Well, I've been working at UC Denver for about a month now. I love the job, but the drive into Denver is killing me. I drive 1.5 to 2 hours each way (in Denver traffic) and I have to fill up my gas tank about 3 to 4 times a week. I was barely getting time with my beautiful wife and I missed my kids terribly. So, my family and I decided that it was not worth it and we went hunting for a home closer to my work. On Saturday, we found a cozy little home in Lakewood, CO. It's a little bigger than what we are living in now, and it's only about 20 minutes from my job in downtown Denver. Also, there is a light rail station within a few minutes of my house with daily trains that go directly to the campus ...or there is an express bus stop outside my house that goes into downtown. So, I have options. I got the Eco-Pass deal from my work (I can use all Rapid Transit in Denver Metro for $40 a month - pulled from my paycheck pre-tax once a month). The kicker for us (especially my boys) is that there is a greenbelt/nature preserve directly across the street from our new place. It's got walking/hiking/biking trails, two ponds that are stocked and can be fished, and a creek (more like a river) that runs through the length of it. The greenbelt stretches for miles in an east/west direction...so there is plenty to explore. We are very excited to have a place nearby where my kids and be boys and explore nature. Our complex has a pool, which we are excited about. No spa though...bummer! Overall, we are really excited about our move. My boys can't wait for me to get a fishing license so that I can take them fishing at our ponds.
We will be moving this Saturday and should be living there officially that night. My wife is single-handedly packing our current house (she is so awesome!) while I spend more of my time at work or commuting to and from work. We are making arrangements to have our internet and dish network transferred to our new place...plus informing everyone of our new address. Lots and lots to do! Joi already found a church that we will be trying on Sunday. It's called Bear Valley Church (how cool is that name?!?!). We are excited to be done with the move and start settling into our new town.
If you'd like our new address, email me and I'll send it to you.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Being Employed
I am pleased to announce that I have secured employment at the University of Colorado at Denver. I start on June 22nd. My official title will be "IT Operations Coordinator". I am very excited about this opportunity. I will basically be doing the very same thing I did at APU for ten years, using the same software, and working with the same software vendor. It is good to be back in a University setting. Thanks to everyone who prayed for me while I went through the hiring process. Your efforts have paid off.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Meeting our Neighbors
So, we have been at our new home for a couple months now and we've had lots of opportunities to interact with our neighbors. Deer and Cows! Yep. In fact, we've seen more of the deer and cows then we have our actual neighbors. Here are a couple photos taken from our kitchen window and living room window.
Here are our local gathering of deer who like to eat up and down our street. In fact, we see these deer at least once every three days (often more than that). They like to graze on the green grass all around our place. Sometimes they saunter into the street...so we have to be very careful when we drive to and from our house.
Here is Gage watching the cows graze across the street from our house on the famous Flying W Ranch. These cows have lots of personality. In fact, they like to jump over the barbed wire fence and graze on our side of the fence. We often get to see the Flying W Ranch cowboys riding up our street on horses to chase them back down. It's so much fun for our boys. The other day I found a cow just outside our house on our side of the fence and it looked like he was trying to get back in the hard way (through the barbed wire fence). I wasn't sure what to do, but I am too much of an animal lover to let him stay there and suffer. So, I approached him while my wife and boys watched from the front porch. He got spooked before I made it to him and leaped (and I mean olympic high jump gold medal winner here) over the barbed wire fence. I didn't know cows could jump like that. But, at least she was back on her side of the fence. Here's another photo of the herd.
The weird thing is you can't smell them. I'm used to living near Chino, California where when I was a kid there were still farms and the smell wafting from Chino to our home town was....umm...really gross to say the least. In fact, whenever I smell horses or cows I still refer to it as smelling like "Chino". But, I don't smell these cows. Perhaps the Flying W folks do a good job cleaning up after them. Or perhaps these cows smell like roses. Either way, there is no smell to have to contend with. So, we get the joy of seeing these animals on a daily basis without the yucky odor.
Funny story, Gage and I were driving home and we passed the park near our house. There are tennis courts at the end of it and there were two heavy set ladies playing tennis. Also, surrounding the park is the Flying W Ranch and the cows who live there. I told Gage that the cows were out and he rolled down the window and yelled "Hey Big Guys!!!" at the top of his lungs just as we were passing the plumpish tennis ladies. Oh my! How embarrassing. Hopefully they knew he was talking to the cows and not them.
