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Pining for Colorado

I am an Okie from Muskogee. Just like Merle Haggard says in the song.  I've lived in Oklahoma all my life, well almost.  Several years ago, Shawn and I talked it over with our children and we all decided to pack up and move to Colorado.  Shawn is a mountain boy at heart, having grown up in Idaho and I just loved the mountains.  We decided we wanted to give it a try lest we should grow old and regret never doing something we'd long talked about.  We wanted to experience the numerous outdoor activities and natural beauty Colorado offers.  And we did.  We spent weekends on long drives, visited National parks, hiking, exploring and with the long ski season we were at Breckenridge every weekend skiing and snowboarding our hearts out.   As I look back now, it seems as if it were a year long vacation, a dream, a very pleasant dream.  One I try to dream of often.

Today I'm sharing just a few photos from our year in Colorado.  So sadly many of our photos we had stored on one of our computers were lost when it crashed. We learned to back them up...the hard way.

We lived in the Southern part of Colorado Springs, nestled into the foothills of Cheyenne Mountain, part of the Rampart Range.  Norad lay within Cheyenne Mountain.  We had a huge deck that ran the length of the back of the house.  It looked down over the entire city.  The view below is a zoom shot of Garden of the Gods which was about 7 miles directly North of our back deck.  Garden of the Gods is known for its unique rock formations.

These were taken in the park at Garden of The Gods.  There are trails for hiking, walking and bike riding throughout the park.



The below photos is of four of my nieces, my son Trevor and my two girls (our youngest three) taken at the base of Pikes Peak.  
We went fishing here at Crystal Lake often.  Pikes Peak is one of Colorado's 54 14ers...the term given to those mountains with elevations of 14,000 feet or more.  
* Wikipedia says 53 14ers minus one or two.  Coloradans say 54.
  

Pikes Peak is the most visited mountain in the United States.  We were so fortunate to buy a pass and go there often.  Below is a view from atop the mountain.


When we first moved to Colorado it all seemed so strange, having left all of our family, all of our friends...we were alone.   The first few weeks we noticed to the West of us, higher in the mountain, a building of sorts which looked like a castle turret jetting up from the mountain.  At night, it stood gloriously lit against the darkness of the mountain for the whole city to see.  I wondered what it was and why it was so brightly lit.  We took a drive up through the zoo, yes you drive right through the zoo to go up here and found that it was a Memorial to Will Rogers.  I think most know who he is and if you're from Oklahoma...by golly you have to know who Will Rogers is...he never met a man he didn't like!  My piece of Oklahoma was  but several hundred feet away from my home.   I could walk out onto the deck, day or night and see it in all its glory standing tall.  It was, is, beautiful.


This view from the shrine is the same view we had from our deck, just a little different angle.  We were over to the right side, East just a bit.  The tailored grounds below are that of the Broadmoor hotel and golf course.  We drove by it several times a day taking our children to and from school.  You can see downtown further back into the photo.

I have to give credit to my sister for all these photos.  She's got a talent for photography and has enjoyed it for years.  We loved living above the city with mountain views directly West and North and the plains to the East.  The following pictures she took from our deck at night as we watched a magnificent lightning storm out on the Eastern plains.


 A night view from the deck, looking North East.





Dream Awake (by me)

I wish to sit a moment and take in the quiet still of the day
For too soon it will take its slumber and slowly drift away

Whilst still here I will reach for the day soon gone by
And as the light does begin to drift, so to shall I

Dream awake about a place of tranquil respite found
An abode within my mind I have created in abound

I close my eyes for moments and often want for more
To ponder myself upon the things I question of my lore

Somewhere there is harmony between life and ones dreams
One must pause to remember though time not ample it seems

So my mind still drifting as descending is the time
Wonder now, is time not itself to be considered as sublime?

© 2001 Nancy M Roberts




And of course, what would my post be without a piece of transferware?  I found this on Ebay after we'd moved back to Oklahoma.  I got it for Shawn.....ok I got it for me too.  We miss Colorado so.  I look out to the West often and imagine the Rockies are there.  I close my eyes.  I visualize.  I smile...and I cry.


Don't forget to enter my giveaway HERE for a $100 gift certificate!

Linking to Outdoor Wednesday hosted by A Southern Dreamer and

Notes from A Cottage Industry for Weekly Words to Live By

Dippity Road for Friday, Finding Beauty

 Blue Monday at Smiling Sally. Be sure to visit Sally for lots of fabulous blue posts!

Comments

  1. Someday I hope to make it to see these beautiful places in person. Your photos are lovely and remind me of the history I have read about from this area.

    Being from the East Coast these are views we don't see.

    Have a happy day!

    Becky K.

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  2. Nancy, what a beautiful tribute to your precious Colorado! Such wonderful pictures. The children are adorable! I love the view from your deck.
    Yvonne

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  3. Hi Nancy, so nice to meet you. Thanks for visiting Life is Good! I'm a CO girl since 1983. We're in Longmont. Your photos are lovely, and your tribute to our state just wonderful. Where are you now? Back in OK? I'm looking forward to getting to know you better as your new follower.

