Adam Wurster

Adam Wurster

Born in Glarus, Switzerland in 1810

Arrived in the United States in 1832

Came to Milwaukee area some time around 1834.

Purchased his first land around Walkers point around that time as one of the early settlers in the area.

He received a land grant from the Federal Government for 160 acres of land in what is the Township of Greenfield, WI.  (approx 1835-1836)  He successfully farmed the land and was able to retire early.

Married Dorothy (Christian) Wurster

His children were Jacob, David, Mary, Christiana, and John was the youngest.

Pail - A New Neighborhood Hot Spot

Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure to have brunch at a delightful new restaurant right here in Applewood Knolls.  Pail is the brainchild of Rachel, a promising young chef, who trained at an exclusive culinary school in the countryside outside of Lyon, France.  This gem fills a gaping hole in the restaurant scene in in western Lakewood that was left by the departure of the Old Chicago in the strip mall on Youngfield.

At first glance I was not sure what to make of the menu at Pail.  The spellings for the various dishes on the list are to say the least, unique in a weirdly phonetic sort of way.  But once I got past the initial confusion I came to embrace Rachel's conceptual nature and her back to basics preparation.

Beverages, listed on the menu as "Dringcks", consist of a small list that included "Appl Joos", Leminad, Orng Joos and Tea.  For brunch I would have liked to have coffee as an option, but Rachel said that she decided not to serve it in her establishment because, in her opinion, coffee is gross.

Main Dishes include "Appl Slisis, Wattermelin, Pezzas, Ptaito" and a visually stunning dish she calls "frooty", that actually is mixed fruit with an entire corn cob.  Rachel has even put together a separate kids menu in a take home format complete with games to occupy the little ones.  On the kids menu the drinks are called "Jringcks" and include the basics of "Orng Joos, Leminad, and Appl Joos", all fresh squeezed from organically grown fruits.  My son loved the "Bred with Buter" and the "Ptaito".

While each dish was perfectly prepared and delicious, the really stand out aspect of Pail is the service.  Rachel took our order herself and was as nice and attentive as any waitress I've had in even the best restaurants of New York and Europe.  I would have liked to see her offer coffee, or even a bloody Mary, but aside from these omissions, Pail is a can't miss.

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/longjourney/1/1317906223/tpod.html

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/longjourney/1/1317906223/tpod.html

Rachel Goes to Learning School

For most of her life, Rachel has gone to in-home daycare. For the first year she went to Sarah's house, and then up until the time Bree went on maternity leave with Clay, she went to Shea's house. Rachel knew that she wanted to expand her horizons. It was important to her that she start going to pre-school, which for the longest time she has decided to call "Learning School". We decided that she must have a little hillbilly in her.

On August 28th Rachel started attending learning school at Our Lady of Fatima on 20th street in Lakewood. On balance we believe that the experience is going well for her. She has apparently made some friends, although we can never tell if the names she is giving us actually go to real people. There is the elusive Brian, who is often mentioned in conversation, but is also apparently never actually in attendance. Brian* may or may not be a little older (like 4) and typically has appointments scheduled or has contracted some sort of malady that precludes him from attending learning school. Other names she mentions are clearly fabrications and outright gibberish that might, on some level, be associated with actual children.

Bree found her eating Fruit Loops as an afternoon snack when she went to pick her up one day. Rachel suggested that we should get Fruit Loops for at home. This didn't sit well with my wife. They actually sound pretty good to me. Its been years since I've had Fruit Loops. I'll bet they would be good with some Skittles from Rachel's Halloween basket. But I wouldn't necessarily want Rachel to partake.

Here is a photo of Rachel on her first day.

*subsequent investigations have revealed that there is nobody named Brian enrolled in preschool at Our Lady of Fatima this semester. This would account for why he is never there.

Sunday Afternoon in the (Estes) Park

Bree and I often try to make a trip up to Estes Park every year some time around our anniversary. Rachel has been up there with us a couple of times, but this was Clayton's first visit. We always go to the YMCA which is where Bree and I were married, now over 6 years ago.

When I got up on Sunday morning I wasn't sure if we'd be able to go or not. Clayton and Rachel both were clearly not feeling well. After a couple of hours, though, they both seemed to have improved. After the decision was made, is sure took a long time to get out of the house. Motivating and organizing for a day out of the house with two kids is substantially more challenging than with just one.

