just a little batty...

Decisions...

2009-10-08T11:33:00.000-07:00

Kinda having a bad month with Kelly loosing his job. Today I'm seriously considering putting the kids in public school. Don't want to but I don't think I have a choice at this point :(

Hanging Lake Hike

2009-08-02T21:04:00.000-07:00

We packed lots of water and the first aid kit (only had to use 2 bandaids so I consider that a success). Started out at 9 am to beat the tourists & the heat.

Just the beginning of the trail.
Quick stop for a photo of the kids.
We heard a sound like thunder that turned out to be this base jumper's chute opening.
Keep climbing...

More and more climbing...

About here it starts to get really steep.
The kids liked taking a break here.
Almost at the top, but the toughest part is still ahead.
So the last little bit is climbing up by the edge of a cliff with only this railing in this photo to keep you from tumbling to your death. We didn't get any good photos really showing how high up you are & on the edge but my "mommy alarms" were going crazy in my head seeing the kids so close to the edge.

Hanging Lake

The kids enjoyed feeding some greedy ground squirrels. They will take the food from your hand if you're still enough. This one bit Joshua's finger, but can you blame him - look at the tiny piece of food Josh is holding out.
All 4 of the kids went to the middle of the lake with dad.

Absolutely the best part about the hike is Spouting Rock. If you're going to hike as far as Hanging Lake you have to go a little bit further to see this awesome spot. Two beautiful waterfalls thundering down that you can walk behind & around. The spray is freezing & is very refreshing after a long hike.
There are also trails up here that lead to overlook the lake.
We got home 4 1/2 hours later. Even though we started out early there were lots of people on the trail, especially on the way back down.

Play by FoxSaver®

Camping

2009-07-29T07:51:00.000-07:00

Friday was Kelly's birthday & with Grandpa here to watch the kiddos it was nice to get away. We went to Mountain Fair in Carbondale and then met up with some friends who were camping nearby.

Here's some pictures of the drive to the lake.

It's right at the base of Mt. Sopris

Dinkle lake

We had a blast! And after 4 years of not using our tent I finally sold it a couple months ago. I'm really wishing I had not done that now. We need to buy another one soon. So much fun!

A New Favorite Place

2009-07-21T19:42:00.001-07:00

The kids have a new favorite place they would like to go to every day if I would let them. Thanks to my buddy, Brandon, for telling me about this great spot on the Colorado River. It's only 5 min from our house and very private, with the exception of all the rafters going down the river. The kids enjoyed waving to them until about the 20th raft and then they stopped.

We love the water, the sand, the bugs, the driftwood, the rocks - everything here is a new adventure for them.

Caleb sleeping

2009-07-19T14:13:00.001-07:00

The kiddos were watching a cartoon on Hulu the other night & Caleb fell asleep. I swear, the kid can sleep anywhere.

4th of July

2009-07-08T20:43:00.000-07:00

The Westin Resort puts on a free fireworks display every year in Avon. We always enjoy going. This year Foghat performed & then there were fireworks after the concert. If you're not sick of fireworks yet feel free to watch some of these videos I took.

Gotta love Pink Floyd!

Another Summer of Jazz Wednesday

2009-07-06T07:03:00.000-07:00

Went to another concert last week - here's a few pictures.

Water Balloon Fight

2009-07-02T12:12:00.000-07:00

I think I spent at least half an hour filling these balloons for this 40 sec. video.

More Strawberry Days Pictures

2009-07-02T12:00:00.001-07:00

While listening to The Informants we let Caleb take some pictures.

Yikes!

Josh & Nathaniel having some fun.
Painting on the Strawberry Days mural.

Strawberry Days Parade!

2009-06-21T19:41:00.001-07:00

It's been a busy weekend because of Strawberry Days. Being only 2 blocks from all the events certainly has it's benefits. On Saturday we went down to the parade. It was kind of a disappointing one this year.

Here's my pick: It's for Sunlight Ski Resort and says "Friends Don't Let Friends Ski Vail"

I thought it was pretty lame that the Boy Scouts were selling candy & water instead of throwing it (isn't that what people normally do during a parade).

Pretty realistic looking take-out box on top of this car with a strawberry in it.

And, of course, our football team - state champs this year!

A Shriner having a bit of car trouble...

Summer of Jazz

2009-06-18T14:41:00.001-07:00

We went to Summer of Jazz yesterday and saw an awesome band called Breakestra . There were lots of people and we were up by the front so the kiddos had a great time getting out and dancing. After it got dark & they had a few drinks there were tons of "big kids" out dancing too. I tried to get some pics & video but most didn't turn out.

