Wooooooooshhhhhh

That was the sound of summer flying by. Yep, we're over halfway through it, and it seems to go even faster the second half. I've been told that life is the same way, when I get to mid-life, I'll let you know. So far, we have been home a mere two weeks out of six, so I am feeling the strain, as usual. We were at the rancho for the week of Memorial day for irrigating. Some of our friends who have four, yes four, boys joined us to give their kids some experience in just getting dirty in the middle of nowhere. It was so fun, there was a ton to do, and I know that my kids appreciated showing off their grandparents' place to some city kids. One thing that is great fun for them is to ride the ditch, which is like a very long water slide. It is made of cement, so the bum of their pants are shredded after a few passes, but it is totally worth it. The water is about four inches deep, and it moves just fast enough to give them a ride. Only on the rancho!

We were home for the Tuesday after Memorial day exchanging dirty laundry for clean & gathering up our camping gear, then we (the kids and I) loaded up the car and headed out for the Great Sand Dunes national park. It was amazingly beautiful weather, not too hot, not too windy. I'd never been to the Dunes, so I really didn't know what to expect, but I have to say, it may be a vacation destination in the years to come. Check out the website, it doesn't do justice to the beauty and uniqueness of this area, but it gives some idea of what we saw. Medano creek was great, and the kids and I enjoyed being with some Los Alamos friends that we only see once a year. After two nights and three days, we hopped in the car and met my in-laws in Taos then trekked across the mountains to spend a few more days at the rancho. One of the major events there was vacuuming the sand out of the car! We then hit the road once again, this time on our way to Los Alamos for VBS. This is an annual pilgrimage to our beloved atomic city to visit great friends, reacquaint with our inner nerds, run trails and work on our uranium tans. We stayed for a week and a half this year because last summer was too short.

When we arrived home, my mother was here to greet me with two amazing chairs and a banjo for Ben, which he barely got to strum before his next journey was underway. He promptly jumped on a plane and flew to VA to visit our Eastern relatives, then hardly caught his breath there before they loaded into a van and drove back across the country. No sooner did he arrive home, than we once again packed our bags and left for a whirlwind trip to the deepest part of the Navajo Reservation to attend a family reunion for Juan's mom's side. We saw some beautiful country, and enjoyed mutton and lots of sun and sand, but boy was it great to get home! Now, we've been home nearly a week, and I'm not able to really feel relaxed. I have one last trip to Durango to see my mom, sister, brother (and his her) and my grandparents, then, you guessed it! School starts. Whew, what a crazy summer.

This is a shot of the kids (including my Eastern nephew and Buddy the Dog) at the reflection pool in Window Rock, AZ, the capital of the Navajo Nation.

In knitting news, I finished my shrug, but haven't even had a chance to use it yet. Juan was rewarded handsomely for dog-sitting with Chili's and movie gift certificates and an overnight babysitter, so when that time comes, I know exactly what I'm wearing. I also have a new nephew on the way, due in October (!!!), so I am picking some special little something for my brother and his wife's first baby. Come to think of it, there are first babies due all over the place, so hats and booties are in short order.

I'm not doing my half marathon until September to give myself some time to get some milage, but that is one other thing that I have going on...how *do* I do it?? (some would say not very well)

One other thing, I've been reading a lot this summer, and trying to listen to some new music to expand my hipness. I'm loving the Eels cd that my neighbor loaned me. Check out their website, 'Spectacular Girl' is definitely going on my iTunes, as soon as it is released. The lead singer has a very interesting story that I heard on NPR a few months back. I feel more hip already, don't you?