It was a perfect autumn afternoon here in Colorado. Temperatures were close to 70 in Estes Park and needless to say, the sun was shining. Rachel seemed very interested in the fact that this was where Mommy and Daddy got married. This made such an impression on her that she was pretending to have her Clifford the Big Red Dog doll retell the story of our wedding after dinner last night.

On the way into town traffic was stopped for a herd of elk milling by the side of the road. We came across several more elk on the drive and then several deer on the grounds of the YMCA when we walked around. We spent quite a bit of time at the outdoor chapel where we had our ceremony. We also went over to the livery to let Rachel check out the horses. There were even three small ponies in their own separate stables. I reached out to pet one, but was quickly advised by my wife of the "Do not pet the ponies" sign posted nearby. I thought this was very unfair that these little ponies should be right there but we're not allowed to touch them.

I took a short hike to a place called Bible Point, while Bree took the kids back down to the playground.
"The short but steep hike takes you to the top of Bible Point (.6 mile from 8,130
to 8,650 feet). This vantage point offers outstanding views of YMCA of the Rockies, Glacier Basin, and the Front Range of Rocky Mountain National Park.


Originally known as Buena Vista, the name was changed to Bible Point as a result of the tragic death of Edwin Bradt. The adventurous young man had climbed several mountains, including Longs Peak, and had stayed at the YMCA of the Rockies in 1916 when he attended the YMCA Student Conference. Afterward, Edwin and his father worked exceedingly hard to build a cabin on land given to the family by A.A. Hyde, the man who invented mentholatum. The land is an inholding on YMCA of the Rockies property. Even water for cement was manually hauled up to the building site within the YMCA of the Rockies grounds.

When Edwin was killed in an automobile accident in Nebraska, on his way to his brother's wedding, his father requested the body be taken to Estes Park where the funeral was conducted. YMCA of the Rockies employees carried the casket from the Assembly Hall to the top of Buena Vista where Edwin was buried.

Near the grave, the Bradt family placed a mailbox containing a Bible and register for hikers. Over the years the old name faded away and was replaced with "Bible Point." When hikers visit the site it is traditional to place a cone from a nearby conifer on the grave.

The marker on Edwin Bradt's grave reads, "A normal life. He advanced in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. His chosen text: 'All things work together for good to them that love God.'".......Waymarking.com

Bible point offers a great vantage point for viewing into Rocky Mountain National Park as well as a birds eye view of the YMCA grounds. It was nice to have a few minutes to stretch my legs out and get a little hill climb in, also. After a few minutes of being winded on the climb, I started feeling great and really enjoyed the trail. For being so close to the Y, there were only a few other people on the path.

It was not a moment too soon that I arrived at the playground to meet up with Bree. She was not feeling well, and Rachel was starting to show signs of being very overtired. I pushed her on the tire swing for a time while Bree fed Clayton. Afterwards Bree told me she needed to get back to the lodge and asked if I would follow shortly with both kids. She took the stroller so I was carrying Clayton. I ended up having to carry Rachel most of the way at the same time, also, when she she flopped on the ground in tears unwilling to move. It comes with the territory, I guess. She was in good spirits again after sleeping the whole way back to Denver. We finished up with dinner at the Yard House and finally watching the Brewers lose game 6 of the NLCS. I was very sorry to see the Brewers lose, but overall it was a pretty nice day.

Clayton still seemed like he had his cold this morning when I got him up. He is a nose breather, and breathing through the nose was clearly causing him some serious problems. Rachel and I have been fighting colds ourselves for a few days. Hopefully he will not get it as bad as we did. I appreciate that Bree took care of him last night so I could get some sleep before coming back to work today. As usual, she has been great about that, which has helped to keep coming to work tolerable during this period.

Anniversary Weekend

This weekend Bree and I will be celebrating our 6 year anniversary. Thanks to my beautiful wife for helping to make this life so great.

Reading to Friends

Rachel has lined up several of her friends for story time. She often wears her princess finery around the house. This is not any kind of special occasion or anything.

A Birthday Wish for my Wife

Bree,

I know you are home today taking care of our children rather than out partying or enjoying a day at the spa, but I just wanted to take a few moments to wish you a very happy birthday.

