Jeffco Open Space Trail Stewardship Season - Ellie's Crew and Colleagues

The trail stewardship season ended with a fun picnic and a few prizes yesterday. I thought you might like seeing what it was like:

The crew leaders are in blue. The kids on the crews wear yellow. I've also included pictures of Chuck and Amanda, the supervisors for the program.

In the morning they would meet at the central office and then ride a bus to the work location. I am pretty sure that they only worked at White Ranch this year, which is unusual since they usually get to several parks in a season.

Ellie really enjoyed being a crew leader and was thrilled when one of the boys on her crew won the silver pick award, especially since only six kids win awards of this nature.

Ellie had fun and she also learned a lot. I would imagine that she would like to be a crew leader again, if she is not already employed doing something else next summer.

Of Paws, Chickadees and Good Friends

Thursday was a big day. I had a friend over whom I had not seen in over a year. Part way through the afternoon I received a call from Kohlton who called to tell me that my help was needed. Kohlton and Remmie went out to hike the trail that Ellie and her crew were working on.

They started down the top trail at upper White Ranch. It seems that the hike was very steep and rough. Though the hike was long, it was not the longest one Remmie has been on, but the rocks were hard on his paws. Once they were close to their destination, Remmie started trying to take a lot of breaks, something that is unusual for him. Kohlton thought that maybe Remmie was just hot, or in need of a rest. Upon closer inspection, he found that Remmie's main pads on both of his front paws had begun to tear off and flap around like dried bits of leather. This was alarming and worrisome, so a Remmie rescue took place. It was clear that he would need to be removed from the mountain without his walking the rest of the way on his own. Ellie carried him for a short while, then Kohlton took him the rest of the way. That part took Kohlton about an hour and a half to hike.

I am certain that Ellie would have like to be there to calm her dog down, but she had to finish her shift. Larr met Kohlton and Remmie at the lower parking lot to bring them home. I was going to go pick them both up, but Larr was able to get there faster than I was.

In the meantime, I arranged for a vet. appointment. Our usual vet was booked until the middle of next week, so Ellie and Kohlton took Remmie to my mother's vet. That visit did not go well; both Remmie and Ellie were upset afterwards.

That night Remmie was clearly ill and seemed to be running a fever. The next day was more of the same. As the evening drew near, Remmie seemed to be making a recovery. We were all relieved.

Today he seems to be feeling much better, and my, is he ever happy to be better.

Larr also did a wonderful thing for me. When we were much younger and new to our house, he put in a hook just outside of our bedroom upstairs. On that hook we hung a lovely, wooden birdhouse. I loved watching the birds at the feeder in the morning. Over time, the birdhouse fell apart and we did not repair it as we had become busy with baby Ethan.

Now that I once again have a bit of time to wake up in a leisurely way, I love to listen to the birds again and I told Larr that I wished that we still had a bird feeder. Later in the week he brought home a large feeder along with three kinds of feed to attract different kinds of birds. So far the chickadees have been happy to discover our feeder. I look forward to see who else shows up.

Ethan and a few of his friends spent the weekend in Wyoming have a great time hanging out together and going to the Cheyenne Frontier Days. They attended some of the rodeo type events, attended the Keith Urban concert. Ethan was impressed with the concert and how much heart and soul Keith put into his performance. By the time Ethan came home on Sunday night, he was sunburned, tired and all pumped up from having so much fun.

On Monday, Kohlton starts a brand new job. We are all excited for him. We hope it turns out to be a great opportunity for him.

The Big Rig Concert

Last Saturday Ethan, Ellie, Kohlton, Brandon and James (not pictured) went to the CHANNEL 93.3'S BIG GIG 2015 concert featuring
AWOL NATION, Nate Ruess, Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness, Banks, New Politics, Atlas Genius, Saint Motel and more! It was one of those long, nearly-all-day-into-the-night concerts.

I am glad that they have the opportunity to hang out with their friends and have a good time at events like this one.

And just like that, Summer has Arrived + Glazed Pork Recipe

And just like that, Summer has arrived. Less than a week ago I was still needing a coat when I left for work. I even wore a sweater a few times. It was all of that cold rain. But now, it seems to have moved out, after nearly a month or more of rain every day. And today it was around 80 degrees with our trademark blue skies. Along with that came a nasty, extremely contagious head & sinus cold that makes you feel really terrible. Larr had it a week ago, for about a week. I came down with it on Friday, my last day or work. Ellie and Kohlton became sick on Saturday. We are a sorry lot around here, I tell you! I've mostly spent my weekend sleeping, zoning, or thinking about how soon I will have to sleep again.

Ellie's first day as a crew leader for Jefferson County Open Space begins tomorrow. She has everything at the ready. Now I hope she get a deep and complete night of sleep. It is exciting. I only wish that she was not sick. They will most likely not know that she is ill.

