Ouray 2014

 On Friday my man and I took off for Ouray, Colorado, home of one of the ice climbing meccas of the U.S. Seriously. People are jealous of what is practically in our backyard. Even if it's a backyard that takes 5 hours to get to.

We met up with a crazy bunch of people there, many of whom I'd climbed with last year. We had two condos rented for the fourteen of us. Above is the view from the condos.

It was Ariel's first time on ice. First time climbing outdoors at all. He followed in my footsteps in that regard, as my first time climbing outdoors was also on ice in Ouray, three years ago.

Did I mention Ouray also has some amazing vistas?

He had, however, rappelled before, when he worked for the fire department years ago. So at least I was ok with him rapping into our first climbs, which were in the New Funtier area of the ice park. 

We had amazing weather. If I'd had a t-shirt on, I'd've worn it. Most of the time I just climbed in my long underwear top. It was so warm, there was a lot of dripping water. I've been there when it was freezing cold, and it's not fun. So while the heat is nice, when you go to climb ice, you kind of want it to stay there. 

Some of our group: Nathan, Tommy, Chad, Me, Norm, Ariel, and Erik. 

 Not pictured: John, Jonathan, Sarah, Dan, Jason, Valerie, Stephanie.

It was Stephanie's first time, too. 

 Jonathan broke his neck a few months ago, and was up climbing.

Sarah was given a 15% chance of living two months ago, and was also up climbing.

 And while it's nowhere near that serious, I did something to my back the morning we started out, and could barely walk all weekend. But I didn't go all that way to not climb. So I loosened my back as much as possible with the short walk in and then ignored the pain all day.

As I type, I've got some pain meds working their magic, and I'm sure I'll be fine in a few days.

Ice tools. 

Erik rapping in. 

Ariel giving someone a ride. 

 Nathan's got some interesting belay positions going on...

 Ariel was a natural. He climbed like he'd done it many times before. On our drive there he'd said, "I don't know why people drive all this way to climb on ice. I didn't even know you could drive this long and still be in Colorado!" I think he gets it now (although whether he comes to love climbing like I do remains to be seen).

My first year climbing, three years ago, I got hit on the shoulder with a chunk of ice that the guy I was climbing with knocked loose. This is how big I imagine it to be. I never did actually see it, but it rendered my arm useless for quite a while.

Below, some of our group are climbing up out of an area called South Park. 

 Time to chill.

Lesson Learned: Drive "all that way" to climb. We're some lucky people!

Vintage Her

I found this picture while perusing a huge antique store a few weeks ago. Not sure why she was there. She doesn't seem like the type to be at home among old Gardener's Almanacs, silver thimbles that Granny used when darning socks, or old office chairs. Perhaps if she'd been tucked in between inlaid teak china cabinets and hundred dollar jewelry...but she wasn't.

So I rescued her from that life, that she seemed so unaccustomed to. Not that my house is anything like the life she came from, but it was better than the shop. I love her look: subtle, muted colors, and those eyes...

I don't know why, but it feels like she belongs in a bathroom or powder room.  However, I don't have a powder room or the space in my bathroom to hang her. So she's in my bedroom right now, even though she seems a little uncomfortable there. 

Although she does go well with the chandeliers hanging in there (perhaps because she's more than a little bit glam), and my Moroccan table (because I can picture her there, sitting with her back against a tiled wall beneath the wooden arches of a rooftop lounge in Marrakech). 

What do you suppose her name is?

2013 Gifts

A few weeks ago I was ruminating about the upcoming end of the year. I thought about everything the last year has brought and wrought and taught. There have been a lot of gifts in this past year. Some have been given to me, some I've given to myself. All have been wonderful.

Although the first gift of the year started in 2012, it ended in 2013 - my climbing trip to Joshua Tree Nat'l Park in the desert of California.


Whoever said that California, or the desert, is always hot, has another thing coming. I froze on this trip. It was cold or chilly during the day, and downright freezing at night. I was even "lucky" enough to be in JTree when it snowed.

Still, it was a good trip, for the most part. One I'm glad I took for a few different reasons.
I got to climb in one of California's climbing meccas - and I'll probably never do that again.

I got to see close to a half-dozen national parks on that trip, each beautiful and unique.