Another funny story. There are cows and bulls in the ranch across the street from our house. It's spring. I'm sure you are getting the picture. The other day when we were watching the cows they started getting....ummm....frisky. Of course, the boys wanted to know why they were jumping on each other like that. So, I got to share a little about the birds and the bees. I gave them the 4-7 year old version, of course. But, I wasn't expecting to have that conversation for at least a couple more years. Oh well...
So, between the deer, the cows, the prairie dogs, squirels, the hawks, and the Black Billed Magpie's...we have plenty of wildlife to enjoy around our house. My boys are loving this and it's quite fun for Joi and I, too.
Here are our local gathering of deer who like to eat up and down our street. In fact, we see these deer at least once every three days (often more than that). They like to graze on the green grass all around our place. Sometimes they saunter into the street...so we have to be very careful when we drive to and from our house.
Here is Gage watching the cows graze across the street from our house on the famous Flying W Ranch. These cows have lots of personality. In fact, they like to jump over the barbed wire fence and graze on our side of the fence. We often get to see the Flying W Ranch cowboys riding up our street on horses to chase them back down. It's so much fun for our boys. The other day I found a cow just outside our house on our side of the fence and it looked like he was trying to get back in the hard way (through the barbed wire fence). I wasn't sure what to do, but I am too much of an animal lover to let him stay there and suffer. So, I approached him while my wife and boys watched from the front porch. He got spooked before I made it to him and leaped (and I mean olympic high jump gold medal winner here) over the barbed wire fence. I didn't know cows could jump like that. But, at least she was back on her side of the fence. Here's another photo of the herd.
The weird thing is you can't smell them. I'm used to living near Chino, California where when I was a kid there were still farms and the smell wafting from Chino to our home town was....umm...really gross to say the least. In fact, whenever I smell horses or cows I still refer to it as smelling like "Chino". But, I don't smell these cows. Perhaps the Flying W folks do a good job cleaning up after them. Or perhaps these cows smell like roses. Either way, there is no smell to have to contend with. So, we get the joy of seeing these animals on a daily basis without the yucky odor.Funny story, Gage and I were driving home and we passed the park near our house. There are tennis courts at the end of it and there were two heavy set ladies playing tennis. Also, surrounding the park is the Flying W Ranch and the cows who live there. I told Gage that the cows were out and he rolled down the window and yelled "Hey Big Guys!!!" at the top of his lungs just as we were passing the plumpish tennis ladies. Oh my! How embarrassing. Hopefully they knew he was talking to the cows and not them.
Another funny story. There are cows and bulls in the ranch across the street from our house. It's spring. I'm sure you are getting the picture. The other day when we were watching the cows they started getting....ummm....frisky. Of course, the boys wanted to know why they were jumping on each other like that. So, I got to share a little about the birds and the bees. I gave them the 4-7 year old version, of course. But, I wasn't expecting to have that conversation for at least a couple more years. Oh well...
So, between the deer, the cows, the prairie dogs, squirels, the hawks, and the Black Billed Magpie's...we have plenty of wildlife to enjoy around our house. My boys are loving this and it's quite fun for Joi and I, too.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Home, Sweet Home!
We have officially moved into our new home in Colorado Springs. We live in the Rockrimmon area (CS is segregated into various areas like Rockrimmon, Briargate, Security, etc). We are mostly unpacked and we are enjoying being able to finally call Colorado our home. Let me tell you a little about our home. It's just a small 1000 sq ft condo (upstairs/downstairs), but the price of only $650 a month was very attractive to us. The best part of all is that all of our windows, which face west, all look out to nothing but wilderness. There is no development or homes west of us. We are right on the edge of the foothills that begin the Rocky Mountains near CS. Here's a picture.
This was taken on March 13th. We woke up to find that we had been dusted with a very light snow. I thought it was a good opportunity to take a photo to show off our beautiful view. Anyway, besides the view, we get lots of wildlife. The other night Gavin said to Joi "Mommy, look outside!" and lo and behold there were fifteen deer eating the grass across the street from our house. It's been very cool. In addition to that, there are three parks within walking distance. One looks like a nature preserve where they allow hiking, biking, and running on various dirt trails. The one closest to our house has a playground, basketball courts, tennis courts, and an outdoor swimming pool for the summer time. The one just north of us has a baseball field, basketball courts, and a playground. There is no shortage of things for my boys to do. Across the way from us is a pasture land. So, we get an occasional glimpse of some cows walking by. The boys enjoy that.
