Home at last

After spending weekend after weekend away from home the Simonsons finally got a nice relaxing weekend at home.


Dana spent the majority of her time at home working on some of her many projects. She was able to put a huge dent in all her sewing projects and really enjoyed the time she spent editing video and making DVD's. That's not to say she didn't spend any time relaxing.

(Dana loves to relax in what she claims to be the most calming room in the house, her walk-in closet)

Larry spent his time at home doing chores and making scones for Dana. He also spent some of his time running errands.




Now that it's fall, all the leaves have changed colors and both Dana and Larry agree that with all the trees and hills Columbia has to offer this is one of the prettiest falls they have ever experienced. There are so many colors. There are reds, oranges, yellow's, and green's and when the sun sets on the hills it looks like they are glowing. Dana saw this change in seasons as a great...

...and decided to get a few shots of what our backyard looks like in the fall.

(View: North East looking South West)


(View: Looking straight West from the patio)


(View: South East looking North West)

Unfortunately many of those pretty leaves are no longer on the trees and have instead decided to blanket the lawn. This can only mean one thing, it's time to pull out the dreaded rake. To avoid having to do any leaf raking Larry decided to celebrate the beautiful fall weather in the way he celebrates everything, with a bike ride. Here are a few pics showcasing the beauty of fall in Columbia from the handle bars of Larry's bike.

(Notice, you can't see the road because of all the leaves)

(It's hard to see from the picture but this gravel hill is around 12%, aka steep)


(This is one of Larry's favorite roads to ride)

Unfortunately, as the seasons continue to change, it's going to start to be too cold for Larry to stop at his favorite mid-ride rest stop.

(Typical Missouri yard art)

Hopefully they'll spring for a heated seat.

.

The little Apple

Initially Dana and Larry were traveling back to Manhattan to visit their friends that still live there. Luckily it turned out that Larry's roommates, from the start of his college experience, wanted to get together for a small reunion as well.

(Derek, Larry, and Fletcher enjoying a plate of smoked ribs at the KSU tailgate)

It was really nice to catch up with them and hear how everyone is doing now that they live so far apart.

It also turned out that even though Dana and Larry didn't have tickets they got the best seats in the stadium for watching KSU beat Texas A&M. Larry's best friend Kyle, owner of Arnold Sound and Video, records video and sound of the KSU marching band at every home game. As it so happened, the world renowned group "The Boston Brass" was going to be giving a special performance during the half time show along with the marching band. Because this was a special event Kyle was asked to do a special recording and to set up a PA system that would showcase The Boston Brass's sound. This turned out to be the most stressful job Kyle had ever undertaken. Normally an entire set up for an event like this usually takes him between 30-60 minutes but because of the time constraints it needed to be done in 2 minutes. To help accomplish this feat Kyle employed Dana and Larry's help. Before the game started Larry and Dana got to walk around the field and see the VIP box seats first hand. As the game got started Dana got to do some filming from the press box while Larry got to high-five the team as they ran onto the field.

(Start of game from Dana's press box perspective)


Once the game got started, and before they needed to get to their posts for their half time duties, Dana and Larry were then allowed to hangout on the field and walk around while watching the game. It was an awesome experience to get to view the game from the sidelines. To quote Dana, " Next to our wedding day, this is the most special day of my life!"

During half time Dana went back to filming while Larry ran cables onto the field before getting to stand and film on the 50 yard line, 10 feet from The Boston Brass. As it was, the entire show went on without a hitch and Dana and Larry got to continue watch the rest of the game from anywhere on the sidelines they want to be. Dana and Larry have heard they were even on T.V. when they were leaning against the goal post during one of the KSU touchdowns.

Here are a few pictures:

(Watching warm up before the start of the game)


(Good thing the referee didn't make any bad calls or Dana could have easily told him what she thought)


(Dana living the dream)


(It felt like we were part of the team as we listened in on the huddle)


(We were so close we could hear the offense and defense bad mouthing each other)


(Thank you Kyle for such a wonderful experience)

oktoberfest

This weekend Dana and Larry once again partook in the annual Oktoberfest in Hermann MO. They were joined by none other than the famously fun, not to mention Hermann regulars and case club members, community of Block Kansas.

(The fun lovers of Block Kansas at Adam Puchta's)

It was so much fun that Chrissy peed her pants. Twice!

(She claims that it was just spilt wine)

In the morning we spent our time enjoying the wine at Bommarito's almond tree winery. Here we are enjoying the scenery and staying warm next to a cozy fire that Nick, the owner, was kind enough to start for us with diesel fuel.



Later on it was off to the Hermannhof festhalle for polka music and where Paul and Kathy kept the dancing tradition alive.

(Paul and Kathy Haley, a.k.a Dana's parents)

Where Larry was the life of the party.



And where Dana got very protective of her jug of wine.


To finish the day we strolled over to the beer garden where we learned who has two thumbs and loves dancing to cheesy hair band rock music...

...This girl!

But of course she was only taking after her mother.

(Kathy getting down)

Kathy was having so much fun that she wouldn't even stop long enough so a picture could be taken of her that wasn't blurry.

That is of course until she got stuck in the fence and needed help out.

(Kathy stuck in the fence)

Recent happenings

Dana and Larry are pleased to announce their 1,461 day anniversary. It was a wonderful day and they celebrated with a delicious and traditional German meal of rouladen, hot German potato salad, and braised red cabbage. They also celebrated like any old married couple would, by dressing up in matching outfits.




The next weekend they had a visit from the Snyders. There was a lot of fun and enjoyment had by all. The girls enjoyed eating cinnamon rolls for breakfast:



Riding their bikes to the park:



And the older girls enjoyed riding their bikes to Coopers Landing in order to quench their thirsts:

It's official!