You have gone through a lot lately between being pregnant, giving birth, being up nights with a new baby and being called upon to support other people, including myself, through some hard times. You are a strong person with a good heart and powerful sense of devotion. You have been a wonderful mother to our children, a good wife, and I want to make sure that you know that you are appreciated. Judging from the outpouring of support you got from friends and co-workers while you were pregnant, it is pretty clear that I'm not the only person out there who has a high opinion of you.

I am grateful to be able to share my life with you.

Happy Birthday,

Love,

Trevor

A Month of Firsts

Bree and I have not really been the kind of parents that go out of our way to shelter our kids. We have usually tried to get them out in the world and expose them to new things right off the bat. This may partially attributed to the fact she and I are both anxious to get out of the house ourselves sometimes.

In Clayton's first month he has:
1. Attended his first Celtic/Irish Festival. This was a small festival over in the town of Edgewater in which there wasn't too much of the debauchery other Celtic fests sometimes are known for. The excitement didn't really start until the skies opened up and it began to pour. To

Rachel's dismay this interrupted our viewing of the little girls doing Irish Step dancing. Nobody wanted the rain to damage their ridiculous curly wigs. Fortunately we were able to take shelter under a tent next to some squash and pumpkins. Daddy was able to drink some beer with a small group of hardcore Celtic Fest afficienados and share stories of Ireland and other festivals. These folks had a different festival scheduled for themselves every weekend of the summer.

2. Clayton attended his first Music Festival. The Sunnyside Music Festival in Chaffee Park is held every September in Northwest Denver. It isn't exactly Woodstock, but it's a cool neighborhood festival featuring a bunch of local merchants and some half way decent entertainment. Rachel built a birthday cake out of dirt on the baseball diamond using sticks as

candles. She got filthy, but seemed to have a great time. I took in some of the acts such as Bonnie and the Beard.

3. Clayton's first Restaurant experience was at the Edgewater Inn, where we went for pizza after the Celtic Festival. Last Friday he also made his first visit to Carmine's On Penn. This was more of a date night for Bree and I as Rachel had been dropped off at Monique the babysitter's house. Carmines is always great although Clay was not old enough to be able to enjoy the Chicken Parmigiana.

4. Last weekend, we took Clayton and Rachel up to Red Rocks Amphitheater. It was time to start his musical as well as geological education. After spending some time admiring the dramatic rock formations I pointed out to him where the Beatles played in 1964. I went on to edjucate him on some of the other greats that have played Red Rocks throughout the years, including Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, U2, Jimi Hendrix, John Denver and Jackson Brown, to name just a few. Clayton was clearly overwhelmed and promptly fell asleep.

Other developmental items that should be noted here include the following:
1. Clay is now sleeping between 3 and 4 hours at at a stretch at night. This is not all the time, but he has shown a good capacity for prolonged slumber.
2. Clay has good head control for someone of his age. He is able to lift his head up and look from side to side. He commonly does this when he hears his mom's voice and senses the potential for a meal.
3. He is already out of newborn diapers.
4. Clayton apparently can smile. I have not personally witnessed this phenomenon, but Bree swears that he his all grins whenever I'm not around.

All things considered, it has been a good first month for the little guy. He's a pretty laid back is getting cuter by the day. Rachel is a great sister and is doing her three year old best to be a help to us taking care of him. I'm looking forward to my parents and other family members having the chance to meet him soon

.

Welcoming Baby Clay

August 31st, 2011 my wife Bree gave birth to a son. After several days of deliberation following the birth, we finally settled on the name Clayton Daniel. The name Clayton closely beat out Calvin and Corbin in the final competition.

Bree put in another gutsy performance and with the help of our Doula Pam and Nurse Cindy Clayton was born after a very long and mostly uneventful night in the hospital. After about 10 in the morning things began to progress quickly until Clayton was finally born at 12:41. He was 8lbs 10oz and 20.25 inches.
Rachel, who turned 3 in July, has been a terrific big sister. after a few weeks the novelty of having a baby around the house is wearing off a bit, but she has displayed great affection for her baby brother and has often gone out of her way to be helpful.