The only downfall that we notice so far is that it gets very windy here. The wind gets accelerated through the mountains, into the foothills, and shoots right at our home. So, we get some crazy wind on occasion. And because of that wind, the other downfall is that our home gets dusty very quickly. But, we can live with those things. Nothing a swiffer can't handle.
All in all, we love our new home and we are enjoying the feeling of remoteness that we get here, while still being close enough to our work and the city at large. Oh...and of course, there's a Starbucks within walking distance...and more importantly a Papa Murphy's. Yum. Now that we are settled, come and visit us. We don't have much room, but we have a great view (and we have a blow up mattress for you to sleep on). Who can ask for more?
This was taken on March 13th. We woke up to find that we had been dusted with a very light snow. I thought it was a good opportunity to take a photo to show off our beautiful view. Anyway, besides the view, we get lots of wildlife. The other night Gavin said to Joi "Mommy, look outside!" and lo and behold there were fifteen deer eating the grass across the street from our house. It's been very cool. In addition to that, there are three parks within walking distance. One looks like a nature preserve where they allow hiking, biking, and running on various dirt trails. The one closest to our house has a playground, basketball courts, tennis courts, and an outdoor swimming pool for the summer time. The one just north of us has a baseball field, basketball courts, and a playground. There is no shortage of things for my boys to do. Across the way from us is a pasture land. So, we get an occasional glimpse of some cows walking by. The boys enjoy that.The only downfall that we notice so far is that it gets very windy here. The wind gets accelerated through the mountains, into the foothills, and shoots right at our home. So, we get some crazy wind on occasion. And because of that wind, the other downfall is that our home gets dusty very quickly. But, we can live with those things. Nothing a swiffer can't handle.
All in all, we love our new home and we are enjoying the feeling of remoteness that we get here, while still being close enough to our work and the city at large. Oh...and of course, there's a Starbucks within walking distance...and more importantly a Papa Murphy's. Yum. Now that we are settled, come and visit us. We don't have much room, but we have a great view (and we have a blow up mattress for you to sleep on). Who can ask for more?
Saturday, November 01, 2008
A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words!
For those of you who say..."Hey, why isn't he posting any photos of the Copeland family in Colorado?"...here you go. Here are a few recent highlights.
Snow day...in October? Yes, if you can read that tiny little red date posting on the photo, this was taken on October 22nd. We had the first snow of the season that day. I stood outside around 9pm and watched the little flakes drift down (in a t-shirt and jeans...and it was 30 degrees...I must be getting used to Colorado). By the next morning, there was a thin blanket of snow on the ground. The boys got dressed up and played in it for a while, but it was mostly gone by lunch. The funny thing is that less than a week later, it was in the upper 70's again. Go figure! Left to Right - Josiah (the boys' cousin), Gage, Gavin, and Garrison enjoying the snow in our backyard.
Gage and I teamed up to make a Mickey Mouse themed pumpkin. Gage was not feeling well and pantomimed most of his instructions to me, since his throat hurt. But, I think it turned out nicely.
Garrison and Gavin teamed up to make a pumpkin of their own design based on a character from Batman called "Two-Face". Notice the smile on one side and the frown on the other. They thought it up and drew the design all by themselves. Mommy helped with the cutting.
In their Halloween costumes. From left to right: Gage as Indiana Jones, Gavin as a Ninja, Dylan as an army man, Garrison as Mini-Skeleton, and Josiah as Big-Skeleton. We went to a local church's "Fall Festival" and enjoyed the festivities. Later, Joi and I walked them around our neighborhood for traditional trick-or-treating.
My beautiful wife, Joi, and I as pirates. This is us 30+ pounds lighter. Can you see the difference? I hope so. Well...maybe my puffy shirt is making it hard to tell. But, Joi looks awesome, huh?
And lastly, here is Steffanne and Russell as Pirate Bob (complete with facial scar) and saucy Wench. You can't tell, but Steff severely sprained her ankle ligaments in a teeter-totter accident (no lie) and can't walk on it. The crutches are out of the shot, but you can see her favoring one leg and leaning heavily on her man. Poor Steff!
Snow day...in October? Yes, if you can read that tiny little red date posting on the photo, this was taken on October 22nd. We had the first snow of the season that day. I stood outside around 9pm and watched the little flakes drift down (in a t-shirt and jeans...and it was 30 degrees...I must be getting used to Colorado). By the next morning, there was a thin blanket of snow on the ground. The boys got dressed up and played in it for a while, but it was mostly gone by lunch. The funny thing is that less than a week later, it was in the upper 70's again. Go figure! Left to Right - Josiah (the boys' cousin), Gage, Gavin, and Garrison enjoying the snow in our backyard.
