General Butler

We returned from our trip out west on June 19th late on a Friday evening. We had Saturday to mow, weed, water and that's just the outside! We had bags, suitcases, and various packages all over the family room...plus small piles of "clean/unworn and dirty" clothes from two weeks away. Although the house was far from "clean" we had Fathers Day and celebrated daddy's 89th birthday at our house on Sunday. Most all the family came and we enjoyed the day to the fullest. At the end of the day, when most had left, Stephanie & Ben, Sarabeth & Clay, Clyde and I all played wiffle ball. First the "girls" played while the "boys" played corn hole. Then they joined us for a "slamming" game of ball. It was a fun day.

Anyone who knows my sisters know they NEVER make small dishes. This picnic was no exception. They told me that if I hosted the party, they would bring all the dishes! Well, that sounded like a win\win situation to me. So, I made a Chocolate Brownie Cobbler (I will post this recipe when I'm home...so easy and so good...it makes it's own sauce) and I dipped a plate of chocolate strawberries...lemonade and iced tea and they made all the rest. Mom actually bought a huge box of fried chicken and made a corn casserole. The nieces may have helped, but mostly Martha and Bev made it all. Oh, I forgot, Stephanie brought dressed eggs from her chickens she and Ben raise. These chickens are loved and taken care of like children.

I don't have my camera in the room here and I planned to write all about General Butler..that is what I "titled" this blog...however, either I am losing connection, or this laptop is driving me nuts, as my curser keeps "jumping" and the page keeps "minimizing"...crazy!! So, I will try to post this and download photos when I get back home. I will just say that General Butler has been a blessing to the Baker family for many years. It remains so today.

We have met many nice people along our journey, this one is from Texas. She had boots to match each outfit. She showed me some green ones that were made of Stingray skin.

This Italian restaurant was recommended to us several times. It was worth the walk...and wait! I had a chicken dish with wine sauce (I think....it was red), with mushrooms & breaded eggplant. A salad and yummy bread...so reasonable and so good. I think the name is Sweet Basil....

This is Estes Park, Co., and I loved it best! Well, best for shopping/looking. Couldn't compare it to the mountains or canyons, but it was so fun.

Well, this is the end of my journaling this road trip. Clyde sure planned the best vacation for me. He was very good at any stop I wanted/needed, any browsing, just all around sweet. He kept me hydrated (Colorado air!) with ice tea, so you know we had many stops. Once I couldn't make it to the next port a potty, so I popped a squat. Clyde said he saw more than one "bare" that day. I wanted to end by saying how much I love and appreciate my family and friends. I honestly did not think one time of my flowers or the yard. Thank you Jason Allen for all the mowing!!!! We love you and appreciate your being so willing to do it. Thank you brother, Kent, for being so helpful and willing to water! Believe me...if anything died or didn't make it, I won't hold it against you...I figure the flowers have been watered more since I've been gone than I ever do with work! Thanks Becky, Austin, Matthew & Maggie for the watering! Thanks for your support on the blog and prayers. I love all you guys. To my friends who offered to water, Vickie & Michelle, I would have used you if the rain had not come. Kent could handle it, since God helped out so much. You guys are the best...this has been just an amazing trip and I did it without any worry or concern. Sisters, thanks for reading my blog and prayers on our behalf. I'll do the same for you when you go to Arizona and Alaska next! See you all on Sunday. Blessings.

Last Stop

The motel is the one Terry remodeled last Summer...AmericInn. I LOVED it!!!

This photo of Clyde is after we left the AmericInn and visited Redstone, Co. where Terry M. told us to go. It was a neat little one street town. The last blog was a picture of me beside a big waterfall...the same place. Hope all these words come out near the picture they were meant to!