Lunch With Friends

Admittedly it has been a very long time since I have posted anything here. For all of you who have been eagerly awaiting the next installment I am happy to announce that your wait is over.

Bree is pregnant again with an expected due date of next Monday, August, 29th. She has been uncomfortable these last few months and is anxious to get it over with. I am looking forward to having another child but I can't help but be a little nervous about how well we are going to handle it. Rachel has gotten much easier over the past 6 months or so and it has been very nice.

Rachel finally decided to get potty trained last May. Bree told her that if she didn't get potty trained she couldn't have a birthday party. That's all it took. For the next several weeks Rachel could be heard muttering to herself while seated on the toilet that she was using the potty so she could have a party. Shameless bribery yes, but effective nonetheless.

I took Bree and Rachel to Costa Rica in April. It was an adventure taking a 2 year old and a pregnant wife to Central America, but overall the trip went very well. We didn't rough it too much but we didn't camp out at any all inclusive beach resort either. I hope to be able to take my family on many more trips like this in the future.

Sorry this wasn't much of an update, but I'm writing from my desk at work so I'm can't take too much time out of my day.


.....Bree just called me from home and it sounds like she might be going into labor! We'll see

Farewell to Our Dear Masha

To the hungriest, gassiest, orneriest, sweetest and loyalest old Dalmation I've ever known.

This morning, February 22nd, 2010, I had just shuffled into the kitchen and had poured my first cup of coffee of the day when I heard a great rattling and thumping coming from the one of the bedrooms. As I was getting up to check it out I heard Bree call out for me. Upon walking into the bedroom I found poor Masha trembling on the floor by the bed and struggling to get up. It was obvious something was terribly wrong. I tried to help her up, but her legs stuck straight out in front of her and would not support her weight. We sat with her for a while trying to calm her and hoping it would get better. Before long Bree called the vet and got her an appointment to go in at 9. I wa afraid she'd had a stroke. The vet said instead that it looked like acute onset canine vestibular disease, a condition affecting the inner ear that makes the dog feel as though they are super dizzy and can't get their balance. This is a condition that will sometimes clear up. The vet put the chances at 50/50. Bree was left with a very tough call to make.

In some ways Masha was responsible for bringing Bree and I together. We used to walk our dogs together over in Cheesman park when we lived in the same building. That is how we first got to know each other. I think Masha was a little protective of Bree, because for a long time I don't think she completely trusted me. I had to earn her trust and affection. She did not take well to my occasional teasing. And I know she didn't like my overly friendly Golden Retriever, Otis, harassing her. Masha was a private animal who liked her quiet time and preferred to be around only a small, select group of humans. She liked certain cats, but I don't think she ever cared much for other dogs. The only purpose they ever really served for her was so she could filch a little food from them.

As a dalmation, she didn't have a big, thick coat of hair, so Masha was often cold. We'd put blankets on top of her when she slept when it got really bad. I remember one night just before New Years we were travelling and stopped for the night a tiny little, backwards town called Horse Cave, Kentucky. We stayed at the Horse Cave Motel. Not only was the room dirty and worn, but it was super cold as well. The heat was barely be functioning. Otis was fine with it, but I remember feeling terrible for Masha having to sleep on the threadbare carpet with no heat. She didn't have a lot of tolerance for for any accomodations rated less than 3 stars. I'm just glad she didn't have to see me bargain with the illiterate hillbilly at the desk just to get the privilage to let her in the room in the first place. The few times we went camping together it was obvious that she wouldn't be happy unless she practically got in somebodies sleeping bag with them.

I always appreciated that she was always game to take walks, though. She didn't care much for rain, and avoided sprinklers like the plague but she never balked at getting the leash on and going outside. Some of my favorite memories in recent years have been of going for walks with the dogs. I used to walk the dogs while pushing Owen in the stroller and later I think I must have developed a reputation in the neighborhood for being the guy who walked around the Baker Neighborhood and down Broadway at night with the dalmation and the German shepherd with the baby chattering away in the backpack.

