The One With Fireworks

Tracy & Frisco jumped into the Suburban and headed East for July 4th. Kel flew in from San Fran and the whole family met down at Lake Gaston. Uncle Mike, Aunt Jeanne & cousins Alli, Davis drove in from KY and cousin Alex caught a ride with Aunt Gail.

The weekend consisted of lots of wakeboarding, tubing, hot dogging, skiing and eating!! The weather was beautiful, except for July 4th, when a huge thunderstorm rolled in. Luckily we had caught the big Lake Gaston fireworks display on Saturday night and set off our own, that Alex brought, on Monday.

Stan perfected the backside & frontside 180's over the wakes. Tracy perfected the frontside 180 and landed the backside 180 on her last day. Kel became an expert at the surface 180 to fakie outside the wake and into a 180 back to normal while going over the wake. Alli figured out the surface 180 on Tracy & Kel's last day. Jeanne, Mike & Davis all got up on the wakeboard for the first time...quite the pros. Everyone enjoyed the new toy...the deadly hot dog and the circle of death.

Enjoy the pix...

Kel & Marcy slalom skiing.

Davis watching Alli shred on the wakeboard.

Kel shredding the wa wa.

Lily putting her face in the water to blow bubbles.

Cousins Alex & Alli.

Lily, watering Uncle Stan's foot.

Siblings Mike, Tom & Jenny in the middle, hot dogging.

Tracy, Kel & Jeanne hot dogging.

Cousins Alli, Lily, Kel (in her fav shirt) & Davis on the screened in porch.

Lily & Grandma.

Stuart keeping watch over the pontoon boat.

Ivan enjoying a pontoon ride.

Frisco resting on Aunt Kel's foot on the pontoon boat.

Lily helping Grandpa drive the pontoon boat.

The One of Five Years

Five years ago from this June 23, 2006, Stan & Tracy got married! We celebrated in our hometown Summit County!

Saturday we road our bikes to Frisco for the Annual Frisco BBQ Festival. Tracy sampled the BBQ nachos...Stan tasted a spoonful of pulled pork. After returning, we got ready for a pre-concert pah-tay at our house before the first 2006 Dillon Ampitheater Concert. Mark, Colin, Chris & Erica came over to grill burgers and chicken, then we all walked over to the Ampitheater where "Something Underground" played. The most exciting part was the arrest of 2 hippies who were entertaining us with their crazy dance moves on stage, when we first go there. After the concert, we headed back to our house for some big time FooDaPoo (fooseball, darts, pool) competition. Byron and Stoy rode their bikes from Frisco for the end of the concert and decided to join in on some friendly competition.

Sunday, we went to see the progress of Mark, Steve & Colin's renovation project in Summit Cove, about 5 minutes from us. They gutted the basement and spent this weekend putting up new drywall up and having a hole cut in the floor for the new staircase. The rest of the Sunday was spent doing house chores, including draining the hot tub for the first time. No problems!

Tracy leaves Wed to head to Lake Gaston in VA for the 4th of July...in the meantime, she gets to get the house organized for a group who will be renting the house while we're gone.

Sorry not too many pix...we'll be sure to take plenty over the 4th.

Frisco swimming in Lake Dillon.

At the Frisco BBQ Festival.

da pigs...lining up for the Frisco BBQ Fest Pig Race...pig #4 won.

The Dredge, in Breckenridge. We have taken Frisco hiking here a couple times. You can pick up the Colorado Trail here. The trail we take goes straight back and goes all the way to Keystone, though we have not walked the 6 miles yet. This week, Tracy & Frisco went hiking with Erica & her black lab, Sage. Sage ran off and started barking off in the distance...after we heard a yelp and then no more barking...about 5 minutes later, Sage comes running back after being quilled by a porcipine...she had quills all along her lower lip, in her lower gums and one right below her eye. Not to worry, she's okay, had to be sedated the next morning to have the quills removed.

The One where the Summer Season Begins

This weekend was the start of the "Summer Season" in Summit County. After a month and a half of what is called, "Mud Season," where the County is abandoned, restaurants & shops close down and the towns start to do their Spring cleaning, we were ready for the Summer Season to start.

