As the days go by we quickly approach the next phase of our lives. This week was my last full week at school and next week we teachers enter maintenance phase [e.g show movies, keep them entertained, try to minimize damage]. Fortunately I have not second guessed my decision to retire and am looking forward to phase II. Pam's operation and recovery has gone very well and each day she becomes more mobile. We are still looking forward to the 25th of May when the doctor will try to get out the remaining stitches. He was unsuccessful two weeks ago. He felt as the swelling reduced he would be able to pull the remaining threads.

Yesterday, the 16th of May, Pam, Erin, Kate and I left Monroe early and had a great trip to Denver to witness the baptism of Andrew and the blessing of Reynolds. Weston was on a field trip with his school class in Southern Utah. We hoped he had a great time. The day began for us at 8:00 am and the drive flawless, except for the high cost of gas [$3.69]. Kate slept about half the way and then had a couple of bouts of frustration with the seat belts, but other than that she was an angel. We arrived in Denver about 3:30 pm and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening doing what we could to help prepare for tomorrow's activities. It was wonderful to see family members here in Denver. Alex, Cynthia and little Alex were at Tom and Johanna's home with their children and Tom and Johanna would return from a vacation at midnight. We went to dinner at the Texas Roadhouse and while there saw a family from Travis and Andrew's ward and learned that Andrew, Sarah and Sarah's parents were also there eating, so we got to see them all there and later at their home. Jane and Reynold's are as cute as ever. We dropped Erin off at Travis and Jennifer's for the night [Travis and Drew were at a ward father and son's outing] and Pam and I went to a low-class hotel by Park Meadow Mall call the Hyatt and suffered with a heavenly soft king-sized bed and 42 inch plaza television. Hopefully we'll have some pictures and continue this entry tomorrow.