It has become terribly difficult to find time for the things I enjoy, especially time for updating this web site (that I sometimes wonder if anyone ever looks at lol). I have finally completed my first year of college. Three communication classes, one critical thinking course, one environmental science course, one accounting course, one algebra course, one finance course, one student success course (gen ed), and one ethics course, for a total of 30 credits. I earned an A in every course except Finance which ended up with an A-. That class was a KILLER. So my 4.0 GPA has now dropped to a 3.97 GPA :(

With 30 more credits I will finally have my AS degree in accounting and then it is time to go for two more years to obtain my BS in accounting. And then, another year to get my CPA. Whew....

Family News Clips

• My oldest son moved out on his own
• My oldest daughter is now attending college. She is going for a food science degree in hopes of becoming a nutritionist/dietician. Wathc out CSU, here she comes!
• My boyfriend is attending college for an architecteral/interior design degree
• Tagen, our St. Bernard puppy turned 2 years old and has topped out at 215lbs
• Polo, our rottweiler, has reached age 12!! Still holding onto a ton of attitude and still happy. Amazing!
• Chelsea, the shepherd mix, is 8 years old now and spunky as ever.
• There is a wild bear stealing our garbage on the regular! But, I still have not gotten a picture of him due to darkness :(
• Both Nikki and Nikko, the African Greys, are still going strong and talking more than ever! Nikko finally says "Make some coffee!" a home full of college students will cause that!

Whew! 3 quarters complete (18 of the 60 credits required for the AA) and still holding the 4.0 GPA by the hair on my chinny chin chin. I was excited to end my first accounting course with a score of 99.5%! I'm guessing it's good to remain strong in ones own major LOL.

I have now started the fourth quarter with two classes unrelated to the major; Environmental Science and Cultural Diversity. Both classes should be quite enjoyable for me since I strongly believe in the power of diversity and obviously love the environmental sciences!

I am also in my last month working part-time as a tax preparer. It's like the home stretch before summer arrives and we can pull out the jeep and cameras once again! I can't wait to post something with pictures! I am getting seriously antsy. I am beyond ready to go on a road trip!

I have completed 12 of the first 60 credits required for an AA in accounting. I have a whole bunch more to go but at least I am still going! Two communication courses, one general education course, and a critical thinking course with a 4.0 GPA. Now I begin a third communications course and, can you believe it, an accounting course! Sometimes it feels like it will take forever to complete the bachalors but I keep reminding myself how fast the last several years have gone by. I do not want to look back four years from now saying shoulda, woulda, coulda, and that is what I depend on to ensure I do not quit.

The holidays went quite well. The big gift of the year for the family was a 70 inch television! Watching movies has never been so much fun. It is like bringing the theater home!

I also purchased my daughter a car for her 18th birthday. A 2003 Volvo that she seems to adore. Thank goodness it has not shown any "used car" problems.

Between work, school, teenagers, and pets, life has been hectic but rather boring for a blog. The only good blog-thing that has happened is that we finally got our digital imaging computer fixed and new movies of several of our adventures will be forthcoming. The movies will include my trip to New York City, a family reunion in Houghton Lake Michigan, the hike to Hanging Lake, and several other Colorado travels.

Well, my life just got busier than it already had been. I have decided to continue my adult education by going back to school! This time, my goal is to receive a bachelors in accounting so that I will qualify to take the state's CPA exam.

The state of Colorado currently requires a baccalaureate degree in accounting. The education requirements also state that one must have completed at least 27 semester hours in accounting subjects of which 21 semester hours must be in specialized accounting courses such as cost accounting, tax, intermediate accounting, accounting theory and advanced accounting. At least 3 of the 27 semester hours must be in auditing. Additionally, one must have at least 21 semester hours in related courses in other areas of business administration such as business law, management, marketing, statistics, business communications, economics and finance with no more than 6 semester hours being in any one area. I have a long way to go considering the fact that I just began my courses last week!

I chose accounting since it's something that offers me a wide variety of options that I can work with well into old age. I also love the feeling of being able to help others out of extremely stressful situations, without becoming too personally involved. Most accountants are blessings in disguise for people that have gotten in over their heads, and I am anxious to be the same.

Currently I am taking two communication classes. My poor cameras are starting to collect dust already, however, I'm certain that as I get into the swing of things and figure out how to best schedule my time, this will change. I still need photography time to remain sane ;)

Wish me luck!

A life long dream of mine was to be able to see New York City with my own eyes and I am so excited that I have finally accomplished that dream! What an amazing place! Living in such a small town, as I do, made the experience just that much more exhilarating! We arrived at 6:30 am Wednesday morning, just moments after a tornado hit the city and went non-stop until 11am Friday morning at which point we rented a car and got to experience the thrill of driving in NYC before we finally headed out toward Houghton Lake Michigan for a family reunion.