It's official. As of 4:30 pm yesterday afternoon Larry passed the RD exam and is now a Registered Dietitian.

Colorado trip

Sorry for the delay, the SD card with all our pictures on it decided it wasn't done with vacation and took a trip to Chicago. Now that it's returned the Simonson life can go on.

Since our trip took so long, and because every minute was filled with great fun and friends, it would take a book to tell you all that happened. So in an effort to let you get on with your good times we'll give you a short itinerary of what we did and a BUNCH of pictures. To get all the high altitude details come visit us and we'll fill you in while creating more good fun.

Thursday:
Larry traveled to Manhattan and did some riding.
Dana enjoyed a quiet evening without Larry running around the house.

Friday:
Larry traveled to Golden Colorado with Brian Snyder and stayed at Andi and Dallas Burnum's house. After arriving in Golden they all went on a ride to the top of Lookout mountain. After the ride everyone drove to Boulder to their favorite watering hole (ask for Nate the brewer and tell him you know the Simonsons) . Southern Sun
Dana enjoyed another headache free evening around the house.

Saturday:
Larry got up early and drove to Avon Colorado and rode the Copper Triangle loop in reverse (Avon to Leadville to Copper, back to Avon) with Dallas, Brian S., Kyle, and Brian H. The entire loop ended up being 100 miles.

(Brian and Larry after Climbing to the top of Climax mine, 11,300 feet)

Dana flew into Denver and was picked up by the "girls" (Carrie, Kelly, and Alisa). The events of that night have yet to be divulged but they do a lot of giggling when asked about it.

Sunday:
Everyone traveled to the trail head (90 minutes west of Pueblo) for the beginning of the big hike. Around noon the hike began and everyone made it to camp and got setup by 7:00.

(Dana and Larry starting the hike in. 40 and 50 lbs packs)

(The last 1.5 miles before the campsite)

(Our home away from home, at 11,600 feet)

Monday:
Early in the morning (5:00 am) Dana and Larry woke up to join a small group of our friends to climb Humboldt peak. The climb took about 5 hours round trip.

(Start of the climb, doesn't look that far?)

(Resting half way up Humboldt)


(Summit of Humboldt with the needle in the background)

Tuesday:
Larry woke up even earlier (4:00 am) to join the group that was climbing the Crestone needle. Due to Dana's fear of heights she decided it would be safer for her to stay back and enjoy a nice day around camp. Boy was she right!

(A shot of the needle after 20 minutes of climbing)


(Kyle climbing up to broken hand pass. Half way point on the Needle)


(It's cold and windy on broken hand pass.)

(Larry on the summit of the needle with Crestone peak in the background.)

Wednesday:
Everyone slept in (7:00 am). After waking up we all gathered for breakfast before packing up our campsites and hiking out.

(Enjoying breakfast at Kyle's house before the hike out. Humboldt in the background.)

(Dana enjoying the beautiful hike down the mountain)

Thursday:
After hiking out on Wednesday we all drove south for about 2 hours to a small cabin in the town of Cuchara. We spent our time there relaxing and enjoying all the modern day conveniences we had missed while in the mountains. We also spent some time in the town of La Veta doing some shopping and even met a KSU graduate that owns a shop there. She said that most of the art work in the studio was done by other KSU graduates from around the country.

(Our cabin. This picture does not do it justice. It was a beautiful cabin in a beautiful location.)

Friday:
Dana and Larry drove back to Manhattan. 10hrs on the road.

Saturday:
Larry got up and did the Saturday morning pancake ride to Wamego and back.
Dana joined the girls for breakfast at the Chef and then went to the farmers market.
After eating lunch at Larry's favorite lunch spot in Manhattan Larry and Dana loaded up and made the final push back to Columbia.

Sunday:
Vacation from vacation.

Miscellaneous vacation photos:

(A smiling Dana climbing Humboldt)

(Dana climbing through the rock fall on Humboldt)


(Almost to the summit of Humboldt. Look at that north face.)


(Carrie and Dana on the summit of Humboldt and ignoring Larry.)


(Dana signing in on her first 14er summit.)

(Larry in the kitchen cooking a romantic dinner for Dana)


(Night life on the mountain)


(The casino)

(Helping our neighbor Kyle out with some yard work. Needle in the background.)


(Bath time in our 35-40 degree ferinheight hot tub.)


(The view from our back porch, the Needle)


(A view of the north face of the needle from the upper lake)


(A view of our campsite from the saddle of Humboldt)


(A view of our campsite near the top of Humboldt. Click on picture to enlarge, you can see Carrie and Brian's blue tent.)


(A view of our campsite from broken hand pass. Climbing the needle)


(A campsite visitor.)

(Another visitor.)

(Summit lunch: Spam, mustard, mayo, tortilla.)


(Mmm...everything tastes good on top of the Needle.)

(Even anchovies!!)


(Yummy.)


(Looking south from the summit of the Needle.)


(A view of Humboldt from the summit of the Needle.)

(The group that did the Needle: Kyle, Paulette (took picture), Nate the brewer, Dallas, and Larry.)

(Larry singning in on the summit of the Needle.)


(Crossing a very steep frozen stream while decending the Needle.)


(Climbing down through the ice and snow. Broken hand pass just above.)

(Crossing the snow field. Campsite just below. 30 more minutes untill we're back to the campsite.)

(Larry and Dana crossing a log bridge on the way to the campsite.)

(Larry's attempt to grow a mustache. Thats 2 weeks of growth and if you enlarge the photo you might be able to see some peach fuz.)