Watercoloring

Signing up for a watercolor class was easy. Getting the message from the teacher we’d paint outdoors was both exciting and scary. I’ve done less than 10 painting in my life, and in the past 5 years only coloring book images. Out in the open sounded way more visible than I’d anticipated.

With just six in the class we carpooled up Mount Evans to Echo Lake, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echo_Lake_Park arriving at 10am the air was chilly and there was a breeze. Hiking around the perimeter of the lake looking for a protected spot the breeze grew stronger.

After setting up the wind changed directions and drawing and holding our paper down at the same time was a problem. A fisherman at the next the next turn in offers his spot with wonderful bushes breaking the wind.

Janet is a wonderful teacher because she breaks everything down into little steps and gives advice with liberal does of praise. We spend the morning drawing. The first sketches to catch the essence of the scene are just a bunch of squiggled lines. Then we draw the scene again concentrating on light and dark values. Finally we draw a contour of the scene on our watercolor paper.

Now the sun is high and the wind calm. I try to figure out how to paint in 10,000+ feet altitude where the pain dries as quickly as I apply it in the bright sun. The teacher comes over and drowns the color blocks I have. Wow, would never have guessed I could use so much water. I’ve been dry coloring instead of water coloring and didn’t know it.

Families walk the lake and stop to watch and talk. A couple’s young kids ask to look up close. They ooo and aaahh at each with big eyes.

At the end of class I take a deep breath as my turn arrives to share my work. I have a lot to learn, but that’s okay. I had fun and want to do more. For now I’ll just label my work so everyone knows what it is.

Bear

Last week we decided to look for a puppy. Both boys wrote in their journals at the end of school they wanted one during the summer so they could spend a lot of time with it. This week Tad and I are asking ourselves, “Why are we looking for a dog?” But of course that hasn’t stopped us.

At first our search was the local shelters. Unfortunately there were no puppies and the younger dogs they had didn’t like cats. We looked for a Labradoodle, but there were none available locally, and the ones from breeders started at $1,000+. Next we thought about the Siberian Husky Justin had seen and wanted. Researching on the Internet and asking all our friends changed our minds. The idea of a big hyper dog with dog hair falling off in buckets didn’t sound appealing.

We decided not to try a new breed. If Labs are the best dogs in the world, why should we?

Our 12 year old chocolate lab is hard to see at night in the backyard so we didn’t decided to go light—the lighter the better.

The woman we called in nearby Morrison was happy to hear from us The puppies had just turned 6 weeks old and she was ready for them to have new homes’ with a houseful of puppies and two toddlers she was r-e-a-l happy to hear from us.

We didn’t tell the boys when we finally located a dog so when we loaded them in the car they had no idea where we were going. The only female not spoken for in the litter was not perky as the woman had told us, but extremely active. The largest, lightest, most laid-back dog is what we left with. We decided almost immediately to call him Bear—he looked like a fuzzy honey colored bear.

The vet told us Bear was 100% healthy and the cutest dog she’d ever seen. As the proud owner of a new puppy we believed her completely.

For Grant’ birthday we surprise the boys by driving up to Elitch Gardens and telling them we had season passes.

Elitch is an amusement park on the outskirts of downtown Denver that was originally independently owned, then owned by Six Flags, and now independent again. The park is small with visual similarities to Six Flags. The teenagers that work here are cheerful and talkative to everyone.

We spend the day on rides until the boys get dizzy enough to stop for a while and have food. We sit eating pizza and corn dogs under a canopy next to a roller coaster that sling shots riders forward and then backwards high in the air. This is the first official “thrill” ride Grant has become hooked on. I can see him becoming a roller coaster connoisseur, trying different types of coasters. Good thing Elitch has a good selection.

When end the day in the water park. The huge wave pool is fun and the water feels wonderful after slow cooking on the asphalt sidewalks. The lazy river turns out to be worth the wait and gives us a chance to see the slides and other water rides we will come back to check out.