Amber and Jeff McCleary

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

2011-12-11T11:03:00.000-08:00

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
…from the McClearys and our little Foster dog! He was so tolerant for our holiday pic…
We hope your 2011 was wonderful. Ours was very eventful!

We had a two year old foster boy for December and January, and for the first half of the year we fostered 13 year old Luis. He was a good kid that fit in well at our house. He enjoyed spending time with Jeff & we had fun discovering new hobbies and interests together. Once school was out he went to a hopefully permanent home & we decided to go inactive for a while. It was a very good experience working with the kiddos, but not necessarily the bureaucracy.

Jeff was going to help out his parents' neighbor by driving one of his flatbeds. We'd rather he not be away from home that much, but if it’s only for a little while he enjoys getting out on the road. He took a bike trip up to Washington to see the girls before he got too busy driving. That may have been the last cross country trip for him a while or for the Concours, because in August on the way home from an impulsive weekend trip to Lake Roberts, New Mexico before Jeff left and I started a fall class at UTEP we had an accident. Jeff spent a week in the hospital; I had a cast for a month, but we are doing well now. The last few months of the year have been completely focused on our recovery and everyday is better. We are so lucky it wasn't any worse than it was & we are so thankful for family, friends and coworkers that were there for us during the rough time.

I canceled that class at UTEP so I could focus on taking care of us, but will start up again in January. I have 5 classes left for my MBA in International Business so it may take me a year or so. I enjoy classes, but also working full time, I stay very busy. Jeff already has a job lined up whenever he feels up to working.

We are excited to spend this holiday season in Minnesota with some of my family. Mom was able to come visit us a few times this year, thankfully once to help us after the accident. Dad may come to the Sun City to escape the MN winter. If this winter is anything like the record cold weather we had in El Paso during in February, we might have to escape to MN!

We hope you have a happy holiday season and an uneventful 2012! Amber and Jeff

it's not so wrecked

2011-11-19T08:12:00.000-08:00

jeff finally got the bike home last week and its not so wrecked. kind of surprising for how much trouble it has caused. each time i see the bike it looks a little better. i didn't care what they did with it on the side of the road. it was too bad that it hadnt burst into flames. i wasn't even going to go pick it up from the tow yard. in storage i admitted it could be parted out. but now i see its completely fixable and still runs. lots of stuff broken off and ground down, but nothing major (gas tank, saddle bags, foot pegs, mirrors, instument panel, lights). so jeffs going to fix it. and he's going to ride again someday. he admits it wont be for a while because his wrists are still tender but he will get back on. i dont know if i can do it. at first it made me sick to see guys ride by on the freeway here in their flipflops, shorts and tanktops. now its colder so they have jeans on at least on but it still makes me shake my head at them. jeff spoke with one lawyer who says its really a product liability case so we have to find a lawyer who specializes in that.

the bike arrived home around the 3 month anniversary. jeffs done with PT and is doing strength training. he has follow up appointments...the bones in his wrist arent in the right places but may correct themselves with use, they arent painful & there isnt much the drs can do. the lung & chest tube still shock him everyonce in a while, but apparently its not a big deal to live without your spleen

i just entered my 3rd month of physical therapy. dr says bones heal faster than muscle and basically you damaged every muscle/ligament/tendon in that hand so its going to take a while to get use back, but its healing fine and progress is as expected. the therapist says she proud of my slow but steady progress but maybe shes just placating me. its frustrating & painful, but i am fully committed and i can see progress...i can force it into a fist & almost flat on a table. i can use it more every day & it feels more like my own hand now. all i want for christmas...

2 month mark

2011-10-16T10:07:00.000-07:00

friday was the 2 month mark since our accident so probably a good point for an update on our recovery. we are basically doing well and recoving, slowly. we can do most things we need to around the house, but it takes longer and the results aren't as great. we eat out more often, and we've lowered our standards slightly about house cleaning, projects and entertainment - which is watching a movie while trading off on the exercise bike while the other does pt exercises.

we are both in physical therapy and have been told that during this time it is crucial to push yourself to get back full range of motion. you have the rest of your life to develop strength, jeff's pt told him. i got my cast off a month ago and just a few times at physical therapy improved greatly what i could do with my hand, though it hurts more than when it was actually injured. the first day i went in, it was sort of stuck in a claw like position & they asked me what i couldn't do with my hand. i told her it would be easier to list what i can do...hold a very light object, like a pen, and use it as dead weight. after a month i can almost make a fist, and i can almost get my palm flat on a surface. but i can do alot of daily activities i couldn't for the first month, such as tie a shoe or buckle a buckle, connect a bra behind my back, do up buttons, make a pony tail, type, open bottles etc.

but it feels like recovery has sort of taken over our lives... for me it's medicine 4x/day, anti-inflammitory gel 4x/day for 1 hour, wash it off, wear the compression glove as much as possible, use the hvg (electric impulse glove) 2x/day for 30 minutes with ice. pt 3x per week for 2 hours each. 3x per day warm it up, stretch it out, exercise. then keep it elevated & iced. keep it moving all day. you need to heal so let it rest, eat the right things, get alot of rest. and this is all for 3 little fingers! jeff has the same sort of routine, but just so much more to work on with so many injuries, including cardio for his lung. they never got around to diagnosing what sort of muscle injuries he might have but his pt has been working on his left shoulder quite a bit and his right hand. jeff's medical care has been less than par...dr tyroch wrote jeff off without ever seeing him, so he did go back to the one orthopedic surgeon to get prescribed physical therapy and has been managing his care more.

jeff got the tire and has taken it to some experts who confirmed it wasn't a puncture from driving over something. he still wants to go see a lawyer and needs to get the bike back soon from the guy who stored it for him. well, got to go ice the hand after all this typing...

our last bike trip for a while

2011-09-11T09:43:00.000-07:00

it feels feels like its been a year since my last post, because so much has been going on. well, we had a nice summer but then we made the fateful decision to go on one last bike trip before fall classes started and i would be too busy. we went up to lake roberts and the gila mountains and cliff dwellings. we even got our hatch chili cheeseburgers and despite th downpours that made us think we were in oregon and the power outages at our hotel and all surrounding businesses, it was a nice weekend, until we were about an hour from home. some of you have already heard the accident story, but for those who haven't, i'll give you all the details. so you don't have to read this entire thing though i will give away the ending to say that we are doing very well, and are so extremely lucky that we will walk away from this wreck almost as good as new. i finally have some pictures. its hard to get pic of jeffs gear since they cut most of it off him. the bike is still in storage, so pictures of it and the tire later. (sorry, some of them might be a little graphic, but i keep getting requests). As i told the old man trying to cut in line at the pharmacy - he may look ok on the outside, but he has 11 broken bones, 3 surgical incisions, a missing organ, a damaged lung, not to mention all the road rash, bruises and muscle/tissue damage so, sorry - your sores on your leg don't mean you can cut in front of him. i was tired and stressed and cranky...sorry old man.

last pic of the conni in the downpour during a poweroutage
we were on interstate 25 17 miles north of las cruces nm and going approx 75 mph when the back tire felt a little squishy, and suddenly felt much worse. jeff tried to break & slow down but each time he did the back end would creep up to one side. he managed to keep the bike upright and going straight for about half a minute, but eventually had to lay it down on the left side. we skid for about 200 feet. i got up and made it from the left lane to the center ditch to see that miraculously there were no cars coming, though the semi truck that we had just passed was stopped just a little in front of us along with a few other cars - i was so afraid we would get hit. i got over to jeff and the bike in the right lane. he was awake, but in pain. my first aid training kicked in and i am proud to say when it really counted i did great in a crisis situation (i kinda wondered) i found jeffs cell on the road (gound thru his jeans pocket & it still worked) and gave 911 instructions to an old man, but his wife and another guy already called on their cell phones. i got the trucker to get his hazard triangles and they managed to block off jeffs lane of traffic until the border patrol got there to control traffic. an off duty fireman/emt and the state police got there & they all were taking care off jeff until emts arrived. they ambulanced him to las cruces er and then helicoptered him to the el paso trauma er. his first helicopter ride and he only remembers a little of it. he had lacerated his spleen into 3 pieces and the internal bleeding could have been fatal. he also had a collapsed left lung which was making it painful to breathe. that night they used a catheter to collapse the artery to the spleen, which kills it off. kind of an interesting technique that is natural and prevents infection & makes for quicker recovery. the next 24 hr was crucial, and i just couldn't bring myself to call anyone until the next day. they had put in a chest tube in the el paso er for the bleeding and the lung was ok though it takes a few weeks to get back to normal. he had broken 7 ribs on the left side and the left shoulder blade, chipped the left ulna bone (at the knobby end by your wrist) and his right metacarple and falange (pinky and bone below the pinky in the palm). the doped him up and kept him in icu for a few days. tuesday (this happened on sun) they did surgery to pin his right hand. wed they moved him out of icu and thurs removed the chest tube. sunday, they kicked him out with very few instructions, barely-there home-nurses but ok therapy. there were a few nurses that were good, some ok, and a couple incompetent. i met 1 ortho dr who was great but didn't end up being jeffs dr. the spleen dr was great but saw him only for an elevator ride up 1 floor. apparently jeffs general dr tyroch is wonderful and we get to see him tomorrow for jeffs follow up. i briefly met one dr doing rounds, but not sure if its the same guy. hope so because he got jeff what he needed ("get him scheduled for surgery or give the man some water!"). seemed very nice but very well respected...sent the residents scurrying!

right arm & surgical incision at 1 week

left arm road rash looking good.

me - they wouldn't let me in jeffs ambulance but took me in my own to a las cruces er, saying i needed to get checked out, which was true given the situation & we're in shock. though they really didn't check out anything at all except my arm & hand that i told them hurt. granted they did get me out of there quickly knowing i wanted to get down to jeff. lucia & frank came and took me to elp (THANK YOU!!!!!). they had put on a partial cast for dislocating my 2 left middle fingers which chipped the bones in a few places. I got a full but short cast later, which comes off tuesday. hard to believe its been a month already, then i get a splint and have lots of presumably painful PT to look forward to. I am still bruised up and in a bit of pain on the left side where we hit first, but thanks to jeffs driving skills and good gear that we always wear, i am otherwise ok. we are pretty pleased that all our gear did its job and worked pretty well. jeff got road rash on only the tops of his wrists where the gloves and cuff seperated, and i only had some cuts on my hand where the glove wripped (but not even bad enough for the lc er to wash or put bandaids on...i didnt even bother asking...saving it up for jeffs nurses, i guess)
work and friends and neighbors were all a great source of help (THANKS LISA AJ JOHN WANDA RALPH KALIE JERRY NONA & SPARKY!!!) with taking care of Foster & rides & groceries and food and flowers and cards and pool cleaning and just being there. jeffs sister nancy was going to come for a visit anyway so she moved it up to help out, but then called to say she was on crutches (just our luck, though no surgery needed has to be her good luck). my mom was able to move her trip up so came and helped us the first 2 weeks at home. though we are both independent and figured things out on our own, i don't know how we would have managed without her! (THANK YOU!!!)

jeff wanted the bike out of storage ASAP so a couple friends drove the subaru & trailer up to lc to get it. but just our luck, the subaru died about 1 mile from the tow yard. i wouldn't call them back because i thought they had stolen stuff off the bike (turns out i had the camera with me the entire time...sorry repo guys for all my bad thoughts). since it was the straw that broke my camels back, courtney called her dad & after a couple hours fighting with the hitch towed the bike to his shop yard. jeffs going to get the tire next week & in a couple weeks get the bike home. did i mention it was a pretty awful week? (THANKS COURTNEY, KEVIN & MR BRUMMAL!) once jeff was home he called the tow guys to take the subaru to a mechanic they trusted who charged us an arm & leg to replace the less-than-one-year-old melted alternator and some computer sensor. we drove up to lc a week later and mom drove it home. i had kinda hoped someone would just steal the thing while it was abandoned and tried to sell it to the guy who gave us a jump. it was kinda for sale and weve had some offers but now without a bike, jeff will probably keep it for a while. i think i wont be on a motorcycle again for sometime. i think i was in shock at first with enough other stuff to worry about, but now i get a little freaked out in the car in some interstate situations, especially if the asphalt is textured or slippery and you can feel the tires pulling. i think jeff will be back on a bike before me. hes already talking about fixing up the conni. maybe i can talk him into dirt bikes or a jeep or something a little safer for a while. im surprised he hasn't mentioned getting a ural w/ side car, yet.

jeffs recovery was so much quicker once he came home. it will be long and slow and painful, but everyday is a little better. jeff is actually able to do more than i thought and actually can do more than me in some cases, since my hand is basically useful only as dead weight...i don't know why they bothered to cast around the thumb and first finger...useless. its taken me eons to type out this blog one handed so you have to forgive my text brevity and spelling/grammar errors. last weekend he was able to lift up his left arm & that has rapidly improved. then the nurse messed with his chest tube incision, so we have good days and bad days.

sorry if i didnt get a chance to update you personally. so many people & honestly i am so tired still. thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers. i will try to keep you posted on our recovery.

jeffs helmet is ground down all the way around
ambers helmet - we are very pro helmet - i dont think wed be here without them!ambers gear looks pretty good, though well used - so wear your gear!

