Colorado Trip

This past week Tracy and I were fortunate enough to take a ski trip with her family out in Breckenridge Colorado. It was fantastic! We went skiing and snowboarding for 4 days straight and then took a snowmobiling tour up a mountain to the Continental Divide on our last day. Here are a few pics of our trip-

Flying into Denver

Tracy and Carly on our flight

Carly and Aaron

Carly on the Slopes

Aaron and Tracy on the slopes

If you ever have a chance to take a snowmobiling trip in Breckenridge up the continental divide I suggest you take it. It was nonstop fun and the views were insane!

If you can see the snow capped mountain way off in the distance directly above Tracy and her Dad, just over the crest of the mountain behind us.... that is Pike's Peak and is 90 miles away from us.

Mom and Pop Frost

Tracy

Tracy and her Mom

Tracy making snow angels on the Continental Divide

Aaron pondering something...

The last two months

I wish we had a better excuse for our sheer lack of blog updating. We really don't have an excuse at all. There was a period of time (from about October 18th until now....) when I just felt so guilty about not updating that I avoided it (I am sure there are some serious theological and psychological underpinnings there that refer to our relationship with God but I'll leave it at that).

So here we are, you and I, as you read our blog. Here's the update from the last two months:

Halloween with our Summit Connect Group!

Happy 6 months of marriage!

Putt-Putt with our Summit Connect Group!

above: Hunting (clay pigeons) with the Beeson Family

below: Aaron and little Ruby!

Good Times, Strange Fish...

This morning, some of my best friends and I went out to mosquito lagoon to do some flats fishing. Despite the angry seas and 15mph winds we had an excellent day on the water. For the past decade I have made it a point to consider very carefully who I spend my time with. The guys in the picture below are at the top of my list. They lift me up and make me laugh. They encourage and challenge me to be a better man. And if all of that wasn't enough, they also go fishing with me. I can only hope to return to them the same.

The only thing better than all of that is having a wife that genuinely encourages you to get out with the guys and go fishing every now and then. Just one of the many reasons I sure do love my wife.

It was downright chilly when we started out this morning. I mean, really cold. When I left the house, I thought for sure my umbros and t-shirt would be sufficient. I was wrong.

This is a photo of the guys around 7am on our way out to the honey hole:

Around 11:30-12:00 the sun started peeking out and stuff started moving. I took a picture of the following fish because I have never before caught, seen, or heard of anyone catching a fish like this until today. Does anyone know what this is? We declared it to be some sort of devilish lizard fish. To give you some perspective, the lure stuck in its filthy mouth is 5 inches long...

FINALLY!

Oh glories of home ownership! For the past 4 months Tracy and I have been in a epic battle with our city in an effort to get a huge tree removed from our backyard that was leaning on the house. We knew when we bought the house that getting the tree removed was something we would have to do and fully intended to. Shortly after we closed we got a letter from our Insurance stating that we would be dropped if we didn't take care of the tree. "No Sweat" we thought. We'll just pull a permit and hire a guy to take it out. Unfortunately we live in hatersville and the city has all sorts of absurd rules enforced by local boards and small town government. I could share a list as long as my arm about all of the insane things they wanted from us but I'll just paraphrase. We battled with the "Tree Conservation Board" for the past 4 months to try and get the fee waved (Which was a donation to their board for $6000.00 not including the money it was cost to actually hire some guys to take the tree out and buy new ones.) After agreeing to replant 2 very specific trees they allowed us to remove our tree and not pay the donation. All in all, I'd say it was the worst display of small town-local government-authority mongering I have ever seen.

If you are ever in need of having one of your own trees cut down you should look into hiring Todd's Tree Service. They were fantastic-

Anyway, here she is, coming down in all her glory.

Before (Front View)

Before (back yard... Tree against Roof)

40% Done

Lumberjacks in action!

Down to the main trunk

Almost there

And now, after we close up the deck around the remaining trunk and we get a good table top we'll be good to go : )

Best Friends

Some people go through their entire lives without knowing intimate community. It's not how God intended for us to live. He intended for us to know and be known. To be vulnerable. To be honest. To know enough about someone that you can call them out when they're not being who they were designed to be. To know someone well enough to laugh at and not offend them. To know someone well enough to feel the freedom to cry in their arms.

I was looking through some of Aaron and I's wedding photos tonight I stopped on this particular picture for a while. These are the women to whom I owe much. They have held me while I cried, confronted me when I needed it (but never wanted it), and they have stood by me for many years. I hope that one day I can be as good a friend as they have been, and are, to me. These are the women who know me most deeply, and love me just the same.

Sometimes, many times, it's painful to have people that know you intimately. But it's worth it. These are the women that I love, and the friendships that I cherish.

Family Expansion.

Just found out my other Sister and Brother-in-law are going to have a baby! Yahoo! We are excited for them : )

Unmerited Grace.

I have known my Dad, Mark Beeson for my whole life. And as I thought about that today it occurred to me that there are lot's of people who didn't get to experience that and it breaks my heart. Especially when I think about the countless life lessons Dad has poured into me for the past 27 years. The amazing journeys we've been on. The foundations he laid for almost every strong willed belief I have that makes me the man I am. The inspiration he is on a daily basis to change the world and "bring up there down here". How he taught me to function in society and though sometimes it felt like tough love when I got the, "If you can't control yourself, I will control you" line, I knew it was love nonetheless. I think about the times I no doubt disappointed him and he encouraged me and stood behind me regardless. Dad taught me how to hunt and fish and survive in the wild. I think about the infinite hours we've spent together literally in the same tree intentionally being quite and motionless. I think about walking behind my Dad through the forest for miles trying desperately to walk in his very footsteps for no other reason at all than to be like him and move like he moved. I see now how that flooded into every aspect of my life today and how grateful I am for his leadership in my life. I have seen first hand what it means to have your priorities right and live a life that honors God, your wife, and your family. I think about all the family dinners we've shared that restored my soul and how I'm already looking forward to the next time this could happen. The very thought of any of these things sends a thousand memories flooding instantly into my brain.

I wouldn't even begin to say that I understand or feel like I deserve the life I've been given. But I will say that I could not be more thankful for it. God's unmerited grace is astounding and I am blessed. My earthly Father and the God above are both amazing to me.