Monday, September 26, 2011
FYI
I just posted a lot, with many pictures, so it went over to "Older Posts"...if you want to see it all!
13 Mile Bike Ride and History Tours
While Ben and I were in Leadville we went on a 13 mile bike ride through the mountains. First I must preface by saying a 13 mile bike ride on level ground in Louisville would be hard for me. But go up a couple hundred feet in elevation and then add mountains; it was pretty hard until we got the hang of it. There were times we had to take a ‘water break’ because my thighs were spasming or my butt hurt to bad; but through all the hard times we had exponentially more good times. With all we learned, all we saw and the satisfaction of biking 13 miles we had so much fun. And we found that after the first 5 miles straight up there was a lot more down hill and gradual inclines that were much easier and less harsh on our untrained bodies!
It is beautiful in the mountains this time of year; the colors are changing, the air is crisp but still warm, there is a light breeze and it smells of pine. Leadville (where we were biking) is an old mining town from the 1800’s. There is a new mine there, the Climax mine (where Mat works), which has revived the town. We went on a bike ride up in the mountains around Leadville and got to see many of the old deserted mines from the 1800’s. It was amazing and a little unbelievable that these mines were created and operational. Back when the world was not half as advanced as we are now; they had pulley systems, drills, smelting processes and advanced underground architectural stability.
We stopped at one of the most famous mines, where there was a tour about the history. This was the site of the Matchless Mine and Baby Doe’s cabin. Taber was one of the wealthiest men in the United States back in the 1800’s because he struck silver in Leadville, CO. He built and ran half the town with ample amounts of money (even in today’s world) and was also a great political leader in Denver. He left his wife Augusta (a scandal in those days) and married Elizabeth Doe, commonly known as Baby Doe. They had two daughters, Elizabeth and Silver Dollar, and then lost all their fortune because the worth of silver plummeted. Mr. Taber died shortly after leaving Baby Doe and the girls with nothing. They moved into the small cabin at the Matchless mine and soon after both girls left their mother for bigger better things. Baby Doe lived in this cabin for years until in her late 80’s she was found frozen to death on the cabin floor (it took over 20 men to dig the snow away from the door of the cabin to find her). It was very cool to learn this history and to be able to see the Mine and all the tools and things that went into it.
That afternoon (after we rested our aching behinds) we went to the National Mining Museum in Leadville. This museum exceeded my expectations (which sadly, were low). There was dioramas showing the evolution of mining, rooms that made you feel like you were underground with life like wax miners, there were hundreds of minerals and stones on display and descriptions on what they were used for. I must admit that the wax statues were a little scary and I jump and screamed out a couple times while rounding a corner. It was so interesting to go through this museum and put together some of the things we saw on our bike ride.
I have many more useless but super interesting facts about the Taber family and the mining process, if you ever care to know. It was such an adventure and so cool to learn this history. I am so glad we went and so happy that we had this time together.
 |
| This is the view of Leadville from the ride. It is such a cute and odd mining town but it is very happily situated! |
We stopped at one of the most famous mines, where there was a tour about the history. This was the site of the Matchless Mine and Baby Doe’s cabin. Taber was one of the wealthiest men in the United States back in the 1800’s because he struck silver in Leadville, CO. He built and ran half the town with ample amounts of money (even in today’s world) and was also a great political leader in Denver. He left his wife Augusta (a scandal in those days) and married Elizabeth Doe, commonly known as Baby Doe. They had two daughters, Elizabeth and Silver Dollar, and then lost all their fortune because the worth of silver plummeted. Mr. Taber died shortly after leaving Baby Doe and the girls with nothing. They moved into the small cabin at the Matchless mine and soon after both girls left their mother for bigger better things. Baby Doe lived in this cabin for years until in her late 80’s she was found frozen to death on the cabin floor (it took over 20 men to dig the snow away from the door of the cabin to find her). It was very cool to learn this history and to be able to see the Mine and all the tools and things that went into it.
 |
| Ben standing in Baby Doe's Cabin. All the furniture was her's and all the pictures are of the history of the mine and the town. |
 |
| Matchless Mine and Baby Doe's cabin |
That afternoon (after we rested our aching behinds) we went to the National Mining Museum in Leadville. This museum exceeded my expectations (which sadly, were low). There was dioramas showing the evolution of mining, rooms that made you feel like you were underground with life like wax miners, there were hundreds of minerals and stones on display and descriptions on what they were used for. I must admit that the wax statues were a little scary and I jump and screamed out a couple times while rounding a corner. It was so interesting to go through this museum and put together some of the things we saw on our bike ride.
 |
| This is what the new mine, Climax, mines. There is a whole room dedicated to this mine, the history of Leadville and the uses of Molybdenum. Try saying Molybdenum 10 times fast!! |
I have many more useless but super interesting facts about the Taber family and the mining process, if you ever care to know. It was such an adventure and so cool to learn this history. I am so glad we went and so happy that we had this time together.
Birthday WEEK!
I turned 25 this year. I know to many it does not seem like a lot but..25! I am not a quarter of a century old. And for some reason I think odd number's make me feel older.
I did not just get a BirthDAY this year I got a BirthWEEK. Because of busy schedules the Newson’s did a big Birthday Breakfast the Monday before (Sept. 19th) my birthday. We had Stuffed French Toast, bacon, a delicious egg/hashbrown casserole, fruit and OJ. For dessert I got a cake of donuts with candle’s on top. It was so delicious!