This blogging thing isn't as easy as it appears! My layouts are "lame" to say the least. The words are under the photos, the photos are crooked, and I can't seem to edit! Oh well...this is our last stop before heading home tomorrow morning. Today we spent the day starting out looking for a falls named Adams Falls...we hiked a short distance then got separated! So, we saw the water as it was coming down the mountain, but never made it to the actual falls! Next, we drove on into the Rocky Mountain National Park and drove up to over 12,000 feet. We saw so many elk we couldn't count them all. The day was cloudy and VERY cold. Up the mountains and to the top was about 45 degrees. We kept the top down on the way up, with our jackets on it wasn't too bad. Clyde likes to see out too and the top down helps a lot. Then, at the visitors center on the very top of the Rockies, we put the top up. We are out of the Rockies now and in the neatest looking town so far...Estes Park. We have a nice room in a very cool "Rocky" type motel and after this blog, we're heading into the town. From here, we're heading home. No more mountains! Just too many miles of flat land! See you all on Sunday...thanks for following our trip. I know it's not an Alaskan Cruise (that WE DO want to see) but it has been amazing. Love you all.

Hi guys, thanks for your comments. Yesterday was great. Redstone, Co. was a small little one street town that we browsed around. There was a nice waterfall outside of town...I will try posting a photo. Aspen was OK. We ate at a little bakery, cafe on the street...iced tea $3.00 and a turkey sandwich $12.00...however that didn't keep us from both ordering dessert.

Martha & Bev, Sunday should be fine. As long as our grass is mowed and the backporch decent...we're good to go. We plan to be home on Fri. so really this is no problem. If it's OK with you guys, just pass the word.

I will make this short, as my battery is under 10% and Clyde is not in here...so the cord isn't either! We are heading into the Rocky Natl. park and Estes Park. The lady here said we should see many elk and deer. Love you all...this is our last day so we'll start back tomorrow morning.

Hello from Eagle, Colorado! We just arrived here while driving through Glenwood Springs. It was spectacular. This is where my best highschool friend, Janice (Smith) Bevins lived for years before she and her husband moved to Africa a couple of years ago. Driving along the Colorado River that wound through Glenwood Springs with the canyon walls following along the way, it made tears come to my eyes. I was so glad she has lived in such a beautiful place for so long while she was away from her Lexington family.

We came here which was a little off our path to stay at the motel that Terry Meenach helped build. He lived here for the year or so while he worked here. It's name is AmericInn and I love it. It is beautiful! We have a wonderful suite with a living room, nice dressing room, and big bedroom. It is much nicer than we EVER stay for a lot less money...free! Thanks Terry...we owe you. After posting this, we plan to run down to the hot tub...if I hurry...Clyde is worn out.

Today we started from Bryce Canyon and traveled to Arches National Park in Utah. Arches was fine but after seeing all the beautiful canyons, the formations were just OK to me! I am spoiled. They really were amazing, but the surrounding area just wasn't beautiful. Back in Colorado, the scenery is again awesome. Tomorrow we will travel to Aspen, Independence Pass and the Rockies National Park. Busy day. Thanks, Bev, for your support and prayers. Each great photo shot, I think of you. Becky, most minutes of the day...I think of you. Love you.

P.S. Bev & Martha, check your calendars and see if we can have a celebration of dad's birthday at our house. I will make a short (!) movie to share. However, if the family (mom) wants to go out, we are 100% OK either way.

Vegas Baby

It's Saturday, June 13th, and this is our last night in Vegas. It's been a real eye opener for me. I loved the Fremont Experience in Old Vegas. There was a street canopy that has a light show every hr. on the hour. It was amazing. There were artists painting, musicians playing, and free shows on every corner. Very bright and fun. We just ate at Tony Roma's and the Hilton Grand is fine. I loved the pool this afternoon...very sunny and warm...cold spell for Vegas but great for us (91 degrees today). Clyde got the car washed and we will be on our way tomorrow to Utah Arches and the Canyon Lands. We put off getting a laptop for a few years and this year thought we would see about buying a mini...however, we wound up buying this laptop today that I am writing from. I will download a few photos now of our past week through Colorado and Arizona. They will not do justice to the beauty of the Grand Canyon. I was overwhelmed and simply amazed. It was God's creation at His best. Thanks for any prayers for our travel safety. Blessings. P.S. Thanks, Becky, for updating us thus far! Also, you need to help me learn how to format this blogging thing! I am awful. My photos keep coming before my words...I need to learn to write a caption under the picture! The downloading has taken time and I am ready to get packing...so, this may be it. I will try to go on line again in a couple of days.

