The New Quirky Corgi Connection

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Book Fair Complete

I am pleased to announce that the Holy Trinity Winter Wonderland Middle School Book Fair finished this past week. It was the most stressful few weeks of my life! I am so relived it is over. I didn't make as much money as I would have liked, but I did make over $3,000 which I think is pretty good for my first book fair ever. It was good practice for the one I will be running in February that will be for the whole school. That should be my big money maker! Since I made over $3,000 I get 60% of the profits. I took part of that in book credits and part of it in cash in order to prepare for the next book fair. I was blessed (and cursed) to have so much help from the middle schoolers. They were BIG help, but they could drive me crazy! I am just happy that its over and that I am now on school break until January 3rd. Now we are off to Denver on Saturday and I can't wait. Merry Christmas!

Our Trip to Disneyland

Ryan and I went to Disneyland this past weekend to celebrate his birthday. We had a lot of fun and went on all our favorite rides (except for Thunder Mountain Railroad, but thats a story for another day). We stayed the night at a Marriot right across the street so we were able to have a more relaxing visit. We even had the opportunity to go to California Adventure for the first time. It was a lot of fun and Ryan especially enjoyed the "Soaring Over California" ride. We didn't spend too much time there, but hope to go back the next time we are in Disneyland. I have been very sick, so that made the trip a little harder but I pushed through so we could have a great time. Of course, now Ryan is sick and I am still sick but at least we had a good time in Anaheim!

New Job for Ryan...

...yes, I am still in the AF. In fact, I am still working for the same organization, the Space Superiority Systems Wing (SYSW). After two and a half years working in the technology division, they have decided to move me to one of our projects. I am very excited about this new job and looking forward to getting started after the New Year.

Penelope's First Piano Recital

Tonight was Penelope's first-ever piano recital. She played "Oh Christmas Tree" and appeared in the recital with several other students, including three of her cousins.

Also, Atticus wants to wish everybody a happy belated Thanksgiving! Here he is in his Turkey hat.

Happy Thanksgiving 2007!

Here's our modest Denver gathering. We ate well and had fun!

The plans for the rest of the weekend include several ambitious home improvement projects. That way we can stay home as much as possible and avoid the shopping madness!

Hope everyone had as wonderful of a Thanksgiving as I did.

Penelope loses her first tooth!

A proud day for Penelope today, as she lost her first tooth! Most of her friends have lost at least one tooth, so she was chomping at the bit (so to speak) to lose one herself. It's been very loose for some time, and finally this morning she agreed to have Daisy help pull it out.

Now we all wait (with bated breath) to see what the Tooth Fairy will bring!

Papel Picado Pumpkin

Thanks to my dad for the nomination for next year's pumpkin carving contest.

Here's this year's:


Inspired by the traditional Day of the Dead art papel picado, planned and executed between the time I got home from work and before the first trick-or-treater arrived, my pumpkin did receive a few compliments from parents. One asked me how many hours it took me, which makes me think that if I actually had the opportunity to spend hours on a pumpkin, (it took me longer to post this picture than it took to carve the pumpkin) it could result in some success. But then again, knowing myself, it would probably spiral out of control into a mess of complexity.

Still, I think I'd better start now if I hope to hold a candle (so to speak) to the competition in Minnesota and L.A.

Joan's New Job

The following news release was published about Joan and her new job:

20-Year Nonprofit and Child Welfare Veteran Joan Richardson to Lead East Denver Family to Family Site

Denver’s Family to Family collaborative has appointed Joan Richardson as its newest site coordinator. Richardson brings 20 years of experience in nonprofit work, including child welfare experience, to the collaborative.

She is based in the east Denver Family to Family site, Denver Children’s Home, and will work with families and children residing in Northeast Park Hill, North Park Hill, South Park Hill, City Park, Montclair, Hale, Hilltop, Goldsmith, Indian Creek, Southmoor Park, Kennedy, Hampden, Hampden South, University Hills, Virginia Village, Washington, Virginia Vale, and Windsor neighborhoods.
“Child welfare is near and dear to my heart,” said Richardson. “As part of the Family to Family collaborative we have a common goal of strengthening families and nurturing children. This practice looks beyond putting a band aid on both a child’s and family issues. It’s about continuing to think strategically about how to help better serve families in the long-term.”
Richardson has experience with infancy and early childhood programs, parenting classes, bridging community relationships, starting family support centers, working with local and state government agencies and advocating on behalf of better child welfare practices.
“Joan is a very approachable person, and I think anyone needing help can seek her out and feel comfortable having a safe, confidential conversation with her,” said Patricia Garcia, Family to Family Program Administrator at Denver Human Services. “She also has a complete understanding of how to bring both the community and human services together to strengthen programs for families and children.”
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About Family to Family
Family to Family is a shared effort between Denver Human Services, Colorado Human Services, seven neighborhood partners, hundreds of community liaisons, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation. These organizations collaborate to improve results for children and families. The practice focuses on safe, stable and educational services that improve the outcomes for families and children.
About Denver Children’s Home
Denver Children’s Home is the oldest nonprofit in Colorado. Throughout its 131-year history of service to the community it has adapted to meet the needs of the children and families who have turned to it for help. The mission is to provide a therapeutic, safe place for emotionally distressed children, adolescents and their families to heal and grow. The goal is to provide the highest quality mental health care to children with the greatest financial and emotional needs in a safe and stable environment.

