Thanksgiving in Montana

Nothing beats a trip home to be with friends and family for the Holidays. Mom, Dad and I joined Karen, Dave and Carie, Mark and Max for a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. (5 pounds of ham, anyone?) The Tafts and the Shrums together again for Thanksgiving...good times indeed! A great shot of the guys...Dad and Dave.And a great shot of the gals...Mom and Karen!A trip to Taco Treat is an absolute must whenever we are in Great Falls! Who needs a Thanksgiving feast, when you can have a Cheese Crisp with Beef?

Kitchen Makeover: Part 2

The Shrum Kitchen has undergone yet another transformation! Mom and I consulted with Karen, who served as our personal interior designer, and chose the perfect paint color...Spicy Hue. Once that decision was made, there was no turning back! Enjoy the pics of the new and improved "good time" kitchen.

Before...check out the really cool light orange paint.More really cool light orange paint, fully equipped with lovely blue tape!

Karen hard at work. This was the trickiest corner of the entire kitchen and she handled it like a painting pro!After...The final product! Spicy Hue adds spice to any kitchen! A second look at the finished product...the floor, the countertops and the new color. Next up: new hardware for the cabinets!

The Mile High City

The Colorado Rocky Mountain High I've seen it rainin' fire in the sky. The shadow from the starlight is softer than a lullabye...Rocky mountain high. ~ John Denver

Mom, Dad and I were able to spend the Halloween weekend in Denver with Kevin and Dennis! Trust me, our good times were a true Rocky Mountain High! Enjoy taking a peek at our fun!

Mom and Dad taking a bench break along the 16th Street Mall, after some browsing in a few shops.

Kevin in front of the Capitol Building...pondering the education of Colorado's children.Yes...that is Mom running across the street to get to the Capitol! I guess she was really excited to get there! What great form!Kevin and Mom...what a great shot!

Here's Mom...one mile above sea level on the steps of the Capitol.

A classic self-portrait in the smallest elevator in all of Denver!Here we are in Boulder. We drove there for the day...great shopping was had by all! GO BUFFS! Lewis and Clark even made an appearance during this trip! HARK! Yet another self-portrait! I love this one!

Kevin and Dennis with a couple of their new friends. This was outside the biggest R.E.I. we have ever seen in our lives!

A view of Downtown Denver from the apartment. What a view!

Thanks so much to Kevin and Dennis for making all of us feel so welcome at their place and showing us the wonderful city of Denver! Can't wait until our next visit!

Battle in Seattle 2008

Chris, Amy and I made the trek south for the Battle in Seattle last weekend. We were hoping to see our Western Vikings defeat the Central Wildcats, but things didn't turn out quite like we would have liked. Despite the outcome of the big game, there were still good times had by all at the Pregame Alumni Event and at Qwest Field. Take a look...
The WWU Prize Wheel Girls! Oh what fun!

The WWU Roselli crew, proudly wearing white and blue!
Hanging out with the one and only Viking!

Watching the game at Qwest Field. Aren't our WWU beanies the coolest?

KITCHEN MAKEOVER!

This is the first ever "Guest" blog post on Good Times. Take a look at the new and improved kitchen in the Shrum house! It sure looks great!

**Photos and text brought to you by...the one and only------------Linda Shrum.**
Finally, after 30 some years here it is---updated and bright! Hopefully, new countertops in the near future also! All of this with Thanks to my Mom---love and miss you ! Linda

"Before the Floor": Notice the great, new dishwasher! This is also your last look at the carpet.

"During the Floor": Prepping the old floor. Next comes the glue and then the tile. "After the Floor": WOW! So long carpet! Hello tile!

"After the Floor # 2": A great choice by the interior designers! Many more good times will be had in this kitchen!

Happy 40th Machen!!!!

My, oh, my! Look who's 40! Happy Birthday Machen!

Rick, Machen, Payton, Bailey, Dave, Tricia and I all got together yesterday to celebrate Machen turning the big 4-0! There were many good birthday times had by all.

Machen LOVED her "arts and crafts" gifts. Payton, Bailey and I created two lovely wall hangings to honor the birthday girl. We used cotton swabs and glitter, the most infamous crafts of all time! We're sure she is pondering where she will hang them.We were to fortunate to have Lionel join us for Machen's birthday dinner. Dave especially like him. They will probably hang out all the time now. Any guesses as to what he is? A bear? A Smurf? A dinosaur? You make the call! Payton is really enjoying her smoothie! Brain freeze anyone?Tricia and Rick were enjoying our time at Starbucks after dinner. They are thinking about just how cool it is to be 40!Bailey proudly displays the Happy B-day message from Machen's volleyball team. They decorated the car the night before her big day.

p.s. In case you all were wondering, 40 is the new 30!

Italia: Ode to Portraits

Yes, I must admit that I am a fan of the classic self-portrait. Always, a good time, no matter your destination spot...even in Italy!

Alberobello

Rome
Ostuni
Brindisi

And of course, one cannot forget the infamous "Lewis and Clark" shot.

Gallipoli

Pompeii

Since Ron is not a fan of the Lewis and Clark concept, this one cost me 3 Euro. Boy, was it ever worth it!