I was able to get together with some girlfriends I hadn't seen in ages. We laughed and talked through dinner one evening, at one of my favorite restaurants.


And Kim Myles blessed me enough to - after viral and text messages back and forth for a few months - meet me for lunch. We still send the occasional hello to one another, and caught up by a "real live" phone a couple weeks ago. I have to say the biggest thing I've gotten out of knowing her is more confirmation to just be myself. She pulls no punches when talking about the "smoke and mirrors" that is television, and I love that she's not afraid to be so real about it.

This next give was made for me. I'm sure it was supposed to be for Christmas, but I didn't find it in Josiah's backpack until January. It reads, "If I were a gift I would be a kid for mi mom because i love hr!" I still have this hanging on my fridge because I love it so much.

This one, a gift to myself. I went and bought myself a house. I moved in in February. It took a long time to feel like home, but it certainly does now. I have had a good number of parties already, am enjoying making small renovations, and my favorite part of the house is my "sun deck" on the roof.

Watching my boys in school performances is certainly a gift.

I met a very diverse group of people in March. I barely knew one of the guys in this group, but was invited to go with everyone to Ouray to ice climb with them. It was a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to the one this year, even though I'll only be able to go for a day and a half this time.

I finally took my boys climbing, and they loved it.

My little guy turned eight. He is one of the biggest gifts I've ever been given. His personality is precocious, he can laugh at himself well (although he has a real issue when others do it), and he's fairly laid back. I really enjoy this little guy.

Also in March, a couple friends convinced me to try out Match.com. I'd just come out of a relationship that, while it wasn't serious, affected me way more than it should have. "Get your mind off it," they said. "Who knows, maybe you'll meet The One." "If nothing else, you'll get free dinners and some stories to tell." Well, there are really no stories. I was pretty selective, didn't go on a ton of dates, and only joined for three months. But at almost the very end of that time, this man caught my eye and came into my life. And we've been together ever since.


I gave myself a trip to Spain and Morocco this past summer. One of the best parts about it was that I decided, very last minute, to take Benjamin along. I loved introducing him to another part of the world, to travel, to different foods, and to two other continents. He was a great traveling companion, and I hadn't realized what a gift it would be to do that with him. It was also wonderful to spend time with my best friend from college and her family (who is also, distantly, my family). 

Another gift of travel, and the gift of family. Shortly after returning from Spain I took the boys to the family cabin in Minnesota. All my cousins were there, my aunt, my dad, my cousin's son, her god-daughter, and a few friends. Spain was wonderful, but nothing beats time at the cabin with these people. It's always the highlight of my year, and the 20-hour drive is so worth it.

The older one turned twelve. He is exactly like he's been since the day he was born. A talker, intelligent, self-motivated, and pretty no-nonsense.

Just a few days ago I made a purchase that will finally allow me to get home when there's snow on the hill (mountain?) to my house. I absolutely hate the idea of owing on something other than my house, but it was necessary. And the heated seats are a plus!


And then, to really make the year end right, I got to see this girl. My bff from high school who lives in Canada. But thank the good Lord her mom still lives only an hour and a half away, so she still has to come visit occasionally. Even better, this is the second time I've gotten to see her this year!


What I like most about looking back at 2013, and seeing all the awesomeness, is how it shows that life is an ebb and flow. I have settled into a new normal. I feel at peace with everything in my life, not just aspects of it. Although the first half of the year was pretty hard emotionally, the second half has been great. Maybe 2014 will be even better. Who knows, it certainly could be. And that's something to look forward to jumping into. Good thing, too, since it starts tomorrow!

Scrambling

They had planned to spend the weekend away from it all. Hotel room booked, vehicle full of gas. They arrived as planned, after a slightly impromptu stop at the Sixteenth Street Mall in Denver. They almost passed it up, because she hates crowds, and Black Friday was sure to mete out the worst. But there were no crowds, only deals, and she took a couple stores up on them.

Then on up into the mountains. Grabbed a bottle (or two) of wine, and hit the hotel. She didn't mean to ruin the party, but she could NOT keep her eyes open. She crashed way too early, and slept for over 12 hours. But the next day, after they pulled themselves out of bed after a very-enjoyable sleeping-in fest, they ate a delicious breakfast, gambled a little, and enjoyed the pool and hot tub on the roof, thirty-four stories up.

