The new Hollywood "It" Girl

Don't hate me 'cause I'm beautiful...

Katie-Girl got her hair cut for Spring/Summer. She's much happier with the shorter 'do' and not having me brush her hair all the time.

Adventures on the Family Farm

We certainly had a big ol' time out on the family farm (aka 'deer camp') this weekend. Kate got her first visit with the cows--she was a bit timid. Zip just wanted to do his 'job' and herd, but with all the newborn calves, well, I think he was being herded rather than vice-versa.

Adventures in 4-Wheelin'

Sigh. My washing machine got an extra workout on Sunday after the boys' adventures on Saturday. They had fun; it was a beautiful day, albeit a muddy one!

The Cat Loader

Roxanne, aka "Cat Loader" as so affectionately nicknamed by my former roommate, Karyn, has taken up some not-so-desired habits. Of late, she prefers to drink her water from the dogs' water bowl (never mind that we went through several 'water bowls' for her before finding out she originally preferred drinking from her own ceramic bowl, not a plastic bowl as most other felines do)...the dogs are not finding this amusing.


She has also taken to making 'nests' in our fake trees. But, we still love our "Na Na". It could be worse; she eats her *nibble* with no issue and is regular with her box--I can't complain. She's just so darn cute at times; I have to share it with ya'll.


As the old saying goes, "...one extremely spoiled feline lives here with two neglected canines." Yeah, right.

Celebrate 60

We recently celebrated a good friend's (and really, part of our extended 'family') birthday. Celebrate 60. I got to thinking about it and that really is a milestone (Personally, I think all your '10-year' birthdays should be milestones).

A lot happens to a person in ten years. At 10, you're just starting to figure out what 'it' is all about (we're about to celebrate a certain someone turning '10' and I think it's going to be a big step for him). At 20, you think you've got 'it' all figured out...but you'd better start re-thinking that position (something is bound to happen to you to make you at least consider that you might not have that 'infinite' knowledge you think you have). At 30, you've just gotten to the age where you realize you don't have 'it' all figured out and well now, at least you've got some experience behind you and hopefully some time to get 'it' together.

I don't know what happens after 30...I haven't gotten there yet. To be truthful, I haven't quite made it to 30 yet, but that milestone will fall for me later on this year. So, I think I can safely state my thoughts without too much repercussion.

To celebrate your 60th birthday means a lot. I am really happy for Poppa Funk and his family. They are wonderful folk and I wish him many more '10-year' celebrations. But, for now, I hope we can all just 'Celebrate 60'.

First Snow!

We finally had our first snow of the year (first snow in our new home--see picture; and first snow for Katie to go run and play!). I love the snow. I love the quiet it creates, especially when it happens overnight and when you wake up, there it is. I love it before people start driving around and making things slushy. I was happy to snap these shots early in the morning on Friday (2 February 2007)--if you look close, you can still see the moon.

I also have good news to post. I married my love, Blu, over the weekend in a secret, hush-hush elopement ceremony. We ran away to Eureka Springs, Arkansas and it was absolutely beautiful. We didn't want a big production and this was just so special to us.

I think 2007 is going to be a grand year.

What it means to be content...

We love our furry-four-legged-family members. These pictures were taken on a rainy Sunday afternoon. You can tell they just love their "naps". We love them for be so cute, cuddly, and just down-right A-DOR-ABLE.

On another note...I was taught how to change from taking color pictures to now black-and-white pictures. I love my camera...wish I would have known I could do this a year ago!

RAIN!

When the weather maps look like this, you know it's a good plan to STAY AT HOME! Expecting 8+ inches of rain...

There are talks of possible canoeing on Sunday, but with rain like this, we may need some rafts!

My Best Friend

A tribute to a beautiful soul.

March 22, 1942 - December 19, 2006. We will never forget you.

Catch ups...

OK...so I missed posting some pictures from earlier this year and I just wanted to share them while I was thinking about it.

This past spring/summer was a mix of traveling, airports, road trips, lots of fun in the sun-type activities, more traveling, more airports, etc. I know everyone has been reading about all the travels with the program, but while I was at home, I did get to enjoy some outings with friends and family including trips to the lake, fishing, 4-wheeler riding, and even a baby shower (Good luck Annie and Lance! Can't wait 'til she's here!)!

Kate has just grown up right before my eyes--she is such an amazing dog, but has just an touch of the nugget of evil in her. She's become very best buddies with Zip; when there's one around, you're never too far from the other! And Roxanne (aka "cat loader") has adjusted well to all my travels, getting along with Kate and Zip, and now having me back at home full-time.

I also wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone for all their love, support, and understanding while I was away. Going through this program was a great experience for me, but I couldn't have done it without all you guys. It means so much to me to have such wonderful, kind, caring, and loving folks in my life...ya'll are the BEST!!

I hope folks continue to read 'cuz I'll keep posting about what adventures happen next! (Halloween and Thanksgiving are just around the corner! Plus it's DEER Season!).

GRADUATION

Yes, what a grand time we had...it's been a long year, but we had a lot of good times together. It's hard to believe that the year is up and now, a new class is just beginning their journey.

It was good to be back in DC for graduation. This time, it wasn't too cold, rather a little warm! We stayed in Old Towne Alexandria again and had a great time riding the metro to and fro. We were able to bring family members on this trip and it was great getting to meet all the folks that have been talked about all year. We even got to take in some of the sights--more museums and walking around the mall at night.