Friday night Tracy met up with Erika and some other locals at RiverWalk in Breck, for an outdoor concert, featuring the Young Dubliners. OJ Simpson was in attendance...however, I did not bring the camera, so was not lucky enough to capture/prove the event. He was in town a couple days and was featured in our daily paper, The Summit Daily (you may be able to go online to read the article from Friday, www.summitdaily.com). Stan arrived later that night and met Tracy and crew at Burke & Riley's, an Irish Pub in Breck.

Saturday, we first hit up Keystone's River Run for their World Music Festival to sample the Carribbean lunch affair. Let's just say that a World Fest in Keystone is nothing like a DC event...I guess it's not as ethnically diverse here in Summit County. We left Keystone and headed to Copper for their 1st of 3 qualifying Rodeo's. We arrived early, so we challenged each other in a go-cart race, not quite sure who ended up winning. The rodeo consisted of Bareback Bronco riding, Authentic Bronco Buck Riding & Bull Riding. Pretty fun! The finals are held at Copper in Sept!!

Saturday night we met some friends at the Tiki Bar, located at Dillon Marina...on the Lake. Once sunset hits, the Bar closed and we headed to our house for some FooDaPoo Competition (foosball, darts, pool). Mark & Tracy prevailed in Foo, while Jeff & Stan were the Da & Poo champs (yes I said Poo).

Sunday we met up with Erika, her dog Sage and her friend Harriet for a long hike on the Burro Trail, off Peak 9 in Breck. Sunday night we relaxed.

Monday we got to spend 3 hours at the DMV getting our CO licenses and registering our cars. They are not even close to being as organized as Northern VA.

Enjoy the pix...

Stan at Copper after a ride on the Go-Carts.

The Cowboy National Anthem.

Bareback Bronco Bucking.

Bull Bucking.

Hiking in Breck, on the Burro Trail...the black lab is Erika's dog, Sage.

Frisco & Sage frolicking.

The One of the Road Trip with Mom

Wednesday, May 31st, Tracy, Tracy's mom, Gail, and Frisco packed up the Suburban, hooked up the Jeep and headed West to Colorado. We were to arrive in Colorado Friday night and Gail was staying to visit until Wednesday. Because of the extent of our trip, I have put our days in a timeline to keep it a bit more brief...

Wednesday - Arrived in Brandenburg, KY around 7:00. Wes (Tracy's cousin/Gail's nephew) & his wife Tricia just built a new house...beautiful. Wes grilled us chicken for dinner and we got to visit with their 2 year old son, Collin.

Thursday - Left KY early and after a little mishap with the Jeep not starting (we got it jumped at a gas station and all was well for the rest of the trip) we arrived in Abilene, KS around 6:00 p.m. Checked into the Holiday Inn Express then went to visit President Dwight D. Eisenhowers childhood home, buriel site & memorial...this was the highlight of Gail's trip.

Friday - Left KS early and arrived at Dave & Teri Butz's house in Denver around 3:00 p.m. for another home-cooked meal. We visited with the Butz's, as well as, Dave's daughter, Andra, her husband John & their baby, Ali, then we were off to Dillon. Stan flew in that night and we all arrived at the house at the same time.

Saturday - Breakfast at Arapahoe Cafe, a short walk from the house. Visited Keystone Mountain...although the lifts weren't operating yet, we found plenty of photo ops. Lunch at Kickapoo at River Run in Keystone. Dropped Stan off at home to do some chores, while Tracy & Gail went to the Outlets...Gail needed more critter flops.

Sunday - Tracy & Mom went to ABasin, for their last day of the season. People of all kind were there dressed in summer outfits, as well as, winter garb. After the Basin, we picked up Stan and headed to Breckenridge for the day. After lunch at Rasta Pasta, the rest of the afternoon was spent window shopping and visiting the mountain, oh and yes, the outlets again. When we got home, it was time to take Frisco for a nice long walk/swim by the lake.

