Happy Anniversary Celebration - Zoo Lights!!

The Denver Zoo - 23rd St. A great place to spend an evening and celebrate our anniversary...early

Cool light show for the holidays

low flying geese...TAKE COVER!! wandering peacock entertained as we waited for the gates to open

Welcome to "ZOO LIGHTS!"

Happy Anniversay to me and Jack...a bit early Inside it was warm, and somewhat stinky

Giraffe place

after sunset the lights were brilliant and fun HO HO! Flamingos! Just what Peter could use on his front lawn!! Lots of lighted displays of animals, many were animated

everywhere you looked

the sea side exhibit was amazing, all the trees were decorated with thousands of blue lights making it look like an underwater scene

For our anniversary this year Jack and I decided to celebrate by attending the gala presentation of "ZOO LIGHTS", the annual Holiday event presented by the Denver Zoo... of all places!

We arrived an hour before the gates opened and met some nice people while standing in line. A peacock came strolling along to delight us all. When we entered the Zoo gates it was still daylight, though sunset was in the making. A very large flock of geese flew at rather low altitude above us, honking so loud we couldn't hear ourselves think..remember the blog from the Denver City Park with all the geese, the Zoo is right next to the City Park! Apparently at sunset they fly off somewhere to return and stay in the middle of the lake. Many of us ran for cover...with that many geese, we just didn't dare take a chance.

As night fall came the lights grew brighter and it was so much fun. Several of the regular Zoo exhibits were open, initially it was light enough for the animals to still be awake. As darkness came they moved into their habitat homes and we were allowed to go inside to see a few of them there. Zoo Keepers reminded all visitors,"inside voices and no flash photography". The inside places provided some warmth as with night fall the temps dropped to quite chilly. Though warm, they were a bit on the animal odor overpower side, especially the elephant/rhino/hippo place. One of the elephants began banging loudly with her trunk on the door to the outside area. The zoo keeper told us "she wants to go out and play since she is still awake." Outside the Zoo Lights dazzled and sparkled and delighted. It was fun watching all the small children enjoy the animated light shows, which we enjoyed as well. The carousel was turning giving old fashioned rides to kids of all ages and the Zoo train ran it route on the Zoo Train Track. Toward the end of our stay the long walk and cool temps made us hurry back to our car and home for hot chocolate and a warm blanket. It was a very fun evening.

Happy Anniversary to us....

Grace and Peace to You!

Eats and Tunes

Sunset over Rocky Mountains on our drive to Boulder...

Good music, great musicians

Yummie food - cheese/olive/almond dip...very yummie

fiddle, harmonica, banjo, guitar and laughter...wonderful combination

Roger on Bass doing a solo

more good food

Terry and Roger

Roger's friend from Japan -going to college in Missouri, this young man can play the guitar with amazing speed and acuratacy... just amazing,

Julie's friend, Julie, Belinda

Singing and fiddling at the same time! Just very fine music
Jack on the clairinet December 30, 2008 - Terry and Colleen invited us to their home for a barbecue and music fest, Jack to bring his instruments! Being able to leave work a tad early, HOORAY, we drove to Boulder, awed by the beautiful sunset over the Rocky Mountains. Traffic wasn't too bad and we made the drive to Boulder (Jack at the wheel) in about an hour. The Conant home was decorated for the season, festive, bright and cheerful. Virgil greeted us with resounding barks and wagging tail...how fun!

Terry was hard at work pulling pork for the barbecue and Colleen with last minute details. Shortly others arrived, cousins Belinda and Nori and their sons Roger and Kioshi. This gathering was a celebration of Roger being home from Japan for the holidays. Roger is a teacher working a small town north of Tokyo. The town is actually a ski resort and is flocked with Austrailians during the ski season. Friends of Terry and Colleen arrived and we feasted on pulled pork, coleslaw and Terry's secret recipe barbecue sauce - tangy and fruity with the nice hot bite aftertone...very yummie. I never did get a picture of the main meal...too busy enjoying!