It's a little quiet around here

2011-06-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

It's a little quiet around here since Luis went to a new foster home on Thursday. He was only supposed to be here for a long weekend while his foster dad was in the hospital for follow up to a ruptured appendix, but it was exactly 6 months - our longest placement yet. The last couple weeks of school were rough - he kept getting into trouble at school and was just so passive aggressive and full of attitude at home - I think he had short-timers syndrome! (Well, that plus he's a 13 year old boy who has had a rough life). He has a hard time in school anyway, so we didn't want to disrupt his life until school was done for the year. But that was Wednesday, so he only had overnight to enjoy freedom before they moved him. We had been upfront about a move the entire time he was here and did our best to prepare him. We all hope they will do what is best for him and find a good home he can stay in until he ages out of foster care. I never signed up for teenagers, but he was a good kid & we helped him experience alot of new things and we think he grew and matured alot while he was with us.

school pictures have changed alot! hand-me down tshirt from jeff :)

We aren't taking any placements right now as Jeff has a few irons in the fire for work that all have schedules that would not work with foster care. Fostering was an interesting experience and I'm glad we did it. It's something I've always thought about and I might do it again in the future. The kids have been great, but the system is kinda difficult to work with and it's very frustrating when you want to help these kids out. For now, I'm just enjoying having time to get to projects and things that need done. Plus, I got to undo some of the foster care restrictions, like I moved wine bottles out of the garage (oven) where we had to lock everything up and put my OTC allergy meds in my own medicine cabinet! Jeff is itching to go for a bike ride too, so I think we are off to Gila Mountains.

It didn't snow this year

2011-04-02T08:16:00.000-07:00

It wasn't as cold as I feared it would be when during our recent camping trip to Alpine, Texas. Last year we came for the Concours Rally and it SNOWED (thankfully we weren't camping last year). It was so cold we didn't even make it down to Big Bend National Park. This year the weather was BEAUTIFUL. Perfect for camping, really. Perfect for hiking too, except I did get a bit of a sunburn, which I am blaming on cubicle living and higher elevation. Luis loved camping and hiking and rock climbing. We are going to have to take him out to Hueco Tanks for weekend rock climbing, and we have plans to do more camping this summer. I am thinking Rock Hound State Park, Three Rivers Petroglyph area. I am also thinking we won't make any efforts to meet up with that Councours Owners Group again. Last year we rode & spent time with several different people who were also at the rally but quite a few weren't regular members. We had a good time, despite the weather. Despite the leader, who was actually quite rude on several different occasions. Maybe he was having two off days in a row? Who knows, who cared. This year, since we didn't stay at the hotel, but camped at least a half hour away, Friday night they arranged a time to meet to head on the days ride. But Jeff arrives & the group had left before the agreed upon time! Lots of rallys leave late, but early? Never heard of it! Jeff ran into them later during the day and even after discussing with them chose to ride on his own. We met up with Jeff later and checked out some places together, had a picnic. Jeff probably got more riding in on his own, but its nice to ride with a group sometimes & Jeff does love to talk with them. The guy in charge has been for several years, I hear, but why hasn't he figured out you are going to have to be a little bit sociable if you want to head up a club, made up of people? If you aren't a people person, fake it or give it up to someone who is! So, the search for a motorcycle club continues...more than 4 years after moving to Texas...

Good BYE 1970s seashell shaped sink

2011-03-03T19:55:00.000-08:00

The 1970's seashell shaped sink is finally gone from my bathroom! Jeff finished the remodel today and as usual, it was well worth the wait. He was inspired by the remodel of our bathroom in Portland that we hardly got to enjoy, since we moved to El Paso shortly after it was completed. It's a nice butter yellow color, with dark wood cabinets and a speckled counter with perfect white sink and shiny chrome accents! It even has a heat lamp and exhaust fan, thanks to help from my Dad. He framed out the window and door and added some very nice craftsman touches.

I have forbidden the boys from entering my lovely new bathroom!!!

Best Presidents Day Ever!

2011-02-22T20:49:00.000-08:00

Monday was the best President's Day ever! Well, I can't exactly remember any other President's Days, so they must not have been that great, right? Luis had his holiday taken away, due to so many snow days. Well, I don't want to call them that anymore, there wasn't that much snow. Electrical outage days? Water conservation days? Anyway, since Jeff and I didn't get to do anything for Valentines day, we had planned to spend President's Day together. It was 50-60 degrees so I got to wear (and was glad to have) the motorcycle over-pants Jeff got me (protective, insulated, water resistant etc) on our ride up to Truth or Consequences, NM. It used to be known as Hot Springs, but was re-named after the tv show. We were chilled enough to enjoy the Wet Room at the Blackstone hotel/spa...it has a steamroom with a hot mineral spring waterfall , soaking tub with a waterfall, shower and once you're warmed up to the core, the cool breeze coming through the skylight and the slats up high in the ceiling feels so great. On the return trip we stopped at Sparky's in Hatch, NM for burgers and fries (YUM!). Too bad I had to get back to finance class as I had an exam. I thought the Dr. would be tough, but the test was almost Easy! So, definitely was a very good day!

Sun City it is not!

2011-02-05T18:40:00.000-08:00

Sun City it is not! At least not this week when the El Paso area recorded low temperatures of 0 degrees! Plus a wind chill = 21 below in some places! I know, some of you living in MN where you received 40 some inches in a month laugh at El Paso closing schools due to .53 inches of snow, but it is a big deal around here. I t doesn't bother me much, but I am not as tough as I once used to be living in MN. I did stay home from work one day. The roads were very icy which led to even more traffic accidents than usual. Plus, the tri state area was having rolling blackouts due to system overload due to the cold. But Thursday and Friday I got to wear my favorite Sorel boots (that jeff thinks are hideous), dug out some warm hat & mittens and had the best commutes ever, since many people still stayed home. Jeff and Luis stayed home and quickly got cabin fever. It is starting to thaw out, but the pool still has a thick layer of ice on it.
UPDATE***now the city of el paso has institued mandatory water conservation. seems the power outages limited the water they could generate and the pipes bursting has increased usage. We don't watch much TV, especially on a Saturday, so I used all sorts of water on Saturday! Trying to be better on Sunday. The city is just livid at the utilities' comments...we were caught offguard by the storm,etc...really??? we knew at least a week in advance. Rolling blackouts supposedly didn't include crucial services (or my friend Lucia's house)...wouldn't crucial include the water utility??? As one lady put it, it's like we're living in a third world country! Guess I'll have to get out an auger for the pool...

i put the toilet paper on the holder...

2011-01-08T09:01:00.000-08:00

FYI our little 2 year old went to a potential adoptive home with his 4 year old brother a couple days ago. Because he's so bashful, I was adamant that I wanted to make it a smooth transition for him and not hand him to a stranger on the curb in front of the office, so they let us drop him off at his new home with his brother there. The walls were completely covered with framed studio pictures of his boys; covered from ceiling to floor, literally. We met the dad who seemed like a sweet, honest man who loves the 5 boys now in his home and totally agreed with us about the benefit of a non-traumatizing transition. While I don't think he's going to sing My Bonnie to him at bed time, I think EJ will be just fine. Before the handoff I was a little sad to think about not seeing his smiling face any more, but the actual trade was easier than I thought it would be. And the peace afterward was startling. We watched a movie all the way through. I put the toilet paper on the holder instead of up away from a 2 year olds reach. It's the little things...

Happy New Year 2011

2011-01-01T14:12:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!! We arrived in El Paso 4 years ago on January 2nd. To celebrate we have had people over for steak dinner & it has migrated to New Years Eve, since it's too crazy to go out anymore. We have added crab to the menu, and our remaining attendees are Frank and Lucia. They are newly wed this year, and have been getting advice about developing their family traditions for holidays etc. I am happy to hear that NYE at the McCleary's is a tradition that made the cut! We had a fun night!

Usually I send out my New Years letters on the 1st but I just don't think I am going to manage more than a post on my blog. Maybe I will copy it onto Facebook too and I feel like I am cheating by only using online methods. Please see my prior posts for my excuses - some legitimate(2 and 12 year old foster kids), some maybe not (holidays? that's the same every year!) but I just can't seem to keep up lately! Jeff just packed up some of the pool cups/plates/bottle & can coolies, I am that far behind. We normally send a package to his sister in Germany around Thanksgiving. I don't recall when we got around to sending it, but he labeled it Happy First Quarter.

P.S. as I type, my mom is currently working on crafts for next years Christmas packages. Usually I can say I am my mother's daughter...but not today!

Christmas Carol

2011-01-01T14:04:00.001-08:00

My mom escaped from MN wintery weather for a few weeks in the Sun City over Christmas & New Years. Although it has been cold and snowy, when she first got here it was in the 70s! Unfortunately with 2 foster kids, one who has just turned 2, we haven't been able to get out and do anything very exciting. But, my mom and I generally have alot of fun just doing stuff at home. I hope she got a chance to relax and I think she has enjoyed the kids a little bit too. Here she is with EJ and one of his favorite gifts...a phone with buttons that make noise. Christmas was a little more hectic than usual, but in a fun, kid oriented way, which makes for a very fun Christmas!

Teenager

2011-01-01T13:46:00.000-08:00

Here is Luis after decorating the xmas tree. He was only going to be with us for the weekend while his foster dad went into the hospital, but turns out his recovery may take a few months. Hopefully he will be able to go back to that home then. He hasn't been on a schedule, and think the structure of school will help. But, he is really patient with EJ, and eager to do chores to earn money for video games & movies & things. His 13th bday is tomorrow and we are going out for a steak dinner at this desert 'resort' place with a zoo and a lake & lots of stuff to see. He's the oldest kid we've had so far. I didn't want teenagers but we'd had him for the weekend and thought he would work out with us ok. (no big deal - they just altered our license for a teen - the one that took over a year to get...no big deal).

2 year old for 2 days

2011-01-01T13:32:00.000-08:00

Here is EJ who came to us for "2 days"...over a month ago. He was "sick" and came from the ER, but wasn't that sick really. During this short time he has changed alot! He turned 2, can now sit and listen to a book, has learned alot of new words (chew, guac, foster, pick-up are a few of his favorites), he's doing really well potty training, and is slowed down on his eating...we finally have filled him up, we think. He sleeps really well - 12 hours at night plus a nap. He eats just about everything, after a few NO!s. He's a good kid...but alot of work...which is part of the reason it has taken me over a month to get him on the blog! Other contributing factors: I was sick, the holidays, final exam, volunteer duties, visit from my mom... but EJ is definitely taken up alot of our time! Not sure how long he will be with us, but they are looking for a permanent placement with his brother...which will be better...Jeff is eager to get back to working on the bathroom remodel - the pace of which has slowed considerably! But, I tell him that's ok...since we are doing good work with EJ!

