wrapping up

Its hard to believe that 2 1/2 years ago, Ladd and I picked up our lives and moved out here to Colorado to begin a new chapter. That chapter is coming to an end this May, when I graduate. I will proudly walk across a stage and likely with a sense of surrealism, accept two degrees - one in Veterinary Technology and one in Associates of Arts.



This closure of this phase of my life becomes more and more palpable as each week winds down. This week I wrap up my last shift of animal care in which we feed and water all the farm and exotic animals living on our farm. Its always been a drag to wake up so early - especially in the cold months - to drive up to the farm to do the chores. Yet when its time to do the chores I speak of, its really quite blissful; rewarding, actually.

We love our animals here at the farm and it shows.




This is how I feel about school. Its hard to get up in the mornings, hard to choose to study or do homework instead of going out for a pint or watching TV or napping, but overall, my experience at this school is quite blissful as well.....rewarding, actually.



Only 4 more weeks and I will be off to fulfill my externship requirements at the fabulous Sedgwick County Zoo. I will miss my husband and furry babies but it will be so worth it - I just know it.



Until then, I am trying to find all the strength left in me to give it my all these last few weeks, and to take time to look around me and absorb the rest this experience and my friends can teach me.

is it over or just a break?

no post since June, huh? I knew it had been awhile but didn't realize it was that long.

Sorry.

Really, this whole blog thing started to become tedious and unfulfilling. I felt my posts were uninteresting and I started to get frustrated with a lack of understanding why some applications and pictures weren't working.

Oh yeah, and I've been BUSY. :)

School was nothing short of overwhelming at times, this past semester. 17 credit hours, 7 classes plus an online pet nutrition course kept me pretty busy.

Also, I really do feel like my posts - my whole blogging style, really - is uninteresting. Let me know if you feel otherwise or have any tips for me. I'm considering revving this thing up again but doing things different.....

less words, more pictures.

Here's one for starters. A picture outside our living room in October after the first big snow of the season.

twenty nine

Its here.

My 29th birthday.

My last year of my 20's.

I'm not one bit sad, anxious, worried, depressed, regretful, etc....

Nope.

My twenties have been full.

Full of accomplishments.
Full of goals being achieved.
Full of dreams being lived.
Full of LOVE.
Full of determination.
Full of friends.
Full of life.
Full of lessons.

So, this is a good birthday.
I'm thankful to get to have my 29th birthday.




I'm thankful.
I'm grateful.
I'm happy.
and I'm 29.

Cheers!

half-way point

FINALLY!!!

I just finished my last of 6 finals.
Thank G.O.D.!

This semester seemed particularly long.
I remember last Fall semester being ridiculous, but I don't think it was even this bad. WOW. Hard core.

This semester is officially over which signifies my half-way point in the program.

Its a bit unreal, the more I think about it in that context. Only 1 1/2 more years and I will be set free to the world to utilize (hopefully) all the glorious and wonderous skills that i have learned here.

Amen! Hallelujah! Holy Shit! Where's the tylenol?
(from: Chevy Chase Christmas Vacation - a.k.a. the BEST movie EVER!!!)

So now is when I go toast a glass of ice cold beer and hug my husband and pets for (surviving) helping me through another semester of intense, scholastic craziness!

Cheers!

selfish is not a dirty word

I just heard that on an Oprah episode.

Such a fantastic concept.

They ask: Would you treat yourself less respectfully than your child? (in different words, probably)

Such as: would you miss your Doctors appointments, take away play time, etc....

The message is so much clearer to me now.

I had already begun to learn a few years ago (through LOTS of therapy) that selfish isn't always a bad thing, but in this society it is a negative word that stands for negative behavior. I had to over come that.

This way of explaining it: "selfish is not a dirty word", sums it up with so much more clarity.

Women, especially you moms out there. You deserve your selfish time.

Remember this.

Honor this.

For the first time in our lives (or maybe just some of you) you can believe that being selfish is not only healthy and positive, but essential to being a more COMPLETE you.

10-19-2002

6 years ago, I married my guy.
He was 23, I was 22.
I still remember so much about that day.

