Well, we have been neglecting our blog latley. I guess we are just too busy :) So, let's see if we can catch up since last time. Here is goes, in no particular order
- Chris shaved all of his hair off
- There are only 2 1/2 weeks left or school
- Ang's mom and Doug came to visit- went to New Belgium, made sushi and steak dinner, went shopping
- Chris's parents came to visit- Chris and Pete did a lot of yard work, Ang and Deb did a lot of shopping
- We repainted the wall- for a THIRD time, and we finally nailed the right color
- Ang accepted a full time job at Lesher- woo hoo income :)
- Wrigley is doing great and getting big
- Celebrated Easter with the Bensons
- Enjoying the spring and doing a lot of yard work
- Trying to decide on summer jobs: Ang is going to do grounds and Chris is deciding between 3 jobs... what to do, what to do???
Well, those are the big updates. We will try to be better about keeping our blog updated. Should be easier since summer is just around the corner.
Cheers,
Chris and Ang
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
Lessons from Catalina...
Here we are at the beginning of the week...again! We only have around 5 more Mondays until the end of school... how exciting!
It has been a few weeks since we returned from Catalina, but the lessons that we learned there are still with us. Perhaps the most important thing that we take from Catalina is a desire to protect our earth. As you read this blog (and I'm sure more like it to come), we know that you may not agree with everything we say. And, we think it is important to let our readers know that we are not tree-hugging hippies who think global warming will doom our planet.
What we do believe is that we (humans) are using our resources at an alarming rate, and if we don't stop, we will run out of these resources. What humans are doing to support their wasteful lifestyles is not a natural part of the Earth's delicate balance. The population of this earth is enormous, and we can't continue to deplete our resources.
An example of the crazy depletion of our resources is given by Thomas Friedman, author of The World is Flat. According to Friedman, if the next billion people that are born (which will happen in your lifetime) were given just 1 60-watt light bulb (yes just 1 light bulb) to burn for the rest of their lives, it would require us to build 20 more 500 megawatt coal burning plants. And that is just one light bulb. This doesn't even take into consideration things like: computers, washers and dryers, blow dryers, microwaves, TV's and everything else that we plug in.
Think how much of this junk could have been recycled
What is so hard to understand is why people are so stubborn when it comes to having a positive effect on our earth. Why don't people recycle? What is so hard about it? What is so hard about getting reusable bags? What is so hard about hanging your clothes to dry instead of drying them? What is so hard about buying a CFL light bulb? What is so hard about drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water?
I might like you better if you recycled :)
Not only are these things not difficult to do, but they actually help YOU too, not just our earth. CFL light bulbs save you money! Using reusable bags saves YOU money at the grocery store (10 cents per bag... do the math). Drinking tap water is better for you! Recycling costs nothing.
By no means are we perfect regarding this. We still use our appliances. We still drive our cars, and more. But, we are still learning, and we are willing to try! We hope you'll do the same.
So, as you read our blogs, please note that we may every once in a while post a blog about this subject matter. That is because we think it is important. We would love input and open minds!
Don't blow it; good planets are hard to find- Time Magazine
It has been a few weeks since we returned from Catalina, but the lessons that we learned there are still with us. Perhaps the most important thing that we take from Catalina is a desire to protect our earth. As you read this blog (and I'm sure more like it to come), we know that you may not agree with everything we say. And, we think it is important to let our readers know that we are not tree-hugging hippies who think global warming will doom our planet.
What we do believe is that we (humans) are using our resources at an alarming rate, and if we don't stop, we will run out of these resources. What humans are doing to support their wasteful lifestyles is not a natural part of the Earth's delicate balance. The population of this earth is enormous, and we can't continue to deplete our resources.
An example of the crazy depletion of our resources is given by Thomas Friedman, author of The World is Flat. According to Friedman, if the next billion people that are born (which will happen in your lifetime) were given just 1 60-watt light bulb (yes just 1 light bulb) to burn for the rest of their lives, it would require us to build 20 more 500 megawatt coal burning plants. And that is just one light bulb. This doesn't even take into consideration things like: computers, washers and dryers, blow dryers, microwaves, TV's and everything else that we plug in.
