Fall in the Yampa Valley

Good Morning Friends, I am getting to the end of the photos of Autumn Splendor, I hope you've enjoyed them as much as I've enjoyed sharing them. Some may look familiar, because I took the same views with my phone.

I've already been out walking and now have to run some errands. This afternoon, I will be taking granddaughter to the big box fabric store~we are going to make headbands and they need to pick out fabric.  I'm hoping that this project will be sew(lol)easy that they will make some for Christmas presents, for their family.  Yesterday afternoon we had quite the storm roll through, so sewing was postponed.  I actually got to spend several hours hand quilting while in front of the t.v.  It felt good to finish two squares, I have four left and then will attach the binding. I'm anxious to be done, although I love this quilt, I'm ready to start a new quilt.  I never thought I'd still be working on it, but when trips and family fill my days, it is hard to find time to stitch.
I hope yo have a wonderful day!  Enjoy your weather, our will be another storm this afternoon.
Blessings and Joy,
Noreen & Hunter

More Autumn Colors

Happy October and happy outdoor Wednesday! As promised, here are some photos of the incredible color we saw last week on our road trip. From other friends I've talked to, this year's display of color was the best it's been in years. I've already told you that for hubby and I, this year had the most color displayed that we seen in almost seven years of living here. These photos were taken at Twin Lakes. Enjoy! 

We actually saw red too, among the Aspen and some of the bushes.  Now if we could see some vibrant purple mixed in, it would be as beautiful as some of the New England states.  Of course, they don't have the gold Aspens that we have. We had rain yesterday afternoon and evening, so I imagine the leaves will begin to drop.  Up around Vail, they even had a bit of snow.  I tell you I'm enjoying fall to much to even think about the white stuff.
I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday and get out and enjoy nature.
Blessings,
Noreen

When you have a family, collectively, as large as ours it is normal to have clusters of birthdays. September is one of those months; today is our Miss F's birthday. Happy Birthday to you Miss F. 9 yrs old and a bundle of joy, laughter and fun. As you may recall from last week, she has learned how to keep up with her two brothers in rock climbing. She did a "dead hang" for 2 min. 28 seconds. You can bet that we are proud of her! Yesterday our family all went up to Estes Park to attend a wedding of a gal that we've done since she was in elementary school. This young woman and her sister moved to our town, several months after we did. The photo below shows our birthday girl, at the very front of the kiddos, wearing a blue and white dress and blue sweater. All the grands looked so excited to be at this wedding. This line of chairs and kiddos was only one of our rows.

Papa and I, love this photo.

The beautiful bride; it was a wonderful ceremony and after the Pastor has introduced Mr.&Mrs....., the groom swept the bride off her feet and carried her out. So very romantic.

This morning I'm off to bible study; tonight we have Miss F's birthday. Tomorrow I'll be posting more fall colors for you all.
Hope you have a great day!
Noreen & Hunter

Such Brilliant Colors

Good Morning Friends, I hope you had a fantastic weekend! Fall is definitely in the air here in Colorado. As you know, hubby and I went on a road trip last week and these are some of the pictures I took with my IPhone.
Please remember that these photos are under Copywrite protection, please don't use without my permission. These photos were taken at Twin Lakes, between Leadville and Aspen.

We have been blessed to take two trips to New England in the fall; the last one was 12 yrs ago and we were in awe of the colors.  This trip reminded us of New England, in that we've never seen such vibrant colors here in Colorado as we did last week.  I will say that on the trip home from Steamboat, through the Poudre Canyon, many of the trees were already loosing their leaves. I will also say that although these photos show the color, any photo of the autumn colors, be it in Colorado or New England just don't do the colors justice.
 This afternoon, we are headed up to Estes Park to attend a wedding; I'm hoping that we not only see more colors, but also some Elk.
I hope you've enjoyed the beauty of our state. I will say that there were two towns that I was disappointed in, but one that was a very pleasant surprise(Meeker); one of the draws for me to Meeker is that they have an annual five day Sheep Dog trial each September.
May your day be filled with beauty.
Blessings,
Noreen

Come back tomorrow for part two of Such Brilliant Colors

The Joys of Childhood

Last night our family gathered to celebrate two birthdays. Kim has two kiddos, Miss D and little man, who have birthday's five days apart; it is much easier to do one party. We all, 17 of us, gathered together for a wonderful dinner, presents and dessert. Here is the birthday girl holding her little brother; it is hard to believe that little man is two and Miss D is 6.

Miss D loves cooking so was very excited to get this kit. I know she'll be making cupcakes soon.

Hubby and I found a stuffed Bison recently and knew little man would love it. He is taken with wildlife and can name many; in fact, there is a restaurant in Steamboat Springs that has game heads mounted on the wall and he can name them. He was able to name them before he could name farm animals.

When a little guy has two cousins that are older, he has already learned how to play with Nerf swords etc., so what would be more fun than a nerf sword to play with. No one had to show him how to use it either. Now he can play with his cousins.

Son in law always makes the best birthday cakes, cupcakes and desserts. Due to the different dietary restrictions, he always makes two or three different things. Last night these looked so good.

Little man is one of us that require a special dessert; he wasn't quite sure if he could eat it, but once he was encouraged he loved it.

Miss D's birthday is tomorrow, so I want to wish her a very happy Day.  She is such a sweetheart, she has a heart of gold that is sensitive and quite the sense of humor.  I love watching our grands grow and mature; it brings us such joy.
I hope you have a great weekend.
Noreen

A Teaser

This week hubby and I went on a little road trip; not little exactly, because we put over 600 miles on my car. Our initial purpose was to dig into our bit of hubby's family history; his great-great-grandparents, great-grandparents and grandmother all have roots here. Although we didn't get additional history of his family, we certainly got to see Autumn in all her splendor. Here is just a peak of photos I'll share next week.

We left early on Wednesday morning and we're settling into a wonderful hotel in Glenwood Springs by mid afternoon.  Thursday took us to Meeker and then onto Steamboat Springs, on of our favorite Colorado towns.  The weather was perfect; we so enjoyed seeing sights we'd never been to before and of the beauty of the changing colors. 
I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
Joy to you.
Noreen and a very tired Hunter, asleep beside me.

The River by Beverly Lewis

The River is Beverly Lewis' newest book; it accurately portrays life among the Amish and gives us another glimpse and understanding into their lives.This is a story line that draws the reader deeper into each page with the rich characters.  The story takes place in Eden Valley, Lancaster County, Pa. in 1977.  Two sisters, Tilly and Ruth, have left their family and chosen to live in the outside world. They are plagued by unresolved relationships when they return  for their parents' wedding anniversary, as well as seeing their father who is gravely ill. Returning would mean facing memories of a  family tragedy that tore the family apart and left Tilly guilt ridden; she is reluctant to return to her parents home.  Although married to an Englisher, Tilly holds onto many of her Plain convictions.  Ruth, the younger of the two, left her family and community with a broken heart; although she remains single, she never got over her broken courtship with her Amish beau. The reader feels the heartbreak, bitterness, unforgiveness that that Tilly has lived with.  Will these sisters return for good to their family and beliefs or will they make peace and return to the outside world?
While this book held me captive, I did foresee where the story line was headed.  I love all Amish stories and this one was another great book from the author.
Bethany House, a division of Baker Publisher, provided me with this book in exchange for my honest review.