Monday - A morning walk/swim for Frisco by the lake, then off to Keystone and lunch at the Dillon Dam Brewery. Dave & Teri arrive around 2:00 p.m. Stan departed for the airport, as Tracy, Gail, Dave & Teri visited Frisco (it's a town about 10 min from Dillon), Copper Mountain & then had dinner in Silverthorne at the Old Dillon Inn. Another lake walk with Frisco. Dave & Teri stayed the night.

Tuesday - Breakfast at Arapahoe Cafe, a walk around the lake, then we were off to tour Summit County. We visited Raven Golf course (no local discount, boo), Keystone's Golf Courses, The River Course and The Ranch Course (they offer a big discount for locals...yay), then lunch at the Tiki Bar at Dillon Marina. Dave & Teri took Gail back to Denver with them that evening. Tracy relaxed on the couch all night!!

Mom, thank you for keeping me company on my road trip and I hope you enjoyed your visit. Enjoy the pix.

The Jeep hooked up to the Suburban...ready for the 3 day trip to CO.

Wes, Tricia & Collin outside their new house...the yard will be grass one day...we hope.

A close up of Collin.

Gail in front of Pres. Eisenhower's childhood home...he had 5 brothers.

Dave, Teri & Ali.

Who are those crazy cowboys...

It's going so fast...

The Gondola at Keystone.

The bike path, overlooking Dillon Marina & Lake Dillon.

Gail standing in front of Buffalo Mt. with her new shirt..."I'm Just One Big Freakin Ray of Sunshine!"

Gail at the bottom of Breckenridge Mountain, Peak 8.

Tracy, Teri & Gail shrunk at Copper Mt.

The One of Memorial Day Weekend & more...

In May, we finally bought a grill! Our first grilling experience was RIBS! Yummy! After filling up, we played a game of darts and Stan the man ran the board...if you can't tell by the double bullseye.

May 15, Tracy and Frisco packed up the Suburban and headed back to VA. After a stop in Kansas & Ohio, we got to Tysons on the night of May 17. Tracy's cousin Valerie got married on Thursday, May 18 at The Atrium in Vienna. We got to see a lot of family we haven't seen in a while.

Friday, Tracy, Kelly, Tom & Mike went golfing at Pohick. Let's just say it wasn't Tracy's best day. Saturday we celebrated a belated Mother's Day and gave Gail a brand new hybrid bike to match Tom's, so now, the two can ride along together through the roads of Burke and the trails of Lake Gaston. The rest of the day was spent at the playground watching Lily run around.

The rest of the week consisted of Stan working and Tracy visiting with friends. Monday Tracy & Frisco went to visit Tracy's college friend, Kris, her 2 year old daughter Emilia & her dog (& Frisco's friend), Ally, in Gaithersburg. Kris is pregnant with twin girls...due in September. Congrats Kris! Tuesday was a visit to Tracy & Stan's Falls Church house...not only to check in on the house and get the updates on the neighborhood, but to collect some much needed items from the storage/garage. Wednesday was lunch with Jessica in Tysons to discuss the upcoming Nascar Coca Cola 600 Race in Charlotte. Thursday Tracy met her friend Bryan at Cantina Marina and then they headed to the Nationals baseball game at RFK Stadium. Afterwards, Tracy met up with Dayna, Dianna & Carrie at Bardo in Arlington. Stan met up with us after work. Friday we met for an early breakfast with Chrissy & her boyfriend Andrew, who were in town from Austraila in the midst of their move to Germany.

Memorial Day weekend was our annual trip to Charlotte for the Nascar Coca Cola 600 Race. We arrived Friday night and met up with the rest of the group. Saturday was a day of tailgating before the Busch Race. Sunday was another day of tailgating before the Nextel Cup race. A great weekend, with great weather, great food and great company.

Stan showing off our new grill.

First grill experience.

Nice shot Stan!

Uncle Mike & Tom getting ready to tee off...

Kel showing off her form...

The One of the Not So Exciting Week

Tracy & Frisco got back to Dillon on Tuesday and basically unpacked the car and relaxed. Tracy met up with Erika, a fellow VT grad who now lives in Breckenridge, at Rita's in Breck to celebrate Cinco De Mayo (that's May 5th for all you Gringos out there). Stan met up with us later at Burke & Riley's Irish Pub after driving into town in his Toyota Camry rental car. He is trying out the rental car situation this Spring. We'll see which one he favors more...shuttle service or rental car...yet to be determined.