But then it was cut short. Something came up and they had to return home. So the next day, though they'd planned not to return until much later, they partook in some of her favorite activities. Wrapped in blankets and flannel, hot mugs of coffee cupped in their hands, they chatted (and got caught up on some reality TV). They decorated the house for Christmas. They took a hike.

The plan was to climb a local mountain by way of a well-established trail. They caught the trail just up from her house and passed first through the neighborhood, then above the neighborhood. Then, when the trail forked, took the left one up what looked like might have been an old service road. It didn't lead them far, and didn't connect with the trail she was familiar with.

Let's turn around, she said.

Let's go up, he said.

He started to climb up the mountain, hanging onto tree branches and roots and the occasional sturdy rock. And though she called him crazy multiple times, she kept right on his heels. Occasionally it was treacherous, but more often that not it was just steep. The trees seemed to have let out tendrils of roots at every place they needed them. Sometimes she had to grab one and lean out, moving her hands along the root and her feet along the steep-graded ground, to move up. Sometimes she "threw herself up the hill" (as he said). Sometimes the loose gravel made her step-taking a little nerve-wracking. But mostly she was recreating moves she'd done a thousand times (granted, usually on solid rock, not a scree slope up a mountain) partaking in the partnership she loves - using nature itself to move along its swells and surges that happened eons ago when mountains went through their upheaval.

They passed a narrow gully at one point, and he pointed at it.
We can go back down that way, he said.
I don't think so, she responded.
Well, how else are we going to get down? he asked.
The trail, she responded.

They made it to the top. Panting, but energized. They'd just scrambled up the side of the mountain. And it was a lot of fun. Way more fun than the trail.

I'd do that again in a heartbeat, she said.

And not just because it was fun, but because the best part was that he'd initiated the ascent.

Crags

We took a hike two weekends ago. Already two weeks ago. Sometimes I don't know where the time goes.

I wanted to get up to the Crags before the snowfall made it impossible until spring. With all the snow the mountains have had lately, it's possible that's become a reality already. 

Neither of the boys wanted to go. This is typical. But once they get outdoors they have so much fun. The oldest even thanked me three or four times for making him go.

There were places on the hike that were snow-covered, but for the most part it was a dry hike.

His comment was, "Look, they have snacks!" 

I will never dissuade my boys from climbing on any rock ever. 

His walking stick was taller than he is. 

We had lunch at the top, and once again fed our bread to the birds (just like A and I did here). These birds weren't as brave as the ones at Pancake Rocks - they wouldn't land on our hands - but they still came for the food. 

The oldest was taking pictures of us. At this point he said, "Let me see some romance now. Move me." We both cracked up.

This is NOT the way to help your brother into a tree....

It was a lovely day. 

Lesson Learned (from the kids' pov): If you let complaining keep you from something, that may just be the day you miss beautiful weather, birds eating from your hand, and nature's "snacks."

42

 I know, I know - - I don't look a day over 42. That's because as of today I'm actually a week over 42, though these pictures were only 4 days after. Lovely birthday dinner at the Mona Lisa with my man. 

I love: Living in Manitou, living in Colorado, my kids, my man, dancing at Cowboys, carrots, new clothes, hiking, the people in my life, music, reality TV (Yes, still. Sorry. No I'm not). 

I'm blessed because: *I can be active. *If I'm going crazy, it's happening so slowly I can't tell. *I have people in my life that are f.u.n. *I can afford my house, bills, and just a bit extra.

In the next year I want to: *Get back to my "normal" weight, which I haven't been at for at least six months now. *Build a chair for my rooftop patio. *Travel. *Hit the beach. *Be more purposeful about a few aspects of my life. *Find a good doctor (not that I need one, but if I do, I want him/her to be good). *Call my friends more often.

Before I kick the bucket I'd also like to: *Kick the sugar habit (but I think I'm in for a lifetime of struggling with this addiction. Fatalistic, I know). *See more of Morocco (I need more than three days there), Victoria Falls (and a safari while I'm in the area), Japan (my man lived there for six years and it sounds amazing), Venice. *Visit my high school best friend in Canada.

Yes, I'm sure there are a million more things I could add to each list. This was just off the top of my head...

Here's to another trip around the sun...