Think how much of this junk could have been recycledWhat is so hard to understand is why people are so stubborn when it comes to having a positive effect on our earth. Why don't people recycle? What is so hard about it? What is so hard about getting reusable bags? What is so hard about hanging your clothes to dry instead of drying them? What is so hard about buying a CFL light bulb? What is so hard about drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water?
I might like you better if you recycled :)
Not only are these things not difficult to do, but they actually help YOU too, not just our earth. CFL light bulbs save you money! Using reusable bags saves YOU money at the grocery store (10 cents per bag... do the math). Drinking tap water is better for you! Recycling costs nothing.
If this guy can recycle... so can you!
People have gotten so used to their way of life, that it is hard for them to change. It is time to stop being lazy, and to start making decisions that give us a better quality of life.By no means are we perfect regarding this. We still use our appliances. We still drive our cars, and more. But, we are still learning, and we are willing to try! We hope you'll do the same.
So, as you read our blogs, please note that we may every once in a while post a blog about this subject matter. That is because we think it is important. We would love input and open minds!
Don't blow it; good planets are hard to find- Time Magazine
Friday, March 27, 2009
It's a good thing our house has A LOT of tile!
Hello everyone! Isn't it great that we are blogging at 11:45 a.m. on a Friday? Where should we be? Yes, that is right, we should be at school. Fortunately for us, we had a March blizzard and they called off school early yesterday. Then at about 11:00 last night, we were informed that there was no school today... woo hoo!!!!!! We love snow days!
To be perfectly honest, it is a beautiful day, and we really should be at school, because so much snow has melted already, and it wouldn't have been that hard to get to school. But, we are not complaining about the fact that we get to hang out, go to lunch together and get some projects done.
So, you are probably asking yourself WHY it is a good thing that our house has a lot of tile. Well, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here it is:
Our snow days have been pretty lazy. Yesterday we watched a lot of news, and we shoveled the walk (by we I mean Chris shoveled and I took pictures from inside), and did some school work. Today, we slept in, picked up house and ran some errands.
We are debating whether to start painting our orange wall. Right now, the orange wall is quite shiny and bright. We want to tone it down a notch, so that it is not quite at intense. We are also considering finishing the project that we started last week of putting in a dog door. We ran into some glitches with that project, so we may start it up again. Who knows... we'll see.
Welp, that is what our snow days look like so far! I'm sorry for those of you who were not lucky enough to get a snow day... that is sad!
Cheers!
To be perfectly honest, it is a beautiful day, and we really should be at school, because so much snow has melted already, and it wouldn't have been that hard to get to school. But, we are not complaining about the fact that we get to hang out, go to lunch together and get some projects done.
So, you are probably asking yourself WHY it is a good thing that our house has a lot of tile. Well, a picture is worth a thousand words, so here it is:
Wrigley in the blizzard
Tucker in the blizzard- not quite as "velcroish"
Wrigley loves the snow, but he has a tendency to bring the snow in with him. We have nicknamed him "Velcro," because everything sticks to his fur. And therefore, it is a good thing that most of what he drags in ends up on the tile, rather than on carpet.
Tucker in the blizzard- not quite as "velcroish"
Look at all that snow! (Note that picture is taken from inside the glass).
Our snow days have been pretty lazy. Yesterday we watched a lot of news, and we shoveled the walk (by we I mean Chris shoveled and I took pictures from inside), and did some school work. Today, we slept in, picked up house and ran some errands.
The dogs helping Chris shovel
We are debating whether to start painting our orange wall. Right now, the orange wall is quite shiny and bright. We want to tone it down a notch, so that it is not quite at intense. We are also considering finishing the project that we started last week of putting in a dog door. We ran into some glitches with that project, so we may start it up again. Who knows... we'll see.
Welp, that is what our snow days look like so far! I'm sorry for those of you who were not lucky enough to get a snow day... that is sad!
Cheers!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Catalina Video
Hi Folks!
Happy Wednesday, Hump day, hoping for a big blizzard that gives us a snow day day!
Chris made this video for a presentation that he gave today, so we thought we would share it with all of you! The song fits the video really well, and was written by Chris's friend Tyler Ward. The video gives you a quick glimpse of what our trip was like!
Keep on keeping on! Oh, and keep on praying for SNOW! Woo hoo snow day!
Happy Wednesday, Hump day, hoping for a big blizzard that gives us a snow day day!
