First runs of the season!!

We finally made it out on the mountain! Last weekend Andy and I dusted off our skis and made our first runs of the season. It hasn't snowed much lately so we stuck to the groomed runs because we knew there would be enough snow. Speaking of groomed runs, while we were weaving our way down the slope, we heard the distinct sirens of the groomers. Not just one or two groomers but 15! 15 groomers slowly made their way down the mountain in a very practiced formation. I've seen a few groomers in my day but never that many at one time. Many people stopped to take in the sight. Unfortunately, many of us stopped in the future tracks of the cats and had to move out of their way in order to continue taking pictures.




The mountain on a beautiful Saturday morning.

A long train of groomers making their way back up the hill.

Up close and personal look at the snow cats at work!

Look at that cool skier dude!

Quite a sight to behold!

Moving in is so much fun!!

While I was in Michigan, Andy moved all of our belongings from the hotel apartment to our new home which was quite a feat. He is so wonderful! Not only did he move a lot of stuff without me, he took time to arrange the living room so it would feel homey and less overwhelming when I returned to Colorado. Now that I am back in Colorado we are working together to clean out our storage unit. We rented a Uhaul and loaded it to the gills a couple of times. Now the stuff is sitting around our new place waiting to be put away. We are making progress which is exciting! As long as you don't open any of the bedroom doors, our place looks calm, cool, and collected. Here are a few pictures documenting our progress.






The kitchen!!









Dining room looking toward the living room.

Dining room looking toward the kitchen.








Messy spare bedroom #1

Messy spare bedroom #2

Our Christmas Tree

The living room

New home!!

After a year and a half of living in the hotel, Andy and I have packed our bags and found a new place to live. We are in the process (when I say we I mean Andy because I am in MI) of moving our belongings down valley about 10 miles or so to a town named Avon. Avon has more of a small town feel then Vail does and we will be living in a subdivision of sorts with other people from work and church. We are excited to expand a bit. In fact, we will not know what do do with all of the extra space! After living in a little studio for so long, we are going to get lost in our three bedroom townhouse!! We are so thankful for this wonderful opportunity and felt really special when friends from church offered their place to us. So, come January our physical address will change and a new chapter in our life will begin.


Our old living room, dining room, and bedroom...














Our new living room














and dining room!!!














Our old kitchen...
















Our new kitchen!!!



























Andy's favorite part of the new place...the two car garage!!

Long time no post...

Dear friends and family,
Life is flying by. I can't believe I have been back in Colorado for 2 weeks already and that I am returning to Michigan in 1 week! We finally have snow on the mountain, hooray!! The town is absolutely beautiful! Sadly, we have both been extremely busy lately and have not had a chance to enjoy the mountain yet. We do have our skis out of storage finally so we are working in the right direction. Andy has been working long hours in preparation for the Christmas rush. His major project right now is lighting. He has been shopping for new lamps for all of the rooms in order to create a more warm, homey feel. Also, apparently it was a bit difficult to read in bed before in some of the rooms. The project is definitely coming along but he still has a long way to go. School is in full swing again. We are hitting the books hardcore between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Right after Thanksgiving, one of my 7th grade classes transitioned from the traditional 7th grade PreAlgebra curriculum to the 8th grade Algebra curriculum. We are attempting to work through all of the material in a matter of only 2 trimesters. The kids are doing really well and are holding on as we blast through 2-3 sections a day. I am so proud of them! In other news, I have joined a Math cohort as a part of a grant program the district obtained this year. The program is 2 fold. The focus of the first few days is mathematical content. We are taking a math class! The focus of the second part of the program is on teaching the mathematics. I am excited to see where this program will lead.
There is so much to tell but my break is over now so I have to go. See you again soon!
Christine :)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

There is nothing like waking up to the smell of fresh bran muffins and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with your family. The only thing that could make this day better would be to have Andy here by my side. It has been nice spending the last few days catching up with friends and family here in Michigan. I had the pleasure of having breakfast with a few friends on Monday morning, enjoyed a night out on the town on Tuesday with my sister and Scott, and attended the Community Harvest Fest potluck dinner Wednesday night at church. Now we are eagerly anticipating the arrival of the noon hour when we will gather with family to share a wonderful Thanksgiving Day meal. Just in, my cousins were just on the radio sharing everything that they are thankful for! Way to go Amanda and Nicole!! I am so proud of you and thankful for the joy you bring to my life! I am thankful for so many of you today and the way you have and continue to touch my life. There is so much to be thankful for today! Happy Thanksgiving to all!! :)

One more day...

until I come to Michigan!! I am so excited!! Hooray for Thanksgiving and spending a week with the Michiganders I love so dearly!! See you all soon!! :) Countdown until take off: 24 hours and 10 minutes!! Now 9 minutes until I can check in...

Last ride of the season?

After watching the weather report on Saturday night, Andy and I made the decision to wake up early, attend first service at church, then drive down to our storage unit to take the motorcycle out for one final ride. Before leaving for church we gathered a few extra layers just in case. It looked like we were ready to hit the slopes as we left the hotel with our gloves, snow pants, and winter coats. (I also grabbed the scarf my sister knitted for me a couple of years ago just in case.) It was a beautiful day-sunny, blue skies, and temps in the 50's and 60's (depending on whether you were in the shade in the middle of a canyon or in the sun at a red light). We decided to head west toward Glenwood Springs. While there we stopped at a little 50's style diner for lunch then took in a movie for the fun of it. Before heading home we decided to take a "little" detour up and down a pass that Andy had traveled over a couple of weeks ago at the beginning of his camping trip. The detour took a little longer than either of us figured it would and we were quite chilly when we returned to the lower, warmer elevation in town. It's amazing what a couple thousand feet will do to the temperature!! All in all we had a great, memorable day and after 150 miles we were more than ready to head home. Here are a couple of pictures from our final trip of the season:

A cute little waterfall on the side of the road.


Taking a break