Hello Austin, Matthew and Maggie. I wanted you to see these pictures and know that nana and pap are traveling far from home. We will be back at the end of this week. Please keep learning the new words with mom and read me a story when we get back. I sure miss you and love you a lot. Kiss, Kiss, Kiss.

Update from the Snow-Capped Mountains

Paraphrased message from Debbie, written by Becky...

It’s 40 degrees here, and I'm freezing! We are looking to buy a fleece jacket right now. I’m looking at the snow-capped mountains all around me. It’s beautiful. We are in Silverton, CO. It’s an old western mining town. There are tons of little shops. We are leaving here today and going to Durango, and then on to Mesa Verde this evening.

Since last post, we have:

• ridden a train through the Royal Gorge in Canyon City.

• visited Black Canyon of the Gunnison in Gunnison CO. This was just on down the road from the train ride, on our way further west. The canyon was amazing...there was a point called "painted wall" that looked just like a painting. If you want go to see it there is an Internet site showing this canyon. Worth the trip back there (if you were nearby). The weather was wonderful.

• traveled to a nice town called Ouray. There were hot springs, however, it was early morning and very cool...around 50 degrees, windy and overcast. We would have white water rafted except for the fact there wasn't a morning trip. We could have gone all day...also one place said they would make a special trip for just Clyde and I but he wanted to go with a group....I just wasn't sure about the whole thing....thus the train ride. It was very nice.

We are enjoying the scenery…. beautiful wild flowers. The little shops and restaurants are great. We ate in a little bakery this morning. I am upset about the difficulty of the Internet. Also I didn’t bring anything to get my pictures from the camera to the computer. I need to buy a memory card reader that connects to the computer via USB. I hope to get some pictures to you soon.

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers! Blessings!

Colorado

It's Sunday at 12:30 (our time) 11:30 Colorado time and we are standing in the Welcome Center. The sun is shining and it is COOL. Already I like Colorado MUCH more than Kansas. we are heading for Canon City to go white water rafting tomorrow. I can't download any photos on this computer (I only have one of the Arch in St. Louis)...but I will try to do that tomorrow evening. Thanks for checking in with us. Love, Later, Bye! Clyde and Debbie

p.s. Clyde took me to eat at a wonderful place in Abilene to eat that reminded me of Claudia Sanders...the food was AWESOME and the atmosphere fun. We stopped at the Holiday Inn Express for the night early and had a relaxed evening. Wish me luck (or pray for me) tomorrow as we travel down the Arkansas River!!!

Latest look

Lilies in the pond are blooming and lots of lily pads!

Before we leave for the "wild west", here is how my garden looks.

Clyde is calling that he can't sleep until I come to bed?? So, one more picture of our night out celebrating Kent's 50th birthday (thanks for having it early for us!)

Early spring photos

Here is a picture of my hanging basket tree.

We put in a new coconut liner ($5) this year that gave new life to this hanging basket. I added a couple of wave petunias and a few "filler" flowers and it is taking off. This photo was a couple of weeks ago, it looks better now. I am pleased with the color combo and cost! Originally this basket was purchased at King's Garden Center for a mere $15.00 (end of the season!) It had cost $75.00 I believe at the beginning of the season.

I can thank my daughter for me starting my own blog. I have enjoyed hers to the limit and she has mentioned, several times, that I should start a "garden blog". To do this, to post photos, sounds to me like I am being a bit "boastful".....even naming my blog "Lantern's Garden" was hard for me! One of the prettiest yards or gardens on our street is the one down the street...not mine! However, I do love to "pretend" to be a gardener, if you can call it that when I don't even have one vegetable plant.
I have noticed how important blog names are and how memorable they need to be...I was lamenting over "Acre of Love", Nana's Garden, etc., when Clyde walked in and in one second said "Lantern's Garden". So, that it is.
It is my hope that you will enjoy the successes and not so successful flower beds, containers and comments I have posted as we go through the summer outdoors. Come join me!