The X Factor

2010-11-24T18:30:00.000-08:00

Here are pictures of the XMan who arrived on VMan's birthday (in the middle of the night!). He was our youngest foster kiddo so far - just 2 years old. He was cuddly, Smart, ate well and slept like a log (once he got to sleep!). He loved playing ball with Foster. We only had him for a few days and enjoyed our time with him. Robert and Vernelle were visiting for part of the time and they enjoyed playing with him too! We were looking forward to having him for a longer time, but were happy to have about 5 relatives eager to pick him up within just a couple of days!

2 active boys

2010-11-11T17:10:00.000-08:00

we had 2 very active boys this last weekend. pretty good boys for 3 & 4 yrs old. M was very active, loved playing playdoh for hours - here is a picture of the boys with a cool snake jeff helped them make. M has a knack for juggling so we made him his very own beanbags to take home and he thought the sewing machine was sooo cool. G was just starting pottytraining, but that was easy...he positively lit up when we gave him postive praise and we had to get creative with the treats. Read alot of books, went to the park & played for hours with the plastic cowboy/indian/farm animal toys or the plastic food toys.

I think we have a weekend without kiddos and of course there are so many cool activities for kids this weekend...The circus is in town, and there's a cool event 'Touch a Truck' where they get to get in all these big cool trucks & helicopters etc. Think they would let us in without a kid? Maybe we'll do a grown up bike ride to a local winery instead.

halloween

2010-11-04T17:55:00.000-07:00

We had 2 little kiddos with us for Halloween weekend. 3 year old M is a princess, like all little girls are! 5 year old R had a mask like from the scream movie - except it was goofy...we called him a tickle monster, cookie monster etc. Jeff carved a pumpkin with them and we took them trick or treating, but they LOVED handing out the candy/pretzels to the other kids once we got home. only a couple meltdowns about candy, or over nap/bed...really good kiddos.

Oregon/Washington Oct 2010

2010-10-27T19:23:00.001-07:00

We went up to visit family and friends in Washington and Oregon for a quick few days. We had a good time, saw lots of people. It was a busy trip, so busy we barely took any pictures! Here is one of Jeff with Tymber who is about 7 months and 24 pounds. Such a good natured girl. She's just starting to standup and want to walk. No pictures of Kadi, because the minute you get out the camera, she wants to start taking pictures and she's 2.5 so it goes downhill after that. But she is smart...loves to play Battleship and color and is growing like a weed!

Our first foster kid!

2010-10-27T19:07:00.000-07:00

We had 8 year old J with us for about 5 days. It was really the perfect 1st foster kid to start us out with. She had great manners, loved learning how to cook and loved Foster. She was a little nervous the first night, but really took to Jeff after the first day. We will have 2 siblings this weekend for respite care for another foster family and another set of siblings next weekend. I'm really looking forward to it!

Camping in Cloudcroft

2010-09-12T09:05:00.001-07:00

Jeff is home from OK City, we have no guests or planned activities. I can do my homework up there so I finally got to go camping! Here is a picture or two of our long relaxing, fun weekend up in the clouds.

Tymber Grace Coughlan

2010-03-28T10:02:00.001-07:00

I certainly don't want to show favoritism, but I forgot to blog about the birth of our new grandbaby Tymber Grace! I guess the few people that I know read this blog also are on FaceBook, so it sometimes seems redundant to post in two places. But, for the blog readers that might exist here but not on FB, here are pictures of the 10lb cutie!

Alpine Texas

2010-03-22T17:28:00.001-07:00

For one weekend of spring break we drove over to Alpine TX for the Concours Owners Group annual Ride the Twisties at Big Bend National Park. Friday was a gorgeous day (75degrees) and we rode all over the Davis Mountains. We planned to ride around with the group in Big Bend on Saturday, but woke up to SNOW. I think it peaked at 45 degrees sometime around 3pm, but I was stubborn & we were goin for a ride! So we rode around the Davis Mountains again with some of the other riders, stopping frequently to warm our fingers. We had a steak dinner with the group, and I made Jeff go with me to see the Marfa Lights (what are the Marfa lights? you ask, well click on the title to learn more). Sunday the weather was a little better, but everyone had to head back home...we were probably the closest to home at 216 miles. I tried to get Jeff to take a side trip down to Big Bend...as that was the whole point of the trip...but I couldn't talk him into it. We need to get a better set up to get the bike on & off the trailer... so we can take quick little side trips to ride the twisties!

Visitors to El Paso

2010-01-21T17:28:00.000-08:00

You'll have to forgive me for forgetting to mention some of our friends who have made the long trek to visit us here in Far West Texas. While at Hueco Tanks recently, Jeff was remembering what a great time he had there with Matt and his boys who drove over from Arizona this summer. It's a great place for exploring and rock climbing, but since it was so hot they were probably more than happy to escape back to the house and spend the entire vacation in the pool! I heard all about the fun they had, but I was in MN at the time & I'm sure Jeff and Matt - friends since grade school and Matt's boys had more fun without me to remind them to put on sunscreen and not swim after eating etc etc. Sorry I missed their visit...hopefully there will be a next time!

We also had some other friends visit this fall - Jennifer and Rick, who both happened to be near (if you consider is an all day train ride or a 6 hour drive considered near!) to El Paso for work conferences and stopped by for a few days. We also took them to Hueco Tanks (although on a different path - there are so many places to explore ) and found a secret cave with ancient pictographs, though we were also were so hot we wished we had stayed in the pool drinking pina coladas! You'd think there's nothing else to do in El Paso, but there is plenty. It's just only 20 miles away, so easy to fit into a short weekend visit, get some exercise, get out into the desert and see some scenery and local history. Something for everybody - including you!

My dad escaped from the Great White North to the Sun City for the month of January. We had some rain, some light snow but it was nicer here than the Januaries I remember in MN. We haven't been able to spend much time together since I moved to Portland, so it was very nice just to hang out together. We went to Carlsbad, and Hueco Tanks, Old Mesilla and finally I had someone to go to some hockey games with me! He brought me several treats from MN (lake fish cooked the way i like it by my daddy...MN sweet corn...homemade strawberry jam...yummm...they are lucky i shared!) and Jeff had a lot of fun cooking up some great dinners since they have more similar tastes. Jeff and Dad also kept busy with alot of house projects - they refinished the laundry room and installed a counter, worked on a couple dressers, and did alot of work in the hallway, of all places - new doorbell, programmable thermostat, new light fixtures, fixed the popcorn ceiling, took down the floor-to-ceiling beveled mirrors. Since it was his vacation, I was happy to see dad relax a bit too with some books, games and lots of western movies.

We love to have visitors, so let me know when you want to use our guest room and I promise to blog about our fun times in a more timely manner!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2010-01-01T11:47:00.000-08:00

We hope your holidays were happy and that you had a prosperous 2009! As always, we did alot of traveling. In March we celebrated Kadi’s 1st birthday in OR/WA & saw many other family and friends. Nancy was home from Germany for a short visit, and I visited the Durands in Tacoma and met baby Cecilia. We took a motorcycle trip over to Alpine, Arizona in the spring. Over 4th of July I met my first nephew, Finnegan, born to Arana & Bryan & Grace in March & enjoyed spending quality time with lots of family and friends in MN/SD/WI. It’s been several years since our last camping trip but we dug out our gear & enjoyed camping with friends this summer in the mountains near Ruidoso, NM. Jeff became a dealer of a great system, which we have invested in ourselves and enjoy! Check it out at MyProAqua Jeff converted his Concours motorcycle into a “naked” bike and rode over to LA to visit Tim who borrowed a motorcycle. They had such a great time they may make the ride an annual Father’s Day event. In August Tim went to in Djibouti, Africa for 6 months drilling wells with the Navy and should be home around February.

We traded in Jeff’s beloved Jeep with the Cash for Clunkers program and Jeff enjoyed negotiating a great deal on our first new car. We broke it in with an insurance claim after waking up to missing wheels. (honestly though - El Paso has been the 2nd safest city in the US for about 5 years now!) Within weeks El Paso had a terrible hailstorm & we put in a claim for a new roof, but decided we might get dropped if we also claimed the hail damage to the HHR, thankfully it's hardly noticable.

In September I made a too short trip to MN/SD in honor of Grace & Finn’s baptism and Catie’s 5th birthday. Again, lots of family was around, including Natasha & Cecilia who came in from WA, and it was fun to all hang out together.

In October Gene & Theresia drove down in their “little” motor home and brought Kadi with them. They spent a couple days exploring Big Bend, TX while Jeff & I enjoyed getting to know Kadi better. Kadi (& Keila & Pete) will welcome a new baby girl in February so we are planning a trip to the PNW to visit them in 2010. I’m still plugging away at my MBA at UTEP. Between terms I’m catching up on all sorts of projects. Our 2009 New Years resolution to Not Shop at Walmart was successful & we are thinking of extending it through 2010. Though I really think we should add an additional resolution for 2010.

If you are a secret reader of our blog, much of this news is repetitive. If not, keep reading to see pictures of kiddos and watch a very short video of our Christmas Eve Egg Nog Dog!

Happy New Year!

Keep in touch!

Amber and Jeff

New Years Resolution

2009-12-30T18:08:00.000-08:00

As of tomorrow, we have officially kept our 2009 New Years Resolution to Not Shop at WALMART! Yeah, us, but it wasn't really that difficult, there are plenty of other options, and the prices aren't that great. We did visit once when Gene and Theresia were here and needed prescriptions filled. We pushed Kadi around in the cart in circles to make her giggle and received a static electricity shock every couple steps. I think repeated physical pain is a sign that we shouldn't even be Inside a Walmart! So, we are contemplating extended it through 2010. I think we should add an new resolution for 2010 though. What do you think it should be?

Egg Nog Dog

2009-12-26T08:57:00.000-08:00

Click on the title so see a video of how we spent Christmas Eve - taking care of Foster after he got into an unattended glass of egg nog. I spent most of the night with him on my lap or carrying him around. He normally doesn't enjoy that, but he was all loose and relaxed. If I put him down he'd just follow me around but he could hardly walk without his feet slipping out from under him, or walking into walls. Hilarious, but also disturbing. We don't know how much he had, so we kept a close eye on him. Surprisingly he didn't seem to have a hangover at all the next day.

Snow Day!

2009-12-01T18:42:00.001-08:00

We had our first snow storm of the season. We got maybe 4 inches at my house. I've heard El Paso has gotten more snow this season than South Dakota! It took me an hour to drive home, but later I got to tromp around in the fresh snow in my sorel boots. I love it!

Baptism & Bday

2009-10-31T15:20:00.001-07:00

I flew up to MN & Natasha & Cecilia flew in from Seattle. We drove down to SD to see Finn and Grace at their baptism, plus we celebrated Catie's 5th birthday. It was great to spend time together with family. It was a fun but still a relaxing long weekend.

Kadi's first visit to El Paso

2009-10-31T15:08:00.001-07:00

Here's a picture of Kadi and Jeff on their way to the park. Gene and Theresia drove their van all the way down from Washington for a visit and brought Kadi with them. They stayed with us for a couple days before heading down to Big Bend, Texas. Jeff and I had Kadi for a few days and enjoyed getting to know her. She knows lots of words and is even starting to put sentences together. She is independent and knows what she wants! We played by the pool, went to the park, went to a kids zoo, went shopping, watched some movies, and just hung out at home.

Clunkers Safest?

