Archive for December, 2007
December 31, 2007 – Oak Creek Canyon, Sunset Crater & Wupatki
The day dawned clear, crisp and cold. The first stop was Slide Rock State Park in Oak Creek Canyon. A great natural playground of water, red rocks, deep pools, and smooth red rocks. Another view of Oak Creek. Fifteen miles upstream is the top of the canyon wall. Oak Creek is at the bottom of ...Read more.
December 30, 2007 – Superstition Mountains
Today was a travel day – Des Moines to Phoenix via Chicago. Since most of our time will be spent in northern Arizona and when the kids think of the Arizona desert, they think of the Sonoran Desert, land of giant Sugaro cactus. So we ventured immediately to Lost Dutchman State Park, just east of ...Read more.
December 29, 2007 – Fiesta Bowl Competition/Parade
The band raised money for a year for their trip. Here is the Bobcat Marching Band in the Fiesta Bowl Parade in Phoenix, AZ. Here is the Bobcat Marching Band on the field. In contrast to most events – the more expensive tickets were furthest away from the field. Here’s Claire getting ready just before ...Read more.
December 28, 2007 – Claire is Here!
Claire’s band is Marching in the Fiesta Bowl National Band Championships in Glendale AZ. She’s somewhere in here. GJ is there watching her and when she gets back, we’ll post some better pictures. We were able to watch the performance on the internet last night – it was fun to see them on a big ...Read more.
December 27, 2007 – Thingamajig Thursday #101
Here’s this week’s “Thingamajig” entry. Also check out the last thingamajig answer. As always, put your guess in a comment below. one year ago…
December 26, 2007 – Winter Visitors
This winter is especially hard on birds and animals that forage of the ground. The thick mantle of ice make the ground and seeds and such inaccessible. We put up a bird feeder for the first time in years (the cats used to catch the birds, so the stopped). But so far this year, the ...Read more.
December 25, 2007 – Animals out on Christmas Day!
Before a hearty Christmas meal, we hit a trail to do some skiing. Here’s something you don’t see every day – Martin losing his balance upon seeing a cow crossing an old railroad trestle! In addition to the cows we saw earlier, this friendly white dog found the girls and accompanied them for the trip. ...Read more.
December 24, 2007 – Deep Winter Night
Season’s Greetings from the barn at high hopes gardens! one year ago…
December 23, 2007 – Not Fit for Man nor Beast
As expected, the snow and wind came – up to 40 mph gusts today. We tried to go to church this morning, but only made it a few hundred feet down the road before burying the van in a drift. Thank goodness for the tractor to come to the rescue! It was good to get ...Read more.
December 22, 2007 – No Solstice Bonfire this Year :(
On this day we usually have about 100 people descend upon our house for a giant bonfire and potluck. Due to the extreme winds and snow, we postponed it until tomorrow. We even brought gj to the airport a day early since we weren’t sure we’d be able to get out tomorrow. one year ago…
December 21, 2007 – New (to me) Camera!
I used to have a nice SLR camera (Canon AE-1) that I bartered for a bunch of Christmas trees back in college. I loved that camera – while climbing a mountain in Utah, it became separated from me and bounced down a snowfield in its case a couple of thousand feet and lived to tell ...Read more.
December 20, 2007 – Thingamajig Thursday #100
Here’s this week’s “Thingamajig” entry. Also check out the last thingamajig answer. As always, put your guess in a comment below. Hold mouse over this sentence to pop-up answer. one year ago…
December 19, 2007 – Band Day & Drug Sniffing Dogs
Today Claire’s band had a “day off” of school and they rented the indoor football practice facility at Iowa State and practiced their Fiesta Bowl program all day, then played at an Iowa State basketball game where they filled in for the ISU pep band that was off on winter break and not on campus. ...Read more.
December 18, 2007 – Morning Chores
Just because it’s cold and dark, doesn’t mean that chores can slack. Winter outdoor chores are greatly reduced – the horse, a couple of goats, laying hens and pets. Everybody needs water and food for the day and eggs need to be gathered. We’re on a seasonal rotation, with duties changing with the turn of ...Read more.
