Blizzard on April 24th

Believe it or not.....we are having a full blown blizzard today. The wind is gusting to 50 mph and the snow has been accumulating since about 8am.




These conditions...
99% Humidity
31.3 Degrees
...Make for a snow storm!

A pic off the front porch.

Here are some pics of this afternoon. By this time of day, there is probably about 8-10" of snow on the level.






















The day after ...... Bryce and Tyler built a snowman in the middle of the neighborhood street...unbeknownst to Audra and I. Obviously, they didn't think about cars needing to drive down the street. Bryce, to add drama to the photo, pulled his Wrangler next to the snowman to show some scale.

After they took the digital pics, they moved the snowman to the front yard. Anyway...it made for a great pic and story.

Closing Day at Breck!!!!

Yep....Today was the end of the season. Today, Vail and Breck shut down their lifts at 4pm....for the rest of the season. So, since we skied a full day at Breck on opening day....we decided to end the season at Breck on April 22. It was a really good day with the temps hoovering around 40 degrees and plenty of snow.



Bryce and Tyler....Tyler was riding a little hot, so he striped the jacket.


Katie-girl, lovin life on the snow!



I didn't need the beenie....so I doned the golf cap.....turned around when the speed picked up.



Audra....with her perfect form....Cassi just behind her.



Tyler, Cassi and Bryce on the lift....about to D-Board.



Ahhhh...and finally a break for lunch. We enjoyed a moutain cooked cheese burger.




It was a wonderful day. All these pics were taken early, when we still had a cloud covering. By noon, the clouds had moved on and the sun was shining (as in this last pic). The temps climbed to 46 degrees at the base to 36 at the top of some of the lifts...which led to really good snow. It was a great season with 16 trips to the slopes for everyone and season ski lessons for Audra and I. Honestly, we are looking forward to camping season, but I am sure.....when the flakes start flying in September...we will be ready to strap it in again.

Fabulous Saturday!!!!

Boy oh boy what a fun Saturday we had. Our morning began, getting up early to send Bryce off for his track meet. Then Audra and I drove the bike down to The Peak Grill to meet some new friends for a breakfast and bible study. The group, New Life Riders, is a collection of bike riders from our church that meet each week. After breakfast and the bible study, we all headed out for a ride. Audra and I had to cut it short, at Woodland Park to return to Bryce's track meet, but the rest of the the group rode the big loop around through Deckers, stopped for a burger and then headed home. Next time, Audra and I will do the whole ride.

Anyway, Bryce had a really good meet in the 4A division. He made the finals in the 100m High Hurdles and ended up 5th....his 300m Hurdle time was off 2 seconds, for which he was ticked.......but he also did very well in the High Jump.....See the pics.....









The Brycer jumping 6 feet..... (click on the pics for a great view)



After the track meet, Audra and I drove up to Manitou Springs to eat enchiladas at the Loop. The Loop is the best Mexican we have found in Colorado....and it is about a 9.5 out of 10.

Audra and I put about 125 miles on the new bike today....bring our odometer reading to 503 miles. I wasn't sure how Audra would 'take' the VTX...but with today being her second ride.....she has sipped the Kool-Aid, and she is hooked!




And yes...it is Prom Night for Cassi. Here are a couple of pics, just before she headed out the door to meet up with a group of Seniors for dinner and the dance.

While Audra and I were riding the bike and at the track meet, Cassi and Katie went in to the Mall. Cassi treated herself to a pedicure, set of nails and new earings. Of course, Katie had to have the 'play set' of nails, which she put on this afternoon. Both girls had a blast together.










You might ask about Tyler.....well, the boy just stayed at home all day...vegging out to TV and Computer Games. I think he really enjoyed his privacy.

Air Force Academy Track Meet - Bryce

Today, Bryce ran in his second varsity track meet (two meets have been canceled due to the snows). Today's meet was at the Air Force Academy and was a mix of 4A and 5A schools. He competed in High Jump (9th Place), 100m High Hurdles (9th Place) and 300m Hurdles (4th Place). This was a really impressive performance, as he was the only Sophomore to place in the top 25 in any of those three events. All these pics were of his 300m Hurdle race. Bryce won his heat. (Click on the pics for a better view.)

































Additionally, after Audra and I got home.....well, I bet you can guess what I did??? Yep, I jumped on the bike and took it for a 75 mile spin. Gosh I love that bike and am really beginning to feel comfortable with it.

Tomorrow, we are off to Vail for a day of riding and skiing. This will be the next to last day on the slopes for us (we will go one more day next weekend). I'll post some of those pics in a couple of days.

Happy Easter!

Easter morning started out with chilly temps and about an inch of ice on everything. (You can click on the pics to have a better view.)







Our church produces an Easter drama each year. This year, "The Thorn" was a smashing success. Here you can see the stage.


The gang at the Sunday morning church service.



Yes, regardless of age....kids still love the Easter Bunny! Due to the ice and snow, we had an Easter Egg Hunt in the house. (By the way, this is our 5th Easter in Colorado and the 3rd egg hunt in the house due to snow!!!...We love Colorado!)

The boys sitting on the new bike was all the fun we had today, due to the cold, ice and snow. The temps were supposed to warm up above 50 and I was planning to have a short ride this afternoon, but this front is hanging around....snowing again and 31 degrees....

Easter Eve......Snow and Ice

Very cool pic.....



This was taken just a few minutes ago....at 9pm on Saturday night. A pic of the Aspen in our front yard.

We have had a storm for the past three days.... It started with cold air, then mist and freezing rain, finally the snow began to fall. We have had 2" of snow on top of the ice and it has made for a beautiful sight. Yes, this is Easter in Colorado!!! Love it!!!!

This evening, we continued our annual celebration of Easter Eve....with a nice dinner of lamb chops....(In humor, it seems so appropriate while watching Charlton Heston lead the Isrealites out of Egypt with thousands of sheep in tow....) Honestly, we love celebrating Easter...the date we recognize as the rising of our Lord and Savior!!!!

As you can imagine...the storm is both a blessing and a disappointment.... Certainly, the snow and ice are beautiful and made for amazing sights....but with the storm comes road conditions that prevent any motorcycle riding. But, Monday is supposed to bring....near 70 degree temps....hooooray!