2009-08-21T19:07:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks now I've been meaning to tell you we fell for the Cash for Clunkers incentive program. Jeff had a hard time giving up his good ol' jeep, and it does seem a shame to have to destroy a good driving vehicle, but it was needing more and more repairs and we haven't gotten around to many in the couple years we've had it. The Subaru is getting up there in miles, so it seems to get all the attention. CARS seems like too good of an opportunity to pass up so Jeff had a bit of fun car shopping and we got an '08 Chevy HHR. Wasn't Jeff's first choice but it has some character, lots of features and meets our criteria. Due to the popularity of the program there weren't many vehicles available in El Paso, but it's a good car and we are enjoying it.

I told Jeff we need to go on a road trip to break it in, but I guess there is another way to break in a new vehicle...your first insurance claim. We haven't even had it long enough for me to blog about it, to get it dirty, although I think we have filled it up with gas a couple times. Then I wake up this morning to a sight that is almost comical. I had just been bragging earlier in the week to some visitors that El Paso has been the 2nd or 3rd safest city in the nation for many years running. Nothing bad has really happened to me or anybody I know, I bragged. Jeff has left the keys in the motorcycle in the driveway & nothing happened. He has left $100s of dollars of audio equipment in the jeep and nobody was interested in it. Apparently Clunkers are the safest thing to have in El Paso. Apparently somebody decided they were going to get some cash out of the program too..

Minnesota...

2009-07-30T18:23:00.000-07:00

I spent 10 days in July visiting my family up in Minnesota, South Dakota & even ventured into Wisconsin for a day. Vaughan and Catie and I drove down to South Dakota to see the Peters' new home, Grace and cutie 3 month old Finnegan. We spent one day up at Kip & Nicole's cabin near spooner with the Durands and Bob & Sharon too, plus their whole bunch of kids. It was raining most of the day, but we still have fun, just chatting. I got to spend time with mom in Mpls shopping & eating at new restaurants. Then I went down to spend time with dad in Rochester and got treated to a fish fry and caught up with an old friend. I got to see a few uncles, aunts and cousins too while I was back. Dad & I and the Schaubs went out on Vaughan's boat on Lake Minnetonka, even though it was only 70 degrees. I just enjoyed being out on the water, since I live in the desert now! It was a great trip, relaxing and alot of fun crammed into 10 short days!

camping...

2009-07-30T16:30:00.000-07:00

we went camping this weekend at bonito hollow up near ruidoso new mexico. jeff and i used to camp all the time, especially with his kids, but we haven't been camping in years...maybe 5 years? he was on the road for a couple years, then moving to texas it's always so hot or so cold. we tried to go last year and my car died on the way. so, when my friend lucia said they were going, i thought that was a really good idea, especially since i don't have class right now, me schedule is free. we went hiking up at the ski apache wilderness area. it was beautiful meadows filled with wild flowers and shady spruce forests. it reminded us of the pnw a little bit. foster was very into the hiking and wore himself out! we hung fireside with lucia and her friends...and introduced the new campers to Pi-Di's (apple) and bocce ball. sunday we stopped by the 3 rivers petroglyph area & took short but hot hike to see the numerous petroglyphs. it's a great site, you can see from the many pictures. anyway, it was a very relaxing weekend and we really had a good time, we might just have to do it again soon.

Summer Session is over!!!!!

2009-07-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my first, and possibly last summer class at UTEP. It is just not conducive to learning, to cram it all in a short time. Apparently, this particular professor made it worse than others, his negative attitude about students not helping at all, but I'm not sure if I'll do another one. I hardly ever saw Jeff, or did anything other than work and study. So, I have been enjoying my first few days since class was over... happy hour immediately after my final was fun, a leisurely swim, reading just for fun, actaully watched a movie, did laundry for the first time in forever, blogged finally, caught up on surfing, even cleaned a bit, did some shopping, paid some bills...okay some of that is not exactly fun, but really needed to get done after a month m.i.a. It's been busy all around. Jeff has been putting in a lot of time selling Hyla's...he is really enjoying it...it's a great product and his boss is a great guy and career salesman. Over the last couple months he's made his bike "naked" took off of it something like 40lbs! He drove out to see Tim in CA over Fathers Day weekend and they enjoyed a bike ride on CA's twisties. I finally got my car back after 3 weeks at the shop...the clear coat was deteriorating and it was starting to rust in places. Thanks to Lucia who carted me around when Jeff needed his jeep! We've been enjoying the pool and the weather, and have even gotten something to grow in the back yard! I think we are going to relax around the pool on the 4th, bbq a salmon and maybe an evening bike ride to enjoy fireworks somewhere, if it's not raining. Then, we'll starting getting ready for my trip to see Finnegan & family, and preparing for family and friends coming to visit us later this summer.

The pool is open!

2009-05-10T10:21:00.000-07:00

Jeff's been working diligently on the pool and last night I went for my first swim of the season! I love late night swims, where the water is all deep blue, and the light seems to make the waves glow and sparkle. It was a little bit chilly, especially as I churned up the colder water from below, but it was refreshing! Jeff went in the hot tub side, as it was warmer. The first pool party of the season can't be far away as it has been in the mid-90s all week!

Alpine Arizona

2009-05-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

We went for a long weekend trip on the Kawasaki to Alpine Arizona. What's in Alpine Arizona? Nothing but scenery, and that's the point! It's 8-9000 foot elevation and lots of alpine-like meadows and lakes. Every road is a scenic byway. It was a little bit cold and windy, and snow still in some places, but so beautiful. We road 16 miles of gravel through the indian reservation. I've seen creek beds smoother than this "road". But at the end of it we were rewarded with a lovely alpine lake and waterfall...

Kadi's 1st Bday Party

2009-04-12T13:17:00.001-07:00

Here's a picture of Kadi during her first birthday party at Jeff's parents house. She's holding a lullaby player we got her (and she loves) and Papa Gene is giving her her first bite of the yummy cake/jello dessert Aunt Nancy created for her. We went up to the Pacific Northwest for our spring break. It was a busy vacation, as usual. We saw the Durands up in Tacoma - including new baby Cecilia - who is all smiles and so sweet! We stayed with Jeff's parents and Jeff's sister Nancy was home from Germany to visit. We spent alot of time with Kadi who is at such a fun age - she's running now, and starting to talk a little bit. She is high energy and talkative and engaging and growing so fast! We got down to Portland a couple times to see friends & had a good time - dinner or drinks with friends, Teagues surprise party. Nancy & I went shopping down to Woodburn & I was able to stop over to see my GreatAunt Vera and Deb. On the way back to Seattle we stopped by Snoqualmie Falls - nice falls & a cute town.

Vera May McMillen Paquin

2009-03-27T20:54:00.000-07:00

My grandma's twin sister, Vera, passed away recently at the age of 101! Thankfully, I was able to visit her again at her lovely farm house while I was in Oregon recently. Here is her obituary, which I thought was very interesting and actually quite uplifting. She was blessed with a long life and a loving family.

Vera M. Paquin June 25, 1907 - March 22, 2009 MONITOR - Vera May McMillen was born to William and Grace (Smith) McMillen in Cordova Township, Minnesota on June 25, 1907, along with her twin sister, Verna Fay. The week after they were born, thirty-five people turned out to see the identical twins. In their youth, the twins enjoyed switching identities. Vera attended school and Normal School in Minnesota and taught school for several years in one-room school houses. She met Adlore Paquin and he waited seven years for her to consent to marry him on August 27, 1932. They had one son, Gene Paquin, who was born in Minnesota. They left Minnesota during the depression and lived for a time in Montana and California, before finally settling in Oregon in 1935. They operated a gas station in Salem, among other pursuits, and eventually bought a farm in Monitor, where they had a dairy, farmed for many years, and where Vera lived until her death. During those years, they also had three daughters, Jane, Patricia and Deborah. Vera played the piano for church and other events for many years and on holidays when the family was home she gathered all around the piano to sing. She was an avid reader, and when her vision failed in later years, enjoyed books on cassette and CD. Vera never stopped learning and always had something to discuss with family and friends that she had read or heard on the radio or television. Even after reaching 100 years old, she was still whipping her children and grandchildren at card games! Vera was especially looking forward to seeing her mother, who had died when she was 11 years old, her husband Ad, who preceded her in death in 1994, and her twin sister Verna, who also preceded her in death. Her sisters Lola, Gladys Dunn and her brother Clifford McMillen also preceded her in death as well as her parents. She has gone home to see these dear ones and be at peace with her Heavenly Father at last. Surviving Vera are her son, Skip (Helen) Paquin of Woodburn; daughters, Jane (Dick) Johnson of Eugene, Pat Booth of Monitor, and Deborah (Jim) Opitz of Silverton; 10 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; 5 great-great-grandchildren; and 2 great-great-great-grandchildren. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m., Friday, March 27, 2009 and from 9 to 11 a.m., Saturday, March 28, 2009 at Unger Funeral Chapel, 229 Mill St., Silverton. A Funeral Service will be held at 1 p.m., Saturday, March 28, 2009 at Marquam United Methodist Church, 36971 S. Hwy 213, Marquam, with burial following at Miller Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Willamette Valley Hospice or Marquam United Methodist Church.

People up there are so NICE!!!

2009-01-09T16:30:00.000-08:00

I forgot to tell you about the funny comment from a friend of a friend. She forgot I was from Portland, until we were at the Sunbowl game. OMG! she says. I just got back from Seattle, well, Tacoma. and people there are SO NICE! They were so helpful and just SO NICE! She goes on to explain how at the grocery store, people spoke to her and helped her, and all these little normal common courtesy episodes she witnessed while visiting her cousin up in the PNW. I just smirked & agreed with her. Of course you people in the PNW are better than average. But, the only reason you all seem SO NICE is because people in El Paso are NOT SO NICE! I mean common courtesy things, like just handing the door to the person directly behind you as you walk into the store. Come on...it's not that hard...anyway. Congrats to you for being SO NICE

Funny... I just heard a motorcycle and thought Teague was coming for a visit... forgot where I was for a minute.

Happy New Year

2009-01-01T12:48:00.001-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR! We hope you had a wonderful 2008. We kept busy this year - mostly traveling. Here’s a recap…
FELIZ NAUGHTY DOG! In January Jeff rescued a little dog from starvation from the side of the highway in east Texas. We only intended to foster the pup back to health (hence his name Foster) but I’ve grown so attached, he’s still with us! He’s a toy fox terrier and quite a character. Jeff’s daughter Keila was married and had a baby girl in March – Kadi Lynne Coughlan. We visited them over Memorial Weekend and were smitten with Granddaughter Kadi! She’s such a good baby and has grown so much since we last saw her, we are hoping for another visit soon! We went to Tuscon for a weekend in March, I spent a week in San Diego in April for work, and we made a trip to Oklahoma to Aunt Delilah & Uncle Danny’s while my Dad and Aunt Flossie were there for a visit. Jeff’s motorcycle trip to Portland wasn’t all he’d hoped for, so he made another cross country trek to South Dakota where we spent 4th of July week with Amber’s whole family. We rented a cabin and did all the sights around Rapid City and enjoyed our time together. To celebrate our 10th anniversary we spent 10 days in Honolulu Hawaii. I did work all week too, but saw all the sites, snorkeled, rode a catamaran and enjoyed the island. Nancy came to El Paso to visit in August. We hadn’t seen her in a couple years. Keila is still in Kelso WA. Tim was in Iraq for about 6 months and returned to California in October. They both recently moved into their own apartments. We probably will do some more traveling in 2009 to visit them and hopefully to South Dakota & Minnesota to visit family too!

Happy 2009!
Love, Amber & Jeff McCleary

Christmas with Carol

2009-01-01T12:43:00.001-08:00

My mom Carol came to visit for Christmas this year, and we had a busy week. For Christmas Eve we went to Mesilla NM. We had mexican for lunch, shopped, and in the plaza they had Christmas Carol singalong and had lit 1000s of luminaries all around this old town. Very festive. We also went to Carlsbad Caverns and saw the holiday lights along the Pecos River, and went to White Sands. Other than that we just enjoyed spending time together and had a good Christmas in El Paso. Weather was very nice compared to the rest of the world, and we even went swimming as well as the usual hot tubbing.

