3-7-10

A productive day for Chrissy's Kids. Here is Squirt living up to his name- one he received at the age of two from antics with a hose- washing the car on this warm almost-spring day.

Aza was productive inside painting the kitchen. She is simply amazing. Pictures of the completed kitchen and dining room to follow.

Dan was productive cheering on the Kentucky Wildcats to a win. Meanwhile, I was less than productive. Spent the first half of the day in bed with a headache and very achy belly. Spent the afternoon grading papers. Tonight we will watch the Oscars, I'm sure. I hope Avatar wins all sorts of awards!

3-6-10

Aza arrived yesterday. How wonderful to have her here! Last night we watched The Fellowship of the Ring on DVD, all four of us snuggled up on the couch under blankets together. Today while I was grading papers, Aza painted the dining room. Yep- she's that good. It looks beautiful. Dan and I went out to dinner tonight with Miss March and her husband Mr. March, and a good time was had by all. Tomorrow I hope Aza paints the kitchen while I grade papers again and Dan goes to the basketball game with Mr. March.

3-3-10

For lack of a photo today I give you a screenshot of my latest
addiction- playing scrabble on my iPhone with my friend DrFisher who,
for once, is losing. We shall see how the game goes. She usually
whoops my butt in the end.

Today I joined a gym. Nothing else is working.

3-2-10

Airports all day. I have a love/hate relationship with Detroit. I love
the water fountain and wish I had my Nikon with me to capture some
cool shots of it. However, I HATE the psychedelic tunnel. Got home
with plenty of time to rest up before Lost.

3-1-10

We left Steamboat this morning for Denver. Jes drove. We went shopping
downtown then went to see Avatar in 3D at an Imax theatre. It was
definitely as amazing as everyone alluded. Dinner at a BBQ restaurant
then a nite in hotel. Tomorrow Dan and I fly home while Jes returns
to Steamboat.

2-28-10

Last day of February. Dan and I spent the afternoon walking around downtown, then after lunch Jes drove in the snow to Strawberry Hot Springs.

We soaked for a couple hours as the snow was coming down and the steam from the hot water was rising up. It was SO relaxing, and surprisingly easy to get out into 30 degree air with a wet swimsuit and towel dry.

2-27-10

A bridge over Yampa River...

Above, the downtown of Steamboat Springs. Below, Jes in front of her house.

Woke up with a lingering headache again. Directly above is the view out of Jes's bedroom window where we are sleeping. My sweet husband walked into town and came back with a latte for me- warm and succulent. Sure to help take the edge off this ache de tete. This afternoon Jes and I walked downtown where we saw the original hot springs in town off the Yampa River. Tonight we are going to see Jes's roommate in a dance recital thing.

2-26-10

Rough night of non-sleep, light came in the window early- and bright- from all the snow reflecting it outside. Above is the view from Jes's front door. Snow up to the railing. Below is a view of her back yard- a snow filled container surrounding by the tops of a fence.

The icecycles coming off the roof of her house are monumental. And they break off during the day with a crash while one is napping.

This is where I hung out all day recovering from my epic voyage yesterday. Dan and Jes went skiing while I curled up on the couch trying to stay warm with a cat on my lap and a wood stove blazing, reading Discover magazine. I could have taken a walk into town but recovering from an epic voyage also meant tending to a very bad headache.

Once the sun went down, and Dan was home, we walked to where Jes works and got a grande tour. She is doing some fun stuff with these kids. They are lucky to have her. Ironically she works with a young woman who 1)also went to UVA 2)lived in the same dorm as Jes three doors down 3) double majored in the same exact fields 4)four years before Jess. Wild. Also, her roommate is her best friend from the 4th grade who also made her way to Colorado from Virginia after college.

We went to dinner at the Cottonwood Grill or Inn or something like that and had a wonderful time. I wish so much that Jes could be part of our lives on a more regular basis. It sucks having her so far away.

2-25-10

Today was one of those traveling days from hell. I left Lexington around 7am this morning and by the time I got to Jess's house in Steamboat Springs, Colorado 20 hours later I probably could have been in New Zealand. Traveling in the wintertime is just so unpredictable. I should have known that a connection in Detroit was a baaaad idea. I'm thankful I made it at last, but am not looking forward to the return trip on Tuesday. Here are the key highlights of the day as I wished I'd flown US Air instead of using my frequent flyer points on Delta:
*waking up to see snow. again. in Kentucky....
*sitting on the runway for an hour waiting to be de-iced in Lexington
*landing in Detroit just as my flight to Denver was taking off without me
*having to scan my boarding pass for an alternate plan and seeing that the alternate plan meant a trip to Atlanta
*flying first class from Detroit to Atlanta and getting served treats from a basket
*having to pay $50 for an earlier flight from Atlanta to Denver
*missing every phone call to and from Dan while he was traveling from Lexington to Denver via Charlotte on a USAir free ticket.
*Landing in Denver then RUNNING through the airport to try and catch the 3pm shuttle to Steamboat and missing it
*Sitting in a corridor near an electric outlet to charge my iPhone in Denver for 3 hours (see photo above)
*crammed on a bus with 10 passengers on what should have been a 3 hour trip to Steamboat, but was a 5.5 hour trip through a snowstorm
*pulling up to my daughter's house and seeing her wave at me through the window and my husband come out to greet me. Priceless.