Bree got Masha as a gift when Masha was only 5 weeks old. She lived in Cincinnati, Blackhawk and then in Denver. She must have shared 10 different residences with Bree, and several with me as well. The old girl turned 14 last November. That's a pretty long life for a dog, but this still came as a real blow. Only the night before I had been walking Masha and Oscar in a snowstorm and Masha was bounding through the snow like a pup. She looked very happy and I might say quite spry for a senior citizen. Mash had an insatiable appetite , and was hungry enough to finish my bagel, even when she couldn't get up out of her bed. I thought that said something about her spirit. Now we are very sad and the house is definitely not the same place without her.

We miss you, Masha.

Owen's Birthday

Owen Edward Steldt would have been 3 years old today.

We miss you.

In Memory of Charles Dye, 1922 - 2010

My wife's grandfather, Charlie, passed away this morning. (Jan. 24th, 2010) He was 88 years old.I had the pleasure to get to know him a little bit in the years since I met my wife. I certainly don't claim to have known him well, but I really did like the old man and I think he was pretty fond of me as well. Charlie had a reputation as somebody who could be tough to get along with, but I can't say that I really saw that side of him. I regarded him as a strong, proud man who had lived a full life with a lot of different experiences but who was struggling with the lousy issues associated with getting old. I was interested in his stories about his life and I think he was happy to share them with me.I believe that most people that reach that age don't necessarily see their lives as particularly exceptional. I never got the sense from Charlie that he felt that his life experience was really special in any way. He was probably no different than most of the other people he grew up with and the history he witnessed may not have seemed as exceptional to him as it might to a student of history from a younger generation.

Charlie grew up in Miami before air conditioning. In 1920, the city had only 29,000 residents. By 1930 it had grown to over 110,000, still tiny compared to the sprawling megalopolis it is today. When he was a kid, South Beach was just being developed. Tropical diseases were still common. In fact, Charlie talked to me once about all the diseases that were around when he was a kid. He grew up near a railroad tracks and I believe his father worked in construction.

Charlie served in the Army during World War II and apparently saw quite a bit of action fighting in Italy. He was involved in the famous Battle of Anzio in January, 1944. While I'm sure he saw some pretty heavy fighting, he never really discussed it very much during my conversations with him. Charlie preferred instead to talk about some of the good times he had while serving in Europe. And while he never got too into any specifics I definetely got the sense that he and his friends had some pretty rowdy times. Even though we were technically at war with the Italians, it sounded like the Army was well received by the locals. One of the last times I talked with Charlie he talked about some of the good times they had in both Palermo and in Naples. Wine was cheap, the girls were friendly, and US currency went a long way.

When Charlie got out of the military he settled in the Chicago area. He got a job in the printing industry as a typesetter. I'm not clear on all of the specifics but I believe that this is where he met his wife, Peggy. Charlie and Peggy had two children, Linda and Scott. They raised their family in Des Plaines, northwest of the city and for many years he suffered through a long commute to and from his work because he preferred the more rural setting to the congested urban setting of Chicago. He spent much of his time in the garage tinkering and fixing things. He was always taking in some old broken lawnmower or something and fixing it to resell it. He was always being a very sharp dresser and made an effort to look good all the time. My wife also remembers him as having a distinctive smell consisting of a combination of Irish Spring soap and Drakar Noir cologne.

I believe he worked in that business in the Chicago area for on the order of 40 years. During that whole time, he could never get used to the cold weather or the long drive and he always looked forward to retiring back in Florida. After he finally left he printing business he got the chance. He and Peggy lived at several addresses, first in Englewood and later on in Venice. Bree and I visited them at their townhome in Venice shortly after we lost Owen. They were very gracious with us during the afternoon we spent with them. I think Peggy served ribs she had brought back from Publix, which is the grocery store she was working for at the time. Charlie took me in his room and showed me his computer and some of the things he was did with the computer and pulled up some area maps off the internet. He was already moving very slow at the time and I remember really appreciating the fact that he was using the technology, but at the same time I wanted to grab the mouse and keyboard away from him because he was taking so long to do anything.

Charlie was always very interested in technology. He was what marketing people call an 'early-adopter'. Bree recalls that when she was very little Charlie had taped The Wizard of Oz for her and her sister off of a very early early video recorder. The only problem was that when they got it home they couldn't watcy the video because neither they or any of their friends had a VCR on which to play it. Within a week of his death, Charlie was still checking his email and forwarding jokes, many of which I still have saved in my inbox.