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

I'm almost bored!

2008-12-14T15:12:00.000-08:00

I had my final test on Tuesday. I think I did well, because the final was a lot easier than the midterm. I didn't have to spend that much time studying, maybe 2 hours a week, but since I don't have class any more I have sooo much free time on my hands it's getting ridiculous. Today I've already done 4 loads of laundry, made cookies, took the dog for a long walk, got a hair cut, cleaned the bedroom down to the baseboards, read the newspaper, helped Jeff make a chicken dinner, did dishes twice etc. All between 9 and 3. Yesterday was pretty much the same...even cleaned out closets! Now I finally have time to post a blog...and I really don't have anything to say. Happy Thanksgiving with all the trimmings so we had plenty of leftovers. Celebrated National Buy Nothing day with a motorcycle ride to Old Mesilla. Almost already for Christmas, just need to mail packages. My mom is coming for a visit. I am going to have to clean some more! OH NO!

Allan Stocker

2008-10-26T10:09:00.000-07:00

It's been a sad week here.
My cousin Allan Stocker passed away Saturday October 25, 2008 after battle with a very aggressive pancreatic cancer. He was able to spend more time with his family over the last year or so, and at least he is now free of pain. Our thoughts go out to his wife, kids, adopted nephew, sister, mom and dad and everyone else that I know will miss him. He was the oldest cousin on my mom's side of the family (2nd oldest maybe?) and I am the youngest, so he was always big, in my memory. But, thats how I will remember him. A guy with a heart as big as he was! He would fill up a room with his huge smile and a deep booming laugh.

Great Aunt Kitty

2008-10-26T09:54:00.000-07:00

Anyone remember our Kitty Van? The Maharaj Gold Malibu? Well their original owner, Jeff's Great Aunt Kitty passed away on Monday October 20, 2008. She suffered a stroke, and thankfully didn't suffer very long and passed away in her beloved home. Jeff has very fond memories of her and she was the member of Jeff's extended family that we visited most often. His grandma's sister lived south of Portland in an octagon shaped house that they built from Good Housekeeping plans, so I've been told. We would stop by whenever we were in her neighborhood and check out her extensive garden and visit for a while. She was an independent lady who took up elk hunting in her 70s and outlived a few husbands, I think. We got a kick out of her, and she fondly referred to Jeff as an "odd egg"! Many people know the story of our garden wedding at Aunt Kitty's...but here it is...

Our wedding was held at Silver Falls state park - ceremony at a falls and the reception a mile or so away at a lodge. I was busy before the ceremony fretting over my hairdo, and my lovely helpers couldn't find the marriage license at the lodge. Our minister wouldn't come over to the lodge and said just to call him when we got back into town. As long as we had witnesses that were actually at the ceremony, we could use that date. Our crazy minister lived in Aurora, the same town as Aunt Kitty - maybe even on the same Meridian road. So, after a weekend of living in sin at the Oregon coast, we headed back to Aurora. We called our minister and he came over in his current get up (Swimming trunks, tank top, and jungle boots). Ernie was doing the lunch dishes and Aunt Kitty was our witness and signed our marriage license, making us all legal!

Midterm exam results

2008-10-26T09:41:00.000-07:00

My accounting class at UTEP is going very well. I have found a group of people that I work with and we work well together. The information is not new to me, more theory learning of the work I've been doing for the last 13 years. We had our midterm exam a couple weeks ago, and I did well -and I better do well - since this is my profession. I did very well, in fact the best in the class, which kind of surprised me, since I sometimes go too fast in the tests, get overconfident. I should be happy, and I am. However I immediately reverted to grade school-like behavior of being quiet about my grade, not wanting the other kids to know, for fear of how they'll react. I should be more mature than that. It's sad that I can't be openly proud of my accomplishment. My group members knew that I had done well, and seemed happy about it. Although the 2 guys from Bhutan that I work with did ask me to help with their Excel final project, although they insisted they would do all the work and then just ask for my opinion. I think I'll sign up for business law next sememster...supposed to be a tough class with lots of homework. So, my blogs about that class will have actual complaints instead of whining like this blog! poor me...i did too well on my midterm!

New Faucet (thanks mom) and sink

2008-10-09T07:21:00.000-07:00

My mom sent us her old faucet, which inspired Jeff to install a new sink, since we found such a great deal on one at Lowes. Isn't it purty? Jeff's been doing alot of fixing up around the house. I have some pictures, but you'll just have to visit to see all the improvements!

New Webstore

2008-09-11T07:48:00.000-07:00

I am moving my webstore - above is a link to the new store and there is also a link on the right in my websites. The old store will be open for a while longer, make your final purchases, because not everything will transition to the new site. The new site is on the Etsy website with many other handmade items...it's a great new home for amberosia! We will have more than just my jewelry on there...check us out, add us to your favorites, tell your friends!

MBA

2008-09-03T11:27:00.000-07:00

I had my very first MBA course last night at UTEP (University of Texas in El Paso). In an attempt to ease myself back into school I only took one course, and it's Financial Accounting, so it's not a very big shock, so far. The teacher is good (although with a very thick accent), and the other kids played nice with me. I am not the oldest, but older students are definitely in the minority, as well as the white, english-as-a-first language students. I was feeling happy just to have made through all the hoops to get accepted (late), registered (late), paid (on time), set-up online (with difficulty) and find my classes (a week late). Now I am feeling proud of myself for taking this step, but ask me again in 4 years when I am still plugging away at it!

Labor Day Weekend

2008-08-31T17:51:00.001-07:00

For Labor Day weekend we had plans to go camping. I have not been camping in years, so I was very excited. We were going to Fort Davis, to see the Marfa lights, to the Balmorhea hot springs, and the McDonald observatory. Jeff got some repairs done on my car Friday. Saturday we packed up and took off. About 75 miles down the interstate & my ABS light goes on and the tire is going wobbly. The wheel nut is backed off, and it seems that wheel bearing they replaced on Friday went bad on Saturday. We are in the middle of nowhere with practically no cell phone coverage. We go walking until we find coverage and call the mechanic. After getting 5 tow numbers from him we finally get one who calls us back & will come get us. Typical Texas & was so unbearably hot & sunny, then poured down rain for a couple hours. Not a single person even slowed down to see if we needed help for almost 4 hours. We were a quarter mile from the border patrol check point, yet they never came to see why we were sitting there for half the day. We got a tow back to town to the mechanics at about dusk. Too late to swap vehicles and drive 4 hours to Fort Davis. He is going to warranty the labor, but not the parts, although bad installation probably damaged the seal causing the entire part to fail. So, we had our steaks at home instead of cooked over the campfire. We sat in the hot tub and looked at stars instead of at the observatory or the hot springs. I was really looking forward to a relaxing camping weekend, now that it's not so hot, so am trying to make the best out of a weekend at home.

Nancy's visit

2008-08-09T19:11:00.000-07:00

I didn't take very many pictures while Nancy was here visiting, but we had a good time. She and Jeff went to Carlsbad, went on a motorcycle ride out to Hueco Tanks. We all went out to dinner at Cattlemans, went to sing Karaoke with some friends (thankfully only Nancy sang!) watched some movies, bbq's and enjoyed a relaxing day around the pool. She and I went to Palomas, Mexico for some shopping and also went to see Mamma Mia! It was a really nice visit. We haven't seen Nancy for something like 2 years, so we were really happy she could make it down here to visit us during her annual visit home to the PNW from Germany. Our dog Foster was attached to Nancy's side the minute he met her and was acting up for Days after she left! I wouldn't say she spoiled him, but he certainly loved her anyway!

Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii,

2008-08-03T18:22:00.000-07:00

Hawaii was great! Despite me having to work everyday, we were able to enjoy the evenings and 2 weekends on Oahu. Our hotel was right at the beginning of Waikiki Beach (it was the Hawaii 5-0 hotel), so there was plenty to do - at the beach, shopping, restaurants etc. We were able to see almost the entire island and do just about everything we planned on. We went on a sunset catamaran ride on our anniversary, hiked diamond head, swam with sea turtles, visited several beaches, went to the Dole Pineapple plantation, saw hula dancers & musicians, ate at some great restaurants. Jeff went to the Pearl Harbor memorial, rented a scooter, rented a sea kayak and got to relax at the beach and pool while I was at work. It was great also to visit some of our jobsites and work with our people in these remote offices. The picture above is on the North Shore, where we enjoyed great snorkeling a couple times at Sharks Cove (Pupukea). We didn't get to see any waterfalls, as they were just coming out of a drought. I don't think I would've gone to HI except that my work sent me, but it was a pretty easy place to have a fun, yet relaxing vacation. And I learned alot of Hawaiian...such as the state fish Humuhumunukunukuapua'a!

Black Hills, South Dakota

2008-07-09T19:32:00.001-07:00

We spent 4th of July week at a cabin in the Black Hills of South Dakota with Amber's family. We got to see all the sites...Mt. Rushmore (including the last bit of the fireworks), Crazy Horse (including laser light show), 1880s train ride, Bear Country, Hill City Winery, The Mangy Moose, The Cosmos, Black Hills jewelry factory, Keystone, Storybook Island, Arana & Bryan's property, the Rapid City Regional Hospital etc... I'm sure I'm forgetting something. But the real fun of the week was spending time with all my family (Mom, Vaughan & Lisa & Catie, Arana & Bryan & Grace, Dad & Vernelle). We hung out and chatted, had lots of good food, played cards and games, played and colored and played some more with my nieces and just had a good time. Jeff wanted to make another cross country motorcycle ride instead of flying, so we were able to ride possibly every road in the Rapid City area and see quite a bit of the beautiful scenery. He was able to make the return drive of 1152 miles faster than I could get on a plane and fly back to El Paso, considering my loong layover in Denver.

100 degrees...

2008-07-09T19:20:00.000-07:00

June is the hottest month of the year, down here in El Paso, and we had almost 3 straight weeks 100 degrees or more, but it's not so bad...it's a DRY heat. We've spent alot of time cleaning up the backyard and playing in the pool. We got new snorkeling gear and have been practicing. We have been trying to teach Foster how to get out of the pool, in case he should fall in, so now he's a little scared of the water. Jeff's trying to get him used to it, but putting him on the floaty, which he does seem to enjoy. Wish you were here!

The Oregon Trail

2008-06-08T07:57:00.001-07:00

Jeff's always wanted to do a long distance bike trip so decided to make his way to Portland on two wheels (amber flew and jeff picked her up in a car!). After a couple emergency repairs, he set out only a couple days late. He stayed one night at Lake Powell to try out his new camping gear. He encountered snow through Utah and had to reroute through Central Oregon. He made it to Rick's in Philomath safe and sound and only a little sore. Starting the return trip on Saturday, Rick and Matt (on his new Harley) rode along with Jeff down to the California redwood forest. They camped out one night and then had to be on their way back north. Jeff continued on to Lake Lawson, until his battery completely died. With help from a forest ranger he made it back to Redding, CA, where he got a new battery and charged it overnight at a hotel. Popped it in the next morning and was back on the road. On the way back he rode past Lake Tahoe and the Grand Canyon. He made it home Wednesday night, only a little road weary, and ready for another cross country haul!

