We could...

But at this point it seems more fun to keep our 2012 streak in tact.

Holiday Cheer

We had a good day.
Family.
Delicious food.
And a little silliness.

 

Christmas 1973

We hope you had a good Christmas and were able to be with loved ones.

Soft & squishy underfoot.

Ladies and Gentlemen...
We have carpet!

Front room.

Our room, then.

Our room, now.
The carpet is a sage-green and I promise you, the walls are not as pink as they look here.

Alert the media, we all know what's next!

It's only rock 'n roll...

but I like it.

Wild horses couldn't drag me away from the televised Rolling Stones 50th Anniversary concert. Front row seats, no traffic and no lines.

No steel wheelchairs for these guys, especially Mick who pranced, danced, sashayed and never stopped moving for 2 ½ hours, at the end of the show he looked as though he could have kept up the pace for another couple hours or so. Keef was Keef as only he can be – except these days he’s sober. Ronnie looked as though he had plans to live up to the message on his t-shirt. And Charlie’s biggest smile was at the end of the last song of the night; we figured he was thinking, “Finally, now I can go home and have a cup of tea.”

Color coordinated!

They keep me happy.

A lot has been happening here.

A snippet for you...

Dave has been staining closet doors. All 9 of them. It's a tedious, fumey job.

I'm not sure who approved the proximity of stain to the Westy. It wasn't me.

My little office space is coming together.

As you can tell, not much actual work has taken place here yet - it's far too tidy!

I found a fancy night light.

It will help Dave find his way downstairs in the middle of the night when his pager goes off. Or house guests, in the event we have them again in the future. Of course, Westy is always an option for guests.

And, apropos of nothing, I gave our front door (which has yet to be stained) phoney stained glass windows!

Never mind the fact that the walls still need to be finished, I found these and had to play.

Oh, by the way, Tuesday, December 18 is our carpet install date. Yay!

Close!

We're close.
So close...
So close we can almost smell the new carpet.

All the woodwork has been stained & polyed or oiled, doors and trim are up. Closet doors have been hung and fitted; they have gone back out to the garage for staining.

We used nearly every last scrap of leftover hardwood flooring for the closet floors. When we got to the last closet, Dave laid it all out before we started to be sure there was enough then he numbered each piece so that we could get it all nailed back in in the same order, we were that close to not having enough.

The handrail, balusters and newel post have to be ordered and installed for final inspection.

Closet shelving/organizing systems need to be done - but we don't need our clothes on the same floor as us to sleep in our own bed; heck, we don't even need them in the same building!

We will wait until summer to stain the stairs, when we can open ALL the windows for a couple days, sleep in the Westy and cook outside -- that stuff is entirely too stinky.

I predict we will be sleeping in our own bed before Christmas.
Yes, this Christmas.

How does he keep a straight face?

For Dave's first call of the day, the contacts' names were Rocco and Twinkle.
I nearly choked on my coffee.

Back to Little Falls

Chris has been wanting to "get his hands on some real rock" before the nice weather is gone for the year so on Monday he and I and our friend Scott drove to Little Falls to spend the day at Moss Island. This was only the second time that I have climbed outdoors (if interested, you can refresh your memory of my first outing).

Outdoor climbing is different from indoor climbing.

You use your own ropes (or your friend's) and set your own anchors.

Up top, setting anchors.

For me, it's kind of scary. Especially that first route of the day.
There's definitely a mental aspect to overcoming some amount of fear. It becomes just you and the wall, everything else is blocked out - except the helpful advice and occasional heckling from below.

Just me and the wall.

Other than some leftover chalk from previous climbers' hands, routes are not marked. You are suppose to be able to "read" the route and think a couple moves ahead, a skill I have not yet developed.

Bustin' a move.

Place your foot on a tiny nodule of rock, balance yourself, and trust that foot will stick while you grope about for some small crack to stick your fingers into - and yes, more than once the thought, "What would I do if something bit me right now?" crossed my mind.

While you're out there, enjoy the scenery.

Best of all, you get to have fun and laugh hard in great company.

Stop Being Afraid Of What Could Go Wrong
And Think Of What Could Go Right

Palm slaps forehead...

 Why didn't I think of this?

Finger Lakes Wine Tours in a restored 1971 Volkswagen Bus.

Even their logo is genius.
winewagentours.com

Brilliant.

Good Dirty Fun

Dirty Girl Mud "Run"
The event, a 5K obstacle course, was set up at Kissing Bridge Ski Slope, south of Buffalo. Note the location. We were either going uphill or downhill, there wasn't much flat terrain. The weather had been good and rainy so there was no shortage of mud.

In actuality, we did everything but run...it was more of a Mud Walk, Crawl, Swim, Squish & Splash. Three of us planned to do the event together with a larger group. One of my friends said at the beginning, "Ok, we're all doing this together..." and as she looked at me: "No unnecessary running!"

Enthusiasm!

Thanks go to Patti & Jim for the photo. 

Tutus! 

Dave got some Dirty High Fives

Dirty Prom Queens

Our team finishing together.

Thanks, Patti & Jim for the photo. 

Running the last mud hole together.

Thanks, Patti & Jim for the photo. 

Would I do it again? You bet your muddiest pair of boots I would!

Forecast...

Saturday, 66 and rain.

"Thunderstorms in the morning, then variable clouds during the afternoon with still a chance of showers. A few storms may be severe. High 66F. Winds SW at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80%."

Well, at least there won't be a shortage of mud.
Yeesh.

Stoked.

One week from today...

Dirty Girl Mud Run is a 5K mud run (or walk) and obstacle course for women.

Here's the disclaimer up front: These images are not mine. All images are shared from Dirty Girl Mud Run on FaceBook. I do not know any of these ladies - but I hope to have as much fun as they did. 

 There will be mud.

There will be obstacles.

There will be teamwork.

Did I mention the mud?

There will be a sense of accomplishment splattered with love and laughter and smiling so hard our cheeks hurt.

Or maybe our cheeks will hurt from clenching our teeth trying not to get mud in our mouths!

Either way, I'm pretty darn excited.

Why, hello...

...and where has this been hiding? Tasty.