Going Up In Smoke.

Last night, I couldn't fall asleep after hearing there was a fire on the grounds of the Air Force Academy. They said that they had it 100% contained, and they figured it was a result of a lightening strike, but I couldn't help but wonder, if they really had it under control. This morning when I woke up, they said that the fire was actually only 50% contained. I never really heard much more about that fire, because not long after I heard the update on it, all hell broke loose.

Colorado is on fire. Again.

Less than a year after the Waldo Canyon Fire consumed 346 homes and killed 2 people in Colorado Springs, and the High Park Fire destroyed 259 homes, killing one person near Fort Collins, the fires have started anew.

We were warned yesterday that today would be ripe with exceptionally high fire danger. Our relative humidity was only 3% today. That's low, even for Colorado. Our temperatures were to be close to 100 in Colorado Springs and as much as 105 in Pueblo. Add in winds with gusts between 35 and 40mph, and it was inevitable. 

Wildfires have cropped up all across the state. Black Forest, just north of the Springs is on fire. Several homes have already been lost since the fire started around 2:00 this afternoon. Hundreds of people have been evacuated, and my phone continues to chirp with updates to the mandatory evacuations every 30 minutes or so. 

Near Canyon City, one of our state's natural wonders caught fire from a lightening strike at nearly the same time as the Black Forest Fire started. I haven't heard how many homes have been lost yet, if any, but there are several homes that have been evacuated there as well.

About an hour after the start of the BF and RG fires I got an update that mentioned a wildfire in Huerfano County near LaVeta. Unfortunately, even though it is only about 40 to 50 acres, there have been hundreds evacuated as a result of the danger. Just when I thought we'd had enough, I heard tonight that there is also a wildfire in Pueblo. 

Please, please, please pray for Colorado!

K Sare Ah. Sare Ah.

Wheezy.

Wheezy and snotty.

Wheezy and snotty and tired. 

Really, really tired. 

I'm trying to keep things together until our insurance kicks in 5 weeks from now. I have been fighting something, but I'm not exactly sure what it is. I think it's likely just allergies, but whatever it is has decided to play games with my asthma. Stupid whatever it is. And it's not that I'd necessarily go to the doctor even, if we did have insurance. It's just that I'm trying to keep things together, so it doesn't get so bad I have no choice but to go in. That's all. It just feels weird to be without insurance for the first time in almost 20 years. I think I just sort of took it for granted when we did have it and assumed it would always be there.

Needless to say, I'll be happy to see the insurance cards come in the mail when the time is right.

I have slowly but surely getting my mental energy back. The physical energy is coming along bit by bit as well, but I have to admit that I look forward to being able to being able to put in a full day's work more often than I have been without being totally worn out for the following few days. I need to get back into taking my vitamins more regularly. I sort of got off track back in February when I had my second tonsillectomy, and my train is still derailed.

I do have to admit that part of the fatigue today has to do with the events of the weekend. We finally got the second raised garden bed in the backyard built last weekend, and we got it all filled with the good soil and manure and compost and such yesterday. So now my tomatoes and peppers are all planted! I'm so excited!

I still want to get the pallet garden done, so we can have lettuce and spinach and peas and such, but at this point, I honestly think I'll be okay, if it doesn't happen. I mean, I'd really, really like to get it done, so I haven't ruled it out just yet. I just don't know, if it will happen this year or not. 

Whatever will be, and all, right?

Happy! Happy! Happy!

Buster thinks she's coming down with an ear infection, so she stopped by this morning and asked me to look in her ear with our otoscope. There's definitely something going on in there, so she'll be going to the doctor to have them check it out. She hung around for awhile afterwards, so we could catch up on the latest with work and the rest. 

I always love when she stops by and we get to see her unexpectedly. It just brings sunshine to my day. And while we were visiting, the day just got brighter and brighter...

Hopper and Scooter has stayed the night at Bugster & Bubster's house a couple weekends ago when we went on a date. They'd taken their clothes and strings and such over in duffel bags, because they were quicker than getting out the little overnight case that's stored under the stairs and takes a bit to get to.

I'd unpacked Scooter's duffel bag earlier and had put it away, but I hadn't gotten around to Hopper's. We've been busy since our overnight date installing exterior doors and other such adventures, so I'm behind on things around the house again. So I just hadn't gotten around to unpacking it. That's all.

And sometimes this morning, Hopper decided to use it to carry her strings and boots around. The girls are funny that way. They love to pack and unpack bags, purses or even grocery sacks. So the duffel bag was just an extension of that. Nothing out of the ordinary.

And while I had done a quick inspection of her duffel bag when I was looking for Scooter's shirt, I hadn't torn it apart. What I'd seen when I looked in was the same thing that I'd seen when she brought it home from her weekend at Bugster's. But while Bugster and I were talking, Hopper pulled something out of her bag...               

It was red.

I saw a flash of black and white, and I just held my breath while Hopper worked at turning it right side out. 

It was the butterfly shirt!!!! 

Scooter was sitting there and was just beaming! She was definitely excited that it was still here! She decided to put it on, so Bugster could see it, and so she could go show her daddy, and all this was with a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon on her face! Heck! We all had smiles that wide! We are so very happy! So very, very relieved!  

We're so relieved that she didn't throw it away, even though she pointed to the picture of the garbage can. Then again, I hadn't drawn a picture of a duffel bag, and she may have pointed to that picture, because she'd put it 'in' something. It's a frustrating thing that we all deal with with her inability to communicate. I'm just so very thankful it worked out in her favor! 

I feel like I've got Snoopy in my head doing the Happy Dance right now! 

Yay!!!