Memorial Day Weekend

2008-06-08T07:39:00.000-07:00

We spent Memorial Day Weekend up in the Pacific Northwest, visiting friends and family, most importantly baby Kadi who is almost 2 months old! We stayed at Jeff's parents' house in Longview, although they were still in Mexico and spent alot of time with Keila, Pete and Kadi...just doing everyday things (cooking, shopping, making baby announcements), enjoying our time with Kadi (good baby, only really fusses when she's hungry). I was sure it would rain the entire time we were there, but it only rained once while we were there - and it was a good thunder & lightening storm. The picture above is Grandpa Jeff making thunder and lightening storms sound effects for Kadi since she seems to like them. We were able to spend some time with other friends too: we met Terri & Company to play pool (and had microbrews you can't get in Texas), went shopping in Portland at Columbia and Penzeys, went to Changs (Texas has lots of restaurants, but not a wide variety of cuisine), went to a BBQ at Terris house, went to see Natasha & Michael & Peyton and their new cabin on Lake Mayfield, and went for a motorcycle ride with Matt & Maura through beautiful rolling green misty hill around woodland area. It was a very good weekend!

Where has the May gone?

2008-05-31T12:23:00.000-07:00

We spent much alot of time working at home...Amber catching up from a late April work trip to San Diego, Jeff trying to get some projects done when he wasn't away on 3 different week long truck trips, and both of us trying to get ready for our trip to Portland at the end of May.

Jeff was working on his curry recipes lately. Here's one of his new recipes he invented.

EAST MEETS MIDWEST HOTDISH
4 pounds skinless chicken (8 thighs) 1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon of ginger, minced 1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of oil
2 tablespoons Penzey’s Sweet Curry powder (or Garam Masala)
1 cup rice 1 can tomato bisque soup
1 can 15 oz coconut milk
1 tablespoon Penzey’s Tandoori seasoning 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Clean chicken and soak in salt brine while preparing other ingredients.
Saute onion, ginger and garlic in 1 tablespoon oil. Add curry powder. Stir in rice. Saute for 3 minutes, stirring constantlyAdd tomato soup and stir. Slowly add coconut milk while stirring just until boil. Transfer to 9x13 lightly greased casserole dish. Place in 250degree oven. Drain the chicken. Saute chicken until evenly browned in 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon tandoori seasoning and 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro.
Place chicken on the rice, presentation side down. Bake for 2 hours. Turn chicken once. Cover with foil. Bake 1 hour or until rice is tender. Sprinkle with remaining chopped cilantro. Serve with cucumbers in creamy peppercorn dressing.

the Music Within

2008-04-10T11:48:00.001-07:00

The Music Within movie is now out on DVD. We had pre-ordered it and watched it last night. They were filming at my house for 4 days and there was maybe 2 minutes of my house in the movie. I was going to have a premiere party, but I'm not sure if it's worth it now! I kept pausing and backing up to see the scenes, until I was scolded by Jeff. I'll have to watch it again later for our scenes. Here is a shot I took after one day of shooting that you might recognize in the film. Pretty good movie...some good Portland shots, quite a bit at PSU, some bridges. My neighbors house is Grandma's house and our house was the Mom's house when the star was a kid.

Tucson

2008-03-19T18:20:00.000-07:00

We went to Tucson for the weekend - Jeff was going to be there for work, and there was an audio/speaker diy expo thing he wanted to go to. So, I met him halfway there so I could do some siteseeing. Amber and the dog (we're calling him Foster lately) did alot of hiking on Saturday - enough to get a little sunburn - it was probably 80 degrees. Jeff had a good time at the expo talking with the other speaker guys. Sunday it was 45 DEGREES - in Arizona! And rainy, as you can tell from the picture of the B52 at the Pima Air Museum. It was interesting to see...

It's about a 5 hour drive, so we headed home about 3. About 5 they shut down I10 - we were at Lordsburg, New Mexico. We ate, watched a movie, and just couldn't get any information about the closure. I10 was closed for basically the entire width of NM for dust storms, and one police officer told us there was an accident. But, they couldn't tell us where the accident was, only that you couldn't detour around it - all roads in the area were also closed - contrary to what the hotline told us. And they wouldn't let you go anywhere from the truck stop we were in. Thankfully we had Rick to give us some updates on road conditions from the website and help Jeff figure out an alternate route home. After stocking up on emergency supplies, we (well, Jeff drove - I'd probably have stayed the night in my car - freezing, since it's very near the continental divide it was about 30 degrees that night) drove through town, back tracked practically to Arizona, went south and drove back to El Paso on a county road, very near the Mexico border. It was very deserted, but no problems at all! Very clear night skies, - no dust at all and the wind wasn't even bad, cold, but fine! Since the speed limit was alot slower than the interstate, we didn't get home until after midnight though, so I called in late to work. We spent St Patty's evening driving back to get Jeff's jeep which was in NM, along I10, but we couldn't get there!

Updates on the dog

2008-03-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

We officially named the dog Cheech, but he went without a name for so long, and Hey or Dog were just too short, now he mostly answers to Lil Dog. So last Monday he ran away. I felt bad, mainly because I was the one who unpadlocked the gate (Jeff asked me to...I thought he shut it!) and I felt bad that something had happened to him. On Wednesday, someone finally called. I guess they didn't call because they wanted to keep him. (How mean is that, to let us worry..and what if the dog belonged to a little kid?) They don't speak English very well, but Jeff told them he'd have to bring the dog home to show me it was ok, and we'd discuss it. We really only signed on to foster him back to health, we didn't really choose to get a dog. But, I did miss him when he was gone, and I was happy to see him. And he has been really well behaved since he's been back. But, we decided we'd keep him until the weekend and then go meet the other people.

Feb 10th and 72 degrees!

2008-02-12T16:51:00.000-08:00

It has been gorgeous this week! It's hard to believe it was 72 degrees in FEBRUARY! I'm liking the Sun City alot for its early spring. There were a couple days this winter that were just like Portland - overcast and dreary, and you could feel the change in people. Someone asked about Portland, so I told them - remember yesterday? That's what it's like from Sept to May. And he gasped! I got so used to it, I didn't mind the rain so much, but I am sure enjoying the sun now! It was nice enough we sunned in the back yard for a little bit. And we started taking the cover off the pool. It's certainly not ready yet, but we'll start working on it, so if any of you northerners need a spring break, we'll be ready!

The dog is feeling better...

2008-01-20T13:48:00.000-08:00

The dog is feeling much better and getting more active. He does miss us when we're gone...here is a video of him happy to see me home...

New Guest Bed

2008-01-13T14:13:00.001-08:00

Here's a picture of our new queen sized guest bed. I can't believe how tall it is! But, it's very comfortable, so we are all ready for you to come visit us! The old queen bed we sold in Portland, and I finally sold the futon - it was easy to move, and I thought it was comfortable, but I don't think everybody else did.

Our furry friend

2008-01-13T13:36:00.000-08:00

Look who Jeff brought home from the parking lot of Jerry Mikeska's BBQ joint in eastern Texas. He was black with a white spot (filthy and slimy!), and so weak he could hardly stand up. Jeff, being the big softie he is, washed him up and rescued him. He says we're just nursing him back to health, but I think he really wants to keep him. We think he's some sort of terrier mix, but hopefully the vet will help us decide that and his age. When Jeff got him home Friday he wasn't even 3 pounds. We've been feeding him special meals, keeping him warm. He seems pretty healthy now that he has some strength back. He is putting on some weight and even getting a little fiesty, although I think he's still too timid and calm to be a terrier. He's well behaved and loves any attention, can't hardly be alone. Jeff says it's like having a cat and a dog in one! We can't decide on a name for him, so maybe you can help decide. Here are some options:

Andre (as in The Giant).
Cheech (for his famous eyes half closed look)
Chester (as in Winchester, TX)
Spot (for obvious reason...)
Jeff wants jhamir (rhymes with come here), but I've already vetoed that one.

One Year Anniversary

2008-01-02T14:41:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe it's been a year already, but today is our one year anniversary in El Paso Texas, which we are going to celebrate with dinner and a foreign movie at a little coffee shop we found. Of course everyone asks us if we like it here in far west texas, and we do. It is a little different culture, but not so drastic you can’t deal with it. Of course we miss our friends, but I don’t miss our first home as much as I thought I would. I already was far from my family, so that hasn’t changed except now they have more reasons to come visit me in a new place. But, of course Jeff misses his family, (His son Tim is away in the Navy) so especially his daughter Keila, but - really, she’s a very busy teenager, so we didn’t get to see her that often anyway! We do miss Portland sometimes and places we used to travel to in Oregon, but we are becoming more comfortable here. The first few months here I didn’t do much at all in the way of exploring, except what became necessary. After we visited Portland for Keila’s graduation I think is when that changed things for me, or maybe because that coincides with when Jeff came “home” full time. We began to explore more and feel more at home here. This has been such a busy year full of so many changes, and even though that is stressful, I think that makes it easier to be in a new place. Changes start to seem commonplace, expected and of little significance in comparison to some of the other bigger changes. Now I’ve seen a full year of events here in EP, and a full year of seasons so I think I know what's in store for us next year. It didn’t really freeze hard, but it snowed, so we can both handle the winters. And it never seemed as hot as it was (because it’s a DRY HEAT…I’ll finally buy into that saying) so I think I can handle the summers. Jeff was used to them from Phoenix, but I didn’t think I could take it, but with a pool and an air cooler, it wasn’t so bad…although, I was away with Jeff for all of June, and supposedly that’s the hottest month, so we’ll have to see what year 2 brings!

early christmas present

2007-12-20T17:38:00.000-08:00

I got an early christmas present - Jeff made me a new headboard. Now he's working on a chest for the foot of the bed, and thinking about night tables. He's enjoying wood working lately, since he has the garage to spread out in, and wasn't able to do any projects when he was on the road. Sadly, this is one of the few times you'll see my bed made, because doesn't it look nice?

Jeff's Jeep

2007-11-25T10:43:00.000-08:00

Here's day one of the snow storm. Look how gray the ski is! The Sun City Very Rarely sees clouds like this (like the PNW!) I had to snap a picture and realized I hadn't posted a picture yet of Jeff's jeep. It's a 1986 2 door Laredo he's been fixing up. It's in pretty good shape, he replaced the carburator & some other little fixes. We hope to use the 4WD to go camping & exploring around TX & NM and maybe even into Mexico some day for a road trip.

White Thanksgiving!

2007-11-25T10:37:00.001-08:00

We woke up Saturday morning to 3" of snow! I just love the snow, so I dragged Jeff out for a neighboorhood walk with me. It continued to snow so Sunday I woke up to 7" of snow, but the sun is shining and it's melting fast. It was a perfect day. I have had a cold but a couple days of relaxation has made me feel so much better. I lit a fire and put on some Holiday music and put up our Christmas tree and other decorations. I even wrapped a few presents I have been hiding from Jeff. Had Turkey leftovers, watched a movie with Jeff. I love Thanksgiving Weekend!

Landscaping

2007-11-25T10:24:00.000-08:00

It's finally cool enough to take on some outside projects, so a couple weeks ago, I finally landscaped in our back yard raised area - which was basically dirt, a little bit of rock and one lone grass plant. We hauled alot of rocks placed randomly from around the property and I dug up several new rocks anytime I put in the shovel. We debated so many things to put in there (mesquite, fruit/nut trees, etc) but I finally opted for low maintenance, drought resistant, native plants. The area is just not big enough, the soil isn't very good and it gets alot of sun. The front yard has alot of cacti, so I wanted to do something different in the back. Mom and I had visited a local nursery when she was here and they were great about helping us find plants that will do well in this climate (and under my care or lack thereof). She advised us how to prep the soil since it's so full of clay and rock and sand and I waited until fall when the plants would be dormant. I hope I didn't wait too long (see next post!) I hope the grasses and the ground cover fill in the area pretty well. I hope it'll keep down the dust in the spring and I hope maybe it will even keep it a little cooler in the backyard during the summer.

The Music Within

2007-10-31T16:31:00.000-07:00

The movie filmed at our house is finally opening. They finally got their website running too (see link above). There is a good trailer and pictures etc, but none of our house that I can find. It is opening at the Regal Bridgeport in Tigard on November 9th... you can find more showtimes etc on the site.

