Back to Colorado

On June 7th Carlee and Miguel went out to lunch instead of dinner to celebrate their 6th Wedding Anniversary. By 1:00 pm Brian and I, along with Carlee, Gaby and Sophie were on our way to Colorado Springs in a rented Dodge Caravan. We planned to attend Jim's graduation from the Adams County Sheriff's Academy the following day. We arrived at Jamie's house at 10:30 pm on Thursday, after a long road trip that the twins tolerated rather well. They didn't sleep as much as expected but they endured the ride without too much complaining. Not once did either one ask, "Are we there yet?". (Well maybe they did, but not in a language we could understand!) We made several stops for gas and had lunch at a Subway in beautiful Wamsutter, Wyoming. I had packed many of the favorite toys and books from my toy box along with treats of both the healthy and unhealthy kind. Sippy cups were filled each time we stopped, movies were playing most of the time and we only had to make one emergency diaper change stop.

On Friday morning, June 8th, the population at the Lamb house had doubled. Dan was elated to see his mother-in-law again....after all, it had been nine days since my last visit! It was fun to have all of my grandkids together around the same kitchen table.

By 11:00 am on Friday we were loaded up into two vehicles and on our way to Brighton, Colorado. Dan had a full day of patients scheduled and Miguel was unable to get the weekend off so they were not able to join us. Jim was only expecting Jamie and her children to attend so we knew he would be surprised no matter what.

Once we found the building where the graduation was taking place, we backtracked to Goodtimes for some quick lunch. We made it back for the ceremony with 5 minutes to spare!

Some of the grandchildren enjoyed the graduation ceremony more than others. Then again, some of them understood what was going on better than others. Annika and Kyle were the only ones who made it through the entire program without a trip out into the hall. Kyle got ahold of Jamie's camera and spent time taking pictures, 45 or 50, if I remember right.

Jim is now one of the newest members of the Longmont, Colorado, Police Department. He has been riding as a volunteer with the Police force in Longmont for several years and knows what to expect.

We were all very excited when Jamie pinned Jim's badge on his shirt. After 30+ working as an Electrical Engineer, he is now going to pursue this new career.

Speaking from experience, a mid-life career change can be very refreshing, but a lot of work! We are living proof that old dogs really can learn new tricks!

The twins were more interested in walking and hollering than sitting and listening.

We had a great time being together as a family. I look forward to hearing about all of the adventures Jim will have in the future. Congratulations, Officer Ruff!