Here's Caleb, he's really mad that we were leaving.

What it's like to play tag with my boys & Allen.

Josh makes a movie:

Ride the Rockies

2009-06-14T13:14:00.000-07:00

Ride the Rockies was in town this weekend. The kids enjoyed seeing all the cyclists. Lance Armstrong, who lives in nearby Aspen, apparently was in the area - see here - however we were not one of the lucky few to see him ride.
All the cyclists from Ride the Rockies camp out and there are hundreds of tents set up on the football field.

They also had a live band & beer garden at the park 2 blocks from our house. So we had the pleasure of listening to the band butcher everything from The Beatles to Bob Dylan from the comfort of our living room.

Caleb, enjoying a sucker.

"Do you see the beast, have you got it in your sights?"

- If you can name that movie quote I'll send you an envelope of coupons or something.

Fish Hatchery With 6 Kiddos

2009-06-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

Took the kids + Allen & Izzy to the Fish Hatchery a couple weeks ago. The guys there were really nice and brought our a big bucket of food for us to feed to the fish. We had a good time.

The Twins Turn 6 ?!?!?

2009-05-25T18:59:00.000-07:00

It just can't be true. I refuse to believe that my little babies have been around for 6 years. And while I cannot accept this reality Kaitlyn & Nathaniel have been eagerly awaiting this day for about the last 4 months. They were thrilled to find out that Grandma would be visiting too.

Nathaniel liked Joshua's tank cake that I made a couple years ago & had me make another.

Kate wanted a rainbow cake.

Big hugs for Grandma.

Josh & Nathaniel are BIG fans of Bionicles. Nathaniel got 2 as gifts and he worked hard to put them together.

Kate got an Easy Bake Oven (remember those) from Grandpa & Grandma and she and Izzy made some cookies for everyone.

The finished Bionicles.

Gift-opening mayhem...

Mother's Day Hike

2009-05-18T05:18:00.001-07:00

On Mother's Day we took a 2 1/2 hour hike up Grizzly Creek. Here's beautiful Kate with a flower she picked in her hair.

Here's the rocks Nathaniel just "had" to have me take a picture of.

We were able to see 2 snakes this time. I wasn't able to get a picture of either of them.

My troops all in a row.

There were lots of butterflies that let Nathaniel touch them. He was excited about that.

This is the same rock we took their picture on last year. Click here to see that picture.

Here's a bone that the kids found.

I always think Caleb is trying to do the Captain Morgan "stand" when I look at this picture. He'll be proud of that someday, I figure.

Some beautiful wild Red Columbines.

My Little Picture-Takers

2009-05-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Here's some photos that Nathaniel took of Kaitlyn

and here's some Kate took of herself. She does have big eyes, but these pics make them seem huge.

Backyard Discovery

2009-05-11T15:07:00.001-07:00

The kids found this in the yard today. They were lucky enough to actually capture it.

I'm not really sure but I think it's a Sagebrush Lizard. It's scared out of it's mind right now. We're planning on letting it go after we show it to Daddy tonight.

The Daily Life of Flat Stanley

2009-05-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

A neighbor sent Flat Stanley to Josh. I guess for a school project they have different people take Stanley around with them and then report back what he did. Josh took these pictures to illustrate a day in the life of Flat Stanley.

Waking up in the morning...

Playing with a scary Bionicle dude...

Having a Coke...
Playing outside...

Reading a book...

Taking a bath, I guess...

Playing with legos...

Finish the day with reading the paper...

Grandma's "Care Package"

2009-05-07T12:48:00.000-07:00

Grandma sent the kids a care package full of fun things. Kate really likes her purse. There were lots of balloons & pencils too. Thanks Grandma!!

I'm not going to say anything about this next picture - at least not until he's a bit older, ha!

Grand Junction

2009-04-22T09:31:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that I forgot my camera but we went to Grand Junction this last weekend and went to the Math & Science Center. The kids had a BLAST! I even had fun too. Everything is hands-on and the people there are very knowledgeable. Click here to see their website. It's definately a place we will visit again.

2009-04-14T09:27:00.000-07:00

A few leftover pictures in the camera from when Cooper stayed with us.
Kate: 5, Nathaniel: 5, Caleb: 4, Cooper 2

Everywhere we went with the 3 boys people would ask if they were triplets.

One day I took my 4 + Cooper + the 2 neighbor kids to the park.