Things unfortunately didn't work out quite as well as he and Peggy had hoped. The pension plan into which he had been paying for the past several decades had some serious problems and they were unable to retire with the type of income that they had expected. Both he and Peggy were compelled to take jobs and work through their seventies. She worked a variety of jobs waiting tables and later at the local grocery store in the bakery. Charlie followed his passion and landed a job at a golf club. This was not exactly hardship duty for him. In fact he apparently really loved working at the club. He was happy to spend much of his time out on the golf course. He also loved to be around all of the various birds that are found in Florida. Bree has remarked at how well he was able to identify the many varieties he would point out when they were out together. In recent years he had several medical proceedures to remove skin cancers from his head. He had always had sensitive skin and made sure to cover up with a hat and long sleeve shirt when going out in the daytime. I suspect that spending all of the time outside doing what he wanted probably did him a lot more good than harm in the long run.

I first met Charlie and Peggy over Christmas one year when Bree and I went to stay at a condo Bree's folks had rented in Myrtle Beach. Charlie and Peggy had made the drive up from Florida and I think that they had taken quite a while to do it. I think that must have been in about 2004 and even then Peggy was doing most of the driving. Charlie was still walking well enough though to get out and walk on the beach.

The last big trip Charlie took was when he and Peggy came to our wedding in Estes Park. I know that they had a great time when they were here and we were grateful that they were able to make the trip. My grandparents were all gone by the time we got married which, to me, reinforced the importance of their being able to be there. The day before the wedding I drove Tim and Charlie from Estes Park over the Trail Ridge Road to Grand Lake. We had lunch at a little cafe there in town before driving back. It was a beautiful day to do the trip. I think Charlie had a really nice time. It had been a long time since he had been in the mountains and unfortunately it would be his last time.

Charlie had the good fortune to be able to meet his great grandson, Owen, when we travelled to Florida over Easter weekend in 2007. Those were very happy times. I know he was very proud of Owen. He was very happy to have a great grandson. And when we lost Owen, I believe he took it hard, as well. We all had a good time during that weekend which left some very good memories with me. I remember Owen having some goofy Easter rabbit ears that Bree got for him and he had to endure wearing them while pictures were taken. It was very cute and Owen, as usual, was a good sport.

Charlie first met his great granddaughter, Rachel, when we took her down to visit them in the Villages last February. By that time he had Peggy had moved into a small house in the Villages so that they could be closer to their daughter, Linda and her husband Tim. From that time forward, as both Charlie and Peggy's health deteriorated, Linda and Tim spent a great deal of time with them visiting and helping out. Charlie became less and less mobile and was not always able to care for himself. There were instances when he fell down at night and had to have Tim come over in the morning to help him back up. Peggy became too weak to help him up. Even during these difficult times over the past year I don't think Charlie lost very much mentally although at times my understanding is that he could be dificult to get along with.

A few weeks ago Bree and I went down to Florida for a visit. Charlie and Peggy were both staying at the Arbor Village Rehab Center. Charlie had suffered a bout of phemonia over Christmas and never fully recovered. His health appeared to improve a little after he got out of the hospital, but he suffered a tremendous amount of fluid buildup as a result of the congestive heart failure he was suffering. He was clearly very uncomfortable.

The day before I left I went to see him in the afternoon after Bree and I returned from our night in Cedar Key. Tim and I found him sleeping but we decided not to wake him. Charlie had been complaining of not being able to get any sleep. So we let him be. It made me sad, though, because as I stood in the room looking down on him I knew that it would probably be the last time I would ever see him.

Charles Dye lived a long and productive life. I can't imagine that what I have written here would begin to do him justice. So for anyone who knew Charlie who happens to read this, I invite you to please leave any comments or recollections in the comments section here.

Christmas, 2010

It has been a very long time since I have written anything here. Finding any time to sit down and spend any uninterrupted time at my desk or the kitchen table has become more and more difficult as my daughter Rachel had become increasingly mobile. About the time she turned a year old Rachel decided that walking was really the best way to locomote. Since then, all bets have been off. In fact, as I sit in the kitchen of my new house right now, Rachel has just pulled a chair out from the table and climbed into it where she is reclining comfortably with a bottle of water. Food and drink will keep her occupied, and stationary, but only for a short time. The rest of the time she spends on the go. She occasionally plays with her many toys. More than likely, however, she'll be pulling a dog tail, unpacking cabinets and drawers, throwing random objects or getting into some other mischief. As far as Rachel is concerned, everything is fair game.

