stars

This summer was a little different than usual: not as many lake days or river runs or mountain hikes or camping trips. While we all started the season off strong with some really great adventures, the 3 of us quickly settled into our routines of work this summer, all of us orbiting one another. I trudged into my office every Monday-Friday and hopefully did some good... Sam managed two part-time jobs either as a barista by day or a pizza maker by night... and Hamp went back to his summer gig of playing pool boy at a high end private ranch! 

But as the summer started to wind down, I realized that our orbits rarely collided and I had to make an effort to be present in these boys' activities.

So I went to the community musical (which I would totally have done even if Sam wasn't in it!) and watched Sam on stage in the production of Big Fish. I cried at the beauty of the story, at the well-performed music, and at the spectacle! My heart burst with pride watching Sam's strength and new-found acrobatic skill as he performed aerial silks for the circus scene in the show... perhaps he will skip college all together and just run away and join the circus one day?! Whatever he does, I am so proud of his tenacity and willingness to do ALL the things!

I also went up into the mountains, to the private ranch as Hamp's guest for the staff dinner, just to catch a glimpse and a squeeze of the pool boy and see him in his summer element. It was wonderful to have several of the senior staff and guests share positive comments on having Hamp at the ranch and I loved seeing him mingle easily with the adults, knowing he had worked hard but cultivated great relationships at the same time. He's leaving for college this week, but I don't worry about him finding friends or knowing what to do - he is so confident and self-assured and I just stand back in awe of him sometimes.

Our lives may all orbit one another, but I think these 2 shine as brightly as the sun... and I'm just happy to be in their universe.

Summer vibes

Ahhhh.... summer!

While Sam was galavanting around Denver, Mojo came out to Meeker to enjoy some 4th of July festivities... including Bloody Mary's at Blanco, cheering on Hamp & friends at the 5K, and watching Hamp play some 3-on-3 basketball in the sunshine!

Since then, the boys and I have been hard at work but we still try to take some time to play with friends, hang out with Mojo while she's here, and cool off in the river:

Mojo took us to her favorite spot up in our National Forest - the South Fork of the White River - for some more sunshine and mountain air. Then Dado joined us and took the boys golfing.

With Mojo & Dado gone and the 4th of July well past us, it almost feels like summer is winding down. I guess that means I have to get into high gear and make a point to go play outside some more...

winners in my book

The dynamic duo strikes again!

Sam and Finley took their success from last year and built on that a new and improved presentation... this year's project was "Food Innovation" and back in April they took 1st place at State for their amazing Bakery 878 snickerdoodle and fortune cookies!

 

So over the 4th of July they were living large at FCCLA Nationals! 

While they didn't place in the top 10 this year (robbed!) they did earn a silver medal for high scores and spent 4 days in Denver - of all places! - meeting people from all over the country and playing in the city. They rode thrill rides at Elitches, went bowling, saw a movie, ate at some great restaurants, and took scooter rides to Coors Field.

I'm so proud of their creativity, innovation, dedication, and enthusiasm for doing something really cool and different... it may not have brought home another National title this year, but sure made for a unique experience and some great memories.

super summer adventures II

Hamp & Sam started this summer off right - with some exploring!

Hamp brought his lovely Norwegian girlfriend and partner in adventure back to the States after Folk School for a few weeks together of touring the American West. They camped in the Great Sand Dunes National Park, toured a reptile rescue farm, visited Crested Butte, watched the sunrise at Arches National Park, and went skydiving in Moab!!! (for anyone who remembers Jason's passion for jumping out of planes, you know he would be so proud of his son's first dive!)

Hamp wasn't even home from taking Johanne to the airport when Sam (and I!) took off for Belize with the Ecology Project International group. 18 teenagers with 3 chaperones for 9 days doing biological and ecological research in the rain forest and the barrier reef is an incredible notion. Hamp went on an EPI trip in 2021 to the Galapagos and I vividly remember how excited he was when he got home to share stories about what he learned... so I was so grateful when I had the opportunity to be a part of this year's trip and see first hand the amazing experiences that Sam shared with this awesome group of friends.

The first half of the trip was studying marine biology and barrier reef health on Tobacco Caye, a small island off the coast. The staff at the Marine Station were amazing but the real heroes were our EPI instructors who kept the kids busy with great lessons and group games that made it not even feel like learning... and it doesn't hurt when your "classroom" looks like this:

The next half of the trip was at the Toucan Ridge Ecology & Education Society (TREES) ecolodge where we studied the ecosystem of the rain forest, including river health, bat species, turtles, and all the amazing plant life. 

As incredible as all of the education and research was, my favorite part was watching Sam be all-in for this experience. I may not have gotten an earful of adventure stories when he came home, but I did get to witness first hand how much he LOVED playing volleyball at both locations! 

Seriously though, he may not grow up to be a biologist or a researcher, but no doubt this trip has helped continue to nurture him as an explorer, a learner... and a good team mate!

home

Hamp is home!

My heart and my house are bursting - with love and pride (heart) and with 10 months worth of luggage and new ski stuff and photography equipment and really cool souvenirs (house).

I know I didn't post much about Hamp's Norwegian adventures - but I felt it was more his story to tell, not mine anymore! So you can check out his Instagram page @hight0werph0t0 for a school year's worth of amazing photos with limited captions (his strength is clearly for capturing the image, not so much the words)

But what I can confidently say, in summary of the past year, is that attending Sogndal Folk School was absolutely the very best decision Hamp has ever made, and quite possibly the greatest adventure of his life so far! I am so grateful for this experience for him, for the new skills he learned, and for the friends that he made along the way.

 

up in the air

 Sam just wrapped a terrific track & field season with MHS!

He worked on 3 main events - Pole Vault, High Jump, and Triple Jump - and saw great improvement in all over the course of the season. It is pretty evident that his flexibility and strength from years of gymnastics has made him a great candidate for any event where he can throw his body in the air! But the goal is always to go a little higher everytime...

Mean Girls

OK, I know I say this every time...

But this was seriously the BEST high school musical!

Mean Girls only just this year got licensed for high school productions and Meeker High School absolutely did it justice.

I mean no disrespect to past shows - Addams Family, Drowsy Chaperone, Pippin, Mary Poppins - they have all been amazing. Truly! I always think "It can't get better than this."

Then Sam gets to ride a moped on stage!

Full disclaimer - so much of the genius behind the success of the Meeker High School drama program comes from my dear friend who directs, coaches, stages, costumes, and casts these shows. She has a gift. A true gift of putting the right kids in the right parts and then getting them to shine so brightly I can barely see! And Mean Girls had the perfect cast... 

... with Sam as the lead male who co-narrates the whole story while singing and dancing his heart out!

(thanks to Bobby Gutierrez for always capturing great photos of the kids!)

I was so proud of his performance I thought I would burst.

I think, judging from his smile backstage after the show that he was pretty happy about it too!

(hoping to have a little video sample up soon...!)

Tried to make a compilation video of several of Sam's shining moments on stage... but I have apparently aged out of being technologically savvy. Best I can do at least is share this 5 minute single video of one of my favorite numbers that he did: