Cards

I got this card in the mail yesterday.

And this is what it said inside:

Bill, Cathy, Abbey, Alyssa, and Emma sent it to me. Bill had bought it before they visited on my birthday, but forgot it at home. So, they all signed it as a "thank you" card, and sent it anyway. How cool is that?

I love getting cards. And I love giving and/or sending cards. I gave this to Bob this year.

Gotta appreciate the inside.

And I left this one on the bed yesterday morning 

so he'd find it as he was packing to go out of town for work.

He keeps all the cards I give him. They're in his sock drawer. Well, enough have accumulated that they're in a few drawers now. 

I keep quite a few cards I receive, too. 

My friend, Juli, has a wonderful habit of sending me cards for almost no reason. Getting a card out of the blue...that's pretty nice.

She also sends them to me for a reason.

 Like this one that she sent just before I took a one-year-leave-of-absence to do some freelance magazine writing in Colorado.

My friend Pat sends really great cards, too, all the way from Texas.

 They always make me crack up.

And my mom's even been known to send some pretty racey ones.

Don't you love cards?!

B-S-M Reunion Finale

So Friday arrived. Our last full day in Eagle. 

After breakfast at the motel, Bob, Steve, Tami, and I drove out to area where Marie lives -- she'd shown it to us the day before. There are wonderful bike and running paths with great views out there, so I ran, Bob rode his bike, and Steve and Tami did some hiking. We parked on this road, and I kinda liked the road sign.

 We then had a late. leisurely, and delicious lunch at the Grand Avenue Grille. 

If you frequent Facebook, you might have seen my posts that day with the following two pics.

In this one, Bob had somehow managed to get his hands on my Fresh Watermelon Margarita before I did, and when I grabbed my iPhone and told Carol to take a picture with him, she planted a big-juicy-cousin-kiss on him. 

 I also posted this picture of 8-year-old Madeline, 10-year-old Jane, and 10-year-old Karen. And I took the picture right after Jane told this story about a trip to the beach:

"I found a live clam, and I named him Jimmy.

My dad ate Jimmy live, and then later, my dad pooped Jimmy out."

Now that's a good beach story.

 After lunch, we rushed back to the motel to shower and change for the grand finale of the reunion:

the wedding reception of Marie and Mason.

 It was in this community hall in the housing development that Marie lives in,

and it was lovely. In April, she and Mason eloped to Monterey,

and they threw this party so all of us could celebrate with them -- and have a mini-reunion.

 All of the family pitched in to help in various ways, and Johnny, Christian, Bob, and Steve took charge

of all the barbecuing.

 A friend of Marie's -- Heidi -- arranged all the flowers for the tables.

 Bob helped in the kitchen, too,

 prepping a lot of veggies for the grill, such as this pan 'o 'shrooms.

 Steve and Bob engaged in some friendly rivalry over the bbqs.

 And Bob got distracted a few times.

 The setting was so beautiful. We thought there might be some evening thunderstorms like there'd been the night before, but they never transpired. Just great views.

 And, of course, lots of visiting.

 And there was even some first-aid, as Madeline got a splinter,

 and ER-nurse-mom, Carol, gave her some lovin' care.

 The beautiful bride, Marie, made the visiting rounds, too.

 Johnny hung for a bit with Aunt Pat.

 And Marie's new beau, Mason, got to know the family better.

 It was so cool that, even after not seeing each other for probably 30 years or so, all the West Coast and East Coast cousins picked up like they'd never been apart. Priceless.

 There was also a very exciting pinata -- an adventure for the kids and the adults -- and I captured a lot of that on video. Which, of course, I've yet to load onto the computer. At some point I will. Honest.

 Aunt Pat and her beautiful daughters.

 Congratulations on your marriage, Marie and Mason, and all the best to you both!

Thank you for throwing such a wonderful party and mini-reunion...I truly had no idea Bob had even MORE family that I'd love so much!

A Little Splash Before Bed

Another Day at the B-S-M Reunion

Having arrived in Eagle on Wednesday afternoon, Thursday was the first of the two full days we'd get to spend there. It was also the second day of the Eagle County Fair and Rodeo there.

We didn't go to the rodeo, but I did go to the rodeo grounds...

 ...to run the stairs. Yup. I did. I run stairs on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so this worked out perfectly. After Marie drove Bob, Johnny, and me around to introduce us to the area, Bob and Johnny drove up into the mountain to look around further, and I went out for a run.

 I've run a lot of places, but never in and around rodeo stands. The rodeo is in the evening, so, though there were folks milling about a bit, I pretty much had the arena to myself.

 Well, except for these guys, who were the perfect audience.

 The rodeo grounds are set along this gorgeous river,

 and these Scottish-thistle-look-alikes caught my eye on my way back to the motel.

 Marie had arranged group rates for us at the AmericInn, and it was great to stay at the same place with all the family. AND they had pretty decent breakfasts. Can't beat that.

 After I was done running and Bob and Johnny got back, we met some of the family over at the Eagle Diner for a late afternoon lunch. 

 Susie and Carol (remember....Bob's cousins) and their families had already eaten when we arrived, but they sat and visited with us a bit. Well, first, they tried on the "cheaters" that Bob and I had carelessly left sitting on the table.

 I don't think they could see us at this point, but we certainly could see them.

 Aunt Pat joined in the fun, but there were no extra cheaters for her.

 And Marie dropped by, too. Three sisters that clearly can't get enough of each other.

 Later that afternoon, we all gathered in the lobby of the motel again so that we could carpool to Vail for an evening adventure. Pictured here, left to right, are Bob, Tami and Steve Mellem (Steve is Bob's cousin, the son of Bob's mom's brother), Carol, Susie, and Marie and Mason Torry.

 And speaking of Mason, we took a little detour into Avon on the way to Vail to see some of his work.

 He has finished painting the first two of four seasonal paintings on these huge walls in a downtown shopping area. You can read all about it here in an article that was in the local paper the next day.

 We loved the murals, and additional family continued to arrive, like Sandy Waters, pictured below with Steve. She is Bob's niece, as she is his sister Linda's daughter, and she lives in Denver with her daughter Katy, who arrived a few hours later.

 Awwww...two uncles and a niece, reunited in the Sports Authority parking lot.

 Love this shot of Aunt Pat and Bob. He adores her, and I get the sense she adores him, too. I think they both have great taste.

 Once everyone had investigated the murals, and the children had emerged from the inside of Sports Authority, where they'd bought a basketball...

 ...we took a family picture in front of the summer mural. 

 We then loaded back into our cars to continue on to Vail. Well, after taking a few snaps of this gorgeous bust that is also in the parking lot. Apparently, these Avon folks are quite the art lovers. Very, very cool.

 In Vail, we walked around the village, and heard a little of a summer concert that was going on in the Gerald Ford Amphitheater. It's really a beautiful setting.

 And it's right next to the Betty Ford Alpine Garden,

 which highlights Alpine plants. 

 And was a lovely setting for another family photo. You've already been introduced to everyone in this picture except Uncle Bill, the handsome guy on the far left. Such a great group.

 We learned a little about alpine plants, and found out that lettuce grows really well above 7000 feet. Who knew?

 We wandered about a bit, and spent some time in the children's garden, too.

 Then we walked back to the village to head to dinner, and Johnny played "Vanna" at some antique farm equipment on the way. 

 The evening was just lovely, and we saw a couple boys tubing the river as we walked by. We were plenty warm enough, but figured that water was a bit chilly.

 We ate at a great pizza place, and the kids, who were wise enough to be too embarrassed to sit with the adults, had their own table. 

 It was a bit loud at the adults' table,

 and the servings were BIG. And delicious.

 No doubt Carol and husband Christian were asking artist Mason for his autograph.

 Susie, Tami, and Steve were at the other end of the table, hoping Mason would give them one, too.

 After dinner, we walked back through the village to our cars. There are a lot of sculptures about, and one of my faves was "Rock, Paper, Scissors."

We drove back to the motel in Eagle and were witness to an incredible lightning display that got closer and closer. Can't really beat falling asleep to the smell of fresh rain coming through an open window in the Rockies. 

The next day would be our last full day there, and I'll post about that tomorrow. 

There's no rain here in Fresno right now, unfortunately, but I have to go to sleep, nonetheless.