Saturday, after a morning of mending our fences...we met Mark, Colin, Jeff, Sarah and David (some of Mark's friends from Denver) at Loveland Ski Resort, located right off Route 70. We had never been there and were pleasantly surprised by the snow conditions, the view and the terrain. After shredding Loveland, we headed back to the house, finished mending the fence and took part in some major foodapoo (that would be fooseball, darts & pool) competion.

Sunday was a day of chores and errands. The weather was on and off, sun and rain, so we went by Sears and bought a money grill, ate lunch at Carlos Miguels Mexican Fine Dining in Frisco, then took a trip to Home Depot in Vail, then back home to hang our Master Bedroom mirror (finally) and update the storage room. The evening consisted of more foodapoo and then a relaxing night in front of the TV watching the movie "The Life of David Gale."

Monday was complete rain, so we drove around Summit running more errands, lunch at Butterhorn Bakery in Frisco, yummy. 3:30 Stan departed in his Camry for the airport, while teary eyed Tracy & Frisco waved goodbye.

Like I said...a not so exciting week here in Dillon.

We would like to send Happy Birthday wishes out to Tracy's mom (May 7th) & sister, Marcy (May 8th).

Here are a few pix of our Master Bedroom's new look!! That's about all the pix we took this week...

This is what the weather has been like...really sunny for 30 min...then it changes to this...strange. This is around 3:00 p.m.

Frisco hanging out on the deck watching the clouds come and go...

New duvet cover purchased with bday $$. Smokey & Snuff LOVE it.

Updated picture of the Family Room with the Fooseball table (Stan's bday gift).

Updated picture of Tracy's wrist. The scar is healing nicely. The bone has completely healed and I have almost full mobility back.

The One of Tracy's Bday Weekend @ the Grand Canyon

Tracy & Frisco left on Thursday to drive to Las Vegas. The plan...to pick up Stan and head to Lake Mead & the Grand Canyon for Tracy's birthday weekend. Yes, Tracy is one year older...31!
Tracy & Frisco stopped at Rifle Gap State Park in Rifle, Colorado for a quick pit stop. Thursday night we stayed in Green River, Utah at the Holiday Day Inn Express. The hotel was filled with dirt bike riders. Friday was another beautiful day. On the way to Vegas, we took a detour through Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada. At 7:00 p.m. Nevada time, Tracy & Frisco picked Stan up at the Las Vegas airport and we all headed to Lake Mead. We camped at Boulder Beach Campground in Lake Mead National Park Friday Night. We were able to sleep even though a neighbor felt the need to yell at his yapping dog all night, "ROCKY, NO. NO ROCKY, NO." I think Rocky thought he was telling him to keep barking. Always fun!!

Saturday morning we awoke early, ate a nice camping breakfast of banana oatmeal bread & propel, then drove to Lake Mead Marina and rented a fishing boat for the day. The 3 of us boated all over the West part of Lake Mead...over to the Hoover Dam, a couple stops on shore to let Frisco swim around & for our gourmet lunch of PB&J (minus the J for Tracy) sandwiches for lunch. It was absolutely beautiful out...sunny and warm!! The water was 60, not too cold for Stan to dive in. Tracy only made it in enough to use the latrine.

That afternoon we took a longer than thought, drive to the Grand Canyon, but we made it in time to put the tent up in daylight at the Mather Campground at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. After walking to the Canyon for the sunset, Stan grilled salmon & chicken and warmed up some baked beans for Tracy's bday dinner. Afterwards, we celebrated with Little Debbie chocolate cupcakes around the campfire. Yummy!!

Camping was a little chilly that night, but we made it through with our warm socks and stocking hats. Sunday morning we hiked along the South Rim Trail. It was really warm out and Frisco was a definite trooper.

We left the Grand Canyon Sunday afternoon & spent that night at the Best Western in Kingman...off the famous Route 66. Basically, an area for bikers...they were everywhere!! We enjoyed a nice dinnner at the local Chili's (not much to choose from).