Chris made this video for a presentation that he gave today, so we thought we would share it with all of you! The song fits the video really well, and was written by Chris's friend Tyler Ward. The video gives you a quick glimpse of what our trip was like!
Keep on keeping on! Oh, and keep on praying for SNOW! Woo hoo snow day!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Back from Catalina
Well, we are back from Catalina Island and back to work. We had a great time on the island, and now we have summer fever! Only one more quarter left until summer vacation... woo hoo!
Here is a quick recap of our trip to Catalina:
We left on Friday morning, bright and early (actually so early that it was still dark... we were up at 4:00 am). We flew out of DIA to LAX and stayed at a great hostel in San Pedro. We got to walk along the coast, had a great lunch and greeted California with open arms.
We left San Pedro via ferry, and headed to the island. We then gathered onto shore boats (which broke down in the middle of the ocean, so we had to switch to a different one), and arrived shortly at camp. Only 1 seasick kiddo... someone's gotta feed the fish :)
- A day snorkel (freezing... 55 degrees)
- Ocean kayaking
- Composting and gardening
- Night sky and night hike (starts are beautiful on the island)
- Night snorkel (an amazing experience)
- Service work (the kids transformed a garden/mound)
- Sports
- Sang around a camp fire
- Getting up early for sunrises
- High ropes course
- Much more
We had a great time. Two Harbors (where Catalina Environmental Leadership Camp is located) is one of our favorite places! It is so inspiring, a great experience and as usual, we learned so much.
Welcome home to us! We hope that everyone had a great Spring Break.
2009 Kinard CARES Catalina Crew on the ferry
Here is a quick recap of our trip to Catalina:
We left on Friday morning, bright and early (actually so early that it was still dark... we were up at 4:00 am). We flew out of DIA to LAX and stayed at a great hostel in San Pedro. We got to walk along the coast, had a great lunch and greeted California with open arms.
Our view from the hostel in San Pedro
We left San Pedro via ferry, and headed to the island. We then gathered onto shore boats (which broke down in the middle of the ocean, so we had to switch to a different one), and arrived shortly at camp. Only 1 seasick kiddo... someone's gotta feed the fish :)
Composting... no waste in nature!
We made it to the top... look at that view!
The crew learning about world population and resources with solar baked cookies!
We made it to the top... look at that view!
The crew learning about world population and resources with solar baked cookies!
Camp was awesome! We were busy from 7:00 am to 9:00pm. Our activities included:
- Hiking (beautiful)- A day snorkel (freezing... 55 degrees)
- Ocean kayaking
- Composting and gardening
- Night sky and night hike (starts are beautiful on the island)
- Night snorkel (an amazing experience)
- Service work (the kids transformed a garden/mound)
- Sports
- Sang around a camp fire
- Getting up early for sunrises
- High ropes course
- Much more
The final outcome of the crew's service project
We had a great time. Two Harbors (where Catalina Environmental Leadership Camp is located) is one of our favorite places! It is so inspiring, a great experience and as usual, we learned so much.
What a way to end the trip!
Welcome home to us! We hope that everyone had a great Spring Break.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Off to California...
Wow, has it been a crazy week. The reason this week has been so crazy is because we are gearing up to head to Catalina Island with 20 9th graders. We are taking them out there to do service work and go to an environmental leadership camp. We leave at 5:30 a.m. tomorrow. We are really excited!
Planning a trip like this takes up so much time and energy because there are SOOOO many details, and working around 20 people's schedules is not easy. But, we think that we have all the details figured out and we are finally ready to go! It will be worth all of the work when we are out on the island and living the good life.
Tomorrow, we depart Kinard Junior High at 5:30 a.m. and fly to LA. From there, we will catch a limo bus (It was just as cheap as renting 3 vans), to San Pedro, where we will stay in a hostel. Then, we will take the ferry over to Catalina Island, and we will then catch shore boats to get to the actual camp where we will be staying. It is a lot of steps to get to our destination, but once we get there, we will be home free. No more transportation and no worrying about food for 4 days!
Catalina is pretty special to us, because we went out there to do a service trip during college. Then, we got the idea to share the special place with students, and this is the 2nd year that we will be taking kiddos out there.
