A lot of firsts

A couple of months ago after returning from maternity leave, I was planning my travel schedule, and found that I would have to cover a cattlemen’s meeting in Colorado Springs during mid-June. Last year the same meeting was in Breckenridge, and I tried to get my husband to come with me. To no avail, he had to work. So this year, I worked a little harder on him (practically begged) to get him to take a “vacation” with me. Although I would have to work most of the time we were there, we still had some time to do a couple of fun things, and take Shaun on his first trip.

Our 3-year-old son had never been on vacation, but I didn’t tell him we were going anywhere until the day before we were going to leave. He’s the type of kid that if you tell him something we are going to do fun, he will obsess over it for days. I saved myself some of the agony and only let him wonder for a day. Once we were packed and in the car, only did we explain where we were going. We again saved the fun part – a cog train ride – until we stopped for lunch in Pueblo. That was our ticket for him to get quiet and take a nap. And it worked.

Another first was the hotel. Shaun was kind of confused why we left our suitcases in the room every time we left. He wanted to take his with us each time we left the room. I think it was because it had wheels on it. But eventually the suitcase turned into a mower and the closet became his trailer. (His dad has hauled the mower from the farm to our house a few times, and the kid is obsessed about pickups, tractors, mowers and trailers.) This kept him occupied for a while during the time I was at meetings I believe.

Shaun and his Dad also swam in the indoor pool. He’d had swimming lessons when he was about a year old, but Mom missed the deadline for his 2-year-old year so he didn’t get lessons last year. When I managed to go swim with them, Shaun was clingy and crying and not having much fun. I blame it on him being so tired. Guess we will have to work on that this summer.

Here’s a couple of photos from our trip.

Shaun’s excitement could hardly be contained before the train ride.

Shaun and his Dad at the Summit.

Something for nothing

There’s always someone wanting something for nothing was a text I sent to my sister recently.  She had a horse for sale, and after reading some of the comments on her picture on Facebook, the next thought that came to mind is how can people be so dumb.  There are people who know horses and there are people who think they know horses. But that’s not the point of this blog post.

In recent years, I have tried to become a bargain hunter, and like the challenge of the hunt. The last two Saturdays my Mom or sister, along with me and my kids stopped at a few garage sales. Mom will talk to the people with the item she is wanting and often gets the item for cheaper. Me, I won’t buy it if it isn’t in my price range. I don’t like asking for a cheaper price, but if it’s reasonable I will buy. I’ve had garage sales, and know how much work they are and what a relief it is to get something cleared out of your house. I also find it annoying for people to give a ridiculous price offer for something you know is worth way more.

I had a good childhood. I worked on the family farm, and didn’t have a job until I was in college, and that was mostly during the summers between semesters. I admit I was spoiled. I had a nice pickup to drive, a fuel card and a trailer. My folks gave me a lot. It wasn’t until after I graduated from college and started my first “real world” job that I knew all the sacrifices my folks had to do to give us what we wanted. Now that I am a parent, I want the best for my boys, and if it requires me to sacrifice I will.

There are people in this world who want to take the credit for hard work done. There are also the ones who want to get “their share” even though they didn’t do any of the hard work. I’ve encountered both in my short lifetime, and each and every time it has left a sour taste in my mouth. The most recent comment got me to thinking and researching a way for one aspect of my life to change and hopefully prosper. What this person said was probably thoughtless on her part, but it helped me open my eyes and see what’s really important in life.