whew!
in the last week.....

i have finished my class
finally got ezra new tennis balls
successfully killed some flowers
still havn't figured out what my grade is
havn't mowed the lawn (no rain, no mow)
watched william finish up his 16 lb bag of cat food
got new tires on my jeep (yeah! no baldies anymore!)
hosted adam and chelsie for their big move to the springs
figured out that we need a new dishwasher (not named andi)
went to co springs to hang out w/ dallas' family for the weekend

yea, this is the tourist trap pic at the cave of the winds but it's not
every day that you get 8 adults and 4 kids ages 6 and under
to all smile and look good at the same time!
L-R: dan & micah (1.67 yrs) , dallas,
andi, julia (6 yrs), jeremy, dalene,
amelia (2.83 yrs) carol, randy,
ethan (3.416 yrs) and doug
the burnums

yesterday jen called. i love jen, and whenever she calls, you know it's going to be something just fantastic! i love jen because we have the same life agenda: to avoid growing up as much as possible.

today we went rafting in clear creek for 3 hrs. and yes, it was fantastic!

FINALLY!!!

after trying to get to torrys mtn forever we finally did this! (since i was in college something has came up every time and i havn't been able to summit)

we are so excited to almost be done with the front range mountains and move on to the less traveled road! (still left for andi: pikes peak......in case you havn't heard we are trying to do them all before dallas turns 40)

we were surprised, for an aug 1 hike, how much snow it got last night

also, horray for ezra, his first 14'er!!

talk about picky pit bull

ezra is extremely picky about the tennis balls he will play catch with.

requirements include:
1) must bounce like new
2) must have no holes or cracks

you would think that these requirements would be really easy to fill but what you probably can't see in this picture are the 11 tennis balls that he refuses to play with because of their "deformaties" (ie not new)
spoiled dog

this weekend we had big plans to get out of here, car camp and bag some 14ers this morning.

going in, always a great start to the trip---
hoping it will blow over
9 pm....... raining outside

5:00 am---

• ezra has stolen my sleeping bag for himself
• dallas' stomach feels not so great
• it is 41 degrees out
• it is still pouring

so we move everything from the front seat to the back and drive home. :(

maybe next time

holy moley!

2 qdoba burritos = 2.6 lbs!
also the geek has been updating his blog.
i think he now has more posts in the last week than in the last year

grocery getting

ok, i will admit i'm a pretty finicky grocery shopper.
here is my mental list when purchasing items:

1) find what i'm looking for
2) find cheapest product (hint: look for non-name brands)
3) is it the right fat content? if no, look again
4) look at ingredients. are there too many? yes, but is it inexpensive (fancy word for cheap)? no. i might reconsider.....
*exceptions: captain crunch cereal*
5) if there are similar products within the dime of each other, look at packaging (yes, i do this). does one have more "fun" colors than the other? if yes, pick this one.

..........6) wait, can i recycle the package? oooh i can? ok... choose this one

yes, i know this sounds redicurous (yes, i did say redicurous--- from seinfield if you are confused) but that's how it's done here! which is why this lovely jar of ricotta cheese was chosen for our weekly meal, this time lasagna.
it passed all qualifications..... but i was very angered to find....

what are you looking for?
you're looking for the "easy to tear off top plastic packaging" nickel sized tab that prevents you from, *big breath* not using your teeth, because if your mom saw that she would crown you for ruining a perfectly good set of teeth so now you have to take out a knife to open top packaging in which most cases you would wipe on your jeans when you are done and return to the drawer but it's cheese, which makes the knife something extra you have to wash when you're done and washing dishes is no fun.

i realize that i did buy the generic ricotta cheese (obviously without all the bells and whistles), but even the kroger brand ketchup has a little tab! comon ricotta cheese packagers, a little love, please?

sorry for the blogging delay.... we were out at the
JOURNEY/HEART (!) concert!!!!
(which may i add was incredible!)

if you would like to see footage the lady right next to us (who BTW has been to now, 9, journey concerts) recorded the whole thing.