The camp teaches how we as humans can live a more sustainable life and learn from nature. A big staple of the camp is composting. We will get to go sea kayaking, snorkeling, hiking, play games, compost, bake cookies in a solar panel, do service work, garden and much more. And it is really great to share this with students, who then bring what they learn back home and share it with others!
So, we will be thinking about all of you and wish us luck for getting 20 kids and 4 chaperones out to the island! We will blog about the trip when we get back!
A view of where we will be staying next week:
Howland's Landing, Catalina Environmental Leadership Camp
Howland's Landing, Catalina Environmental Leadership Camp
Planning a trip like this takes up so much time and energy because there are SOOOO many details, and working around 20 people's schedules is not easy. But, we think that we have all the details figured out and we are finally ready to go! It will be worth all of the work when we are out on the island and living the good life.
Ahhhh... the good life!
Tomorrow, we depart Kinard Junior High at 5:30 a.m. and fly to LA. From there, we will catch a limo bus (It was just as cheap as renting 3 vans), to San Pedro, where we will stay in a hostel. Then, we will take the ferry over to Catalina Island, and we will then catch shore boats to get to the actual camp where we will be staying. It is a lot of steps to get to our destination, but once we get there, we will be home free. No more transportation and no worrying about food for 4 days!
Catalina is pretty special to us, because we went out there to do a service trip during college. Then, we got the idea to share the special place with students, and this is the 2nd year that we will be taking kiddos out there.
Our college Alternative Spring Break Crew- one of our best memories!
The camp teaches how we as humans can live a more sustainable life and learn from nature. A big staple of the camp is composting. We will get to go sea kayaking, snorkeling, hiking, play games, compost, bake cookies in a solar panel, do service work, garden and much more. And it is really great to share this with students, who then bring what they learn back home and share it with others!
Last year's Kinard CARES group
So, we will be thinking about all of you and wish us luck for getting 20 kids and 4 chaperones out to the island! We will blog about the trip when we get back!
Can't wait to be here again!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Long time no blog: February Update
Well, here it is March 1st and we haven't blogged in quite a while, so here is an update. We will try to be better about updating this month, but no guarantees.
-Wrigley
The new pup is doing great... he is fitting in well with the family! He and Tucker are best buds. The cats are still a little uneasy around him, but they are slowly coming around. Wrigley is still a little shy around people, but he is starting to get used to our crazy life style. We are pretty proud of him because he already knows sit, lay down, shake, heel AND he is potty trained. Today, he had his first (much needed) bath, and did pretty good. All in all, he is a pretty mellow puppy and we love him lots!
Wrigley after his bath... check out that hair!
- Sports
Chris is finally done coaching basketball and what a way to end the season... District Champs! For the final game, his team was down 26-13 at half and they came back to win it... it was pretty exciting and much deserved. That is back-to-back District Champs for Chris's Mustangs. Chris doesn't know what to do with all his extra time (maybe he will actually use that gym pass now).
But, it wouldn't be the Bergmann household without one of us getting home after dark, so now it Ang's turn to coach... she starts helping with volleyball on Monday. Wish us luck.
- Catalina
We are approaching Spring Break, and for us, that means flying out to California with another couple and 20 9th graders. We are taking the kiddos to an Environmental Leadership Camp on Catalina Island. This place is pretty special to us and we are excited to get back there. We fly out on Friday the 13th, yikes! Oh, and we can't forget to mention that Chris took a pie in the face (actually it was more like 4 pies) to raise money for the kids... whatta guy.
- Fun Stuff
We have been lucky to spend a lot of time with friends and family the past couple of weeks. The weekend that we got Wrigley, Chris's parents came down and we had a fun weekend. We played with the new pup, went for walks, went shopping, watched movies and ate DELICIOUS food. We ate a Five Guys Burgers and Fries (the best hamburger and fries that you will ever eat) one night and then the night after, we ate at Rodizio Grill... it was so good! It is a Brazilian Steakhouse where you get unlimited steak, chicken, fish, salad bar and more. It was so good.
Last weekend, we went out and celebrated being District Champs with Merri, Drez and Caleb. We went to a little restaurant called Pappi's about 2 blocks from our house. We are really starting to like Pappi's.