Gage and I teamed up to make a Mickey Mouse themed pumpkin. Gage was not feeling well and pantomimed most of his instructions to me, since his throat hurt. But, I think it turned out nicely.
Garrison and Gavin teamed up to make a pumpkin of their own design based on a character from Batman called "Two-Face". Notice the smile on one side and the frown on the other. They thought it up and drew the design all by themselves. Mommy helped with the cutting.
In their Halloween costumes. From left to right: Gage as Indiana Jones, Gavin as a Ninja, Dylan as an army man, Garrison as Mini-Skeleton, and Josiah as Big-Skeleton. We went to a local church's "Fall Festival" and enjoyed the festivities. Later, Joi and I walked them around our neighborhood for traditional trick-or-treating.
My beautiful wife, Joi, and I as pirates. This is us 30+ pounds lighter. Can you see the difference? I hope so. Well...maybe my puffy shirt is making it hard to tell. But, Joi looks awesome, huh?
And lastly, here is Steffanne and Russell as Pirate Bob (complete with facial scar) and saucy Wench. You can't tell, but Steff severely sprained her ankle ligaments in a teeter-totter accident (no lie) and can't walk on it. The crutches are out of the shot, but you can see her favoring one leg and leaning heavily on her man. Poor Steff!
Thursday, October 02, 2008
Happenings in Colorado: An Update
We'll, we've been here for almost 2 months. Here's what's happened so far.
As of today, I have lost 24 pounds following the Weight Watchers plan. I officially made my first goal of losing 10% of my starting weight (yes...for those math majors, I weighed 240 pounds when I started). I've dropped from a size 44 waist....to a 38 and even that is a little big on me. Joi has lost 26 pounds doing the same thing. She looks great! We've had to frequent the local thrift stores to get clothes that fit us. All our old pants and shirts are falling off of us. It's so rewarding! We are excited. My next goal is to get below 200 pounds. So, I have 17 pounds to go for my next goal, so that I can be at 199. After that, it's down to 180.
The Ferris family have two television sets, but they do not have television channels or cable TV. We watch an occasional DVD movie, but for the most part, we don't watch much television. It's taken some adjusting to get used to that...and I'm sure once Lakers season starts again, I'll be feeling some withdrawals. But, for now, I'm getting a lot of reading done. It's been really good. I love reading. Among the books I have finished since being here are the last Harry Potter book of the series (the Deathly Hallows), a new Dragonlance book called "Dragons of the Dwarven Depths", and a great book called "The Year of Living Bibically: One Man's Humble Quest to follow the Bible as Literally as Possible". There have been others, but these are the highlights. It's been great to get through some books. I've rediscovered the local library and I am loving it.
I still do not have a job. I look every day. Since we've been here, I've applied to 60 jobs. Overall, I've applied for 112 jobs since we decided we wanted to move to Colorado in January of 2007. But, we are still relying on God. We know He brought us here for a purpose and that He will take care of our needs. I have an interview today for a part-time position at the church we are attending. We shall see if it is what God has for me. I am fine with whatever He wants me to do.
We've celebrated Gage's birthday by going camping at a state park near Denver. It was a nicefew days. The boys loved going down to the lake and splashing around. Gage said it was his best birthday ever! Except for the fact that I dropped my cell phone in the lake and it died, it was a good trip. But, I had insurance and the new phone came a couple days ago. So, all is well. My birthday was spent by going to a Ghost Town Museum (I love ghost towns) and spending a little time at Garden of the Gods. For dinner, we went to Famous Dave's BBQ. Yummy!
I've been able to help the Ferris' with their real-estate business and that has been fun and rewarding. It's good to feel useful. They are trying some new strategies and it's been a struggle to make them fruitful, so I am glad that I can help in some small way.
We registered for a homeschool group nearby and we have been taking Garrison to a class that he was interested in about rocks called Rockology. He's enjoying it. Now that Gage is five, he can take some classes to once the new semester starts. He wants to take Tai Kwan Do. We want him to take drama, since he is such a little ham. Maybe he'll take both. We shall see. Gavin has to wait until he's five before he can take suplimental classes. Aside from those classes, Joi is still homeschooling our boys. Garrison is almost done with "Learn to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" and he loves to read. We've had Daddy/Son reading time here and there and it's fun to sit quietly with my oldest son and read our own seperate books. I enjoy that time and I hope that I am instilling a love of reading in him. Gage and Gavin likewise are doing great reading. It amazes me how much they both know. Joi is doing a great job!
