New addition

We have a new addition to the family! We adopted her from the humane society yesterday. She is a five month old Australian Cattle Dog (blue heeler). She is a very sweet girl, I think she will be a very good dog. She seems to have some fear of being left, she follows us everywhere and won't let us out of her sight. This morning it was snowing outside, she was very excited about it. This may be the first time she has seen snow. It was very cute to watch her bite and play in the snow that is on the ground.

Kajika

Here are some pictures of our new snake, Kajika. Her name means "walks without sound". She is an Abbott Okeetee corn snake.

Raptors

I am now handling the permanently disabled birds at the Rocky Mountain Raptor Program. I am in training for the educational aspect of the raptor program. For the past few months I have had the pleasure of handling a Kestral, a Great-horned Owl, a Saw-whet Owl and a Swainson's Hawk. It has been really excited to get close to these amazing animals.

In October, I volunteered to handle birds for a photo shoot. The great thing about helping with a photo shoot is along with handling birds, I also had the opportunity to take a lot of pictures. I also handled birds for a program at Front Range Community College on conservation. I am having a wonderful time learning about birds of prey and environmental education. It is truly a unique experience.

Westwater

John and I recently had the opportunity to go rafting down Westwater canyon. We are very blessed to have friends that are not only experienced rafters, but also have their own boats. Saturday we put in and had an easy float to our campsite. There were only a few small rapids so it was a laid back day. Our campsite was a beautiful sandy beach along the river. We enjoyed elk burgers and blue margaritas for dinner. The following day we continued down the canyon and ran "Skull" and "Sock-it-to-me". The rapids made for a much more exciting day. We all made it out alive, no one flipped on "Skull" or spun around in the "Room of doom" for eternity. Lunch and cliff diving before the take out was a great end to our weekend.

Getting ready to go!




Chris "preparing" his new boat for her maiden voyage.




Chris did all the work.



Our campsite.



Shaun and Lori's boat running "Skull" rapid.

A rafting trip was the perfect way to wrap up the summer. The canyon was gorgeous, the colors are beginning to change in the desert. We had a wonderful time with an excellent group of friends. To see more pictures of our trip, go to the photo album.

Homeowners

We are officially homeowners! John and I closed on our first house last week. Since then it's been non-stop work, but we are loving it. Last Saturday both families came over to help us paint, we're so thankful for the help and support. We move in this weekend, it will be exciting to sleep in the new house for the first time. Here are some pictures, I'm sure there will be more to come.

Front of the house

Back of the house

We're under contract!

Last Monday John and I made an offer on a house we really like. Two hours later, our Realtor called to tell us a second offer had been made. The seller wanted our best and highest offer by morning. We didn't want to go to high, so we increased our offer by a couple thousand dollars. Two days later we found out that our offer was accepted but that the seller was planning to counter. I was hoping that the seller would only counter with closing dates, but was certain they would want more money.

The following day we found out that the counter was just for the closing dates! It seems that God has had a hand in the process. Even though there was a bidding war for the house, we still got it for 6k under asking price! John and I are really excited to be a step closer to buying a house. The next hurdle is the inspection, we're hoping that there isn't too many things wrong with the place. We will see if this is the house God has for us. Say a prayer for us, we will keep you posted!

Future Homeowners

We have decided to buy a house! John and I have both dreamed of owning a house. We finally feel that we are ready to be homeowners. We have seen lots of nice houses and we excited that one of them could be ours. God has placed wonderful people in our lives to help make our dream a reality. We are so thankful for supportive family and friends!