11 March 2020

 Hey Everyone-

 

Hope all is well wherever you might be today. I’m here in our basement, watching the snow melt away with the warmer temps we are having. The snow is melting much sooner this year than it did last year, which is fine by us! Appreciate the email, Ben, on what’s been happening for you guys in February. Pretty neat BFA recognized you and Lynsey like that – well deserved! You guys have been super involved there over the years. It will be a new chapter in your life to have Joe move onto another school. Good things will come in the next chapter – I’m sure of that!

 

As Ben mentioned, we had a great time in Colorado the weekend of Valentines day. Natalie and the girls came along and so it was a full family get together for us, which was awesome! Prior to our trip to Colorado I went on a short sales training trip to Chicago where I learned more about specialty yeast products and condiment powders – nothing too exciting, but it was a fine trip. The girls of course had a “girls weekend” while I was gone and had lots of fun doing whatever it is they do. Haha! Most of the info about our Colorado trip will be included in the comments below with the pics.

 

Isn’t it wild how this Corona-Virus is wreaking havoc on our country? Seems like the headlines get worse and worse every day – much like our (everyone’s) 401K balance!! Yikes! Hopefully it will all blow over here soon – I guess we will see………

 

I’m trying to think of anything new and exciting that is happening with our family, but nothing is coming to mind – I guess we are just living pretty ordinary lives right now, which is fine by me.

 

Hope everyone of you is happy and healthy, and finding worthwhile things to do with your time. Never underestimate the value of your time.

 

Pics and commentary below.

 

 

When Bradley isn’t around to help me on the Storehouse truck, I’m fortunate to have Maddie join me – she is a fantastic helper! She might love to sleep on the truck between stops as well, but that’s OK, starting your day at 5am can be tough.

 

 

Natalie and I had a super fun date in early February. We went to El Super Taco and got this giant taco to share that was SUPER yummy! From there we played a few games of (in-door) tennis, and then it was off to share a double chocolate malt at some independent (Snuffy’s) malt shop we had never been to before – it did not disappoint! No pics of the malt L

 

On Thursday while we were in Colorado, we met up with our friends, Nick and Kerri (Lasalle) Bengtson. They had a (Paisley) baby in December of 2018, and our girls hadn’t met her yet, so it was time to get together. I unfortunately didn’t get any pics of us while we were at Red Robin having dinner. However, prior to dinner, the Humphries group spent some time across the street at the Mills Mall. The boys played a little corn hole, and Alida got tired of walking, so she caught a ride – good times! J

 

 

Pretty sure the “old guys” pulled off a victory at Cornhole, but my memory could be failing me………J

 

 

The next morning, Natalie, Bradley, Ben, Joe, and myself headed up the mountain for a little ski action. There had been lots of snowfall earlier in the week, so the conditions were fantastic! Somehow Bradley just about keeps up with me – no matter what run we take. I think it’s time to raise the bar and take our ski adventures to Keystone next season where the runs are a little more challenging….Haha!

 

 

A good lunch is always a must on an exhausting ski day. YUM!

 

 

That night is was off to dinner at a Japanese cuisine place at Belmar and other adventures on a double valentine date! Natalie and I both somehow selected main courses that had the craziest spicy HOT chicken! It was super tasty, but equally spicy! Nice dining selection, Ben! And yes, Ben was the only person at our table eating with chopsticks – I was reaching for my fork right away. Haha!  

 

 

 

We of course got in several hours of pickle ball Saturday morning – no pics this time, but it was very fun, just the same! In fact, it wasn’t until my final game, that Joe and I teamed up to serve Ben his first defeat of the day. We had changed teams up in all sorts of different ways, and Ben somehow remained undefeated thru it all. Joe and I put our skills and determination together to take down Ben and the lethal serve master, Bradley. Still not sure how we won, but it happened! While we played pickleball, the girls rock climbed and spent time in the pool – it was a good morning for everyone.

 

 

That night we stayed in and enjoyed a fantastic meal prepared by Ben and Lynsey. Pretty sure the specialty marinated/grilled chicken was gone in about 3 minutes, which isn’t to say the elk steak Ben cooked up wasn’t awesome as well – it just lasted on the table a little longer.

After dinner it was ice cream and a movie. We all watched (Brad’s pick) True Grit – the original with John Wayne! It was all very satisfying and a great way to cap off the day. Good times!

 

 

The newer True Grit is good as well, but there’s nothing quite like an original with John Wayne. Do we have any snugglers in this group?? J

 

 

On Sunday after church we met in the Bishop’s office to perform Bradley’s priesthood ordination to the office of Teacher. I can’t quite express how proud I was that day, and how honored I was to perform the ordination for him. Good stuff. These kids are growing up soooo fast!

 

 

For those of you that don’t know him, Ron Hando (Bradley’s Grandpa) is to the right of me in this photo. It was great he could be with us that day. And yes, Ben and I are wearing matching pants – we got them at Costco – they are fleece lined – you might love them as much as we do! Haha!

 

 

 

 

 

Samuel Humphries