Thursday, April 9, 2009
Mike Durkee in his new house
On the way home from Colorado Springs, we stopped south of Denver in Highlands Ranch and had a tour of Mike Durkee's new house. We are so happy for him at this milestone in his life! His house is very nice and we were glad to get to see it!
Weekend trip to Colorado Springs
We didn't know whether we would get to go to Colorado Springs last weekend for the Arms Around the World Missions Convention. The weather forecast was the worst possible for all of our area, south to Colorado Springs. We were bracing for 8 to 12 to 14 inches of snow. We prayed about it, telling God we really wanted to go, but we were not going to be foolish about it. When we woke up Saturday, there was just a skiff of snow. We took courage and went about our morning activities. Jeffrey had his ACT test in Greeley; Beth cleaned at the Chamber of Commerce; I went to the Parish House for docent training. When lunch time came, the snow had stopped without really bothering the roads at all. There was a little snow on the ground. Rowen checked the weather again and this is what he saw:
Johnstown is approximately at the Red X.
The storm stayed north and east of us! Even in Greeley, 20 miles from here, where Jeffrey tested, he drove through deep snow on the roads! We felt like the Lord intervened in the weather so we could go. Denver and south looked good, so we hurriedly packed a few things and left for Colorado Springs shortly after 2 pm. We had a good trip. The only snow on the road was in Monument Hill region, (of course, it will always be there if it is anywhere) and we had no slowdowns. We stayed with Rowen's cousin, Katie, and her dad, Uncle Alvin, where Seth Stevenson, one of our "adopted sons" was already staying. Seth was a big reason we wanted to go so badly. He lives in KY now and works at a Christian radio station and we hadn't seen him since Tim and Brenda's wedding last July.
We enjoyed the services Saturday night and Sunday morning at the AAW Convention and saw some of our friends who were there for the services.
Ben and Lori Kalovsky, from Mitchell, SD.
Walter and Carolyn Hagameier, from Burns, WY
Jerry and Heather Esparza, from Lakewood, enjoying a weekend celebrating their recent 26th anniversary!
Lloyd and Durenda Bley, from Mitchell, SD and Wauneta, NE.
There were many others there--packed church, and packed pastor's home where we ate Sunday dinner. It was a refreshing time for our souls and we were so glad we could go. Seth came home with us for the rest of Sunday evening and part of Monday, before we took him to the airport on Monday afternoon.
This is a view of Pike's Peak from Uncle Alvin and Katie's driveway. They get to look at this every day!
Johnstown is approximately at the Red X.
The storm stayed north and east of us! Even in Greeley, 20 miles from here, where Jeffrey tested, he drove through deep snow on the roads! We felt like the Lord intervened in the weather so we could go. Denver and south looked good, so we hurriedly packed a few things and left for Colorado Springs shortly after 2 pm. We had a good trip. The only snow on the road was in Monument Hill region, (of course, it will always be there if it is anywhere) and we had no slowdowns. We stayed with Rowen's cousin, Katie, and her dad, Uncle Alvin, where Seth Stevenson, one of our "adopted sons" was already staying. Seth was a big reason we wanted to go so badly. He lives in KY now and works at a Christian radio station and we hadn't seen him since Tim and Brenda's wedding last July.
We enjoyed the services Saturday night and Sunday morning at the AAW Convention and saw some of our friends who were there for the services.
Ben and Lori Kalovsky, from Mitchell, SD.
Walter and Carolyn Hagameier, from Burns, WY
Jerry and Heather Esparza, from Lakewood, enjoying a weekend celebrating their recent 26th anniversary!
Lloyd and Durenda Bley, from Mitchell, SD and Wauneta, NE.
There were many others there--packed church, and packed pastor's home where we ate Sunday dinner. It was a refreshing time for our souls and we were so glad we could go. Seth came home with us for the rest of Sunday evening and part of Monday, before we took him to the airport on Monday afternoon.
This is a view of Pike's Peak from Uncle Alvin and Katie's driveway. They get to look at this every day!
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Home School Day at the Capitol April 3, 2009
It is our privilege and duty to attend the Home School Day at the Capitol Rally in Denver each year. We have missed a few years, but usually Rowen takes the day off work so we can go as a family. There are lots of dads who must do that, because dads are very well represented in the crowd each year. We are thankful for the good home school law we have in Colorado, and pray that we get to keep it!
This picture is of some of the home school supportive representatives and senators with the mc of the rally. At least one other very supportive senator was missing because of a funeral, and I believe some had to leave for other obligations. One was going up the stairs in this picture.
Rowen took this picture of the rest of us in the crowd. There would be no way to get a good picture of how many people were there unless you were up high with a wide angle lens.
We liked seeing these words in the west capitol steps.
Someone else took this picture of the Albertsons by the banner after the rally.
Some of the crowd dispersing after the rally. Notice the umbrella on the left. Rain did sprinkle on us for about 10 minutes during the rally. We were thankful it wasn't worse!
More of the crowd dispersal.
