Anniversary

Wishing my Mom and Dad a very Happy Anniversary! I 'd like to toast my parents as they celebrate 45 years together! Love you!

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. starting to feel more human after this nasty flu
2. being outside in this beautiful weather
3. lists to help keep organized
4. new found energy now that I am starting to feel better
5. long chats with good friends
6. Michael's Mom's birthday - Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Mom :)

I just wanted to wish my mom a very happy birthday!

Keep Running

Meatless Meals

Something I would like to start doing is more meatless meals - even do a Meatless Monday so that dinner every Monday is meatless.

Here are a few recipes that I think would be perfect for it...

White Bean and Sage Patties with roasted tomato sauce

Source: wholeliving.com via Darby on Pinterest

Crustless Quiche with Spinach, Mushrooms & Feta Cheese

Source: budgetbytes.blogspot.com via Darby on Pinterest

Rice and Bean Burger 

Source: wholeliving.com via Darby on Pinterest

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...

1. soup

2. time chatting with friends

3. a friend visiting soon

4. kleenex 

5. Kevin Smith for making me laugh

Prank

We don't have regular tv. We use the Roku for watching movies and content that can be streamed through the Roku. So I don't watch Ellen but think she is a fabulous person!  Anyway I like Kristin Chenoweth too and this little prank is just funny that she doesn't get what is going on behind her. 

Hit ... hard......

It was bound to happen.

We left the safe confines of our bubble, we interacted with the general population - we got what we deserved.

Okay - actually that's not true, but what is true is that I'm nearing week #1 of having one of the worse colds I've had in recent memory. Poor Darby is a week behind me as we scatter around to try and figure out what the best way is going to be to rid our bodies with this gunk.

So far - the only that seems to make any difference is .... sleep.

Last week we were burning the candle and both ends - getting ramped up to what was supposed to be an extended trip back east. Thankfully that didn't happen because of these colds we got instead. It's your standard intense upper respiratory, body ache, fever on, fever off, fever back on, cough cough cough, physically and emotionally draining cold.

Darby was an angel taking care of me the first few days until she got it - now the tables are reversed as I'm starting to emerge from the cold-bug, while she's about 48 hours behind me. *ughs* I'm trying to take care of her while dealing with my own ebola-like cough that sends people to move in a 15 foot buffer away from me ... which is fine - I really don't want to pass this onto anyone.

On the plus side of things, at least we still got some projects done - completed and delivered. There's a blessing there - I just wish that this thing didn't hit us so hard.

Anyway - if you start getting symptoms, be very vigilant in getting rest, taking whatever voodoo medicine you take to ward off the germies, eat right, drink a lot of liquid and sleep sleep sleep.

Knowing What to Do

I love that I am exposed to beautiful art by so many talented artists via  Pinterest. This piece is by Jenny Wunderly

Source: pryorfineart.com via Darby on Pinterest

Where

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. making it Denver - even if it made for a long day
2. spending the night here - because we are so tired
3. jelly bean season!
4. Chinese food for dinner
5. allergy meds

Things I want to send out to the universe....I want the trip to be back on as it was cancelled. I want Michael to feel better and not give me his cold.  I would really appreciate it if those things would happen - Thank you!

The Look

I started a new board on Pinterest recently for things that I like The Look of it...such as graphic design, package design, logos, illustrations and such.

Here are a few I have pinned for package design....I would probably at least try all these things based on package design. Not knowing anything about them - just liking their package. I have done that with music and books before too - liked the cover art and picked it up to listen/read just because of that.

Source: ffffound.com via Darby on Pinterest

Source: lovelypackage.com via Darby on Pinterest

Source: valeriejar.blogspot.com via Darby on Pinterest

Source: funnel.tv via Darby on Pinterest

Astounding Fact

The Most Astounding Fact from Max Schlickenmeyer on Vimeo.

Astrophysicist Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson was asked in an interview with TIME magazine, "What is the most astounding fact you can share with us about the Universe?" This is his answer. 

Tripping to the East

Michael might need to be taking a road trip for his work and I am going to tag along.  It would give me a chance to see friends in Ohio, a friend in Illinois and then my sister and her family too.  We are all crossing fingers and toes it will work out.