I'm not complaining, though. I find Rachel endlessly entertaining. She is very funny. In fact I think she has the best sense of humor of anybody I know. Not bad for somebody with vocabulary of a dozen or so words. She is to the point where she seems to be regularly learning new words and generally seems to understand their meaning. For months she has been saying "uh-oh" whenever she drops something. The other day she pulled over a floor lamp in the living room. The glass globe shattered on the floor with a huge crash. Bree, my dad and I all instantly rushed to see that she was alright. Rachel just stood there with a puzzled look and said "uh-oh". A tad understated, but really quite appropriate.

But it is Christmastime. My mom and dad flew to Denver from Milwaukee on December 17th and left to go back this afternoon. It was a special treat to be able to have them here at Christmas as well as for my 40th birthday. That sounds awful, doesn't it? 40! The best thing about turning 40 is that it means that I didn't die while in my thirties. Time is going so fast. I wish I could slow it down sometimes. I know that won't happen, so I guess the best I can do is to try not to have too many regrets going forward.

On the 23rd Bree, Rachel, Dad and I drove to Carbondale (between Glenwood Springs and Aspen) where we spent two nights with my uncle Al, aunt Peg, cousin Jennie and her fiance Allen. Justin and my mom joined us later in the day. My uncle and aunt have a great new house in a golf course community which is where they have chosen to spend their retirement. On Chistmas Eve Bree and I were able to get away for the afternoon to spend some time in Aspen, which is about 30 miles down the Roaring Fork Valley from their house. It's not too often that we have the chance to get away without Rach these days so we enjoyed the few hours of freedom to hobnob with all of the high-falutin snobs. We didn't realize Charlie Sheen was in town, otherwise would have gotten together for a few drinks, I'm sure.

My cousin Jennie has spent many years in the Airforce flying around the world in C130s but next summer she will be getting married. As far as I can tell, she seems to be marrying a pretty good guy. Allen is from Cork, Ireland and now works at Microsoft. He was good enough to have a bottle of Bushmills waiting for us when we got there.

Christmas day, we all drove over Tennesee Pass to Debbie and Jerry's place on a windy mountainside just north of Buena Vista. Snow had been drifting over the winding dirt road leading to their house for the past couple of days, so we weren't sure if we'd make it. Jerry runs the music program at the Catholic church in BV and they all perform but this year they were unable to make it to mass on Christmas Eve or on Christmas morning because of all the snow that had drifted over the road on the way in. The stretch where most of the snow collects is called The Hackendorf. I'm not sure how it got that name, but by the end of the weekend Bree, my Dad and I all thought it quite funny to constantly hear about the horrors of navigating the dreaded Hackendorf. It got to be a bit of a joke. The wind was no joke though. It was blowing off of Mt Columbia to the west at a murderous rate. They had hired a plow to come through just before we arrived so we didn't have any problem making it in. The next morning a man had to come in with a front end loader because the plow couldn't make it through, so much snow had drifted in.

I had been looking forward to walking around their land and up into the forest on the mountainside butthe cold and the gale force winds made that idea seem much less agreeable. So we all stayed inside for the rest of the day. Jerry had set out a wide variety of booze, and after the snowy drive in, I was happy to help myself. They had picked up a bottle of Jamison the day before when they thought that they might have to spend the night in town. Over the course of the evening I made a big dent in the bottle.

The Hogans are a musical family so later in the evening they performed some Christmas carols for us. Debbie singing and on the piano, James playing the flute. Debbie made a ham recipe out of the Julia Child cookbook that was phenomenal. Everybody there seemed to have a pleasant night. It's not too often that I get my whole family together like this anymore. I try to enjoy it while it lasts.

I got a bit of a walk in the next morning as I scoped out the road out. The wind was still raging but I thought we'd have smooth sailing. Until I reached the dreaded Hackendorf, that is. It became clear that we'd have a tough time getting through this quarter mile stretch, even with our four wheel drive vehicles. That's when they called in the front end loader.

Thanks everybody for a great Christmas.