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  4. Good Morning Nancy!
    I am so glad that you found my blog! It means that I get to read and enjoy your blog :) Gorgeous pictures, and I can tell that the memories sure do warm your heart. I'm going to have to sit down and read through your entire blog. I adore the dishes!
    I want to add you to my blog list! Your blog is too awesome not to share!
    Have a great day, and I will catch up with you soon :)

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  5. Colorado certainly is beautiful. My Son, his wife and my grandson packed up and moved there 6 years ago. My son is a hiker, runner, river raft rider etc etc etc. They live in Buena Vista. We do miss them but the mountains called to them too. Love your blog. Beautiful nite time shots.

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  6. Hi Miss Nancy - I'm just out strolling this morning, enjoying the view. Your in it! Please enclude me in you drawing, I am crazy in love with what I see here. I LOVE DISHES. I need to look more. I had an antique brown and cream dish that I tried to collect, but couldn't find anywhere so finally in a move my dish got lost. I still think about it though - it was true love.

    Hugs
    cindy@stitches

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  7. Dear Nancy ~
    Thank you so much for stopping by to visit! Love the photos and I'm a collector of plates so I enjoy seeing yours.
    I'm joining as a follower !

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  8. We try to get to the Rocky Mountains in Estes Park every year and always add in a trip to Colorado Springs to make the trip up Pike's Peak. There is nothing on earth as beautiful as the Rocky Mountains. I gain so much inspiration from Colorado and always return home with a cleared head and a refreshed spirit. Thanks for sharing your lovely photos....my spirit needed this!

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  9. Nancy,
    Beautiful pictures... I would love to visit Pike's Peak sometimes. Hubby and I also outdoor people. We like to hike, canoe and scuba dive.

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  10. What a lovely group of photos-- I live in Utah and have to admit I have not seen half of the wonderfuls that surround me.

    Each year my to do list gets longer.

    If you get a change to join us on Friday~~Finding Beauty I would love for you to share your Beauty! Its lovely.

    If you get a chance would love for you to stop by and say hi.

    TTFN Claudia ♥ ♥

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  11. How fortunate to have such a lovely view of your corner of the world....God truly created some beautiful works of art!! Thanks for sharing!

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  12. Beautiful post! The photos are stunning and so is that plate! Your poetry is beautiful too. laurie

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  13. What a beautiful post. How wonderful that you were able to follow your dream. When I was readidng the post I got the impression that you had moved to Colorado permanently. What brought you back to OK?

    - The Tablescaper

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  14. Nancy,

    Thanks for following and your kind words. How blessed your family is to have you... your children are beautiful by the way =)

    I do love the poem! I love this line "An abode within my mind I have created in abound" because I surely have an abode in my mind!!
    love, lisa

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  15. Such a BEAUTIFUL state in many ways. I really enjoyed seeing your pictures, especially the night sky with lightning! You have a talent with words too. :)
    Thanks for your visit. I loved those napkins too and wish I had gotten 4 more last year.

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  16. Nancy,
    What gorgeous pictures of your Colorado. You sound like you really miss that time in your life. I've never been, but my son-in-law is from Boulder. I can only imagine the beauty there. Your purple transferware plate is a beautiful reminder of your time there.

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  17. Yery impressive pictures. Thank you for showing. Greetings from Germany, Johanna

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  18. love all of your pictures especially the ones of all the kids. What wonderful memories you have shared.
    hugs, Cherry

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  19. Glorious post!! Colorado is a must~see. We never get to go that way from Houston because we are always heading West to North Carolina...those are beautiful mountains too. I have been really wanting to go back thru Co, Utah, New Mexico area with our kids.

    By the way...great shots of the cousins!!

    Love your Pike's Peak transferware too.

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  20. Thanks for sharing with us your Colorado journey. Loved it!

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  21. Hi Nancy~I know exactly what you mean about missing Colorado. My husband, oldest son and I lived there for 18 months, while hubby attend University of Colorado @ Boulder. I loved Boulder and the entire state and was so sad when our time was up. You have brought back great memories of a wonderful state. Thank you!

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  22. Nacy what goegeous and scenic photos! I am truly blown away by the beauty you have shared with us here.

    Thank you very much for your sweet visit my friend. You are always welcome to visit my blog anytime.

    ~Blessings, ~Melissa :)

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  23. Whenever you want to come back to Colorado for a visit just let me know! We have a big house and would love to have you- not close to Breckenridge- we live in SE Colorado but lots of great things here too!

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  24. What absolutely beautiful views! Love the night shots of the lightning. It makes me want to visit Colorado even more than I already did. It is high on my list of places to visit. Thank you for sharing your sweet memories with us.

    ~ Tracy

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  25. I've visited Pike's Peak and viewed the dizzingly views. Happy Blue Monday.

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  26. wow!!! amazing scenery :) thanks for sharing!

    u may view mine here

    ReplyDelete

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