2009 - a great year!

As I predicted back in January of 09, it was an amazing year. One that I don't know if we'll ever top. Right now I'm okay with that, on top of being a lot of fun, 2009 was exhausting and I wouldn't mind a quieter year in 2010. As soon as we get back from Liberia ...

But one thing that strikes me is that even if you take out our life-list type feats, it was still a pretty good year! I attribute that to the Colorado lifestyle and the good friends we've made here in Fort Collins. So for this post, I want to reflect on the more "normal" good times of 2009, the ones that make day-to-day life in the Choice City.

In January, we went snowshoeing at Lake Agnes near Cameron Pass with Nick and Levi. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time sliding across the frozen lake!


In February I went to one of my favorite place, Moab, with two of my favorite people, Michelle and Rachel. Here we are at our campsite with enough supplies for a week:
And we traveled back to Atlanta to visit Chris' grandfather, who since then has turned 90 and gotten remarried! :)

In March and April I taught at Colorado College in Co. Springs. On a weekend back in the Fort, Chris and I went on an urban hike around the city. We saw fox, deer, made a snowman, and had some fun with the prairie dogs (look for the prairie dog and snowball in the picture ... no animals were harmed in the making of this picture):


Chris also came to the Springs for a weekend and we hiked around the Garden of the Gods. I worked a ton while down there but one positive was finding just enough spare time to explore the natural beauty of this area.


May brought us spring and the beginning of our athletic pursuits - the Colorado half marathon, and a great weekend for the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic in Durango.


We went on a couple other hikes with Nick and Levi - first a failed attempt up Mt Spalding (a thirteener next to Mt. Bierstad) where we fought willows and mud and ultimately had to turn around near the summit due to thunder. Then a beautiful hike near Pingree Park, which was a little longer than expected but extraordinarily scenic. And in July, Chris and I traveled to the Cloud Peak wilderness in Wyoming for a weekend of sitting by the campfire trying to stay warm and fend off mosquitos. We'll have to go there again sometime, the mountains were beautiful!
Hiking up Spalding:

Captain of the campfire in Pingree Park:

Chris & I in the Cloudpeak Wilderness:


The lesser talked about part of our Europe trip is the week in Jena, Germany for the International CO2 Conference. I took an afternoon off and Chris and I explored the city, including a small festival where we rode a ferris wheel. We also visited the Buchenwald concentration camp. That was an experience I won't forget, it was VERY sad but a good thing to see. One of the wierdest things about it was the camp was on a hill overlooking a town - I just don't understand how people could be going about their normal life just a few miles away.




In October, we went on a nice hike in RMNP for our sixth anniversary. After hiking in Switzerland, it was a great reminder that we live in a pretty amazing place, too! Just an hour from our house is some of the best scenery in the country, how lucky are we?



In November we traveled back east - for me the trip included a visit to friends in Lexington, KY and my brother in Nashville. Chris also finally taught me how to throw a cast net in our feeble attempt to catch shrimp. Turns out it isn't so easy from the banks of a marsh.


And we ended the year with a relaxing Christmas at home. Here is Chris showing off his favorite present.