Throughout the week I went shopping with Mom and got some new cute cloths. On Thursday, my actual birthday, Mom and I went shopping and then went to Erica’s house. We went out to lunch and had some girl time. (Thanks Rich for taking the girls!)
For my birthday I asked Ben to give me an adventure! We left Thursday (after Ben’s final Softball Game at Crocs- yay Ben!) and headed up to Leadville to visit Mat and Andi. We spent Friday biking, taking historical tours and going to museums (more on that later). Friday night we went to Turquoise Lake and had a fire with hotdogs and smores. The leaves were so beautiful and when the sun went down we got to see some shooting stars (and what we think was a falling satellite).
Saturday we work up and went on a hike to a ghost town. The hike was 4 miles round trip but we decided to go up a little further and see if we could find the abandoned mine- so I think it might have ended up being 6 miles. It was so beautiful up there just making my love of autumn more concrete. The ghost town was cool and the old buildings were exciting to go through!!
Saturday night Andi and I went into town (Silverthorn and Frisco) for the Women’s Broadcast. On the way we stopped at some outlets and after at least 20 pairs I found a pair of jeans-yay. And even better, they were marked down to $6.00- how can you beat that? The Broadcast was great (they fed up cheese cake in the middle of it) and I loved President Uchtdorf’s talk.
And of course we played games every night!!! It was so much fun to go up and see Mat, Andi and the kids. We defiantly had adventures and got to spend it with family!! It was a great BirthWEEK!
Throughout the week I went shopping with Mom and got some new cute cloths. On Thursday, my actual birthday, Mom and I went shopping and then went to Erica’s house. We went out to lunch and had some girl time. (Thanks Rich for taking the girls!)
For my birthday I asked Ben to give me an adventure! We left Thursday (after Ben’s final Softball Game at Crocs- yay Ben!) and headed up to Leadville to visit Mat and Andi. We spent Friday biking, taking historical tours and going to museums (more on that later). Friday night we went to Turquoise Lake and had a fire with hotdogs and smores. The leaves were so beautiful and when the sun went down we got to see some shooting stars (and what we think was a falling satellite).
 |
| Family Picture..without Mylie because she was... |
 |
| Up in a tree!! |
Saturday we work up and went on a hike to a ghost town. The hike was 4 miles round trip but we decided to go up a little further and see if we could find the abandoned mine- so I think it might have ended up being 6 miles. It was so beautiful up there just making my love of autumn more concrete. The ghost town was cool and the old buildings were exciting to go through!!
Saturday night Andi and I went into town (Silverthorn and Frisco) for the Women’s Broadcast. On the way we stopped at some outlets and after at least 20 pairs I found a pair of jeans-yay. And even better, they were marked down to $6.00- how can you beat that? The Broadcast was great (they fed up cheese cake in the middle of it) and I loved President Uchtdorf’s talk.
And of course we played games every night!!! It was so much fun to go up and see Mat, Andi and the kids. We defiantly had adventures and got to spend it with family!! It was a great BirthWEEK!
Crazy Faces!!
Our camera has a front view, so you can see yourself while you take a picture. It is always so much fun to make faces and be goofy. Here are pictures of Alex, Melinda and Me on September 19th.
Ron't 70th Birthday!!
W e have had a lot of Birthday’s this month. One of them was Ron’s 70th birthday! We had a big family dinner (equip with ‘over the hill’ candles) and told Ron that he didn’t ask for anything so we didn’t get him anything. He didn’t mind, he was pretty content with his pies.
BUT the next day his secret present arrived, a ridding lawn mower (and snow plow). When it was delivered we hid it behind the car and told him to come outside. He was excited, but as only Ron could, suppressed his overwhelming childish excitement. He was instructed how to do it, took one lap around the yard and still wanted to play with it- so he mowed all the lawns. It was fun to see him so happy and excited. Happy Birthday Ron!
A couple weeks later was Nedra's Birthday. It was so much fun celebrating with her.
 |
| Jacob doing Heavy Heavy Hangover with Nedra! |
Longmont Preparedness Fair
Mom and Dad got to participate in the Longmont Stake Preparedness Fair. I honestly did not know what to expect from a Preparedness Fair. I expected to see two to three tables set up in the gym with occasional members coming to check it out- boy was I wrong. This fair was publicized in the Longmont newspaper, there were signs on the streets and it welcomed everyone (members and nonmembers). The gym was full of booths (all coordinating in color), there were classes in rooms throughout the church and the parking lot was full of other displays.
Mom and Dad were in charge of the Food Storage portion. They had displays showing why to have food storage, how much is a 3 months, 6 months and year supply, ideas for storage (both how to store the food and where to store the food) and other facts about food storage preparedness. It was so cool to go see Mom and Dad in action (answering questions, ect) but I also learned a lot from the fair. I walked around and learned about water purification, bread making, gardening, Non-food emergency items, dry food canning and much more. It was so cool and I really learned a lot.
Go to www.preparednessfair2011.org for information and handouts.
Mom and Dad were in charge of the Food Storage portion. They had displays showing why to have food storage, how much is a 3 months, 6 months and year supply, ideas for storage (both how to store the food and where to store the food) and other facts about food storage preparedness. It was so cool to go see Mom and Dad in action (answering questions, ect) but I also learned a lot from the fair. I walked around and learned about water purification, bread making, gardening, Non-food emergency items, dry food canning and much more. It was so cool and I really learned a lot.
Go to www.preparednessfair2011.org for information and handouts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
