A New Puppy!!!

This past winter old age claimed our two beloved dogs, Cuddles and Mollie.  While we knew Cuddles was near the end of her life and probably wouldn't make it back to Oklahoma in the spring, we had no idea that Mollie was sick.  Turned out poor little Mollie had 90% kidney failure and was one sick little girl.  As you can imagine there was lots of tears and heartache over these losses.

Anyhow springtime arrived and we were back in Oklahoma visiting the granddaughters (yes, and their parents too!) and the urge for a new puppy struck us full force.  After a lot of conversations,  I realized that  house breaking a young pup in a motorhome was not an ideal situation.  After all, how do you tell a pup to wait a minute while you hook up the leash, open the door and go down the steps and then find grass.  So we started a search for a small dog in animal shelters around Oklahoma.  We quickly determined that there were no small, non-shedding dogs to be found that didn't have some type of severe physical or emotional problems.

So back to the drawing board we went to make a list of small dog breeds that do not shed and to then to check out the breed characteristics.  We settled upon wanting a Maltese as we fell in love with their fun loving personality.  As luck would have it, I happened upon Shari in Springfield, Missouri.  She had a five month old female named Angel who sounded perfect to join our family.  Road trip loomed in our near future!

So allow me to introduce you to our newest member of the family - our adorable 7 pound bundle of fur named Angel!

 

Traveling Along the South Platte River

Uncle Wilbur's Fountain in Colorado Springs

We headed down the mountain to Colorado Springs to Uncle Wilbur's Fountain so the girls could play in the water.  Last summer Chi sat in Bill's lap and refused to play in the water.  This summer it's a whole different story!  Grace explained to Chi how it all works...

And then they were ready to get wet!

And then there was water!!!

 

Our Girls Have Arrived!!!

We are so excited because this summer we  have the girls for two whole weeks!  We picked them up in Hays, Kansas, and returned them to Amarillo, Texas, where we all celebrated Chi's 4th birthday.  The girls were with us for our last week in Woodland Park and then we all moved to Eagle Nest, New Mexico, where Bill and I would stay until mid September.

For the first time the girls slept in the front room by themselves rather than the girls and I in the back bedroom on the king size bed and Bill up front.  We created a new nighttime custom - ice cream cones in bed!

While we kept really busy, we made sure to take time for cuddling.

 

Some quiet time...

 

Meal times were always fun.  Thank goodness the girls adore salads!  And pizza was always a perfect meal.

The girls loved playing outside!

 

 Making new friends!

 

Deer and Foxes! Oh My!!!

One of our favorite evening activities is driving north of the town of Divide to see if we can see any elk.  One night we drove farther than usual and came across a little community nestled in the pine trees.  As we drove around we saw lots of deer.  But even more surprising was that we saw six foxes!  Here are a few of my pictures.

 

This little darling just sat there and watched us. When we got closer he went into the culvert and disappeared.

 

While we have seen a fox periodically - even saw one cross the main intersection in Woodland Park - to see 6 in one evening was special.  Makes you wonder how many of these guys live in that little community.

Colorado Renaissance Fair

One of the most interesting and fun things we have done was a visit to the Colorado Renaissance Fair. Nestled against the rock cliffs was the magical 16th century village festival.  In its 35th year, there are seven stages, roaming street performers ranging from jousters to jugglers to minstrels to maidens faire, and over 200 skilled artisans. The sound and colors that greet you upon entering the grounds totally surround you.  I had no clue where to look first!

We got to see the parade!

 

And of course, Good King Henry!

All in all, we ate our way across the village, watched some shows and definitely did lots of 'people watching'!  It was a fun day. 

 

Wildflower Walk with the Local Master Gardener Group

Once again, as we have done many summers in the past, we joined the local Master Gardener group for the Wildflower Walk up in the mountains.  Because this part of Colorado is in such a severe drought, this time we went further up the mountains to walk along a creek to see if there are any flowers blooming.

The red rocks in the area were spectacular.

 

Sure wonder what was once here...

   

Bill gave out on me and found himself a nice place to sit and contemplate nature.

 

Wilkerson Pass Visitor Center and the South Platte River

One of my favorite drives is up U.S. Highway 24 to Wilkerson Pass and the Forest Service Visitor Center.  Wilkerson Pass marks the eastern boundary of South Park.  South Park is a high mountain grassland at 10,000 feet which encompasses approximately 1,000 square miles.

The views from the back deck are absolutely incredible with the valley below and the mountains in the background.

After leaving Wilkerson Pass and heading back toward Woodland Park, we decided to sidetrack and travel along side the South Platte River.  Sure wish we had meadows and rivers like this in Oklahoma!

 

 

We came across fields of white irises blooming.  Wonder how they got there?  Are they wild or was there once a cabin there?

Our next stop was the old mining town of Tarryall.  All that is left are some old cabins and the old school.

 

On the way back to the highway, we stopped to take photos of some of the rock formations.  They never cease to amaze me with their different shapes and textures.