It’s been a long time!
When last we wrote we were leaving Mexico and heading back to Arizona for a short visit and then on to Golden to spend Christmas with everyone in Colorado.
We had a quick but nice visit with friends and family in Phoenix and did one of those non-stop marathon drives north…….trying to beat a snowstorm and not wanting to unload the jeep of a LOT of stuff and a cat and dog. The trip north
The trip reinforced our thoughts to see if we could trade in the jeep and get a newer one that has cruise control! We decided if we could get a high enough trade-in we would. Long story short, Jim got a brand new shiny black Jeep Wrangler Rubicon for Christmas. We are thinking of getting a vanity plate that says “BADNBLK” It’s gorgeous and has cruise control, an awesome stereo system, Sirius radio and a half removable roof should we decide to go topless! It still has all the off-road bells and whistles but needless to say we are a little bit more concerned about body damage now. The only thing it does not have is 4 doors but we wanted to keep the towing weight down for the motorhome.
We spent a wonderful Christmas with friends and family and started our job up in Estes Park the 1st of January. We feel so blessed to have found this job! We work for 3 months then we get to play for 3 months.. It is situated in such a beautiful location that we have to pinch ourselves every once in awhile to make sure we aren’t dreaming. (www.riverspruce.com).
Alisha, Billy, Jeremy and Brandy (Yes...he is in a “relationship”...we love her) and all the kids came up in January for Becky’s birthday (she turned the big 60 this year) and we went sledding and had a blast. Family fun
We’ve just finished our three months at River Spruce and it was a very busy time! It seemed like we had more reservations this year, especially during the week and we had lots of projects to do in between. Becky made new tab curtains for all the cabins and Jim had lots of “honey do” maintenance projects to keep him busy. He also made new headboards out of beetle-kill pine planks for 1 cabin and aspen curtain rods and hangers for several of the cabins. He and Michelle (our housekeeper) also painted 6 cabins’ kitchen cabinets. River Spruce projects
This year we had many of elk encounters along with mountain sheep, owls and turkeys. Wildlife encounters at River Spruce
We tried out a lot of new restaurants and even went to deep water aerobics at the community pool. Becky’s done water aerobics before but never in deep water (10 feet ) and the whole concept was new to Jim. Imagine doing your workout while standing or sitting on a pool noodle or pushing foam barbells through the water without drowning in the process and you get the idea! Lots of fun and great exercise. Kinda kicked Jim’s butt though. He decided shoveling lots of snow was all the workout he needed. The snow came down thick and fast when it stormed and we worried that we would run out of space to put it all. But it all melted by the 1st of April and then it snowed a foot just in time for Wendye and Shelley’s homecoming and it was their turn to shovel snow.
The highlight of our time there was when Chainsaw Mama came to carve a totem out of an aspen tree that died. Chainsaw carving It was incredible watching her work. She uses 4 chainsaws, a drill with a couple of attachments along with a small torch. With a tree you have to get it right the first time….there aren’t any do-overs. She’s an amazing artist. Check out pictures of her work. www.chainsawmama.com
Alisha and our grandkids came up over Spring Break. We spent a couple of whirlwind days playing including going to the rock climbing room at the Mountain Shop. Becky and the kids all put on harnesses and ropes and climbed the walls! Then they went to the rock shop, the glass blowing studio, the taffy shop and of course the T-shirt shop. They ran out of time before they could play mini golf but we had a great UNO tournament! Spring break at River Spruce
We went to Golden for Easter. Billy got a new smoker and we had smoked ham….it was sooooo good. An intense Easter egg hunt and lots of fun….the whole family was there.
Now we are on our way to Sacramento to visit Avey and Albert and love on little Elena...she turned a year old in February so we have some serious grandbaby holding to do. We are also going to see Karen and Holden and Bella in Merced and visit with old friends Marvin and Carlene up on the delta.
The trip has been pretty uneventful so far. We did stop and get gas next to the Bonneville Salt Flats Speedway. Then we stopped for lunch at a Burger King in Elko, Nevada and they had the coolest coke dispenser. It is touch screen and you can choose from all drinks OR low/no calorie OR caffeine free OR fruit flavored. They advertise over 500 choices and the machine is smaller than a regular soda dispenser…...what will they think of next? California trip part 1
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