Time flies

Somehow, I got on the topic of couponing when I asked a friend if she had any pro deals on any outdoor gear. She said that some of the pro deals can be complicated and I told her that I used to be an extreme couponer so not much would phase me. I honestly kind of forgot about this blog, but wanted to show her some of the coupon posts. I was amazed at how many posts I have on here! It really is a shame that I have not kept it going. I also feel like I should probably print all of this stuff since you never know what will be on the Internet in the future.

Technology has definitely advanced since I first started blogging, and voice to text is a lifesaver!  Most of my blog post were from a different life entirely. My life  has changed dramatically from even a few years ago. We no longer have five kids at home, but just two. Miles and Chase are already 11 and 13! In addition, we both work full-time and play as much as possible on our free time. We still love living in Durango! That is one of the few things that stayed the same since 2022.

Just for a quick recap, Winter is a full-time tattoo artist, Sterling graduated college with an accounting degree, and Ginger is a sophomore at Fort Lewis College Studying to be an art teacher. I am working at A local CPA firm and Joe is still working at the local Hospital.

Reading back my blog posts, I feel like I used to be a better writer than I am now. Maybe it is true that practice makes perfect?  

What’s interesting is that although I have no longer been keeping track of all the happenings in my regular life, I do keep track of all my travels really well. Since my memory is so bad, I am so happy to at least have that! But now this is my new goal. Daily Duolingo and blogging updates! - and I might even try to backfill some posts! 

Pack goats in training

 Joe told me he wanted to go backpacking to Navajo Lake up near Telluride. Since we are doing a longer backpacking trip next month at Maroon Bells, we thought it might help the boys to have a shorter backpacking trip as practice. 

We have goats at our property at Wild Turkey Canyon, to keep our agricultural exemption. Several of those goats were purchased for the purpose of also becoming pack goats. Twister and Ozay are Alpine Goats, which are the best type of pack Goats. they are just six months old, so not old enough to actually carry anything. Rico is a Nubian goat that was originally purchased to become a pack goat as well. However, Rico is the biggest pain in the butt! He is so loud! He screams the whole 2 hour drive, and anytime you are more than 5 feet away from him on the trail. It does not even matter if he’s the one that walked away from you in the first place! He just screams and screams and screams. 

Although none of them actually packed any of our stuff, they were our pack goats in training this weekend. They actually are really good about following us on the hike, unless we happen to be walking uphill, and some other hikers are walking downhill. At that point, they lose all loyalty to us and were ready to abandon us for just about anybody. I guess that’s something we’ll have to work on! 

We hiked up 5 miles along some beautiful mountain ranges, meadows, waterfalls, and creeks. The goats snacked on lots of dandelions. Miles and Chase did awesome! I can really tell the difference between now and even a year ago when it comes to hiking abilities. 

My friend Kate and her dog Arkty came along for the hike. Arkty is not a fan of our goats. He was hypnotized and fixated on them at all times, and would constantly lunge at them. Nothing seemed to be working. We ended up just hiking separately most of the way after Arkty pulled Miles to the ground. It wasn’t until later in the evening, when we realized that the rubber coverings on the shock collar were actually still on the collar! And they have owned this collar for months and months… so anytime Kate thought she had buzzed Arkty’s, it had done absolutely nothing. After a quick lesson with the actual shock collar, Arkty was less enticed by the Goats and we were able to finish the evening on happier terms.

Once we got to the final destination of Navajo Lake, Chase, unfortunately realized he had lost his fishing pole and immediately turned around with Joe to go look for it. Miles did not waste any time and started fishing right away. Both of them caught several trout. Besides the annoying mosquitoes that chased us to bed by 8 PM, we had a lovely evening in the mountains.

I was a little bit stressed about the goat being there, since we did not have a dog with us to protect them. (Kate and Arkty sleep on the “lower level” (aka different campsite) The goats were just tied up on a line 15 feet away from our tent. But if a hungry bear would’ve happened on our camp, there’s nothing we could’ve done to save them. Luckily, all my worry was for nothing, and we spent the next day fishing and reading and sleeping before heading back down the mountain.

Cat in Box

Peaches was the first one to claim it as her own. 

What started as the result of me not picking up a box off the floor for several days, turned into the cats’s favorite hangout place. This unassuming box, that came from who knows where, is The Spot. The ultimate napping container. Sometimes they even hang out in there together, although not usually. Minion still prefers to nap on the bed, especially after he has rolled around, giving himself a dust bath. 

However much or little time they spend in this box, is a win for us. That means less cat hair on the furniture, bed, and even table… Peaches is the biggest offender of napping in off-limits spaces. She finds the worst spots, including the dish drying mat on the kitchen counter.

But one of her favorite places to nap? On Joe’s lap! A self proclaimed cat hater, even he has a soft spot for Peaches. After all, her name came from the song that goes:

“Peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches 

Peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches

I love you..”  -by Jack Black. 

So we have two cats with very distinct personalities. A grumpy, old man, a.k.a. minion, and the sweetest cat you’ll ever know, A.k.a. Peaches, who acts more like a dog than a cat. They usually get along, but sometimes when peaches wants to play, minion goes in full on attack mode.

And just because we don’t want to forget about Luka- he gets along with everyone!