Some of the home schoolers had a tour led by Senator Ted Harvey with the Generation Joshua Club after the rally. We appreciated the tour and the "Legislation 101" overview Senator Harvey gave us here in the Representative House Chamber.
Part of the home school group with Senator Harvey.
Up in the dome!
The view from the dome.
Rowen took this picture when we were leaving the capitol for our several-block walk back to where we parked. We were thankful for the beautiful day!
This picture is of some of the home school supportive representatives and senators with the mc of the rally. At least one other very supportive senator was missing because of a funeral, and I believe some had to leave for other obligations. One was going up the stairs in this picture.
Rowen took this picture of the rest of us in the crowd. There would be no way to get a good picture of how many people were there unless you were up high with a wide angle lens.
We liked seeing these words in the west capitol steps.
Someone else took this picture of the Albertsons by the banner after the rally.
Some of the crowd dispersing after the rally. Notice the umbrella on the left. Rain did sprinkle on us for about 10 minutes during the rally. We were thankful it wasn't worse!
More of the crowd dispersal.
Some of the home schoolers had a tour led by Senator Ted Harvey with the Generation Joshua Club after the rally. We appreciated the tour and the "Legislation 101" overview Senator Harvey gave us here in the Representative House Chamber.
Part of the home school group with Senator Harvey.
Up in the dome!
The view from the dome.
Rowen took this picture when we were leaving the capitol for our several-block walk back to where we parked. We were thankful for the beautiful day!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Snow in Johnstown
We got our first and possibly only significant snowfall of the Spring season this week. We only got about 8" - 12"; it was impossible to tell accurately due to the 20-40 mph wind with which it was delivered. Jeff and Jason helped remove it from stores and residences for two endless days; they are still trying to recover from it!
This afternoon Jason and Emily couldn't resist the 40-deg temps and the bright sunshine in the deep blue sky, to re-arrange the snow. They took what the Lord made horizontal and made it quite vertical!
Snowman above...less than 24-hours later.
Springtime in the Rockies!
This afternoon Jason and Emily couldn't resist the 40-deg temps and the bright sunshine in the deep blue sky, to re-arrange the snow. They took what the Lord made horizontal and made it quite vertical!
Snowman above...less than 24-hours later.
Springtime in the Rockies!
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Painting the Exterior of our House
This is the year when we feel that we must be good stewards of what the Lord has entrusted to us by painting the outside of our house. We have lived here for twenty years, and have painted it twice before.
Our house has 37-year old pressed-board lap siding, which really needs to be replaced in many areas, but it doesn't seem prudent to make a large investment in it, in this economy (ie. never get our money out of it...). The trim is in pretty good condition, except for the west gable end where the fascia board has been very warped and curling.
Note the blue wonder bar in Rowen's hand, which carved a nasty gash in his left palm shortly after this. It still hasn't healed completely, which gets him out of washing dishes ;-).
Now for the hurdle that we have before us.... We are having a hard time deciding on what color(s) to paint our house. When we moved here in 1989 it was mainly off-white with medium brown trim. Both times that we have painted it, we made it country white (like a dark cream color) with country blue trim. The last time we added a few accents of dark-cherry red. That all seems very normal to us now, though it used to be very special. So, we have been trying to decide if it is time for a change, and should it be a major change, or a more subtle one?
Our oldest sons live 750 miles away and have their own professional painting business. They love the new, outlandish colors! Tim suggested that we paint the siding a light sage green, with white trim, and dark red accents. Hmmm...we love those colors together, but how would they look with our un-changable - red brick? We have talked about a light gray for the siding, and hunter green trim, maybe a touch of dark red accents. Or ...........???
Look at these pictures and tell us what you think. Note that we are blessed to have two big trees in our front yard, making it impossible to get a good picture of the front of the house. These pictures were taken last week, before the leaves emerge on the linden tree (left side). Mid-summer you can hardly see the front of our house from the street at all. 
Our house has 37-year old pressed-board lap siding, which really needs to be replaced in many areas, but it doesn't seem prudent to make a large investment in it, in this economy (ie. never get our money out of it...). The trim is in pretty good condition, except for the west gable end where the fascia board has been very warped and curling.
Note the blue wonder bar in Rowen's hand, which carved a nasty gash in his left palm shortly after this. It still hasn't healed completely, which gets him out of washing dishes ;-).
We are in the process of replacing that, as well as about 200 linear ft of siding that was not worthy of paint. As soon as the weather permits (not this week) we will continue the re-construction in preparation for painting.
Emily and Jason were thrilled to be the ground crew on March 21, as we began our project before a major winter snow storm!
Jeff is glad to get valuable experience, as he decides whether his life work should be in construction.
Jason was glad that he had that hard hat on a couple of times!
Now for the hurdle that we have before us.... We are having a hard time deciding on what color(s) to paint our house. When we moved here in 1989 it was mainly off-white with medium brown trim. Both times that we have painted it, we made it country white (like a dark cream color) with country blue trim. The last time we added a few accents of dark-cherry red. That all seems very normal to us now, though it used to be very special. So, we have been trying to decide if it is time for a change, and should it be a major change, or a more subtle one?
