Climbing Again

Rock climbing again was the adventure this weekend. We took two of the wrestling coaches and one of Caleb's friends along with us. Brady must have gotten a few shots of me this time so I can actually prove I was there! I did well, but I've decided I need to get back into my pull ups rather than my wussy "core strength" video that I've been doing to save time. Brady kicked my butt and it was his first time. He also has youth on his side, but I'm not going to start using age as an excuse ... yet!!

Me going up.

Me going down.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I've been thinking about learning to play the guitar. Back in high school, both my sister and my boyfriend taught themselves how to play. As a result, I didn't need to! But with Julie in another state and the boyfriend no longer the boyfriend, I've been thinking I should teach myself. What else would go with my two current favorite things to do ... 1. sit by a campfire and 2. sit on the porch ... better than a guitar? I was going to buy a used one with my birthday money, but Jon had some old ones and he gave me one. I'm pretty excited about it. Tanner says I won't really use it, which is making me even more determined to make sure that I do! (I think he knows that and is why he is saying that!) So wish me luck, and feel free to ask me about it periodically to make sure I am actually doing it!

Memorial Day

We took a break during all of the funeral proceedings to enjoy the outdoors and do a little rock climbing. Neither Tanner nor I had been in a long time, so we ended up really only setting up two routes. But it was a beautiful day and we had a great time.

I was a little unsure about bringing Drake, especially after he almost nosedived off a cliff in the first few minutes we were there. But he had a great time and managed to stay alive!

I'm going to be as active as Jon when I am his age!

Story For The Grandkids

If we ever end up with grandkids, here is a story I will tell them:

A long, long time ago ... before your parents were even born, your Grandfather had a motorcyle that he convinced me was a practical purchase because it didn't use much gasoline. That is what we used to run our vehicles back then, and it cost a lot of money! He knew how much I enjoyed to ride that motorcyle, and he knew how much I loved ice cream. So one day, not long after my own grandfather's funeral, your Grandpa decided to try to cheer me up by taking me on a motorcyle ride to a place that he used to stop and get ice cream when he was a kid.

It started out a beautiful ride. It was spring time and the flowers were all starting to bloom. The leaves were all out on the trees and a lot of times they towered over the narrow, winding roads so much it felt like you were in a tunnel of green. We rode past lots of big farmhouses and lots of cows with thier calves playing in the fields. We were on some back roads for a while where neither of us had been before, but your Grandpa always knew where we would end up.

I didn't know where we were going, but we eventually pulled into a little snack shop called Scottys. Just as we were ordering our dinner and ice cream, a bolt of lightning split the sky and a crack of thunder boomed. We enjoyed our dinner and ice cream thinking we could just wait out the storm. But we finished eating and the rain was still coming down strong. So, we did the only thing we could do ... rode home.

My sunglasses were too big for my head and the combination of my wet face and the wind was not helping to keep them on. I ended up taking them off for a while, closing my eyes, and ducking my head behind your Grandpa's broad shoulders. Our raincoats didn't end up being much help from the torential downpour and we were soon soaked to the bone and shivering. When we got back on the backroads again and had to slow down I put my sunglasses back on again. Only then did I realize how much lightning was blazing though the sky. I almost closed my eyes again becuase I really don't like lightning! At one point, your Grandpa actually almost drove up someone's driveway becuase he couldn't see where the road was going with all the rain.

I knew that the point of this whole experience was because Grandpa was trying to cheer me up. Remembering that helped me from getting too mad, but I have to admit there were times that I was very scared. I kept thinking "If we get home safe, this will make a great story to tell the grandkids someday!" By now, you know that we both ended up home safely and I wasn't too mad at your Grandpa ... or you wouldn't be here to hear this story!

Saying Goodbye

I said goodby to a very honorable and kind old man last night. Actually, I just said goodnight, becuase I didn't want to eliminate the possibility that he might get through this, but it will serve if it really is goodbye. People were telling me that even though he was in a morphine-enduced sleep he could still hear me. I really want to find out if that is true, or if they were just saying that for my benefit and he really was just sound asleep. I mean, I'm really glad that they said that becuase it did make me feel better thinking that I could say "goodnight" even though he looked fast asleep. But now my scientific mind won't leave it at that. I don't hear things in my sleep, do you?

Spring Has Sprung!

It is spring here in Western PA. I have to say, this place is growing on me as it gets more and more green. The lady who lived in the house before us had a lot of flowers planted. It is all overgrown now, but flowers keep popping up. I'm afraid to weed because it might not be a weed! I figure I can learn what everything is this year and then make it beautiful again as I go.

We also have lots of new baby neighbors. From lambs to calves to foals ... and maybe even a goat or two before it is all over. I love watching the lambs run around while I'm working. They are so playful! I got a blurry picture of some of the calves who live in our backyard.
And one of the mama cows decided that the grass was greener on our side of the fence. Drake actually went right up to her and she licked his nose. It was hysterical!

Biking in Western PA

Here are a few thoughts I was having while biking for the first time this year yesterday:
1. There are a lot of big hills here.
2. I need get this bike fixed so that I can shift into the easier gears.
3. That rain actually feels good!
4. I can't believe how many hills there are here.
I decided this weekend to do the triathlon in Morgantown that I had been thinking about. Yesterday was day 1 of training for it. I already feel more fit!