Monday we drove back to Las Vegas, by way of North Lake Mead, lunch at Echo Bay and a quick drive through the Valley of Fire State Park. After dropping Stan off at the airport, Tracy & Frisco started their trip back to Dillon...stopping again at the Green River, Utah Holiday Inn Express for the night.

All and all a fantastic way to celebrate a 31st birthday!!

Enjoy the pix...

A scenic picture at the Valley of Fire State Park. Lots of Red Rocks. AND they were filming a movie scene from the upcoming movie "Redline" while I was there on Friday.

Tracy & Stan with the Hoover Dam in the background.

The Ward's in front of their fishing boat at Lake Mead.

"This Canyon isn't THAT Grand, or is it? Hmmmmm..."

"Can someone lend me a hand?!!"

Sunset at the Grand Canyon.

Notice the Haze...that's from pollution. Give a Hoot...Don't Pollute.

Stan & Frisco take a short break while hiking the South Rim. Although Frisco would have much rather passed out, she kept on keeping on!!

"I squish the tower...the tower is squished."

"Look, the tower came unsquished...amazing!!"

The One of Blair's Wedding & Tracy's Dad's 60th

After all the visitors, Tracy headed back to VA for Stan's cousin's wedding. Congratulations Blair & Chad, who got married on April 8, 2006 in Lexington, VA at Washington & Lee, where both of them attended college. Tracy & Stan's Brother-in-Law, David Wever, performed the ceremony (he also performed Stan & Tracy's ceremony).

Enjoy the pix...I need to figure out how to upload videos...

Dave performing the wedding ceremony.

Ashlynne the flower girl.

The following weekend, April 14th, Tracy's dad turned 60. The big SIX OH!! Tracy & Kelly flew in for the event and met up with everyone at the Lakehouse. Dad's big present was a mountain bike. It was a beautiful weekend...lots of sun on Saturday, Stan & Kelly even went wakeboarding...wearing wetsuits of course. Brrr... Unfortunately we were very slack with the camera and did not take any pictures. Sorry.

The One Where the Schmirers & Horton Visit

We had more visitors in March!!! The Schmirers came to visit for a week.

Ty and Annika showed up on Saturday, March 24th. Lois was still in town. We all headed to Beaver Creek on Sunday to meet up with Ty's cousin John and his wife Logan. Monday, Tracy dropped Stan & Lois off at the airport and picked up Jane & Joe, while Ty & Annika skiied Copper Mountain. Monday night was a night of feasting at the Dillon Dam Brewery. Tuesday we all shredded Breckenridge. It was a beautiful, sunny, perfect day!!! Wednesday, while Annika got a massage, Tracy, Joe & Ty hit Keystone Resort. We all met at Kickapoo after a day on the slopes for Apres Ski. Thursday we went to Vail in a snowstorm... Joe skiied with Ty in the morning and Tracy took over as Ty's wingwoman in the afternoon. We shrowed the pow!!! There was so much fresh snow. Friday we all skiied ABasin, Jane's favorite mountain. Friday night Stan and fellow Hokie, Andy Horton got into town.

Saturday the boys and Tracy skiied Keystone in the morning before the Schmirers had to leave for the airport. After lunch at Kickapoo and a soak in the hot tub, we had a "surprise" party at the house. A couple other Hokies were in town...Jeff Sabin and some of his friends were in town for the weekend & we found out Ericka had just moved to Breckenridge from Steamboat Springs. Our friend Mark came over and we spent the night playing pool, darts and foosball.

We woke up the next morning and headed to Vail. It had snowed 5 inches and was beautiful out. We headed to the back bowls and shredded the day away. We took it easy that night. Monday we went to Breckenridge, Rasta Pasta (yummy!!) for lunch and then we were off to the airport.

Thanks to the Schmirers and Horton for coming out to visit. We love visitors.

Enjoy the pix...

Stan, Tracy, John, Logan, Ty & Annika at Beaver Creek...

Tracy & Joe at the top of the highest lift in the world, Imperial Express, at Breckenridge.

Joe, Tracy, Ty, Annika & Jane enjoying Apres Ski at Kickapoo at Keystone.

Stan & Horton at Apres Ski Lunch at Keystone!!