Queen Anne Guest House

During the last week of winter break George and Pam came out to Galena for a visit. We stayed with them at the Queen Anne Guest House for two nights.

http://www.queenanneguesthouse.com/

We enjoyed trying out some new restaurants, strolling around downtown Galena, and taking a hike out to North Point at Chestnut. It was a wonderful way to celebrate with Pam on her birthday, December 30th.

Cross Country Skiing at White Pines State Park

The first week of winter break a couple of the instructors stayed at Lorado Taft Campus for a few extra days before going home. Claire and I decided to borrow some Taft x-country skis and venture over to White Pines State Park to check out the trails.

Claire Landgren and me at the start of our skiing adventure - still smiling and full of energy.

We had to break our own trail most of the way which included going up and down some pretty steep hills.


Feeling confident, we skied over a frozen section of the river instead of taking our skis off to climb the stairs and cross the bridge....this was my favorite part!
(Don't worry the river is only about 2-3 feet deep at this section.)


We followed the edge of the river and the bluffs....what a beautiful day out in the snow, and a great way to start the winter break!

Pro Patrol

Winter is here. The snow is finally falling and we are back at Chestnut Mountain in Galena, IL. This ski season is different and special. Jonathan has been hired as a full time pro patroller and lives at Chestnut Mountain Resort working and patrolling during the week. I come over every weekend and volunteer patrol a day or two each weekend. We are enjoying calling Galena and Chestnut home for this winter and are thrilled that Werner is able to stay with Jonathan in his outdoor kennel at Chestnut.

Jonathan, Emily, and Werner on the bank of the Mississippi River

As you can see by our red coats, we passed our exams at the end of last year and are officially auxillary patrollers. This year we will be participating in more ski clinics and learning how to safely transport patients in a toboggan.

Werner is 6 months old now and loves going on hikes and exploring new smells.

He has gotten better at retrieving and loves....

....playing with sticks and carrying things in his mouth.

Even though he is getting bigger, he still loves to be held and is a floppy, soppy puppy.

Thanksgiving in Connecticut

This year we were able to take the whole week of Thanksgiving off and travel east to Connecticut via the Jetta Sportwagon. It was just our luck that Andrew and Will were spending the entire week with Pam and George, as well, during their school break. We had lots of fun adventures together. We captured a few of them in pictures below.

Andrew and Uncle Jon at the dog park.

Werner traveled with us and we took advantage of the wonderful dog park, Spencer's Run, in Waveny Park several times during the week. The video clip below shows the whole crew entering the dog park.

Werner taking Andrew on a walk after the Thanksgiving parade in Stamford, CT.


Another highlight of the week was going to the New York Botanical Garden to see the Holiday Train Show. There are model buildings and city structures made totally from organic materials.


Uncle Jon and Will pose next to Yankee Stadium.


A biodegradable version of the Statue of Liberty. Everything was done with amazing detail.

We also built a fort near the stream in Pam and George's back yard using fallen logs, an old tarp, and a scrap of plywood. It has a special paint can bathroom, treasure tree, and log seating for 4. We were too busy playing and building to take any pictures. I'll have to take some next time we visit.

Pete, Sarah, and George Thomas joined us for Thanksgiving dinner along with Alice Byrd. We had a wonderful meal and conversation catching up with everyone.

Uncle Jon and George Thomas hanging out on the couch after Thanksgiving dinner.

Lake Monona - Madison, WI

We made the 2 hour drive up to Madison, WI for the weekend to visit a ski patrol friend's open house at a new condo he purchased near downtown. It also happened to be the last weekend for the Madison Farmers Market to be outside around the Capitol Square.

We took Werner for a walk and swim in Lake Monona which borders the city.

Werner drying off in the sun on the dock with Jonathan.

Our best attempt at a group shot with the timer on the camera.

Werner and me on the shore of Lake Monona.

Fun with the Gray's

We headed over to Iowa for another weekend at the farm and fun with the Gray family. Vivi, Susie's niece, was celebrating her 3rd birthday that weekend and we joined them up in Cedar Falls for the party and backyard cookout.

Presents for horsing around....Susie found the pink boots with horses on them at the State Fair and I found the pink hat in Texas during our trip to Thea's wedding. What fun!

Vivi wasn't too sure about the hat so Aunt Susie demonstrated how to wear it.

She had it all figured out by the next day at the farm.

In our hats, ready to ride.

Vivi and Jonathan saddled up and ready to go.

We headed out down the hill. Werner came too, but not for long....

....getting into trouble with Monroe (Robin Gray's dog) was much more fun.

We didn't let this go on very long, just enough to capture it on film.

What a pair?!? Werner 3 months, Monroe 9 months.

It helped us realize how big Werner could get to be. Yikes!

Thea and Toby's wedding

Jonathan, Werner, and I all loaded in the Jetta and headed south to Fredricksburg, Texas for Thea and Toby's wedding on Sept. 5th. As maid of honor I didn't have the opportunity to take any photos, but was able to borrow this nice shot from some friends. It was a joyous occasion in a beautiful location. I'm so glad that I was able to be a part of the ceremony and celebration. Congratulations go out to Thea and Toby!

Mr. and Mrs. McCarthy