I haven't seen my friends in Ohio since January 2004.  I miss Karen and Lisa so much. Everyday little things remind me of them.  I don't have friends here like I did there and miss that a lot. So hugging and talking with the girls would be absolutely marvelous! So crossing our fingers and toes that it works out - as it is kind of up in the air right now.

Date a Girl Who Reads

I love this - it is long but so good.

"Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes. She has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve. Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag.She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she finds the book she wants. You see the weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a second hand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow. She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book. Buy her another cup of coffee. Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice. It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas and for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry, in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does. She has to give it a shot somehow. Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world. Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who understand that all things will come to end. That you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two. Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series. If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are. You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype. You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots. Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads. Or better yet, date a girl who writes." – Rosemary Urquico

Story Cubes

Source: storycubes.com via Darby on Pinterest

I was reading this curated list of books for TED Bookstore....and on it was this game called Story Cubes. It looks like a lot of fun and would be great to help kids use their imagination.

100k

My vehicle is about ready to make that magical turn over 100k miles. While most of that has been in the flurry of trips between GJ and Denver, there's some other long drives that come to mind that I wanted to take a moment to recall. (In no particular order)

- Right out of the gate, brand new car to break in ... driving up to Minneapolis to help celebrate the birthday of Darby's grandmother. I remember the surprise and the joy she had with so many people that came to help celebrate with food, family and cake!

- The long trek to Shreveport, Louisiana post-Katrina. Hearing the stories of growing up in the south, witnessing the poverty, the racial divide that's still prevalent today. The tension of that divide and what it was like being in that part of the country in summer. ("hot" is not a describable word here....)

- The anniversary surprise. Seeing where Darby grew up in Omaha, watching her recall childhood memories and her favorite haunts. Trekking up to Minnesota - driving across the green fields and vast landscapes. The love, tears and happiness of celebrating Darby's parent's wedding anniversary. The video :)

- The roadtrips we took to Ouray after Thanksgiving ... to Durango twice ... to Santa Fe ... and the numerous treks up to Meeker, Rangely, Craig, Gateway, the Grand Mesa, McClure pass and the other favorite trips we take.

- The last minute trip to Storm Lake, Iowa to be part of Darby's sister and brother-in-law's wedding. Godfathers Pizza! The wedding, the photography, the feeling of family together. The incredible lush green fields of corn and the painted quilted barns of Sac County, Iowa.

- Montana ... the beauty of the lake ... meeting wonderful friends and enjoying their company ... the wildfires and the fact that Montana is one incredibly BIG state. Wyoming, Yellowstone, the buffalo, the Grand Tetons, Old Faithful ... the road construction from hell ...

- The return to Minnesota. Darby getting to see her niece for the first time. The first steps. Wonderful celebrating an unseasonably warm Christmas. Meeting someone very special to us and the outlook of things to come.

- The long trip to Austin, Texas. Meeting up with friends new and old along the journey - driving long distances, racing against the clock on the verge of bad news. I remember the small conglomerate of shops and health food restaurant in Austin - the incredibly tall trees and peacefulness in the middle of town.

- The numerous trips to Denver in great weather, the darkness of night, in blinding snowstorms, on ice-crested roads, witnessing accidents, car fires, wildfires and tire blow-outs an arm's length away. We've seen hot air balloons, ultra light aircraft, Christmas lights along I-70, roaring rivers, beautiful sunsets (and sunrises). We've ventured to Denver for parties & celebrations, my brother and sister-in-law's 25th anniversary, my Mom and Dad's 50th, Christmases, lunch, dinner and breakfast with family and friends.

All told - 100k miles since 2006 - each mile probably has a story. I love our Mercury Mariner and love the adventures it takes us to and how reliable it has been.

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for... 

1. making it through the day without any sleep

2. being home the rest of the weekend

3. Sun Chips

4. Cookie Bars

5. the possibility of being able to see family and friends on a trip we might be taking soon

Heroes

Danielle LaPorte shared this quote on Facebook today. 

"My heroes are the ones who survived doing it wrong, who made mistakes, but recovered from them." – Bono