Then this weekend, we decided on a whim to drive up to Winter Park to see Chris's Mom, Aunt Jana and Uncle Jack, Cousins Jaquelin and Tiffany and many friends. We left at around 5:00, stopped in Arvada to watch one of Chris's students play in a state playoff basketball game (they won... great game Alexus), and then drove up the mountain. We got there at around 10:00, visited for a little and then went to bed. The next morning, we had yummy breakfast and then helped Jaquelin, 6 and Maggie, 5 build a snow fort! It was a short visit, but we had fun!
When we got home, we relaxed for a little and then got to see old friends! Angela headed out to Old Town with Merri, bro Jeremy and many of Merri's friends. We met up with Lora, who we haven't seen in a year, so we were so excited to see her. Kallie and Kevin came out later that night as well. During all of this, Chris was at home playing guitar with Sean, who will also haven't seen in a long time. It was a fun night for them to catch up and make some music.
Well, I think that those are all of the updates for now! Whew that is a lot of reading... we need to become more frequent bloggers : )
Cheers!
P.S. Jana... if you read this, you will notice that we have no pictures from Winter Park... that is a hint that you need to send us some : )
-Wrigley
The new pup is doing great... he is fitting in well with the family! He and Tucker are best buds. The cats are still a little uneasy around him, but they are slowly coming around. Wrigley is still a little shy around people, but he is starting to get used to our crazy life style. We are pretty proud of him because he already knows sit, lay down, shake, heel AND he is potty trained. Today, he had his first (much needed) bath, and did pretty good. All in all, he is a pretty mellow puppy and we love him lots!
Best Buds
Wrigley after his bath... check out that hair!
- Sports
Chris is finally done coaching basketball and what a way to end the season... District Champs! For the final game, his team was down 26-13 at half and they came back to win it... it was pretty exciting and much deserved. That is back-to-back District Champs for Chris's Mustangs. Chris doesn't know what to do with all his extra time (maybe he will actually use that gym pass now).
But, it wouldn't be the Bergmann household without one of us getting home after dark, so now it Ang's turn to coach... she starts helping with volleyball on Monday. Wish us luck.
The logo that Chris designed for District Champ shirts.
- Catalina
We are approaching Spring Break, and for us, that means flying out to California with another couple and 20 9th graders. We are taking the kiddos to an Environmental Leadership Camp on Catalina Island. This place is pretty special to us and we are excited to get back there. We fly out on Friday the 13th, yikes! Oh, and we can't forget to mention that Chris took a pie in the face (actually it was more like 4 pies) to raise money for the kids... whatta guy.
- Fun Stuff
We have been lucky to spend a lot of time with friends and family the past couple of weeks. The weekend that we got Wrigley, Chris's parents came down and we had a fun weekend. We played with the new pup, went for walks, went shopping, watched movies and ate DELICIOUS food. We ate a Five Guys Burgers and Fries (the best hamburger and fries that you will ever eat) one night and then the night after, we ate at Rodizio Grill... it was so good! It is a Brazilian Steakhouse where you get unlimited steak, chicken, fish, salad bar and more. It was so good.
Yum... Five Guys!
Last weekend, we went out and celebrated being District Champs with Merri, Drez and Caleb. We went to a little restaurant called Pappi's about 2 blocks from our house. We are really starting to like Pappi's.
Then this weekend, we decided on a whim to drive up to Winter Park to see Chris's Mom, Aunt Jana and Uncle Jack, Cousins Jaquelin and Tiffany and many friends. We left at around 5:00, stopped in Arvada to watch one of Chris's students play in a state playoff basketball game (they won... great game Alexus), and then drove up the mountain. We got there at around 10:00, visited for a little and then went to bed. The next morning, we had yummy breakfast and then helped Jaquelin, 6 and Maggie, 5 build a snow fort! It was a short visit, but we had fun!
When we got home, we relaxed for a little and then got to see old friends! Angela headed out to Old Town with Merri, bro Jeremy and many of Merri's friends. We met up with Lora, who we haven't seen in a year, so we were so excited to see her. Kallie and Kevin came out later that night as well. During all of this, Chris was at home playing guitar with Sean, who will also haven't seen in a long time. It was a fun night for them to catch up and make some music.
Well, I think that those are all of the updates for now! Whew that is a lot of reading... we need to become more frequent bloggers : )
Cheers!
P.S. Jana... if you read this, you will notice that we have no pictures from Winter Park... that is a hint that you need to send us some : )
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