Lots of snow

We had our first good snow storm this last week. Its hard to tell how much snow we actually get around here because is blows around so much. In fact, we had blizzard warning for the last three or four days...with wind chills between 30 and 40-below (even though the temperature was only about 5-below). All this snow was supposed to be ice and sleet (much like the East Coast a few weeks ago), but it turned out to mostly be fluffy and white. Brian had to pull out the 4-wheeler and plow so we could get out of the driveway. The state snow plows did a great job of creating a 3-foot snow bank at the foot of our driveway, so Brian had his work cut out for him!.

Guy Stuff

A few days ago I caught Brian hanging out with Dawson at the top of the stairs...talking about "guy stuff". Dawson isn't usually a serious dog, but on this particular occasion he was listening intently to whatever Brian had to say. Probably discussing the jeep adventures they'll have once Brian has completed his latest project in the garage.

Snow Day!

On Tuesday we had a snow and ice storm, so I got a snow day! (Sometimes working in higher education has its perks.) Brian already had the day off, so we got all of our Christmas decorations put up (not that we have all that many...we had to put our tree in the corner because we didn't have any ornaments for the back!). Anyway, it was a lovely day. Here's a shot of our first tree in Iowa!

Squirrel friends

This fall I spent a lot of time trying to beat our neighborhood squirrel (who lives in a tree behind our house) to our crop of black walnuts. We named this squirrel "Butternut." He used to have a friend named "Nutmeg", but Nutmeg got hit by a car some months ago. Well, it seems that Butternut has two more friends who have moved onto our property. They're pretty good looking squirrels, so I thought I would post a photo of one of them. I think that we should feed them over the winter. Brian thinks they should fend for themselves. Maybe I'll toss some black walnuts to them that I have yet to crack. ..

Holiday Party!

Last night was Brian's company's holiday party. His plant in Alaska threw an amazing party every year, so we were excited to see how this one would be. We had a really nice time. This is a much smaller plant than the one in Alaska, so the party was smaller too. It was held at the Cellar restaurant in Fort Dodge, which is known to have good steak. We both had ribeyes, so we can confirm that the food is tasty. As usual Brian (the luckiest guy in North America) won a door prize- a $50 gift certificate to Walmart. There was even entertainment...a hypnotist...who had a very amusing show. Brian worked days both yesterday (the day of the party) and today (the day after), so we didn't have too much fun and were in bed by 10:00pm. Brian's such a trooper!

Thanksgiving 2008

We had a wonderful time visiting Ryan and Louise in Denver over the Thanksgiving weekend! They're such great hosts...the food, as usual, was incredible (though I didn't actually take any pictures of it). On the ride out we discovered that the only thing that stands between our house in Iowa and theirs in Colorado is...

One of the coolest things happening at Ryan and Louise's house was their little lemon tree. They bought the plant online and it actually produced a lemon. Isn't it amazing that such a little tree could produce such a large fruit? On Sunday after church we went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science to see their new dinosaur exhibit and watch an IMAX movie called "Dinosaurs Alive." The museum was very interesting...the movie was slightly disappointment, but gave us plenty to laugh about on the way home. (On a side note, it appears that Michael Douglas seems to be struggling in his career. He was the narrator for the film.) We couldn't take many photos in the museum, but here's the view from the big class windows inside. On the way home we stopped in Kearney, Nebraska to eat at Big City Burrito. It's one of the best restaurants in America, so if you are ever passing through Nebraska, we suggest you stop. Kearney is just about halfway through the state. Big City's specialty is a huge burrito filled with fried potatoes. Yum!

Outside of Kearney we found this buffalo and had to take our picture in front of it. He's just on loan to Kearney, oddly. I guess at somepoint he'll be heading home...whereever home is for a giant buffalo. Thanks Ryan and Louise for a great weekend!

Mattie helped me bake

Mattie and Dawson are always by my side when I'm in the kitchen. Recently Mattie was in the right place at the right time and got a face full of flour. This is what she'd look like as a brindled dog, I suppose!