Yes, that's right, Sharon decided to try skiing again - 20 years since the last time. Granddaughter Kyra (above with Sharon) is taking 6 weeks of lessons and this was the excuse Sharon needed to get her to try again. So, yesterday was the day - the weather was supposed to be mild (not too cold, not snowing). She hadn't counted on wind, however, and that turned out to be the biggest problem of the day (gusts that shut down chair lifts and took all the warmth the sun would have otherwise provided). It was a difficult day, but Kyra's mom (Angela, along with her sister, Shirin) graciously put up with Sharon's slow but steady progress. Once a pretty good skier, Sharon was plagued by a combination of age, poor muscle tone, and wind that swept most of the snow off the mountain, leaving ice and crusted snow. She was unable to get out of the basic snow plow position and regain her confidence, which meant a lot of physical labor. But ... she did it! And she's quite proud of herself - not bad for an out-of-shape broad of 57 years! After getting home last night, she suffered major leg cramps for a couple of hours, but finally got to sleep. Today, her arms and legs are a little sore, but that's about it. If she does this again, she may try "blades" (really short skis). Angela uses these and says they are a lot easier on the legs.
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Sharon Skis Again - 20 Years Later!
Yes, that's right, Sharon decided to try skiing again - 20 years since the last time. Granddaughter Kyra (above with Sharon) is taking 6 weeks of lessons and this was the excuse Sharon needed to get her to try again. So, yesterday was the day - the weather was supposed to be mild (not too cold, not snowing). She hadn't counted on wind, however, and that turned out to be the biggest problem of the day (gusts that shut down chair lifts and took all the warmth the sun would have otherwise provided). It was a difficult day, but Kyra's mom (Angela, along with her sister, Shirin) graciously put up with Sharon's slow but steady progress. Once a pretty good skier, Sharon was plagued by a combination of age, poor muscle tone, and wind that swept most of the snow off the mountain, leaving ice and crusted snow. She was unable to get out of the basic snow plow position and regain her confidence, which meant a lot of physical labor. But ... she did it! And she's quite proud of herself - not bad for an out-of-shape broad of 57 years! After getting home last night, she suffered major leg cramps for a couple of hours, but finally got to sleep. Today, her arms and legs are a little sore, but that's about it. If she does this again, she may try "blades" (really short skis). Angela uses these and says they are a lot easier on the legs.
Monday, January 02, 2006
Happy New Year from Kirk
Our 19-month-old Great Dane, Kirk, enjoyed a sunny Colorado outing at Chatfield State Park this morning. These shots show him playing with a chocolate lab, walking with Dwight, and enjoying a cup of coffee and donut afterwards with Sharon (note that he thinks he's sitting on her lap!) Kirk garners lots of attention wherever he goes. His size (125 pounds) and gentle personality, added to his puppy-like goofy-ness, cause people to stop to meet him and talk "dog talk" with us. It's so much fun that we often take him to Starbucks on Saturday mornings if the weather is warm enough to sit outside.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Christmas 2005
Sharon traveled to Wisconsin a few days before Christmas, visited her dad briefly in Madison before driving up to Appleton to stay with Beth and Steve. Sharon and Steve drove to Milwaukee Friday afternoon and visited with brother Richard, Ann and their youngest daughter Catherine. On Saturday morning, Steve, Beth and Sharon headed for breakfast at sister Kathy's home in Green Bay. We enjoyed our visit with Kathy, Tom and three of their sons, Michael, Nathan and Timothy. That evening, Christmas Eve, Steve led the early service at his church in Appleton, then Sharon enjoyed dinner and games at the Johnsons (Beth's sister and family). Steve preached the following morning (a creative and dramatic reading from the perspective of one of the shepherds in the Christmas story) and then he and Sharon and Beth drove down to Madison to spend Christmas afternoon and evening with Grandfather Gallagher. Steve and Beth's chocolate lab, Mello, joined us for the visit and also got to meet Grandfather.Dwight preached at Presbyterian Church of the Covenant on Christmas morning (in Colorado), enjoyed an afternoon dinner with friends Bill & Pat Shaffer, then flew to Madison that evening. We stayed overnight in Madison, then visited Grandfather one more time before heading up for Appleton where we spent a couple more days with Beth and Steve. They were very sweet to put up with the parents for so long; their home is warm and hospitable and we appreciated the "free rent"!
Our flight home from Madison turned out to be quite a (miserable) adventure. We agreed to give up our seats on our original flight in order to earn two free United ticket vouchers, expecting to get home by around midnight. It meant flying through Chicago, which had been socked in by fog all day (unbeknownst to us) and, long story short, we crawled into bed about 4:00am Thursday morning, Dec 29, and didn't do much the rest of the day except sleep! Sharon hopes to use those free tickets to see her dad again this spring. He's slipping a bit and we're not sure he recognized who all was visiting him, so it's important that she not wait too long before the next trip.
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