Closed for the Winter

2007-10-25T15:54:00.000-07:00

On Saturday it was supposed to be 88degrees. By Monday it was 60degrees. Not that cold, I know, but for here, that's cold! The coldest I've seen since February. It's back up to the 70s now. I wanted one last swim, so I tried to heat the pool up on Saturday for a last dip. At about 9:30 I was going to swim, even though the water had only gotten up to 79 degrees according to the pump, but it felt alot colder than that! I inched my way in up to my neck, but just couldn't make the final plunge. I had to go take a hot shower I was so cold all the way through & jeff heated my jammies up in the dryer :) Sunday I heated it up - can't seem to break the 79degree mark, but it was a little easier to take in the heat of the day. So, we'll probably continue to use the hot spa - it heats up alot faster, but the pool is closed for the winter, as far as I'm concerned. Maybe Jeff will be willing to take the plunge...

Indian Summer Update: Our friend Ric was here for a visit and Jeff cranked up the heat on the pool up to 85 degrees - warmer than the air! We swam several days and used the hot spa just about every evening. It felt good after our hike, and after our 12 hour bike trip. I can't believe I was swimming in NOVEMBER!

Minneapolis

2007-09-29T10:12:00.001-07:00

The bad news is that at my new job I will be somewhat involved with 1099 filing. The good news is that they like to send us to seminars, none of which come to El Paso. I opted to go to a seminar in Mpls so I could take a few days off and hang out with my family. My sister and family drove over from their new house in South Dakota, my dad drove up from Rochester. I stayed with my mom at her new house for a few days. Then I stayed at my brother's place for a couple days. I got to hang out with my neices, Catie and Grace who are 2.5-3. My brother and sister in law planned a bbq and bonfire on their new backyard deck with some extended family. It was great to see my family again!

Audio/Video room

2007-09-01T13:01:00.000-07:00

Here's a "before" picture our TV room. Jeff did alot of work fixing it up. Put in surround sound speakers, wired in the subwoofer, built the tv stand, built in the bottom half of the oddly hanging bookshelves, put in extra outlets, and painted the ceiling and walls. I think he is going to move in his record player & amps. We need to put pictures back up, get some blinds, and probably change out the white outlets, because they are too white, but otherwise we can call that room done! It's such a nice change from Willamette, where it took years and years to finish any one room. We got a couple movies and i'm going to make some popcorn so we can enjoy our new Audio/Video room. Here's some "after" pictures.

Lunar Eclipse

2007-09-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

Jeff's a night owl and I'm an early bird. So on August 27th I went to bed at my usual 10:30 or so and Jeff stayed up and painted the TV room until about 3 am. I woke up when he was cleaning up and decided to get up to see the Total Lunar Eclipse that was supposed to occur at 3:24 am here in Texas. Did everywhere in the US get to see a TLE? Here are a couple pictures Jeff took on his Olympus model SP-510UZ hand held with image stabilization on at full zoon. Just in case you didn't get up in the middle of the night or your photos didn't turn out.

Hereeee, lizard, lizard, lizard.

2007-08-23T21:34:00.000-07:00

Check out this tiny 1 inch lizard we found in our house! He is about as long as my pinky shown in the picture. He was a quick little guy, but Jeff managed to catch him so we could check him out. He only lost a little tip of his tail when he tried to wiggle away. He was just about white when we got him off the white tile floor into the jar. When we had him against darker backgrounds he got darker and darker stripes. He had huge buggy eyes and a tiny little tongue. We kept him long enough to get some photos and then I let him go in the backyard and put out some water for him. I'm just glad we get cute little visitors like him, rather than the scorpions a couple of the ladies at work have dealt with!

the Gila Cliff Dwellings

2007-08-16T17:17:00.000-07:00

North of Silver City, New Mexico is the Gila National Forest and the Gila Cliff Dwellings are an easy mile hike, round trip. It's a nice walk, meandering along the bottom of a surprisingly lush valley made by the Gila River. The 40 room, 6 caves caves were made by the Mogollon and there are artifacts dating from 550AD to 1400.

Motorcycle ride to...

2007-08-16T17:00:00.001-07:00

Hwy 35, 2 hours to go 26 miles to the Gila Cliff Dwellings? I don't think so! Hwy 15 from Silver City says 2 hours to go 44 miles. Well that's slightly better. But with the Connie's great lean angle, we made it in about an hour (and only scraped the center stand once, just slightly). We left at 0922 and took the Trail of the Mountain Spirits National Scenic Byway up through the Gila National Forest to Silver City. Then up the Geronimo Trail to the Cliff Dwellings. It was a great ride, very scenic and remote. Even though it was over 100 degrees that day we made it to 7800 feet elevation at the Continental Divide. The elevation and the breeze made the heat almost bearable. We were at the top of the world, looking down on creation... Back to El Paso via Silver City & Deming. We got to see some shooting stars on the way home and it was 2230 by the time we got home and were ready to cool off with a dip in the pool!

TV Stand

2007-08-16T16:52:00.000-07:00

Jeff finished making our tv stand. Isn't it pretty?! We took out the wetbar cabinet and have been keeping out tv etc in there. But, the access to the attic is in the top of that nook, so he made this to look built in to the nook, but it has casters (is that castors?)so we can move it out of the way and get to our storage. He's built in the speakers in the front and in the ceiling, now we just need to do an outlet, make some built in shelves, paint, and we're done!

Our Garage

2007-08-04T07:42:00.000-07:00

Look at our clean garage! Jeff got the remaining boxes and stuff out of there, rebuilt the falling apart cabinets, organized everything and cleaned and it looks great! So great that I needed to get a picture of it. It may be the last time I see it so clean ever again! We can get the car, scooter and the bike in there easily. but, for now, I'm parking out side while Jeff works on a couple projects that he's had in the works for years, and some new ones that he's started for the house. And it's so much easier to work on anything now that we can actually find the tools, instead of knowing they should be in one of the Misc Garage or Misc Bsmt boxes, or even going and buying replacements...I had to go buy new paintbrushes because I didn't know if we even had any anymore. So his new projects are going much more smoothly having a dedicated space. He started working on the tv stand yesterday...maybe I'll post a picture of that when it's done.

Smokey the Bear's Home town

2007-07-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy with work lately. I don't know how I ever worked full time and got anything else done! I wanted to go camping and get out of town, but it was supposed to be thunderstorming all weekend, so we settled for a long motorcycle ride exploring the mountians north of here in New Mexico. And we went all prepared for rain, so of course it was Hot and Sunny! We found alot of nice looking places we want to come back and visit later. There is so much varied climate and terrian in a relatively small area so it'll be fun to explore. Cloudcroft is pine covered mountain, there are lakes, desert expanses. There is a large area that was the stomping grounds of Billy the Kid. And we ate dinner in Smokey Bear's hometown and read the true story of his life. I hope to get back up there soon, but, there are so many places to explore. That's one of the fun parts of moving someplace new, and I'm just getting around to enjoying it.

my new curtains

2007-07-26T20:20:00.000-07:00

here's a picture of the new curtains i made for our bedroom. i know most of you don't really care to see them, but my mom and i started working on them while she was here, so i wanted to post a picture for her of them done - although it's an awful picture. i haven't had much luck with them lately. so now i want to paint the room a sandy color, and get some new carpet. and maybe we'll do something to organize the closet....

Get Back to Work!

2007-06-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

click on the header line to be taken to the website for the new company i'm working for - Hunt Companies Administrative Services LLC.

today was my first day of work. didn't do much except read hr paperwork, read a training manual, get my desk organized. i will be training the rest of the week with some of the "office secretaries" from remote locations. training will be basically continual as they are always starting new development. i met alot of the staff, and am very impressed with the long careers there - one has been there for 45 years! but lots of 13 year etc. a couple of the accounting girls' mom's work there too. so tells me it's a good company if they bring their family in! i will be supervising 7 or 8 ap auditors, and they all seem nice at first. hopefully it will be a good environment. and i still like my boss, so that's a plus!

Off the Road - Day 22

2007-06-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

DAY 22 El Paso Texas
I flew home last night, took a taxi home to discover my house is standing, but my cactus is not. A guy had left me a quote to take care of it, since it is covering the sidewalk, probably was in the street and the neighbors hacked it off, and the base rolled into the neighbors yard. Got a couple quotes and his was very reasonable, so he’ll come on Monday. Dug through the bills in the mail, got groceries. And, apparently you can’t leave your pool for three weeks with a cover on it, even if you did dope it up with chemicals before hand. I expected it to need some cleaning, but YUCK! Maybe the cover impeded the water flow, maybe it got too warm. All I know is I’m going to spend the weekend doing yard work when this house was supposed to be LOW MAINTENANCE! And I was really looking forward to a weekend relaxing by the pool before I start my job on Monday…especially since it’s 110 degrees today!
Vacations over! Back to real life!

On the Road Again - Day 21

2007-06-21T18:32:00.000-07:00

DAY 21 Longview Washington
We picked Keila up to see her again before we left. We took her to get her permit last week, so spent the day driving around, cramming all our training into one day! She did great! Went to lunch at one of Jeff’s favorite restaurants, drove to a Starbucks, went to Latus for Harley Davidson t-shirts, then Keila drove me to the airport. She’s already better than lots of adults who are scared to drive in the big city! We’re so proud of her - graduating, doing so well at her job, making plans for her future - car, school, apt, work etc, getting enrolled at massage therapy school. We had fun hanging out with her. I hope she comes down to El Paso for a nice long visit this summer!

Click on the header title for a video of Keila driving.

On the Road Again - Day 20

2007-06-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

DAY 20 Woodburn Oregon
Click on the title header for a newspaper announcement… Vera Maye McMillan Paquin turns 100 in 5 days! My grandma’s twin sister lives near Portland so we had to go see her in honor of her 100th bday! She looks great, although you wouldn’t know that from the crappy pictures I took. One is too dark, one she blinked. It’s a digital, I should’ve checked to be sure I had a good picture! She’s counting the days to June 25th as 2 of her aunts made it only to 99. She still lives alone on her farmhouse and her daughters and son help take care of her, but she does great. Has a bum knee, but don’t we all. Her eyes and ears are getting tired, but so are mine! I should hope to be in such great shape as she is if I make it anywhere near 100. Happy Birthday Vera! I’ll be thinking about my grandma Verna Faye McMillan Tolzman on what would’ve been her 100th birthday.

On the Road Again - Day 19

2007-06-19T18:16:00.000-07:00

DAY 19 Salem Oregon
We had custom earplugs made today. Exciting, I know, but it was something we always meant to do and didn’t have a chance before we left Portland. Let us know if you need a recommendation - we use them for motorcycling, but they are great. We met Rick down in Salem and had dinner, and bummed around Salem for a few hours. Not much to do there, but it was just nice to see Rick.

We drove by our old house a couple times this week. They had the lights on so we were able to see in the first time. They hadn't really made any changes, but it looked very different, just because she has a different decorating style. It didn't feel sad or weird or anything like I thought it would. I have enjoyed being back in Portland, but only for our friends and family.

On the Road Again - Day 18

2007-06-18T18:16:00.000-07:00

DAY 18 Portland Oregon
We live at the Jubitz, but it is “The Classiest Truck stop in the USA“. There is a Starbucks not too far away. We ran some errands today and later met a bunch of friends for burgers, beer and billiards. It was lots of fun to see everybody. Wish we had more time! Click the header title for a link to a very unique article about Naked Portland.

