Big Giveaway.

Hey Everyone...My friend Toni hooked me up with this great website that is giving away a Silhouette Machine.  I would so enjoy one of these.

Check it out.http://www.decorchick.com/giveaway/silhouette-machine-giveaway-and-special-discount-code/

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

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Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!! 

Sorry I have been away for a few days.  But I would like to introduce you to Bentley.  Bentley belongs to my friends, Debbie and Gordy.  He is a champion Miniature Schnauzer and he is a little beauty.  Quite a character too.  Here is a picture of him when he was our tour guide at Eldorado Canyon on Tuesday.   Eldorado is one of his favorite places to go and we sure did have fun hiking with him.

So Tuesday we went to Bass Pro Shop and hiked in Eldorado Canyon and Wednesday Debbie took us looking at houses.  She thinks we should do a single family home rather than a condo.  Dianne and I did find one place that we liked that is in a "front porch" community.  We also saw a couple of places that had great mountain views but the floor plans were a little screwed up for what we  want.  After looking at houses, Deb brought us back to Tom  and Cindy's in time for Tom's birthday dinner.  After a nice dinner that Cindy worked her butt of on, the neighbors came over to wish Tom a happy birthday and for drinks and cake.  Tom and Cindy are fortunate that they have super nice neighbors.  I hope that Dianne and I can get that lucky when we move out here.

Today, Dianne and I slept in   Then kind of hung out watching TV while Tom and Cindy took a nap.  Cindy prepared a huge ham, two sweet potato casseroles, green bean casserole and stuffing.  About 3 pm or so we toted all the food over to their neighbor's for dinner.  So we got to see all the people we had met last night.  It was a very nice time.  Unfortunately, Tom couldn't make the dinner.  He is on call this weekend for his job and he had to drive into the mountains to an outlet mall so he could fix some cash registers that were down at the Gap and Old Navy. 

So now that you have met our tour guide, Bentley, I'll leave you with a picture of Eldorado Canyon.  This canyon is famous for being a destination for people all around the world to learn to do technical climbing on the sheer cliffs.  It is beautiful, but those people are nuts!!!

The Haunted Stanley

Yesterday (Monday) we went on a little trip to Estes Park where the Stanley Hotel is located.  The Stanley Hotel is famous for the book by Stephen King and the move "The Shining".  This is a side entrance but it is a gorgeous old building.   I would like to stay there some time.  It is on my bucket list along with the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island.  The inside of the hotel looks as it did a century ago and it is beautiful.   They are famous for their ghost sightings and my friend Gordy has seen two on a previous trip.  I was hoping to bump into one but no such luck for me.  The views from the hotel are stunning.  It is on a hill and everything is just so beautiful.  Even in a snow storm.

Before we ventured up to the Stanley, we had lunch and hit some shops in downtown Estes Park.  We ate at the Grubstake and I bought a hooded sweatshirt at one of the shops.  I told the lady to cut the tags off and skip the bag because I wanted to wear it.  (It was about 20 degrees and I needed something warm under my jacket.)  So as I was trying to zip up the sweatshirt I couldn't get the zipper to line up right.  I made a comment and the sales lady came around the counter and said "Honey, you are zipping it up to the wrong zipper."  I was trying to zip the sweatshirt with my jacket zipper.  I had an outburst and said "I'm such a retard."  That made everyone laugh.  Well everyone except Bentley. 

Bentley is my girlfriend's dog.  He is a champion Miniature Schnauzer and he is beautiful.  He's also the most laid back dog I've ever met.  I'm sure he doesn't like me but Debbie said that is just how he is and he does like me.  Bentley went with us yesterday on our adventure. 

We decided to not head into Rocky Mountain National Park but to head home because it was starting to get dark and with the snow it was getting a little icy in spots.  But on the way back we stopped at a house along the Big Thompson River that Debbie is trying to sell to one of her clients.  This place was a dump but the location was oh so beautiful.  The scenery was stunning and we got to see some beaver work up close.  The beavers have selected this spot as a place to build a dam and they are very busy cutting down aspens.  It was very fastinating to get up close to the trees and take a good look at how beavers operate.

BIGHORNS!!!

Yesterday we took a ride to the old mining towns of Black Hawk and Central City which are now casino towns.  It's really kind of a shame that they have ruined the character of these quaint old towns.  But anyway, we had a good time at the casino for a couple of hours.   Then my sister and I shot our winnings on some beautiful CZ rings.  After the ride to the casino, we were going to meet up with my friends, Debbie and Gordy, at Edgewater Pizza and then spend a few days with them.  So on the way  back we decided to take a turn and head to Idaho Springs.  As we were cruising along, we were going around a curve in the mountains and all of a sudden the traffic stopped.  We are all wondering "WTH???" and I looked out the window and saw a sheep's ass in the window.  I yelled "SHEEP"!!!  Cindy told Tom to flip a U-turn so that we could stop and take these pictures.  We thought at first that there were only four or five sheep by the road but the more we looked the more we saw.  Then low and behold, this big ram came down the mountain to round up his girls.  What a great opportunity to see wildlife up close.

WE'RE HERE!!!!

Day 1: We arrived in Denver around noon yesterday. We didn't do a whole lot on our first day here but hang out with Tom and Cindy and eat. We hit a couple of really good places to eat. The first one was Village Inn, which Cindy and Tom refers to as an upscale Denny's. I had a bowl of potato soup and half of a "grown up grilled cheese" sandwich which was yummy. After that we came back to Tom and Cindy's condo. Tom has a bug of some sort and wasn't feeling the best so we hung out until it was time to eat again and hit the road for Deli Zone where Cindy's son, Cody, works. Had a yummy Frech dip sandwich. Back to Tom and Cindy's where we had a shot of Patrone tequila. After that I had the instant sensation that I was going to puke. After I let out a few belches and had some 7Up my stomach calmed down. We watched TV for a while and being utterly exhausted, Dianne and I went up to our room and crashed about 8:30 Denver time.

Day 2: Slept in today. Tom had a doctors appointment so we are just hanging out for a while. I guess we are going to hit Wal-Mart later today. Tom wants to make ribs tomorrow and I guess they are killer good. I don't expect anything too much today except maybe seeing some great mountain views on the way to Wal-Mart. I'll update you all later.

COUNTDOWN CONTINUES

Denver is getting closer!!! Today was my last day of work for two weeks. Tomorrow I will have a full day. I have to get up early to take my girls to camp. Then I'll stop at my good friend, Deb's, for a haircut. Then I have to beat feet home so I can grab my suitcase and head for Chicago. Well actually Elk Grove Village. My sister and I are going to do some last minute things at her place, like take her dog to camp and pack her stuff for the trip.

Then Thursday morning we have to get up bright and early and go to Carol's house so that we can park our car there and get a ride to Midway airport. It's a 2 hour non stop flight to Denver. By noon,Denver time, we will be in Colorado hugging my cousin, Tom, and his wife, Cindy.

Can you tell I'm excited? I cannot wait!!!