go to youtube.com and search under "journey/heart red rocks"

bodily pictures

with as much as i'm working i'm very impressed with my summer tan line so far!

also, a little plug for Dr. Koch at the boulder med center---
2 weeks later and it's looking great!

ok folks---before you read turn up the computer volume!

today i found reason #2 of why commuting to work isn't so bad after all

reason #1
i really need ANDI ALONE time every day. this means a period of time where there is no mental stimulation and i don't have to talk to anyone. my commute is perfect for this

reason #2
(as sung to love potion #9)
yes, andi's caller niiiiinnnnnneeeeee
yes, andi's caller niiiiinnnnneeeee

it's true. somehow i did it. today i was successfully caller 9 on 99.5 the mountain and next tues i have free red rocks tickets to journey/heart. OH YEAH!

dallas has already claimed his spot but just in case, the other ticket will go to the highest bidder

we came home a day early. yesterday driving home we decided we would "try" having a vacation day away from vacation just to see how it went. i think we both knew before getting back that this was going to be a new rule in our house!

today we cleaned, scouted out the next 14'er and ran errands, walking around like we'd been beat in the legs with a baseball bat

dallas, nate and i on top of humbolt

.....and we're back!

3 days
20+ mi hiking
(11 w/ pack!)

we're back and walking funny.

we had a really great trip. the only thing i really messed up was the sunscreen-bug spray - wipe it all off - rotation as i think i forgot sunscreen one day. but hey, when you have views like below a little sun won't hurt, right?

would i do it again?
OF COURSE

and i'm thinking i must be sick in the head. my favorite part was hiking our packs (mine 37 lbs) in. yes, WEIRD

scenery driving inbackpacking up
dallas, me, and billy, our mountain goat friend (in extreme background)
not a bad view waking up in the morning
although i didn't get to summit the needle this trip i'll go back and do it someday. this is on the way up to humbolt, another 14'er
dallas and i on top of humbolt.
we were analyzing how we could climb the ridges of the mountains (in background).
end of day
end of day view

its been a pretty crazy week. although i do notice other bloggers are slower in the summer so i don't feel quite so bad. please don't check in until next thurs (if yo'ure lucky, otherwise fri).

somehow i got talked hauling this up 4 mi at altitude. not in it: apples, helmet to climb, water bladder.

we've been getting our gear together for our next adventure which is a hiking trip this time.

i should have maybe got a double sleeping bag--- there is no way ez and i are both going to fit

and.....we're back

we tried going home for harvest again this year and sadly missed it by a day.

i love this picture. it's the holste's version of revenge of the nerds. adam, who is not a nerd (right) is watching beezer, dallas and my dad in battle of the brains

we got the PYRO PACK of fireworks this year.
according to beezer our 3' fountains were pretty bright
and dallas is wondering what a firework even is
and next time we go back the corn will be twice as tall

oopsie!

last night while mtn biking we had a small mishap.

dallas somehow double flatted and had to walk from high up on the trail to the parking lot. i decided to go on ahead. minutes later i hit a rock funny, my front tire burped all the air out and i lost control.

30 min later dallas and i are walking our bikes down together.
45 minutes later we are on our way to boulder.

i seriously work for the nicest man on earth and he was able to save my poor knee in the comforts of our own clinic instead of ER somewhere. 11 stitches later we're on our way home.

good one, andi
what you don't see with this is how deep it was.
i'll resist the gross details

i know, i know, this is COMPLETELY unlike me but i still think i should post it

this cap and trade bill is taxing you because you use energy and are putting a carbon footprint on the planet. your energy costs will significantly go up and yes, obama is going to control one more thing. you think your budget is tight now? it's going to be drastically worse after this (we will be investing in candles if this passes)! it is not too late to write your senator.

As many of you are aware of, our government is in the process of voting on a “Cap & Trade Bill”. The House has passed the bill and it now goes on to the Senate. If you have anything to say to your Senators concerning the bill , here is an opportunity to do so.

