Sorry that we've been out of the blogosphere again for awhile. Last weekend, John Payne came out to visit (for the 2nd time!) and we had a great time. This visit was just after the big snow, so there were still some remnants on the ground, and unfortunately, Joel was roped into "ice checks" the night John got into town...2 a.m. though, so it didn't mess up much besides sleep.

We think Hurley liked John.

We tried Saturday and Sunday to take the train up Pike's Peak, and thankfully called first- due to the snow, the train wasn't going all the way to the top, and we weren't too keen on going partially up America's Mountain. Saturday, we headed to Cripple Creek and struck it rich at the roulette table, and that evening (Halloween), we headed to the Golden Bee for pub food and sing-alongs. Joel and JP took part in a really really large beer:
The "Yard."
A view on the way back from Cripple Creek.

We went to Garden of the Gods on Sunday, and then to our friends the Smith's to eat. All in all, it was a great weekend!

This past week was pretty uneventful, except that Hurley can no longer reproduce. I took her with me to the clinic on Friday and spayed her. I think she was really confused that I kept poking her with needles and then my face was the last one she saw before being cut open. It didn't make it any better that we got home and Joel kept telling her, "Whit cut you open, Hurley- it wasn't me." Needless to say, I felt pretty guilty seeing her all mopey, so we went to PetsMart and got her a couple of toys to keep her occupied. One is a Kong (rubber bone that you can stick treats in...or in her case, liver flavored doggie squeeze cheese), and the 2nd was a 24" rawhide. This may have been the best $9 we've spent since we've had Hurley.
I'd take another picture today, but it looks about the same as it did the day we bought it.