Tales of the Ordinary Days

A favorite picture of my sons. Three brothers sitting on a train. A subway in Chicago to be exact. The year was 2014 with Ben ending his high school years. Grant was finishing 8th grade. Zach was preparing to move to Colorado to begin gunsmithing school. They were oblivious to my picture taking. From Ben's school jacket and untied shoe to Zach casually leaning on his youngest brother's shoulder with Grant's ever-prominent coif of hair, I find myself going back to this picture. A snapshot in time. Yesterday Garrett and I took the train from the Rockie's game. As I sat in my seat next to my husband, I stared ahead at a space similar to the one that occupied my sons those years ago. I could visualize the picture of the boys in my mind's eye. Three years has passed. A lot has happened in the last three years. As my mind wandered, Garrett chatted with me about some of his recent conversations. Strangers filled the spaces around us, coming on and off the trai

Today my husband is closing out his ski season; looking to get the last breaths out of winter as seasons officially transition. So different from years past, I have only skied once this year. Today I am in Nebraska. Garrett is in Jackson Hole. Not my year for fun in the white fluff. At least not mountain style. My Colorado ski trips started long before meeting my Colorado husband. With three young sons, a decision was made in 2006 to try a family ski trip. I randomly chose Copper Mountain in Colorado and booked a week around President's Day weekend. Complete novices to this sport, we took our first road trip to the Rocky Mountains. It was an adventure starting with ski schools and learning the basics. None of us had touched a ski or board before. We were taught the differences between blue, green, and black runs. On our third day, we were all out of 'school' and ready to tackle the slopes together. Thinking we knew what we were doing, the five of us (led by two par