I walked on, and cruised under the Brooklyn Bridge which was gorgeous! I also got to sail by the Statue of Liberty, see the view from the observatory on the Empire State Building, take notice of the construction at Ground Zero, rub The Bull in Battery Park, ride a horse carriage through Central Park, stroll past Radio City and the Apollo, look at all of the interesting things within Ripley's, hail my first cab, ride the subways and so very much more! I actually found the people in New York to be extremely helpful and friendly. We found the drivers to be hilarious more than annoying and overall I'd just have to say it was a wonderful experience!

To view some of the pictures we took while in New York City click here.

Hanging Lake.... it's difficult to find even a couple of words to describe this place. Nothing will do it the justice it deserves. The lake literally 'hangs' off the side of a mountain and there are several, almost tropical, waterfalls flowing into the lake. The water is SOOOOO CLEAR you wont believe your eyes and the color is straight out of a story book! There are several trout in the lake that are so easy to see it allows you to actually enjoy them in their natural habitat and realize the rainbow of colors they display. The flowers, when in bloom, are spectacular and the Steller Jays are plentiful. The bridges that allow you to walk around the lake are well maintained (thanks Boy Scouts!) and after such a long hike I can't imagine a better reward. I enjoyed just sitting on a rock and watching the waterfalls flow into the lake while watching the fish gingerly swim around. If there is a place that generates peace itself.... this is it! To view some of the pictures we took of Hanging Lake click here. To see the hike to get there as well as a side trip hike that leads to Spouting Rock read my two earlier posts ;)

This is hands down in my top five hiking trails. Even during an upper 90 degree day, on an over a mile long trail, that inclines over 1,000 feet, I and my family found it completely relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable! The forest is thick along the trail so it is well shaded and there is a river along side of it helping to keep things cool. I'm not the only one who thinks so either! The trail was quite busy the day we went and I saw a wide variety of people accomplishing the task. Skinny, fat, short, tall, young, old, and even injured people were tackling the trail all knowing that the reward at the end, shockingly enough, would be even more beutiful than the trail itself.

The river has a huge number of lil waterfalls as it works its way down to the Colorado River below and the views when you turn around and peak through the trees are astonishing. The trail itself is rocky and quite a steep incline with some steps being about a foot high so it can be a bit of a challenge but there are PLENTY of benches and wonderful resting areas along the river all of the way up. The texts say the trail takes about an hour to hike but I can't imagine hiking it in such a short amount of time. It took us about three hours to hike up it and about 1 hour to hike down. Why run up when you can stop and enjoy the beauty and take some wonderful photos along the way? If you decide to go, take a camera, pack a lunch, and plan to spend the day there. Take your time and RELAX!!! You wont find a better place to do it at! To view some of the pictures we took along the Hanging Lake Trail click here. To see the reward at the end of the trail read my next post ;)

The Spouting Rock trail begins near the end of Hanging Lake Trail. It requires a little over a mile hike with an incline of about a 1,000 feet but it is well worth it! The entire trail is well shaded with a river running along side of it. By the time you reach Spouting Rock you will be greatly rewarded not only with the site itself but also with rushing cold water just waiting to refresh you after such a hike. It's basically a rock sided mountain with water coming right out of the center of it. The water litterally just shoots out from inside the rock and comes crashing down. It's rather spectacular and something you are better off seeing for youself. Nevertheless, to view just a couple of the pictures we took of Spouting Rock and the trail to it click here. You'll have to wait for the video (since the camcorder was in a waterproof case) to see more of it (pray I get my video system back up and running soon *sigh*)

This past weekend we headed over to Grand Junction to see the Colorado National Monument. It was BEAUTIFUL!!! I had fully expected to arrive, see some rocks, and leave but I was very wrong! We spent several hours there in awe over the majestic formations. It was absolutely worth the road trip. Our only regret was not having enough time to dedicate to hiking the area. We will most definately return with hiking shoes on and water in hand this year. If you have have the opportunity to see this area take the time to do so. You will not regret it! To see pictures we took of The Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction Colorado click here. Note that all pictures were taken from the rim along side the completely paved and well maintained road. Pictures from below will have to wait until we return and hike down into it.

After completing Medano Pass, making two climbs up the sand dunes, visiting Zapata Falls, San Luis State Park, and walking the wetlands of the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge we had quite a bit of film to sift through! The end result was a video I made and a video my daughter made. It doesn't really matter who made which one (unless you want to buy it of course lol). To view either or both videos select from the links below.