YRYLA

Sarabeth was selected from several dozen applicants for the honor of attending Young Rotary Youth Leadership Award this week at a camp in Larkspur. It’s a pretty big honor and an incredible way for her to grow her leadership skills. She was a bit nervous and very excited as I dropped her off yesterday afternoon. If you remember, Nathanael attended the same camp 3 years ago, and their older brother Noah attended RYLA. Going way back, their dad attended RYLA in 1994! Have an amazing week, Sarabeth. 

Wonka-N2

Closing night of Wonka went great! It was fun to see the teachers up on stage really getting into character. Jen did great as did Sarabeth. Nathanael received special recognition on the tech crew from the director for “standing behind the lights and shining it on all of us.” A cast party at Old Chicago wrappedthings up! 

Timbers

And now a word from our college kid! Noah is having a good summer in Portland, working full time, taking one class, and sweating in his un air conditioned room. He is also dining time to work in a little fun, either by floating down the river on July 4th, or attending a Portland Timbers game last night with his work friends. He said he felt like me this morning, by getting to bed at 1230 after the game, then having to be up at 830 to go to work! 

Wonka

It was opening night of Wonka, the summer teacher production at Frontier Academy. We had three family members in the play, Jen as Mrs. Galoop, Sarabeth as Narrator #2, and Nathanael working tech crew. It was a cute little show, running about 50 minutes. Closing night tonight! 

Ride & Revel

What better way to start a Saturday morning then will a volunteer shift at the annual Ride and Revel bike ride? I dragged Jen along to help! After a quick breakfast at the start/finish line, we took up our post at 35th and O Street. We rang cowbells, directed the riders and cheered them on. Seems like a long time ago I was one of the riders. Finished with a nice brunch provided by Everyone’s Table, a local food truck. 

Wiley

Celebrated the 5th anniversary of my favorite brewery in town, Wiley Roots, yesterday. They rolled out several new beers, including a slushee beer that’s been pretty popular this summer. I joined my friend Nick, who is the executive director of the Greeley Philharmonic and co owner of Wiley, Maranda. Cheers! 

Carnival

The tradition continues! Although this year at the carnival felt so empty without Dad there. It’s still hard to believe that just 2 years ago the party was in full swing with Wes’s family here and Dad joining downtown for the celebration. This year it was just Nathanael, Sarabeth and I. We made the best of it, playing a few midway games, the kids riding a few rides, and sis and I taking our trip on the Farris wheel. Overall it was a great weekend in Laramie. We all had a great time, made some new memories, ate some of moms home cooking and had some laughs. While a trip home will never be the same, we are doing our best to still have some fun as Dad would have liked. 

Brewfest

We were so pleased to be joined by our good friends the Woods in Laramie for the Brewfest! While Mom and the Littles enjoyed the sights and shopping in downtown, we were ready to party at 130 when the gates opened. It was awesome. Other then it being a little warm, the selection of beers and breweries present was pretty incredible. We spent 4 1/2 Hours sampling a wide range of beers, chowing down on some carnival food and chasing Mav around. The rest of the family joined us for a few minutes at the end to see what it was all about. Then back to 179 to enjoy some veggie lasagna! 

Laramie

It’s Jubilee Days and Laramie Brewfest time! Jen, the Littles and I landed in Laramie Friday night for the weekend. We started with dinner at Laramie’s newest and best restaurant, Rib and Chop House. After a nice breakfast at 179, Mom and the Littles and I headed down for the parade while Jen studied. There were a record 54 entries this year! Parade lasted a little over an hour. Good times!