Climate Change Legislation (H.R.2454)
Roger D Baars Sr, lawmakers in the House expect to vote Friday on landmark climate change legislation. If approved, the bill would move to the Senate for consideration. The measure aims to cap greenhouse-gas emissions at 17 percent of 2005 levels by 2020 and by about 80 percent by 2050, creating a market for companies to buy and sell the right to emit carbon dioxide and other gases (a “cap-and-trade” system). The measure would also create a new renewable electricity standard and establish new national building codes. (H.R.2454)

Supporters say the bill would create jobs, reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil and reduce greenhouse gases – which some argue is the leading compound linked to global warming. Opponents are calling the bill an energy tax that could slow the economy. Many lawmakers representing farm states are also concerned that the measure would put a disproportionate burden on farmers.

Do you support H.R.2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act?

Time is short. Voice your opinion now!

If the above link to the ballot does not work copy and paste the following text in your address bar:

Climate Change Legislation (H.R.2454): http://capwiz.com/nwyc/issues/alert/?alertid=13619646

while you are at it, please mention that you think socialized health care is a joke (because it is) and you would prefer not to wait in line for 5 months when you need an operation. 64% of people are currently ok with their health care options. media is trying to make it look worse than it is so that this passes.

failed summit

i had the bright idea this week that i needed to hike torry's (a 14er) this weekend. i've done greys 3 times, so that's old news, but have never make it up the big T since we've always had annoying storms rain on our parade.

today we didnt' make it because:
route a: too much snow in the saddle between G & T
route b: dogs don't do well on cat 2+

so, we'll try again next month.
right now i get to....you guessed it, write 4 pages of hw while the boys recover from their "super hard" trip

study buddy

ezra does his best to help make sure that i'm awake while studying at night. actually his butt makes a really great book rest
i really like this next pic.
andi: THIS IS REDICULOUS!
ezra: what?

no, william, we are not even close to the dog days of summer.

nice pathetic try little guy, and next time we may use red eye reduction for you

yes, we're pretty exciting people....

the only new thing around here is we decided to tackle the lilac bush problem. with all the rain they kind of got out of hand so, as my family knows..... when i get to clean up the yard with a pair of trimmers bad things can happen

bad things like taking 2 feet off the lilac bushes..... and finding---

TA DA! a driveway! who knew?

happy father's day dad and randy!!!
love you!

for the many of you that know me, you have most likely already placed me in the "special person" category. this is why you should not be surprised that i some how accumulated road rash while running.
not pictured: hip hematoma

what else would i do with my old microbiology stuff?

sorry for the non-blogging. my personal geek squad has had a hard time figuring out why our internet is not working (NOT convenient for things like, oh, an on-line class).....

my dad came out for RTC surgery today. out of our used car lot my mom has picked out what jeep she wants

we're back!

after being gone a week for adam and chelsie's wedding (my brother) we're back

here's a picture recap:

congrats you two!
here is their wedding present

with 2 bikes, a cello, guitar, ezra's bag, our luggage and presents it was a tight squeeze for ez and beezer on the way thereholste bond time after the wedding
getting ready to tear into the groom's cake
chelsie made it clear the fondant was hers

ez enjoyed the fresh air

only to come home to a flooded garage
and jungle (mushooms included for free) in the yard

ezra has created a new yoga pose:

the frog dog

State TT

today dallas is racing the co state tt. he started pulling out his aero equipment yesterday and well, we had a little argument over his helmet. there are removable ferrings.

which is a better (tt helmets look ridiculous anyway....) look?

with?
or without?

packman competition!

dear virtual readers,

i'm sure that you need a break from the work week. for a fun friday blog i've decided to have a packman tournament (see right). play your game, once, twice, or until you get caught, and post your name and score under comments.

the winner? well if you live close i suppose we could work out some cookies for you. :)
note: it is much easier if you click the "pop out into bigger window"

good luck!
(i'm horrible at this!!!)