Chicago!

Thursday Phil and I went to the Chicago Cultural Center.

I think this is the world's largest Tiffany dome.








We also went to the Art Institute. This time I saw American Gothic, The Child's Bath, several paintings by Winslow Homer, etc. that I hadn't seen previously. I revisited the Manets, Monets, Van Goghs, and Toulouse-Lautrecs.

On Friday, we went to the Field Museum, which was really full of kids. In retrospect, we should have done this on Saturday. There we saw Sue, the world's largest and most complete T-rex.

Then we went to the Glessner House, designed by Henry Hobson Richardson in the historic Prairie Avenue district. The docent wasn't so great on this tour, but the house was interesting.

We also went to the Lincoln Park Zoo, one of the nation's oldest and free to the public 365 days a year.


Saturday we took the El to Oak Park where we visited the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio. Very interesting. Just walking around Oak Park we spotted six other FLW homes and the Unity Temple.

We came back to Chicago and took in the Shedd Aquarium. I think the highlight there is the baby beluga whale!

As we were walking back to the loop, we fortuitously passed the Berghoff and stopped in for a homemade brew. We finally ended up at Daley plaza to see the local Halloween celebrations, which included jugglers and acrobatic jump-ropers, and sliding down the Picasso statue on your coat.

On the way home, I had a moment to visit with the Blues Brothers.

In preparation for the great carving contest of 2008.

Hi gang! The Minnesota McGuire/Rohlfsen clan would like to start an annual pumpkin carving contest/challenge starting next October 2008. A grand prize winner will be determined by votes on the blog.

The competition looks steep...

Can't wait to see what next years pumpkins will look like.

Pumpkin Carvings - Day 1

Well, that time of year has come to put knife to orangy flesh. It has been a few years since my last pumpkin carving, but I think I did alright. The first one is a penguin family. The second one is a cornucopia. I made a small mistake on that one, but it still looks ok. Sometime this week, I am going to carve an image of Indy into a large pumpkin. It will be interesting to see how that turns out. Rosie has plans to carve a cat and moon image as well. The last image is of the Linux penguin, Tux, that I did a few years back. Post your pumpkins!

Autumn Happenings

Ryan and I have been extremely busy this Autumn. I put away all of our Summer decorations and pulled out our Autumn ones. Its always nice to have Autumn-type things in your house, especially since the leaves don't change here. Ryan bought me a sewing machine, which I am still trying to figure out. I was able to use it to sew a "button hole" which I was pretty impressed with. I am excited to make more projects in the near future.
I have also been very busy with work. I FINALLY finished decorating the library, which is something I love to do. I will have to post some pictures of my library when I get a chance. I am also getting the hang of everything much better now. I am excited because I just got a new computer and printer and will hopefully have internet sometime this week. It will definately make my work a lot easier! The kids are great (mostly), but its hard to keep track of 200 students. It is getting better, though.
Now that Autumn is here, we are also getting ready for Halloween time. This means, of course, that I bought a new bandana for Indy and make him wear it around the house. Here is what he looks like:


Here is Indy wearing my cat costume ears- it took 50 pictures to get this one shot. But he looks sooo cute!
Tomorrow we are going to a pumpkin patch with our friends the Hagens. We are looking forward to picking out pumpkins and carving them. We will have to put up pictures of that later this week.
Hopefully everyone's Autumn is going as well as ours!

Mistakes Were Made

1 home improvement project gone bad.

1 trip to the emergency room.

20 stitches to Phil's forehead.

dolphins, sea turtles, seasickness, oh-my!