On the Road Again - Day 17

2007-06-17T18:09:00.000-07:00

DAY 17 Portland OregonFather’s Day. Jeff’s parents came down to the truck stop, actually there was a Pow Wow just down the street that they planned to go to a service at. So, after having starbucks, we went shopping at the Columbia Outlet stores in Lake Oswego and then the one in Sellwood. After having Starbucks again, we went out for lunch at Swagat lunch buffet in Beaverton. Then it was back to the Pow Wow to see the booths and the dancing. I don't think we went to another starbucks in between, but I'm not positive. I just got out of the truck and now I spend another day in the car! They headed back to WA and I got out of the car and into the truck again. I called my dad, but his answering machine asks me for my password and then beeps and then hangs up on me in the middle of a sentence. But, I want it known THAT I DID CALL HIM ON FATHERS DAY TO WISH HIM A HAPPY FATHERS DAY. He’s just out having a good time somewhere, I hope. I did send him a postcard on the road - Hogs and Kisses from Nebraska! Saw a movie at the truck stop. I had no idea that the theater there was so nice. I thought it would be a room with folding chairs like at the other truck stops.

On the Road Again - Day 16

2007-06-16T18:04:00.000-07:00

DAY 16 Kelso Washington
Graduation Day! It rained all morning, but cleared up before the grads had to sit out on the field. Keila was happy to be done, finally. She looked great!

Had lunch at Jeff’s favorite Thai restaurant in Kelso Washington - Heartsies.
Trying to take the truck back to Portland and it got stuck at Jeff’s parents house, because the body won’t flex, so not all the wheels are in contact with the driveway. Jeff’s dad and brother chocked the wheels and put boards under the high wheels, threw some gravel in there for traction and got it out eventually. I think they actually enjoyed it, and I was worried it was going over the side into the trees. We made it to Portland safely, but missed Jennifer's graduation party entirely. So, we met them at home in NoPo and had some pizza and microbrews and caught up, since they are leaving for the coast in the morning until after we leave Ptown.

Click on the header for a video of Keila's Graduation

On the Road Again - Day 15

2007-06-15T18:00:00.000-07:00

DAY 15 Biggs Oregon
We woke up early to a new ETA buzzer. It’s raining today and I am SO COLD. Jeff says that’s how he felt every time he came home to Portland. It was 102 in Lubbock just a few days ago. We were making all these plans like it was summer time, and now it’s wet and miserable. Maybe it’ll improve. We got to Jeff’s parents today, picked Keila up and went gallivanting all over town. I was just stir crazy since they let me off the truck! We took Keila and Jeff shopping in honor of her last day of school and his birthday, then had dinner at his parents house, met her new boyfriend too.

On the Road Again - Day 14

2007-06-14T17:59:00.000-07:00

DAY 14 Portland Bound
This road is making me sick. I am ready to get out of the truck. It’s been a lot of fun, I think it’s just because we’re so close to Portland. We won’t be able to make it all the way tonight, because of Jeff’s hours of service, so we stopped in Biggs. We have a view of the Columbia, got a micro brew and a good night sleep, since we’re still on central time, we went to sleep it was still light out!

On the Road Again - Day 13

2007-06-13T17:56:00.000-07:00

DAY 13 Salt Lake City Utah
We swapped our load for one going to Portland so we are on track to get to OR/WA only 1 day late! That’s pretty good for Werner! We are making plans for what we’re going to do while we’re visiting, where we’re staying, how we’re getting around. I’m getting excited to see everybody and to GET OFF THIS TRUCK!

On the Road Again - Day 12

2007-06-12T17:54:00.000-07:00

DAY 12 Starbucks at exit 240 I25 N CO
We’re going to make our own map of nice rest stops, secret overnight locations, star bucks, good stores. We got a load swap message to Salt Lake City Utah, so now we have to backtrack and make a big loop through Wyoming. Wyoming surprised me once before and it did it again today. Such great scenery and it’s constantly changing. There are little pockets of completely varied landscape wherever you turn. Big beautiful mountains, unexpected lush lakes, deep green valleys, flat dry ranched desert, rocky cliff formations, weedy muddy marshes, the continental divide and the basin. Both times were not due to our own planning and I enjoyed the rides so much, so some day I want to plan a trip up Highway 191. I think it starts at Gallup NM, up through Arches Utah, flaming Gorge Wyoming to the Great Divide. Anybody want to join us?

On the Road Again - Day 11

2007-06-11T17:51:00.000-07:00

DAY 11
Your mind wanders on the truck. Last night I invented a pillow - shaped for sleeping on my side and how I would sew the pillowcases. Today Jeff invented a new reality series since they’re recommending closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay Cuba. It’s kind of a cross between Survivor and Fear Factor. We were passing a prison and talking about the benefits to building it out here. We didn’t get a lot of sleep last night, so that could explain the odd trains of thought.

Maximum weight load + 300,000 mile truck + raton mountains = breakdown!
We overheated, which it’s been doing & Werner doesn’t seem concerned about. We took a cool down break at the Raton Mountain peak at the border of NM and CO. Actually a beautiful place to take a break.
PS three days later, Road Breakdown emailed us to add some coolant, we overheated. Jeff sent them a tirade email about this truck's been overheating since January, and they won’t fix it and everything that happened. Their email reply back…”That sounds normal”.

On the Road Again - Day 10

2007-06-10T17:44:00.000-07:00

DAY 10 Lubbock Texas
Breaker 1 9, this here’s the Duck.
It’s the dark of moon on the 10th of June when me an Earl sucking on toothpicks, drinking Nehis and onion soup mix hauling chickens on a 1948 flatbed out of Wiggins, on the uphillside of Wolf Creek Pass, which is up on the Great Divide.
Truckin’ on down the other side. My but ain’t it purty. But this hill can spill us, you better slow down or you’ll kill us. We commenced to truckin’. Yes sir, he’s on fire. 11 long haired friends of Jesus in a chartreuse microbus.
I took 4 to the seventh power, added 2 plus two plus 12 carry the 5 and came up with 22,000 telephone poles per hour. I’m not the type to complain, but it’s come time for me to explain that if you don’t apply some brakes real soon they’re gonna hafta pick us up with a stick and a spoon.

We’re almost a day early and they won’t unload our truck ‘til tonight. So, we spent all day waiting. Cleaned the truck and ourselves, ate a leisurely meal, watched another movie, did laundry etc. We were early for an 8 o’clock appt and they didn’t unload us until 2am!

On the Road Again - Day 9

2007-06-09T17:40:00.000-07:00

DAY 9 Kansas
Woke up to the sound of birds chirping and vision of grass in the windshield. It was a nice change from diesels idling and asphalt. The turnpike thru Kansas is nice easy ride, with lots of rest stops and restaurants at them all. Through Oklahoma to Texas. Lubbock is in a dry county, so we went across the county line, and it’s like Deadwood South Dakota with all the neon coming out of nowhere!

On the Road Again - Day 8

2007-06-08T17:14:00.000-07:00

DAY 8
Mercy sakes alive, we’ve been mobiling for a week, now we’re streaking a flip to the Big Horn state. Just spotted the body and took a 10-100 at the Golden Arches southbound on the 35 turnpike just north of Air Cap 8 in the Cattle State. Someone must’ve poured honey near lollipop 77 because smokies are crawling. I think I saw a Kodiak with a Kodak. I told Jeff to put the hammer back in the tool box because we don’t need a Christmas card from the eye in the sky. Even if I am just a fancy seat cover, he better be on the peg or he’ll be a 10-17 for a free ride! Turtles are on the boulevard so I think it’s gonna be a window washer before dark time. Soon’s this gear jamming’ gater mouthed cowboy trucker lets the channel roll I’ll get on the squawk box and get the local 10-13. Keep your wheels out of the ditches and the smokeys off your britches. 80-8s around the house. If this makes you Alice in Wonderland, then consult your 1977 edition CB Slanguage Dictionary as endorsed by C.W. McCall hisself.

On the Road Again - Day 7

2007-06-07T17:10:00.000-07:00

DAY 7 Kansas City ? 9pm
All these days blend together in a blur. This blog is actually helpful. I thought we were in Kansas City Missouri until I just found out we were in Kansas City Kansas! Yes, they blend together like the Twin Cities, but still, I typed in the address to the GPS, I wrote it down, I should at least know what state we’re headed for! We spent half the day at the nicest McDonalds I’ve ever seen! (sorry Keila). Jeff says it’s the adult version of McDonalds, with wood tables, wallpaper and paneling, leather sofa chairs, stone work etc. And best of all, Free WIFI, until my battery went dead. I hadn’t eaten at McDs for a decade or so, until Keila treated us to lunch at the McDs she works at (I gotta brag, she got a raise again!), and it was actually good - real chicken even. I was impressed then, and I’m impressed now that they are making an effort to improve their food quality and nutrition and also their image. Plus, they had a Red Box movie rental - for $1 a day! We rented Casino Royale and watched it in the parking lot (Jeff fixed the DVD player - it wasn’t my fault!) and took it right back to the vending machine. I will have to check out the McDs in El Paso if they are that nice and have the Red Box machines, I think that’s tres convenient - have your lunch and rent a movie. PS: the McDs had garbage cans with holes in the top (instead of swinging doors). Simple enough, but a big positive in my book!

PPS: No RedBox locations in el paso :( Click on the header title for a link to the RedBox website - they have them in Mpls and Portland. It really was a great, easy, convenient service, one that I want to see succeed so that they put a kiosk near me!

On the Road Again - Day 6

2007-06-06T17:07:00.000-07:00

DAY 6 Aurora Colorado
Jeff has a 6th sense - about Starbucks! We got a good load to Nebraska and then Kansas. NE is dusty and windy. Jeff got a kick out of a sign that said Watch for Wind. There’s not as much corn as the last time I was here. It took 4 conversations and 2 reboots to get the free WIFI at Bosselmans Truck stop to work, and then it only lasted 5 minutes! So, if you’ve emailed me recently, sorry…
Drivers seem awfully friendly in NE. Lots of waving. And they’re not as mean if you ask them what the weather is like here…in Amarillo one guy got soooo much grief for asking that question. Look out your window, you #@%*! so now we test new locations to see how nice people are.

On the Road Again - Day 5

2007-06-05T17:05:00.000-07:00

DAY 5 Home Depot Colorado
Woke up where we delivered last night because the HD delayed us. We need to get that windshield fixed, then deliver tonight at the next HD stop, and pick up the next load. Impossible to do under the current appointment schedule and Jeff’s hours of service. Spent all day at the terminal getting the truck fixed…they actually got a lot done. These Werner drivers getting their trucks fixed are a grumpy bunch! It must be their first day here. Did a late night run and spent the night in a 2nd Home Depot.

On the Road Again - Day 4

2007-06-04T17:03:00.000-07:00

DAY 4 Not in Texas!
We finally made it out of TX, through OK and into CO. We went thru Lamar, got a picture for Terri. And nothing has broken so far today! Jeff got a GPS system and it’s been pretty helpful. Now if the company could get a computer system as useful. We’ve gotten so many loads that are just impossible to complete. 3 different swap attempts were made until one finally panned out. They just muck up the original plan, we could’ve almost been to the first drop if they didn’t delay us with their attempts to help. They have all the information, but just don’t seem to know what’s really going on.

On the Road Again - Day 3

2007-06-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

DAY 3 Still in Texas
This Travel America truck stop has a Starbucks, and we are so happy after the lack of sleep last night. The thunderstorms early in the AM relieves that hot humid weather from yesterday, but so does the new serpentine belt. This morning I notice the windshield is broken, maybe at the shop or during the storm, but I slept through most of it. Jeff says I’m his luck charm, but he won’t say if that’s good or back luck. Lots of stuff has broken, but it’s getting fixed pretty quickly. The Dallas terminal said it would take 3 days minimum to fix that belt. His truck has almost 300k miles, and then it will get turned it, rehauled and sold to some unsuspecting driver. Stopped for BBQ somewhere in the Texas chimney (I’m not going to call it a panhandle anymore…it looks more like a chimney) Sam Hill’s BBQ and it was pretty tasty! Dry type of BBQ, I guess Texas BBQ is very diversified - wet, dry, smoked, and they are touchy about it! Now the DVD player won’t works. I really am bad luck!