Once dinner was done and all were fully satisfied, off to the music room downstairs and the blue grass extravaganza...complete with banjo, guitar, mandolin, bass, harmonica, violin er fiddle, and clairnet/sax. After a couple warm up songs things really harmonized and flowed with blue grass finese. Julie (Darcy's daughter) treated us to a powerful blues vocal. All instrumentalists did solos that wowed. It was a wonderful evening. Visiting with family and friends, good food, good music, who could ask for anything more. Grace and Peace to you...and a VERY BLESSED HAPPY NEW YEAR! !

GREEN MOUNTAIN TRAIL!

This is the "Green Mountain" trail.

view of Metro Denver from the parking area

Horse riders have the right of way...

Beware of Mountain Lions ...and rattlesnakes, but it is too cold in December for the snakes. This sign tells you what to do with Mountain Lion encounters and highly recommends carrying a BIG stick if walking the trails.

Yep, the Green Mountain Trail. Says so right there.

Last night I was watching the public access channel here. The city of Lakewood was doing a presentation of horse riding trails in that city, as well as recreation spots. (by the way, in some areas the riders have to scoop the poop, the same as dog owners in a city...that's a mighty big bag to carry when full...) There are at least three reservoirs and several parks and open wild lands for public use. Then the host brought up the William Frederick Hayden Park on Green Mountain... GREEN MOUNTAIN!!! My heart did a leap and immediately I went to Google...good ole Google...and searched it out, sure enough there it was! In Lakewood! Only a 15 minute drive from where we live! I was so excited. So, off to bed, nursing my nasty cold and hoping to feel better today for a drive in the country.

Well today came and I was feeling pretty crummy still. Wicked sore throat, congestion, cough...aarrrggghhh. That isn't going to stop me though...I want to see Colorado's Green Mountain and check out Lakewood. Jack needed to get new reeds for his clarinet, so we were set for a trip....feeling lousy and all. I just didn't care. I didn't know what we would find in Lakewood, but I was determined to go. It was a bright sunny day here in Denver. Very bright. I couldn't see our GPS very well and took several wrong turns which didn't sit well with the helpful navigator in the passenger seat. After 2 or 3 U turns, a couple wrong turns and a run stop light that nearly got us both killed...thankfully the guy in the big white truck saw us, cause I sure didn't see him. He honked and honked and honked at us...and I don't blame him one bit..I did apologize to him...he harumphed off. I was also thankful for Vermont plates, some how that eases my conscious a bit, I can claim stupid out of state driver...but then that sure doesn't leave a good impression of Vermont for these Coloradoans. Anyway, we made it to our anticlimactic destination. A parking area with a port-a-potty. The trails and signage confirmed our location at the Green Mountain Trail. It was windy and cold...even though the sun was bright and warm. I got out of the car, took some pictures. The views were nice. The hill...a hill...maybe in the spring it will be green. I was told by some helpful gas station direction givers not to try to climb the trails because this time of year they can be slippery and the Mountain Lions are about as well. They also said the view from the top is spectacular of metro Denver in one direction and the Rocky's in the other. Well, maybe another time. We drove to the music store, Jack got his reeds. We took a different direction back home via Dartmouth street. The theme of the day was finding familiar names. Off Dartmouth St was Jackson St. , that made us chuckle a bit. Now, snuggling in throws and lots of liquids and rest. Hope I feel better tomorrow. The views from the parking lot were nice.

Many Talents

All the musicians particpated
Pastor Don Haymon - he actually smiles a lot in his messages..just didn't catch him right...but wanted to include him in this blog

drumming in unison

YouthOne did the best...and I mean it, B E S T version of Little Drummer Boy I have ever heard

beautiful voices - Sis Kelly

Tom with his new trombone and Jack with his new Saxophone

Oh Holy Night, Little Drummer Boy, Emmanuel, Christmas Carole Medley...the YouthOne members, orchestra, choir, praise singers... a night of celebration and worship. A time to hear from the Word of the Lord, a time of prayer and an opportunity to give. A powerfully impacting video "God Is With Us". Fellowshipping with those of like precious faith, fellowshipping with our Lord, His Spirit filling the sanctuary. I sobbed through the entire service, it was so moving. It is an honor have the opportunity to partake of the wonderful true meaning of the Christmas season. To know Him ... to be known by Him, marvelous beyond words expression.