Here is the invitation. Nice smudge marks.


Ladd and I at our Rehearsal dinner. After the dinner, my mom instructed my sister-in-law Rachel to take me straight home and make sure I go to bed! (she knows how grumpy I get when I don't get enough sleep) But alas, there was no way I was going to be able to fall asleep yet. Instead, Rachel and I stayed up and watched Moulin Rouge and I believe I painted my toe-nails. Good times. Thanks for being such a friend and support to me during that time. You are THE BEST sister (in-law)! Love you.


The Groom's cake. The phish logo. Its at their concert two years prior that we decided we were "officially" together.


And the honeymoon. What an awesome honeymoon! We went to Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We dreamed of drinking Pina Coladas on the beach, and we had one of the cocktail waiters take our picture so we had proof of one of accomplishing one of our many goals. We plan to go back to Mexico soon. We had so much fun there.


Somedays, it feels so surreal to think of all we have been through and all we have accomplished in these past 6 years of marriage. I am so curious what the next 6 years will bring.

I'll keep you posted, as time unravels the truth. :O)

October

This is quite possibly my favorite month.

Its a good month.

Its the month Ladd and I got engaged.
Its also the month we got married.

I love the leaves changing color.

The temperature starts to cool down a bit... but not too much.

The smell of Fall is the best. The fresh air, cool breeze, pinion burning in firepits.

I like to be outside this month, probably more than any other month. Its just so beautiful outside.

I love the mums. The colors are so brilliant.





I love to watch Mt. Sopris and other mountain tops gather snow a little bit more each week.


I love pumpkins and squash and, apparently, so does my dog.



Hope you are enjoying October as much as I am!

my boyfriend

... of 8 years to be exact.

Yes, I have a boyfriend.

And yes, Ladd knows about him.

In fact, Ladd knows him more than anybody else.

Because, he is my boyfriend.

September 25, 2000.

The day we decided we were officially "together". We went to a Phish show that day, too.

Brilliant. So us.

I love this guy, and recently have probably not showed it enough.

But let it be known, that he is loved by me. He is my husband of nearly 6 years, but also, he is my boyfriend of 8 years.

He will always be my boyfriend.

(I wanted to post this on the 25th, but, alas, school and work called my name a bit louder. So, this post is a bit late, but still as sincere as I felt that very day.)


Here we are at the Phish show on Sept. 25, 2000. We were having a little "pre-party" before the concert!


And here is the lovely couple in more recent times. Fantastic. :)

doin' chores

Twice a semester, each vet tech student is assigned to a group with about 4 or 5 other students to do chores on the farm. Each group is on duty one week at a time.

A couple weeks ago it was my turn, along with 4 other girls. It requires being there at 7am and 5pm on the weekdays, and 9am on the weekends. This gave me a LOT of time in between classes and let me just say that I got quite a bit of school work done that week. :)

I enjoyed doing the chores. It brought me back to when I was younger and still lived on the farm. I was a 4-H kid and daughter of a cattle farmer (well, he also farmed crops) and so livestock is nothing new to me.

While growing up on the farm, I "owned" 2 horses, a couple calves, a steer, and several sheep. The horses weren't bought by me. Dad already had Billy when I was born (which was one of the reasons my birth mom chose my parents to be my new family). He was a spectacular horse. He lived a long and happy life at the farm. Soon after he died, I received a horse for my 13th birthday.

You see, in our family, turning 13 was a big deal. A new chapter in life. You were, afterall, officially a teenager!

The celebratory tradition included a big party thrown in your honor (the whole 8th grade class came out to the farm for horseback and hayback rides, lots of food, and fun) and a bigger than usual present. Brad got a go-cart on his 13th. I got Poco. Troubles Poco Dell, to be exact! He was BEAUTIFUL! It was such a nice surprise. I remember it like yesterday.

But I digress.....

Doing chores on the farm reminded me how much I miss these large animals. I occasionally dream of having a small ranch someday. Just a few goats, a couple horses, maybe some chickens for fresh eggs, etc.

