Castlewood

 We snuck a quick hike in at Castlewood Canyon today before the snow and cold come back tomorrow…

I felt like we needed some outside time before being stuck indoors for the next few days. (It’s not supposed to get above freezing until Friday.) 

Castlewood was absolutely stunning… 

…the blue sky, the bit of snow on the ground and decorating the peaks in the distance. Including, of course, my favorite peak: Tava. I really have a hard time with Tava being “discovered” by Zebulon Pike back in 1806, when it had already been well known and revered by native tribes for hundreds of years before Pike stumbled upon it. It already had a name too, when they named it after Pike. I much prefer it’s original name Tava (meaning Sun). 

Speaking of Tava. Here it is dominating the horizon to the south…

I love how it looks in this photo, framed by the two ponderosa pines. 

We call the smaller mountain just south/east of it (almost hidden behind one of the pines) “little sister” but it’s really Almagre  Mountain and is over 12, 000’ high! It just looks small next to stately Tava…

We had a lovely hike… it was wonderful to get outside and hike a little after the snowy January we’ve had. 

Snowy day walk…

 It was a snowy day and R and I decided it was just too beautiful out to stay inside, so we bundled up and headed out for a walk in the snowstorm. 

The wind wasn’t bad until we got to the top of the hill, then it hit us full force and was COLD… so we quickly turned and headed for home. 

As we got close to home we saw that the front yard had been completely taken over by deer while we were gone. We counted 14 of them, none of whom seemed very concerned about our intruding on their little get together.

We were pretty cold when we got home, but the wood stove warmed us up quickly. 

There is nothing like being cold to make a person really appreciate warmth!

Early morning beauty…

 I woke up this morning to hoarfrost covering everything…the sun was back out, after a foggy day yesterday, and it was breathtakingly beautiful.

The end of an era 😢

 Joe’s folk’s house is sold, closing is on the 21st. This is a necessary step, but so sad for everyone. Joe’s parents designed and had the house built around 1972/1973. It’s been the family gathering place ever since… It’s been a part of my life since Joe and I started dating when I was 17. We all gathered there together for every holiday, and grieved there together after every funeral. 

Joe’s dad died in that house. 

It is a strong, but quirky house, built for a family of 13 kids. It has eight tiny little bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a huge two sided fireplace in the “step down” living room. It has a small “galley” kitchen which over looks the dining area which is big enough for one table that seats 10, plus one or two smaller tables for 4. That was never enough seats, of course, we usually had 30-40 people for holiday dinners.. so the rest of us sat in the living room, or even just stood in the kitchen… visiting while we ate. After dinner, when the noise level got to just be too much, I’d start clearing the tables and head into the kitchen to start the clean up. Clean up was always a nice, companionable time… Joe’s mom, one or two of his sisters, and myself and whoever else wandered in to help working together, bringing a bit of order out of chaos.

Our wedding rehearsal dinner was held in that house, and two of our babies were baptized there. It’s hard to imagine someone else living there.

But the house is old and needs work… and we are too old to take on the job, even if we did have the money to buy it. 

Which we don’t. 

I am surely going to miss it though. I learned a lot in that house during in the 48 years we were acquainted…

I learned that cooking for a crowd isn’t a big deal, just keep putting food on the table.

I learned to waste nothing, scraping the pot well might give someone an extra helping of mashed potatoes.

I learned that just being together can be a joyous celebration, or a comfort in grief.

I learned that the best kitchens always have a cookie jar (or old Tupperware box) full of homemade cookies.

I learned that “fake it til you make it” is a good way for a shy person to manage in a group of 30 or so close relatives.

I learned to get out of the way quick when the “boys” start horsing around.

I learned there’s always space at the table for someone who needs family on a holiday, or any day.

I learned that holding hands in a circle and praying together is powerful and holy.

I learned countless other things in that house, too many to list…

…it’s a place close to my heart.

Some of us gathered there yesterday, pandemic or not, for one last family get together in the house. Joe’s mom was there, most of her children, a few grandchildren and one of her great grandchildren. 

I took pictures, wanting to freeze time… to keep the house, and all of us together, forever. 