2-24-10

For the past two days I have been observing student teachers in high schools around the county. Today after a long day at one school I drove to my office to pick up my computer for our trip tomorrow. It was snowing and I tried to capture that with my iPhone camera... to no avail. Tomorrow morning we leave bright and early (actually it won't be bright yet- it will be prior to dawn) for Colorado to visit Jes! Squirt will be holding down the fort, working, and taking care of Frisbee. Look for very snowy pictures to come!

2-22-10

Mom, what are you taking my picture for? Come on! I'm just cooking dinner- what's the big deal?

Thank you Squirt. He cleaned up too.

2-21-10

The snow is melting and the snowdrops are in bloom. Today I went to church and enjoyed myself thoroughly, came home and had fresh bread with avocado on it... then went shopping for some new clothes. Cooked dinner, did some work, and made plans for the week. I checked out a book from the library and look forward to reading it in bed tonight.

Found this beetle in the leaf litter and thought I'd bring out his stunning color by making the surroundings black and white. He was really a beautiful beetle!

2-20-10

Went to E-day today and waited 15 minutes for this Rube Goldberg contraption to go off before I gave up and attended a luncheon.

Came home from luncheon to find Dan's bread dough had risen up and out of the mixing bowl and down the sides. What a hoot! Well, it baked up fine and we had it for dinner. A rustic potato bread with rye, caraway, and mashed potatoes. Warm with butter....mmmmm....

I had a migraine today and after treating it, fell asleep. Woke up depressed- think it was the effects of seretonin depletion. I don't know, but it was a horrid thing to feel. I just sat there and cried for no reasons at all. What a terrible way to live, even for a short time. It lasted a few hours then melted away after a warm bath.

Happy birthday, Mom! 76 sure looks good on you. I wish I could have driven down to visit today.

2-19-10

I don't look like this. At least I'd better not. Someone was taking photos today during our conference at the university and even though the camera looked decent, the individual did not know how to operate the machinery. The flash was pointed incorrectly. The aim and focus were off in most of the photos. This one of me is just horrid. It has been posted on a website and I'm horrified. At least here it's anonymous! Next year at this particular conference I'll be the one taking photos! I look like an alien growing out of a red head's brain! Photoshop my butt off and it will be hilarious! Anyway, the conference was great.

2-16-10

Left for school early in the snow this morning. Came home to a sweet Valentine card from a special little girl wearing a chicken apron! Watched Lost tonight- highlight of the day. That and the Valentine card :)

2-15-10

Decided to bring my camera with me on my trek to school this morning. Leaving the house...

Entering the arboretum...

Arriving at the bus stop on Limestone, I see a snow thing across the street.

I walk to my building and work all day only to reverse and repeat the journey at 5pm in more blowing snow...

2-14-10

Happy Valentine's Day! In the absence of Gearhart's Chocolates, Dan got me the next best thing- Old Kentucky Derby Mints. Mmmmm.... we enjoyed them so after dinner. It's supposed to snow 8 inches tonight in which case all my many meetings scheduled for tomorrow would be postponed, but I doubt it will happen. I'd better "do my homework" anyway just in case, as I used to tell my kids.

2-13-10

Happy Birthday Squirt! I can't believe my baby is 19 years old. We had a little "afternoon tea party" with Squirt and our neighbors where we served homemade breads, cucumber spread, homemade cinnamon buns, mint tea and Earl Grey tea. A good time was had by all... evening spent watching the Olympics. I can't believe they are having to keep the snow from melting in Canada with tubes of dry ice. Freaky freaky weather. Yesterday 49 states had snow- now that's a satellite image I'd like to see.

2-12-10

The College Snowperson. After my morning breakfast writing group, I had a luncheon at school. After the lunch I was walking back to my office when I spied two employees making a little snowperson outside Dickey Hall. Couldn't resist taking an iPhone picture of the blind dude.

Tonight Dan took me out to dinner to celebrate the successful submission of a 1.2 million dollar grant proposal I've been working on for about a year and a half. Unfortunately, we decided to try a local German restaurant and it was not good. I spent the rest of the evening in bed, but managed to get up to watch most of the opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics. Gave up around midnight when the flame had still not been lit. Argh!