Our oldest sons live 750 miles away and have their own professional painting business. They love the new, outlandish colors! Tim suggested that we paint the siding a light sage green, with white trim, and dark red accents. Hmmm...we love those colors together, but how would they look with our un-changable - red brick? We have talked about a light gray for the siding, and hunter green trim, maybe a touch of dark red accents. Or ...........???
Look at these pictures and tell us what you think. Note that we are blessed to have two big trees in our front yard, making it impossible to get a good picture of the front of the house. These pictures were taken last week, before the leaves emerge on the linden tree (left side). Mid-summer you can hardly see the front of our house from the street at all.
The roof has a slight bluish-greenish cast to it; hard to see from the ground, or in these pictures.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Our Web Cam
One of the things that we have been enjoying this year is our times of video-chatting with our web-cam connected online to Tim and Brenda's web-cam 750-miles away. The real-time free sight and sound communication with our out-of-reach family members, especially our only grandsons, is really enjoyable. Last night we were able to visit this way with Tim and Brenda, Joy, with Quil and baby Micah.
They looked like this; we didn't get a picture of how we looked ;-).
Let us know if you have a web-cam and want to visit that way also! We'll try to fit you into our online time.
They looked like this; we didn't get a picture of how we looked ;-).
Let us know if you have a web-cam and want to visit that way also! We'll try to fit you into our online time.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
New pictures of Quil and Micah!
Micah weighing 10# 9 oz at 7 weeks old!
Quil reading to Micah.
Quil checking out the ad.
Quil with the fierce eyebrows!
Micah wearing the Sunday-go-to-meeting tee shirt that Grandma Albertson took him when she got to visit!
We are happy to see new pictures of the boys. It's also fun to see them on video chat this week!
Quil reading to Micah.
Quil checking out the ad.
Quil with the fierce eyebrows!
Micah wearing the Sunday-go-to-meeting tee shirt that Grandma Albertson took him when she got to visit!
We are happy to see new pictures of the boys. It's also fun to see them on video chat this week!
A Picturesque Walk around Johnstown Reservoir
On March 15, 2009, we took a Sunday afternoon walk around Johnstown Reservoir. It was windy, but nice. The town has done a lot of work improving the shoreline for fishing, but we used the improvements for picture taking. In this picture, we were trying to all be the same height.
It was a perfectly "loverly" day! The cameraman found these lovers on a large rock!
It was a perfectly "loverly" day! The cameraman found these lovers on a large rock!
More on Emily's birthday
When we finished Jason and Jeffrey's quilt last summer, we started on a quilt for Emily. It had been mostly set aside because of the busyness of life and school, but after my trip to MO, I determined to get it done. I finished with the quilt top the week before Emily's birthday, and it is now in MO at the quilter's.
Emily was thrilled to get a box in the mail containing a violin shoulder rest! Tim and Brenda ordered it for her birthday.
When Michael Durkee was up for the weekend, he brought Emily a BLUE bow for her violin! It is very nice!
Emily got some new Sunday shoes and a new bike helmet, but they were things she needed. For a surprise, I ordered the game "Have You Herd?" on amazon.com for her birthday. We had played it at a homeschool game day and enjoyed it.
Here Beth and Emily are playing the game.
Beth ordered the whole set of Mildred Keith books for Emily. She will have plenty of books to read for awhile! Emily loves to read!
On her birthday evening, we had two friends over for supper and games. Celeste Roller and Lily Myers are special friends. Since her birthday was on a Tuesday, of course we had Taco Salad. That's what we do on Tuesdays!
We had a great time playing Have You Herd?, The Great Aunt Marlene game, Apples to Apples, and Pit. The time went much too quickly.
Emily had a happy 11th birthday! Several people called, sent cards, and sent greetings via email and facebook, so she felt loved and remembered!
Emily was thrilled to get a box in the mail containing a violin shoulder rest! Tim and Brenda ordered it for her birthday.
When Michael Durkee was up for the weekend, he brought Emily a BLUE bow for her violin! It is very nice!
Emily got some new Sunday shoes and a new bike helmet, but they were things she needed. For a surprise, I ordered the game "Have You Herd?" on amazon.com for her birthday. We had played it at a homeschool game day and enjoyed it.
Here Beth and Emily are playing the game.
Beth ordered the whole set of Mildred Keith books for Emily. She will have plenty of books to read for awhile! Emily loves to read!
On her birthday evening, we had two friends over for supper and games. Celeste Roller and Lily Myers are special friends. Since her birthday was on a Tuesday, of course we had Taco Salad. That's what we do on Tuesdays!
We had a great time playing Have You Herd?, The Great Aunt Marlene game, Apples to Apples, and Pit. The time went much too quickly.
Emily had a happy 11th birthday! Several people called, sent cards, and sent greetings via email and facebook, so she felt loved and remembered!
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