This is why doing these chores is a good thing. It forces reality onto you like a big slap in the face! A farm means feeding and watering these animals twice a day. EVERYDAY! You have to buy hay, feed, equipment, etc. Its not all romantic, you know.

Nonetheless, its good, healthy work. Its a peaceful and gorgeous time of day, when you do chores in the morning. Its so quiet. No hustle and bustle. No sound of students or cars. Just the rooster, goats baaahing, and horses snorting, out of hunger. I watched the sun rise over the mountain each day.

Glorious.

Hopefully, I can snap some better shots for you next round when I'm not so preoccupied with creating my own routine.




The main vet tech building is to the left. It holds 2 classrooms and the teachers' offices. The middle building was brand new last year. Its our new science building. It holds 2 separate lab classrooms. We are so thankful for this new addition. The building on the right is the small hospital we use. The small cage in front of the hospital is one of the raptor cages. It houses a golden eagle and a bald eagle - one of the features at this school that made me feel this is where I need to be.



Llamas sort of freak me out when they stare at me. Their eyes and eyelashes are so HUGE. They always look like they are plotting something.


No, his head is not stuck. :)

week 6 down, 8 more to go

It is hard to believe, but we just finished week 6 of school. This semester is flying by.

I have had a handful of tests so far and I have done very well. It continues to amaze me what I am capable of. This isn't how it used to be for me. I always struggled in school. My attention span, difficulty reading, caring, etc. I still have to work very hard for my grades. I still take FOREVER to read a page. But I am absorbing information so much better now. Maybe its because I LOVE what I am studying. I know my goals. I see my future. I see a purpose in the time I am investing in all this school work.

I recently was on chore duty for a week. A friend of mine mentioned how another girl and I call it "chores" and not "animal care". I think its the farm-raised part of me. Feeding the cows. The horses and chickens. Those are chores, where I come from. ;) I have a few pictures, but not as many as I would have liked to take, to share with you. Not in this post - but I hope to get them up soon.

It was nice doing chores. Taking care of the goats, sheep, horses, llamas, ducks, chickens, ferret, mice, rats, etc. Its a long list! It is nice to have these animals around, because I know there is no way I can have all these pets right now. I can get my "fix" at school.

It is also reminding me how much work it is to run a farm. Some days, I toy around with the idea of having a small ranch in the future. A handful of horses and maybe some goats and chickens. Then reality sets in. Working on the farm here at school has brought my dreamy self back down to earth and woke me up to remember; FARM = VERY LITTLE FREEDOM. You have to be home to do your chores twice a day. If you want to go away for a vacation, you have to be able to find somebody you trust and who is available to take over for you while you are gone. It almost stresses me out just thinking about it.

But.... I know not to make predictions. Never say never.

We also went "leafing" last weekend. I took TONS of pictures. I can't wait to go through them and I will definitely share those with you as well. It was a MAGNIFICENT time. Unbelievable. Breathtaking. We drove all the way to the summit of Independence Pass, to see all the colors along the way. We started in Glenwood where the temp was about 75 or so. Within an hour south, we were at the summit and it was barely snowing! So awesome.

Stay tuned. Pictures and more posts and stories to come.... now that I FINALLY have a little free time! :)

pictures of our telluride adventure

Here is a few pics I'll share with you from our trip to Telluride. I highly suggest it as a destination for a vacation. We've only been there in the summer, but if you're into winter sports, I'm sure it would be equally awesome, if not better.

It seems as though there is always something going on there.

This time around there was a mushroom festival going on.
Yes.
A mushroom festival. And yes, it attracted people of all kinds. :)

And maybe you'll get to see Tom and Katie Cruise!! :) ...yeah, I don't care either.

On the way to Telluride


After a difficult (for me at least) steep and rocky hike for 40 minutes, we finally got to this. It was beautiful, loud, cold, and AWESOME. I could have sat up there by the water for hours just thinking and napping.