This morning Ryan and I woke up at 4:45am for a 7-1/2 hour snorkel tour of the Na Pali coast and Niihau Island. We checked in and hopped, barefoot, on the 60 foot catamaran. As we cruised up the Na Pali Coast, we enjoyed a bumpy breakfast complete with pineapple and tea (perfect for me!). The views were spectacular. We were even fortunate enough to see some dolphin pods and even a sea turtle or two. It was fantastic! Unfortunately the water was very choppy. Not only did poor Ryan get seasick, but we had to head back to port early without having snorkeled. Oh well, it was still a fun day (for me at least!)

Big Update from Kaua'i

We haven't posted an update in a little while, so we have a lot to cover.

First, Rosie and I decided to become full members of Shell Vacation Club. So, we are now proud owners of a time share. We are staying in one of our properties the next two nights. It is amazing! Here are some pictures. The last two pictures are of a monk seal we saw while taking a tour of our time share.Second, we went kayaking up the Wailua River. Part way up the river, we pulled up on shore and hiked to Secret Falls. It was a great site for a picnic which we brought with. No pictures from this part of the trip because we used a water proof camera.

Last, we went to a beautiful beach on the north shore. The beach is called Pali Ke Kua or Hideaways Beach. We had to hike down what they called stairs and a very slick, muddy trail. In the end, it was well worth it. Here are some pictures.

Rosie on the trail to the beach

Day 2 in Kauai

Yesterday was another amazing day here in Kaua'i. We went to the Kauai Coffee Company, the largest coffee plantation in Hawaii, and then went to the Waimea Canyon. It was really fun at the coffee planation because we were able to taste the different types of coffee they make there. They also had a coffee maze that we walked through. At the canyon, we got to see some breath-taking views and enjoy a different part of Kauai all together. We hope you enjoy the pictures!

Rough Riding

One of the funniest parts of our trip today was trying to drive to the elusive "Barking Sands Beach." Rumor has it that when the sand is VERY dry it sounds like barking dogs when you walk on it. Unfortunately we were unable to find out if this rumor was true or not. Instead of making it to the Barking Sands Beach, we found ourselves on a very rough road to what was a supposed state park. After getting whiplash while driving along the road, and getting our car stuck in a sand dune, we finally made it to a beautiful beach. The trip up there was quite the adventure. This short video clip shows you what I mean.

Kauai - First Day Photos

Rosie at Hanalei Valley Lookout. Those are all fields of taro.


Rosie and I finally see the Hawaiian State Bird, the Nene!

Rosie at Polihale State Park.

Polihale State Park

Rosie and Ryan driving back after a long first day on Kauai.

24 hours of Kauai

Rosie and I have been on Kauai for a little over 24 hours now and we have had a blast! Things started out a little rough when the airline lost Rosie's luggage, but we were determined to make the best of it. After a quick trip to Oahu and a little airshow from the Blue Angels, Rosie's luggage final made it to Kauai last night around 9pm.

Today we decided to do a driving tour of the island. We started off by driving as far north as we could, Haena State Park. From there, we turned around and headed to the other end of the island. We ended up at Polihale State Park at a beautiful sandy beach with Niihau in the distance. When then headed back to our suite for dinner. Rosie will post pictures later tonight.

Carrie Turns 30, Life Changes Overnight!

Monday, August 27, I woke up to a strange new world. As the day progressed, it just kept getting stranger.

1. I was suddenly 30 years old. {sob}
2. I had a new, unprecedented taste for iced tea. What the???
3. Soon, I was in front of a group of 7-year-olds, speaking Spanish, and in charge of teaching them a curriculum I had never seen before and couldn't find. Aaack!
4. Later, I found myself back in college, complete with the growling stomach, and drooping eyelids....for three hours. Who would've guessed??

But I was ultimately rewarded when Phil presented me with a blueberry pie with a cute frog candle in it, and guide book to Chicago. Chigaco!! He's taking me in October.

It almost makes up for the fact that in spite of getting a brand new tent and other accoutrements from the family, I didn't get to take my annual birthday camping trip this year. I hope to break it in soon, though!

Back 2 School

With classes starting up, Kelly's teaching and Patrick's college courses, life is getting busy. According to our wedding website (http://kmcguireandprohlfsen.weddings.com/) we have 258 days to go till our wedding! We are really excited to celebrate with our family and friends. We have a lot of the planning done and lots more to do. Thanks for starting this blog up Rosie!

Dinner at Patrick's. What about this picture says that we're not married yet?

-Patrick Rohlfsen and Kelly McGuire

The Quirky Corgi Connection Intro

Calling all Richardson and McGuire family members! I have created this blog in order to keep us better in touch with one another. So sign up and start blogging! Upload your pictures, funny stories, and messages so we can all see how things are going! It should be a lot of fun!