Chili and Santa and Christ's Love

Calavary Apostolic Church Academy annual Christmas Chili Luncheon and gift exchange was a fantastic success. Jack and I were so happy to have been invited to attend and share the festivities with the children, their families, the Academy teachers and church members. The chili was a delicious homemade delight. Corn chips and cheese topping, lemonade and ice tea completed the meal. Of course desserts were abundant - cookies and cup cakes and brownies.

Santa arrived just in time, greeted with happy squeels and jumping anticipation. Each child had picked another child's name so the gifting was abundant. The scriptures tell us to "put on Christ" in attitude and action. In our fellowshipping we have witnessed this in others and been able to be a part the giving and spirit of love of Christmas. Pastor Haymon spoke briefly about the giving message of Christmas and offered prayers of Thankfulness for the blessings of God upon us followed by prayer for those less fortunate. To live Christ is to give of ourselves for others benefit and is our gain. Giving and love, forgiveness and opportunitites to encourage, uplift and strengthen those in their lives and walk with Christ. Jesus the central theme through the celebrations.

"UPPER CLASS" Party

Calvary Apostolic Church in Denver holds many festive gatherings for the holiday season. Youth, Adults, Calvary Apostolic Academy and we "Upper Class" celebrate Jesus in fine and festive fashion. Food and more food. We ...the "Upper Class" that is, joined this evening at a nice restaurant and enjoyed fellowship, food, laughter and a round of good ole Yankee Swap, Colorado style. An afternoon snow squall coated the roadways and made travelling slick and slow going. Several who had planned to attend thought better of the travel in the heavy after work commuter traffic and stayed home. They were dearly missed.

Tomorrow, I have off! Hooray! We began 10 hour work days a few weeks ago, and 4 in a row I find tiring. Tomorrow is the CAC Academy Christmas Chili Luncheon. Jack and I were invited to attend. MMmmmmm. How nice it is happening on my day off!

I read the blog and saw the pictures on my daughter in laws Northern Apostolic Mom of their Christmas tradition tree cutting and decorating...it warmed my heart so very much.

Merry Christmas all!

BBBRRRrrrrrrrrrr

Winter has hit the USA with a vengeance! From East to West coasts the wind and rain, ice and snow and low low temperatures have moved in to stay for a while. We heard of the terrible ice in New England...New Hampshire and Massachusetts particularly. We prayed for everyone we knew and didn't know for that matter - safety, warmth and a quick return to normalcy. The Midwest has been hit with blizzards and frigid temps. More prayer - it is what we can do in these kind of circumstances, with assurance they are heard. Chicago, that windy city - is just that, windy and snowy and cold. The west coast has had it's winter furry of storms and snow and more snow along with the cold. Ski areas are ecstatic! Winter snow and sport enthusiasts are energized. The beauty of the season has momentarily taken a back seat to winter's fury. Here in Denver we snuggled down for a quiet Sunday afternoon, the the snow falling outside, only to realize our furnace wasn't firing. It was getting cold inside. I had just bought a wool blanket at the Army surplus store. How handy. The fix it men were here last week, yet it is still out of order...our furnace that is. A quick call to the emergency service guy and he was here in an hour. Got it going and showed Jack how to kick start it if it stopped again. An electric space heater and some hot chocolate and we were toasty warm. We watched church service on the Internet, not daring to leave before the repair man arrived...nor after he left to make sure all stayed running..Internet church, a very nice thing. Again, the furnace didn't start as the inside temperature began to dip. Jack, in usual fashion and not wanting to get chilled again, followed directions given by the fix it man and added some special touches of his own...."IN THE NAME OF JESUS...stay on and work right" followed by a gentle tap on the apparatus. All has worked well since!

A malfunctioning part will be ordered and the unreliable firing apparatus will be replaced. Enjoy the snow and winter beauty. Stay warm.

God bless you all