Who says you can't take your dog on a Harley ride with you?? This was awesome. That dog was willing and ready for that ride. :)

musing in telluride

Last weekend, Ladd and I went to Telluride for a long weekend get away before school started. I needed a break from work and this town. I knew that once school started, I wouldn't get a break until Thanksgiving (except for labor day which doesn't really count when you've only been back to school for one week) and I wouldn't be going anywhere except work, home, school, or the library until then. So, we took a much needed break.

We love Telluride. We've only been there twice, but we plan to go back while we are here in Colorado. That's one of the things I looked forward to when we decided to move out here. Telluride would be only 4 hours away, as opposed to 14 when we lived in Lawrence.

Long weekend get-aways are something Ladd and I like to do together. Its like a really long date. When we lived in Lawrence, we would take long weekends and go to St. Louis. We loved St. Louis. This is a nice change of pace though. The glorious mountains, wildlife, smell of the air, and lets face it, driving around the Gunnison National Forest is WAY better than driving on I-70 across Missouri.

Did you know that it is legal for passengers of vehicles to drink alcohol in Missouri? I'm pretty sure its because, well, they have to drive in Missouri. :) .....But I digress...

When Ladd and I get quality alone time such as this occasion, we tend to discuss our future and our goals and aspirations. This weekend was no exception. I realized something new about myself. I found that not only does it not bother me that I have no idea where we will be in 2 years, but that I feel excited about it.

I used to never be that way. Years ago, I was already craving a plan. I am someone who needs stability and moving around the country did not go into that equation, even though it sounded so romantic and adventurous, courageous and so very liberating.

I felt buying a home, having a steady job (whether you loved it or not) was the beginning of a stable plan. Practical. Safe. The way my life was suppose to be, I guess. Not dreamy or exciting. But I never grew up being encouraged to do whatever I wanted to do and go anywhere I wanted to go. I grew up with practicality being instilled as a way of life.

Then I began to change. Things began to change. I realized that if I didn't go and try to do what I really wanted to do with my life, I would grow to be one of the saddest women that existed. Full of regret. Hopeless. Angry. Resentful.

No only did I know having those intense feelings would not be compatible with life, but I would be a poor wife, mother, and friend.

I went back to school. I had a teacher that I will never forget. It was as if she was speaking to me personally the day she told the class to go for it. Make your dreams come true. You. Can. Do. This.

So, I began to do it. Two years later, I got accepted into the college I wanted to go to so I could get the degree and training that I craved for years. We sold our house, Ladd quit an excellent University job, and we left everything we knew and moved 10 hours away to another state.

I think that unleashed a part of our souls. A part of us that craved adventure and experiencing the world. A part of us that otherwise might have never been set free and just festered inside of us as we grew older. Who knows what emptiness we might have grown to feel had we not made this leap of faith. This scary and exciting leap. I am glad I will never know the end of that version of our life story.

So here we are. Fourteen months after that giant leap. I have less than 2 years until I graduate with my veterinary technology degree and (hopefully) associates of arts degree. Yes, two degrees. Who would have thought? If you asked me 5 years ago, I probably would have said "No, way. There is just no way.".

But here we are.

Way!

There are a few things that we are pretty sure of happening after school, though:

1.) Backpacking through Europe. (Now that we FINALLY saved enough money, we don't have time right now. Go figure.)

2.) Offspring. No, not the crappy band from the nineties, actual living offspring.

3.) And, more likely than not - but I know not to commit to this yet - we won't be in Glenwood Springs. Its beautiful here, but we've both learned that though we grew up as farm kids, we are definitely more city kids than we thought!

So, if you were ever considering checking out Aspen/Vail/Glenwood Springs, etc., and you want a free couch to sleep on, time is ticking!

If you want to know one of the destinations we are considering as a home after school, at least for awhile, is Vancouver, Canada. Surprised?

We figure, no kids, we're young, so why not?? Even if its for 6 months, at least its something we tried. If I get pregnant during that time, it will be fine. Kids are portable. :)

What do you think of that, eh? :)

After all that intense thought, I will leave you with the most beautiful sunset. This picture does not do justice to the energy of it. People were stopped all over town. Standing in the middle of the street in awe. I feel so privileged I got to see and capture this.

TELLURIDE SUNSET 8/23/2008.