These lovely peonies are from Eleanor's garden. We are working to transplant as much of her garden to our yard as possible since we have to sale the house. That makes us very sad.


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Here's the main dish in Ellie's lunch this week:

Glazed Pork Chops
via: Budget Bytes

4 thick cut pork chops (bone-in or boneless)
¼ cup brown sugar
½ tsp cayenne powder (This might be too much.)
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper

(I've put the recipe below as I followed it, but I have also added the changes that I think should be made next time.)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl combine the brown sugar and spices (salt, pepper, cayenne, paprika and garlic powder or whatever spice blend you like).

Remove the pork chops from their package and rub the brown sugar/spice mix all over both sides. Use all of the spice mix.

Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a skillet over medium/high heat. When the oil is nice and hot (it will look wavy in the pan), add the pork chops. Cook the chops for about 5 minutes on each side or until they are nicely browned. (This resulted in the brown sugar burning. Next time I will skip the skillet portion of this recipe and try cooking it in the oven for the entire time.)

If you are using an oven safe skillet, place the skillet in the oven for an additional 5 minutes to make sure they are cooked through. If your skillet is not oven safe (most plastic handled skillets and teflon are not safe in the oven), transfer the chops to a baking sheet lined with foil then place in the oven.

Remove the chops from the oven and drag each side around in the thick glaze that has formed around the chops in the pan prior to serving.

(Medium temp. for cooked pork is 145 degrees.)

I've Noticed - a Tribute to My Girl

On our refrigerator, hangs a picture of Ellie riding a hand-me down Barbie bike, trailed by a friend on a scooter and Ethan pedaling, hard, bringing up the rear. Ellie is dressed in her brother's hand-me-down Army fatigues and Keenes.

I had previously thought of it as just another cute picture of my girl, until one day she happen to casually point to that very picture and jokingly tell me that the picture represents who she is. It got me thinking about Ellie as she has grown from my sweet little baby to the wonderful woman she is becoming. That casual remark, thrown about as though it were a ball, has me thinking about what else I might have missed, so I took a longer, more thoughtful meandering through some of our photos over the years.

My girl is many things, and most of them she most intensely and often fiercely.

I notice the love shared between her brother and herself. She loves him fully and fiercely, even though he is messy and sometimes they fight. Still, she loves him, and misses him when he is gone. I admire that level of emotional commitment.

I notice that from time to time they have created a partnership. Sometimes it is in play, sometimes is it dreaming of starting a business like the "Giant Lizard Company" and the :Flying Squirrel Something." (I think that one involved amusement park rides, or some such fun enterprise.) And who knows, they may yet start a company together. Ethan, who can talk to anybody and make a friend, would be the salesman. Ellie, the one so skilled at juggling all of the tiny details to put together an amazing, perfect even, would orchestrate the process and outcome. I admire the fact that she can find value in lifting up others and helping them fulfill their dreams.

I see a girl who is so very loyal. Loyal when it is fun and silly. i admire that she can step back and let herself be like that.

I notice that my girl values and cares for her friends deeply. I've seen her take the hard, and difficult road in a few of her friendships when she has gotten help for friends in dark places, even though she knew it might cost her the very friendship that she so valued as to take that risk. I am humbled and admire that level of friendship and love for another person. It is perhaps one of her most outstanding qualities.

I've noticed how she try on different ways to be, new ways to define herself, but always coming back to who she is. I admire her grounded and firm sense of self.

I notice that my girl can also be dark, serious and moody. I admire that she can experience those feelings, instead of hiding them away and pretending that everything is always perfect.

I notice that my girl can be tough, intense, fierce and competitive. I admire how she can commit her whole being to achieving a goal, sticking to the narrow path to achieve a desired goal.

I've noticed how she creates beautiful things, whether that be an event, a piece of art or something to eat and enjoy. I admire how she keeps going, working on something until it is how she wants it to be (or at least close to it), instead of giving up when it does not come out perfectly in a short amount of time.

I notice how much loves her animals. I admire that connection.

I notice how committed you are to your relationship with your boyfriend. I admire the work that you put into it.

I notice the relationship that you have with your dad. I admire the way you can be serious, silly, supportive and how you can help each other out when life gets difficult.
I notice how you love and care for your family. I admire that you've always taken the time to make those relationships firm and real.

I notice what fun we can have when we are together. I admire and appreciate that those times can be long chats on a road trip together, or being silly together, or just enjoying each other's company. I appreciate that our having fun together does not have to involve an expense day at the spa or shopping. I appreciate that it is more about the time we are spending together than what we are actually doing to matters the most.

I notice how thankful I am that you are my daughter.

I notice that you have a big, bright future ahead of you. I admire that you have already spent time beginning to figure out and know who you really are, at the very core of your being, so that you can look firmly ahead of you and explore the next step, the next big adventure of your life. I look forward to seeing where you will go next.