But that is not to be, of course. 😢

A few pictures:

Joe’s oldest sister, his mom, me and Joe (caught in mid blink!) Love the group on the background… that’s how it always was… people everywhere, visiting and enjoying being together.

M visiting with Grandma and giving her a kiss…I’m not sure she knew much of what was going on around her, but she always seems to enjoy having her family around.

Joe’s mom “helping” his brother with one of her great grandbabies… she still loves babies! 

 

Joe…

…and his mom with her three daughters…

I’m going to miss that place so much… 

It was a bright spot…

 …in the day. Literally.

After spending at least five hours today learning about and comparing insurance plans for Joe (and eventually signing up for one), and getting him a new cell phone and switching his old number over… (Why does this all sound so much easier than it was?!)…while at the same time keeping M on a somewhat even keel and dealing with the regular dramas and responsibilities of the day… I was exhausted. 

The kids and I had planned to take the dogs for an easy hike on a nearby trail that we’d never explored, but those plans went out the window and we spent that time sitting in a cell phone store instead.

It was not a good day.

The sun was already starting to go down, but I suggested we take the poor neglected dogs just down to the park in town for a quick walk before bringing burgers home for dinner. 

The Christmas lights were still up at the park, including on one of our favorite trees…

 

…this huge old cottonwood, totally decked out in lights. 🥰

It truly was the bright spot in an otherwise long, frustrating, day.

I’m so glad we took that short little walk. 

That face…

 

Owl hunting

 R just loves great horned owls and so we’ve spent a bit of time over the past couple of years searching for nests, and trying to get a glimpse of owls. Last year we were fortunate enough to find an active nest that was close enough that we could see the babies. It was high in a tree along the route we drive into town, and we loved watching the babies grow and eventually fledge. 

This afternoon we decided to make a trip out to Flying B Park, which is known for having great horned  owls, to look for nests. 

It was a lovely day for a walk… just a bit of snow on the ground but still warm enough to be perfect weather for walking. 

We didn’t see any owls (although I’m sure they were there) but did find quite a few nests that we’ll check from time to time to see if there is any activity. 

The park is located where there once was a small farm. The farmhouse is still there, but we’ve never been inside… we also found this little root cellar? storm shelter? built into a hill. 

There is also a lovely little pond and dock… we’re already planning some picnics here when it’s a bit warmer. 

And of course, it’s always good to spend some time with my favorite trees… 

It was a perfect way to spend a couple of hours on a mild winter day…

Finn update…

Things have changed a bit since I first posted about Finn, the dog B adopted from the shelter who turned out to hate cats. Finn came here a few weeks ago so B could study for finals without the chaos of cat hating dog plus cat in 700 sq ft condo! 

It’s looking now like Finn is here to stay. I definitely fell in love with him, despite him biting me a couple of times when he first came. (Luckily he has only a few teeth!) And Christmas morning I opened a tiny gift from B and this is what it was…

She gave me Finn. It was such a completely unselfish gift, motivated by her knowing it would be so hard on him to go back and forth (after being abandoned, then moving back and forth from short term home to shelter a few times), and knowing that I had fallen in love with him. 

So, here he is! It’s been kind of a bumpy ride so far… He’s definitely a “good dog”, he’s house trained, doesn’t dig or tear up the yard, and isn’t nearly as barky as Piper… but does hate chickens as well as cats. So far, this week, he’s jumped into the clean-out door on the side of the coop while I was cleaning (I had no idea he’d fit, or could jump that high!), and I had to climb partway into the dirty coop to drag him out! 🤢 And… M let him out while I was feeding the chickens, he got into the chicken yard, chased one hen out into the yard and chased her around while she screamed bloody murder and I ran around behind trying to catch one or the other of them. He finally cornered her, and had her in his mouth when I caught him. She wasn’t hurt (luckily he has only a few teeth!) and we are now working hard on teaching him it’s not ok to try to eat my chickens. 

Mostly he’s a good dog though and fun to have around. He still bites once in a while… only M 😂… but never hurts him. (Luckily he has only a few teeth… Notice a theme here?)

Doesn’t he have the sweetest face? 

I think it’s pretty cool that I actually got a dog for Christmas. Maybe I should rename him something Christmas -y?

Brrr…

 It’s been cold the past few mornings!