Day 59-62: Just working and another hike

 I had an old colleague reach out to me via text and we were making small talk about how things are going. I said to her "life is simple", and it really is. We have slowed down the hustle of life and we are just enjoying it. I actually finished a book. A whole book. From start to finish. I haven't done that in at least 15 years, and prior to that I probably only read because of school. Did I take about a month to finish the book? Yes. But I finished it. That has been the theory of a lot of things lately. I find myself climbing and repeating in my head "you don't have to go fast; you just have to finish". Or when we are hiking, I remind myself that I can go at my own pace. We can go at our own pace, and that is amazing.

We made the trip to IKEA on Tuesday, which is about an hour drive from where we are staying. We figured we would be there for an hour or two. Man, where we wrong. We were there for right around three hours. We found a dresser that works in Alanna's room. Alanna and Brandon put it all together after dinner, and the next day Alanna was excited to organize her room. There is more work to be done in there, but it is coming along nicely! It is very important to us that Alanna has her own space that she is comfortable in.

Alanna went to see her new friend Piper's volleyball game yesterday. We were also invited, but Alanna wanted (needed) to have some time without her parents. We totally understand. The three of us are together essentially 24/7. While Alanna was at the game Brandon, Bruce, and I hiked Horse Tooth. The drive out had awesome views with stellar homes on mountain sides. Homes we will never be able to afford but were nice to look at. They were also homes that we couldn't figure out how the people that lived in them got up there. There were some obvious access roads, and some not-so-obvious maybe roads on the side of the mountain? They did not look like anything I would like to drive up, especially in the snow. The view while hiking just kept getting better the higher we went. I'm not sure how many times I said, "nature is wild", but if I had to guess at least a dozen times. On the hike we saw a Mule Deer Doe and her two fawns, then on our way back to Loveland we saw Elk on the side of the road. At first, I thought they were fake, then they moved. These creatures are huge and majestic. I love all of the bonsai looking trees that grow out of rock. We also saw some unique clouds along the way. We hiked 3.39 miles, and it took about an hour and a half. During that time the temperature went from 84 degrees to 64 degrees. The swing of temperature in this high desert is something. Bruce has been having the best time hiking and going for walks in general. He hops up those rocks, sniffs around at all the smells, and is just the happiest pup. He does have a hiking hang over today. Afterall, he is in his 50s.

After our hike we met up with our friends while Alanna went to Youth Group with Piper. I remember youth group as a child. I would go with my best friend, Mary, and it was fun. It was nice to hang out with different people, play games, and just be kids. Yes, it is at a church, but it is not "churchy". Alanna would like to go again next week, and I'm sure Piper will be thrilled.

Tonight, there is a shoe demo and the rock-climbing gym. Alanna needs shoes so it is a great opportunity for her to try them before we buy them. We may climb, we may not. We are all kind of enjoying a recovery day.

What we learned:

• You lose time when you go to IKEA
• Swedish meatballs are delicious
• Elk are amazing
• Gloomy days are great for recovery

Much Love and Happy Times,

The Blackshire's