quilt show...we really do have some very talented ladies up here in the canyon! 

A Visit From the Zoo!

The Denver Zoo sent up some ambassadors to visit us up in Red Feather Lakes on Saturday!  The library organized the whole event as part of the end of the year summer reading program, and the kids loved it!  The zoo docents introduced us to 5 animals...the Kookaburra from Australia...

the Tenrec from Madagascar...

a very cranky tortoise...

this awesome little screech owl...

and for the grand finale...a 30 pound Boa Constrictor!

At the end of the presentation, the kids each got a turn petting the Boa...naturally i snuck in line to give it a feel! :)

After the animal demonstration, there was cake and treats at the library for the kids as part of the reading program celebration, and then afterwords, i took the kids to gnome road to stretch our legs!

Jordyn had quite the busy weekend...she spent Thursday night at Grandma and Grandpa Bruens house, and after that they took her over to Olivias to attend her birthday party and Jordyn got to spend the night there.  They had a bit of a scare, as Jordyn was stung by a wasp while she was there...but thankfully she had a "typical" reaction with lots of redness and swelling at the sting site on her thigh, but no other dangers! (Benadryl was all she needed) We had a scare a few years ago, to which she was then prescribed an epi-pen, but we were thankful that they didnt have to use it on her!  (although Olivias dad is a paramedic, so she was in good hands).  We saw Rehna at the library and decided to invite her along to our adventures on gnome road.

They had such a good time that we decided to have Rehna over for a sleepover on Saturday night...to which they too stayed up way late, and then played hard all day on Sunday!  Jordyn denied being tired at all, but just look at the dark circles under her eyes in this last photo, poor thing!  She actually fell asleep on the drive to take Rehna home :)

Im so happy we were able to squeeze in some more sleepovers and good times before school starts in a few weeks.  I will be busy with training for my new job over the next two weeks, while also working at my present job, so things will be a little hectic till school starts!  Happy Summer little one!  I love you! 

Happy Trails Dr. Kent ~

 Jordyns dentist is retiring after 30 years of service, so to celebrate, he threw a big party in the park on Saturday for the kids.  His band rocked out on stage, as did other performers, there were a few bouncy houses, prize tables, hot dogs, snow cones, cotton candy and face painting, all free to the public!

 As you can imagine, it was quite crowded, and the lines were long, but the kids had a good time anyways.  We didnt make it to the face painting booth, but Jordyn and Wolfie did get to do the Bungee Jump...

 They were scared and excited all at once, and who can blame them!  Look how high they went!

That kind of bravery deserved some cotton candy!  Afterwords, we went & saw Despicable Me 2.
All in all, a great way to spend a Saturday!  :)  Thanks Dr. Kent...we'll miss you!

Rainy Day ~

What can two cousins do with cardboard, duct tape and some spray paint on a rainy day?
Take the black bear by force!  :)

Girl Scouts Ride N' Swim ~

 Last Thursday we went to Western Ridge with our girl scout troop to do a Ride n' Swim.  The girls were very excited, as it was the first time for many of them, myself included!  Thats right, 45 years old and never been on a horse!  Well, check that one off the list...

 Here i am riding the wonderful mustang, Banjo.  She was once a wild mustang from Wyoming, but obviously shes tame now, and a sweet horse!  Justin rode Cajun, who apparently decided to stop and eat about every 3 minutes...though most of it was drive by snacking :)  While he comfortably poses for this picture, wrangler Cody gives me some pointers about riding...how to turn left, and right, how to stop, and how to get the horse to continue on if she keeps stopping to eat. (hmmm...glad i wasnt on Cajun).

 Due to our large troop size, we had to split up into groups, so Justin, Jordyn and i were the last group to go.  We enjoyed the pool while the others rode first, and then when it was our turn, Jordyn got to choose her horse...she chose the beautiful brown and white Amigo.

 It was a perfect ride...the sun hid behind some rain clouds, and we even got sprinkled on a bit, but the wildflowers were the best part of the ride and i decided at that moment, that i LOVE horseback riding!  Jordyn thanked Amigo for a wonderful ride, and then it was time for pizza!