That is all I can think of for now. I hope this helps everyone who have been asking for an update. I'll try to keep my blog posting more frequent.
As of today, I have lost 24 pounds following the Weight Watchers plan. I officially made my first goal of losing 10% of my starting weight (yes...for those math majors, I weighed 240 pounds when I started). I've dropped from a size 44 waist....to a 38 and even that is a little big on me. Joi has lost 26 pounds doing the same thing. She looks great! We've had to frequent the local thrift stores to get clothes that fit us. All our old pants and shirts are falling off of us. It's so rewarding! We are excited. My next goal is to get below 200 pounds. So, I have 17 pounds to go for my next goal, so that I can be at 199. After that, it's down to 180.
The Ferris family have two television sets, but they do not have television channels or cable TV. We watch an occasional DVD movie, but for the most part, we don't watch much television. It's taken some adjusting to get used to that...and I'm sure once Lakers season starts again, I'll be feeling some withdrawals. But, for now, I'm getting a lot of reading done. It's been really good. I love reading. Among the books I have finished since being here are the last Harry Potter book of the series (the Deathly Hallows), a new Dragonlance book called "Dragons of the Dwarven Depths", and a great book called "The Year of Living Bibically: One Man's Humble Quest to follow the Bible as Literally as Possible". There have been others, but these are the highlights. It's been great to get through some books. I've rediscovered the local library and I am loving it.
I still do not have a job. I look every day. Since we've been here, I've applied to 60 jobs. Overall, I've applied for 112 jobs since we decided we wanted to move to Colorado in January of 2007. But, we are still relying on God. We know He brought us here for a purpose and that He will take care of our needs. I have an interview today for a part-time position at the church we are attending. We shall see if it is what God has for me. I am fine with whatever He wants me to do.
We've celebrated Gage's birthday by going camping at a state park near Denver. It was a nicefew days. The boys loved going down to the lake and splashing around. Gage said it was his best birthday ever! Except for the fact that I dropped my cell phone in the lake and it died, it was a good trip. But, I had insurance and the new phone came a couple days ago. So, all is well. My birthday was spent by going to a Ghost Town Museum (I love ghost towns) and spending a little time at Garden of the Gods. For dinner, we went to Famous Dave's BBQ. Yummy!
I've been able to help the Ferris' with their real-estate business and that has been fun and rewarding. It's good to feel useful. They are trying some new strategies and it's been a struggle to make them fruitful, so I am glad that I can help in some small way.
We registered for a homeschool group nearby and we have been taking Garrison to a class that he was interested in about rocks called Rockology. He's enjoying it. Now that Gage is five, he can take some classes to once the new semester starts. He wants to take Tai Kwan Do. We want him to take drama, since he is such a little ham. Maybe he'll take both. We shall see. Gavin has to wait until he's five before he can take suplimental classes. Aside from those classes, Joi is still homeschooling our boys. Garrison is almost done with "Learn to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" and he loves to read. We've had Daddy/Son reading time here and there and it's fun to sit quietly with my oldest son and read our own seperate books. I enjoy that time and I hope that I am instilling a love of reading in him. Gage and Gavin likewise are doing great reading. It amazes me how much they both know. Joi is doing a great job!
That is all I can think of for now. I hope this helps everyone who have been asking for an update. I'll try to keep my blog posting more frequent.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
It's Official!
It is official. We are now Colorado residents. Earlier this week, my wife and I went to the DMV in Colorado Springs and got our Colorado license plates and drivers licenses. There is now no evidence that we came from California. It's so exciting to walk out to our car and see the Colorado plates. It's like a dream come true for us. A goal reached. Very exciting.
Also, I decided to add another picture of a recent sunset. We were at a park watching our nephew practice football with his team and I watched the sunset get more and more dramatic and beautiful. I took about 8 pictures with the phone camera (which does not do it justice), but it was the only thing I had on hand to capture the beauty of God's creation. Have I mentioned I love living in Colorado? Other than the people we miss in California (family and friends), we are glad to be here and we are looking forward to the day when you all can come visit us so that we can show you around. Perhaps you too will fall in love with "the Springs".
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