Celebrating a big number in a big way

 The Coach turned 50 on October 14th. I know. I can't imagine being that old; but I'll let you know in two years. 

We started planning this big trip quite a few months ago. We were coordinating it with our good friends Don and Kelly. 

Don turned 50 on October 7th; Don and Jeff have been friends since they were 8.

As in 8 years old.

As in 42 years ago they started hanging out and haven't stopped. 

The plan was to have our trip span both birthdays and it worked out perfectly. 

Our travel agent searched high and low for an unusual/fun trip that would give the boys all the excitement and fun, while the girls would also have some excitement and fun. 

My travel agent is the bomb....he's also my better half. 

The four of us met in ATL and flew to Denver together. 

(We had two different destinations (WY & CO) planned over the 12 days, that included 2 nights in Denver; 1 upon arrival and 1 the night prior to our departure home)

The next morning we drove four hours to our first destination.

Ok, actually, Don was navigating, so we drove 5+ hours to our destination. Following directions from a smart phone is not his forte'. Making love connections is. Don and his high school girlfriend set Coach and I up on our blind first date in 1985. 

I know. 

I shouldn't give him hell for being a terrible navigator, but that's how we roll. 

 Our cell service went out about 45 minutes before we arrived at Three Forks Ranch and Spa.  

We knew that would happen and seriously, it wasn't even painful. 

I was still able to I-message the kids through wi-fi so all was well. 

 We were in Wyoming almost to our destination and we encountered our first traffic jam. Moo.

Besides being a hunting/fishing lodge with all the amenities of a five star hotel, this is also a working cattle ranch. 

The view from our room when we arrived. 

 The view from our room early the next morning. Apparently I knew I was on vacation....and add to that the time change and I was up early. This is not normal Suzanne behavior. 

I have some cute photos and stories to share of our adventures. I stepped out of my comfort zone a few times and for that I'd appreciate a plaque or a statue in my honor. Which ever is easier. 

Until next time.

XOXO

The renovation of renovations

Whew. 

Did you hear that? That was me trying to catch my breath. 

SO much has been happening....we had a fantastic trip to celebrate the Coach turning 50. 

IT might have been one of the best trips we've had....it certainly was the longest we've ever had. 

12 days. 

12.

Not too long though; it was perfect. Except for my struggling for breath; I'll share that with you at another time. 

But first, tell me, do you like what we've done with our place?

 A good amount of the time and $ has been put into reinforcing the truss system to make sure our roof stayed up since we took out a load bearing wall.  Details, ya know. 

 Did we make the house larger? Naaah,  only added about 100 square feet; stole it from the lanai. 

 Our bedroom literally has NO privacy right now. We didn't even want to do anything to our room, but the way the walls lined up, we had to move the wall out about 5 inches, so therefore....

 The goal for this renovation was to remove interior walls and ditch the small, unused, chopped up rooms and make it all one large useable space. A true great room. 

 We're living comfortably in the back of the house. A temporary door was put in the hallway for my safety. Ok, maybe it was to keep the workers safe from me. "YOU'RE TAKING TOO MANY SMOKE BREAKS. I NEED MY HOUSE FINISHED!"

These pics here, well I took them about a year ago when we started discussing this renovation....just so you know that I didn't bring Ozzie boy back from the garden. 

The generously sized kitchen, small breakfast nook and small family room. 

Same from kitchen view.

The small formal dining area

Side of small formal dining area looking into really small formal living room. (after the movers took our stuff)

I actually had the forethought to do two small videos of the area just before the movers came....you can hear them knocking on the door in one of them. 

The Coach and I struggled with the idea of downsizing. Honestly, we don't need all this space, but the idea of having to start over with another place was overwhelming. We love our home. (of course, I curse the maintenance of it on occasion) and we absolutely love our property; this can't be duplicated. So, we decided to make the house more livable and more valuable for when the time comes to sell. 

If you ask the girls; this house won't ever be sold to strangers. Apparently, they think we are just going to give it to them. HA. 

So, Thanksgiving will not be held at our house...only so much cooking I can accomplish in the temporary digs. Christmas? Well, we'll see about that one. 

I hope to catch up with all you good people soon.

XOXO