 Time to say goodbye to the horses.

Thanks for planning this adventure for our troop Sharon,(and for getting me on a horse)...its an adventure ill cherish forever!  :)

Rogue Camp - Day Four

 Most Rogues head home on Sunday, but usually about 10 or 15 of them stick around one more night, which is always a treat for us...as we are not quite ready to say goodbye!  So for those of us not packing up to go, we sleep in...hang out in the river...and of course enjoy more music. 

 For the die hard battle croquet fans, there was a second game played on Sunday...i hear it was quite a difficult course, but Phin doesnt seem to mind :)

 That evening we enjoyed some more music by the fire, this time the guys played some Grateful Dead tunes, including Cassidy, which Justin sang :)

 Meanwhile, Forrest told the girls ghost stories...and as you can see, the girls were totally smitten over Forrest.  He was so sweet, he spent the last night entertaining the kids, playing games, etc, so the adults could have some adult time out by the fire.

There were several Rogue Camp birthdays, Amy's was on Thursday...but these two had birthdays back to back, so at midnight, we served them up a birthday cake celebrating both their days :)  Happy Birthday Ian and Tabatha!  And huzzah to all 56 rogues that celebrated Rogue Camp with us this year!

As rogues were heading out on Sunday morning, this bear came strolling down the driveway around 11:30am to see if there were any goodies laying around...after all, we had made so much noise late into the evening the last few nights that he hadnt had a chance to snoop around in a while.  As you can see, he was clearly disappointed when he saw that we still had company, so he hesitantly turned around and headed the other way.  Sorry Yogi, maybe next time!  The city kids, however, were quite thrilled by the visit and couldnt wait to get home and tell their friends!

Rogue Camp - Day Three

Saturday at Rogue Camp is filled with all kinds of activities...most of which i missed because i was napping from the 4am shift i pulled the night before :)

There was more power lounging, mojito making, henna drawing, chess playing, music, food...and of course, battle croquet!

Then it was time for the treasure hunt!  It was Donovans turn to organize the hunt, and he had some fabulous things planned for the kids, young and old alike :)

It started off with a race between ping pong balls in the ditch...

Pirate Jon was cheating, so the kids were quick to take him out with the swords!

These lovely ladies were in charge of the last part of the race...but they heckled everyone from the bridge while they awaited their turn in the game!

and here come some pirates racing off to their next challenge...

They had to spell out a four letter word using only 6 sticks...these little pirates wrote out the word, "tiny".

 

 meanwhile, one of the other teams had to stack rocks in the center of the river to get their next clue...looks like Nevin took a tumble...

 can we get a ruling from the judges here?!?

 Another team heads into the river to stack their rocks, while yet another team tries to hit the target with a potato gun!

 and this was their target...Ian was the only one to hit the target on the first shot!

 There seems to be a 20 pirate pile up on the bridge here...serious chaos going on...

 more rock stacking...

 and last, the pirates had to collect a nastrovia shot from the lovely bridge ladies and carry it to the pirate king without spilling any...

 its gonna be a close call...

 Everyone anxiously awaits the pirate kings decision...and the winners are.....

 

 

Huzzah to the winners!  But then, it turns out there was a tie between two of the teams...so all the children shared in the pirate booty!!!

Then it was fajita time!  For the last few years, we have designated Saturday night, Fajita Night!

 Everyone brings goodies to throw in, and we have a massive fajita feast!  Here are Dons James and Talan creating some delicious guacamole and marinade...

 while Shavonne grills up some chicken!  There was also pork, shrimp, steak and a vegetarian mix...yummy fajita goodness all around!

 Then the evening rolled around and it was time for more shenanigans!  These two pygmies were up to no good!

 and the littles were in the house playing with monster high dolls...Jordyn had a blast playing with all the kids!

 Naturally there was more wonderful music and nastrovia antics...

 looks like a full house!

 Rachele models her new tattoo... Pygmy Power!!!

and Jordyn does some dancing by the fire!  Another fabulous night at Rogue!