Graduation night was celebrated at, of course, Murphy's. http://www.murphyspub.com/

ICBs filled our tables, but fun was had by all.

I hope everyone has enjoyed this blog...I know I've had fun trying to keep up with it. I may just decide to continue on, as we've got several camping/4 wheeler riding/hunting trips coming up...stayed tuned!

Yellow Rose of San Antonio

Well...ok, maybe not a yellow rose, but it was yellow. San Antonio was our last trip, save for graduation in September back in Washington DC. We had some good times out on the Riverwalk. And I have to recommend going to the dueling piano bar called "Howl at the Moon". Lots of fun there!

http://www.howlatthemoon.com/san_antonio_tonight.html

And you have to try the made-at-the-table guacamole dip--YUM!--you can get this at most any restaurant on the Riverwalk, but we had ours at the Iron Cactus and it was pretty good stuff.

All in all, it was a good trip. And now it's time for graduation...sigh...has it really been a whole year?

Rock Island, Illinois...Davenport, Iowa...Wisconsin...and Minnesota

Well, thanks to the mighty Mississippi River, we were able to visit not one, not two, not three, but four different states while on this trip. The topic was Ecosystem Restoration and we covered a lot of ground (literally!) during our stay (4 states in one day!).

We actually stayed in Davenport, Iowa and made the short trip every morning across the bridge into Rock Island, Illinois (Rock Island Arsenal) for class. Wednesday found us traveling all the way up the Mississippi into both Wisconsin and Minnesota for our field trip. We were able to see some pretty cool places on our journies...even got to try some Wisconsin cheese curds!

Places of interest in the Quad Cities:

You can't miss visiting the John Deere capitol of the US; it's located in Moline, Illinois (right next to Rock Island). C'mon...it's an American icon...plus you get to climb up into some really cool tractors...and you thought Chesney's tractor was sexy...get a load of those combines!

We took in some pretty good eats while there...the Blue Cat Brew Pub (shown above) in Moline, Mojo's (in Davenport)---good panini's (sp?) for lunch!, and Front Street Brewery in Davenport. Plus, if you need to get some laundry done, there's the Scrub Pub...a laundromat and bar in one! Interesting concept, although the *smokey* atmosphere somewhat contradicts the purpose.

We also had time to view a few flicks at the local movie house; Talladega Nights (the Ballad of Ricky Bobby) and Miami Vice. Both were pretty good movies...I highly recommend Talladega Nights, especially if you're with a group of your closest redneck friends and in a light-comedy-sort-of-mood.

Up next...our last trip (not really counting graduation in DC)...Watersheds in San Antonio, Texas!

The Hinterlands...

There are times in one's life when all you can do is sit back and take in the awe and beauty of everything that surrounds you...I can't even begin to describe what Alaska was like for me. It was awesome, breathtaking, exciting, peaceful, HUGE...it's one of those places that you just have to be there to understand it all.

I loved visiting AK and hope to go back someday. I think I may even want to be there when it's cold...maybe not the "dead-of-winter" type cold, but when there's more snow on the ground. On our visit, the temperature never got above 70 degrees--a much-needed break after coming from Missouri wherer temperatures can soar well above 100 in the summer (and apparently did while we were up in AK).

We were able to visit a few places while attending class (and yes, we did go to class that week)...namely Portage Glacier, Portage Lake, the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, Aleyeska, Exit Glacier, Seward...everywhere we went, it was just an awesome sight. We saw wild black bears looking for fresh blueberries (high up on the hillside); wild goats climbing the rocks alongside the highway to Seward; moose at a local park in Anchorage; plus a whole bunch of caribou, moose, deer, musk ox, and bear at the Conservation Center.

We also had some wonderful meals at the Glacier Brewery, Snow City Cafe, and Wynter Time Restaurant (all in Anchorage)...if you're up in Anchorage, you'll need to hit these places at least once, but make reservations for Glacier Brewery as they usually have an hour and 1/2 wait (but well-worth it!). And if you're looking to shop...stop by Trapper Jack's and the Ulu Knife Factory. They also have a great fleamarket and festival on Saturdays and Sundays. And I would highly recommend staying that the Captin Cook Hotel. Pretty cool place.

It was a great trip--the one I've been looking forward to all year! Lots of stuff to do and see!

Next up...Rock Island, Illinois and San Antonio, Texas!

KC and Lake of the Ozarks

Well...it's not exactly Kansas...we made a stop in the heartland of the US, Kansas City, Missouri with a side trip to Lake of the Ozarks. It was a week of learning about the Endangered Species Act, Hydropower, Water Supply, and Recreation. Good stuff...

Had the opportunity to catch a few good restaurants while in KC, mainly Cashew's and Jack Stack's BBQ. The baked beans and onion rings won the group over at Jack Stack's.

Some of us even got to explore a bit of the "Plaza" while in downtown KC. We also made it to the movies to catch the new Pirates flick.

Wednesday evening, we traveled east and south down to Lake of the Ozarks; reminded me a lot of Branson. Passed a lot of towns that looked like home...even got to see the "magic 8-ball of Missouri" (see photo).

The trip ended out with the group traveling back to Kansas City on Saturday morning...up next...the wide open (and somewhat cold) spaces of Alaska!!

Hope everyone is doing well back home--can't wait to see ya'll!!