Cooper's Snow Day

2009-03-28T10:19:00.000-07:00

On Thursday Cooper woke up to this:

He was thrilled.

In the afternoon Coop went outside with the other kiddos and had a blast.

Day 3

2009-03-26T10:19:00.000-07:00

Well, it's day 3 and so far no lost limbs - so I'd consider that an achievement. It was not a good day to be outside so we were, unfortunately, confined to the house today.

Here's Cooper playing with the dump truck - before I realized the lens on the camera was totally dirty.

Playing with magnet trucks.

This is the point where I realized that all 5 were wearing camo. How did I miss that?

Cooper helped make taco seasoning for supper.

Played with the wooden trains before bed.

Coop Day 2

2009-03-24T21:05:00.000-07:00

Another fun day with Cooper.

He and Nathaniel pulled stuffing out of one of the toys to use as snow with their train track, very creative.

Had S'mores for snack.

Played with Legos.

Helped make chocolate cake.

Rode in the wagon to the park.

Had fun at the park.

Went to the pool. Yes, that's my kid with his hand down his trunks.

Did not want to leave the pool.

Every morning when Cooper gets up he looks out the window and says "look at the mountain!" When we go out of the house he says it too. He is completely in awe of the mountains. This morning he played with legos & trains alot. In the afternoon we went to the park and I cannot believe how much he loves the swings. If I pushed him up & over on the swingset he would probably still tell me "higher!" and "faster!". He's so silly. We spent almost 2 hours at the pool and he would have stayed for another 2 if I would have let him. After such a jam packed day he zonked out within minutes with no fussing at all tonight.

Here's 3 of my goofballs.

Day 1 Cooper Update

2009-03-23T19:59:00.001-07:00

Cooper was a little sad at bedtime tonight. He really missed his mom & dad. But to put your minds at ease here he is 10 min. after talking to his dad & 5 min. after talking to his mom. It was really cute he actually did fall asleep while Christy was still on the phone with him.

Day 1 With the Coopster!

2009-03-23T18:00:00.000-07:00

We are all very excited to have Cooper staying with us this week! I know it's hard for his mom and dad to part with him for this long so here's a sampling of what he did today.

I slept in this morning because of the long drive last night. The children all had plenty of fun while I was sleeping. However we did get all the games, crayons, glue & string picked up before breakfast.

Playing on Starfall with Kate.

Playing with blocks.

Cooper was VERY excited to see it was snowing today. It was warm enough it wasn't sticking so in the afternoon we went outside to play.

Matt & Christy, I think he wants one of these.

He ate very well. He particularly enjoyed his Snack Pack.

Ate all his food at supper too.

Ummm, yeah. Doing good in this area too.

He's been very good & has had alot of fun today. We still have many more things to do with him before he has to go home.

60 Degrees!

2009-03-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

Nothing like a bit of warm weather to bring all the unusual people out of hiding in Glenwood. The kids did enjoy watching this bunch practicing, I guess, on a makeshift tightrope. I must say I did enjoy watching them fall down. I'm evil, I know.

What's really unbelievable is less than 1 week ago public school called a snow day. Well we are getting geared up for some spring hiking and thought it would do some good to do a little bit around town. I don't think Nathaniel is quite ready to turn in his snow boots, as you can see he's still wearing them.

Caleb turs 4

2009-03-03T08:17:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Caleb!!

Caleb had a fun birthday on Monday filled with pizza, cake & ice cream and then taking the neighbor kids swimming. Everyone was exhausted by bedtime, especially Mommy.

McDonalds?

2009-02-24T15:04:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since we have been able to get out and go to the park, aside from sledding. It's probably about time to show off the boys' haircuts anyway.

Here's some pictures Joshua took.

Afterwards I took the kids to McDonalds for ice cream since Grandma gave them gift certificates for Valentines Day. At least I think it was McDonalds. We haven't been there in a year or 3 The outside looks the same but inside there are major changes. Gone is the cheery face of The Hamburgular. There's no big plastic Ronald or even bright yellow & red colors. It's all been replaced with fireplaces and a sort of euro-cafe styling with muted green and gray tones. Is this a national phenomenon? I will say that even though the fake cheery facade is gone it still smelled exactly the same as I remember it.

Another "great" idea

2009-02-18T08:28:00.001-08:00

The other day the kids were tracing letters in cornmeal. Everything started out so well...

Caleb made a smiley face

Let the chaos begin. Oh! Wouldn't it be fun to drive our cars through and make tracks and build bunkers and dig trenches and turn the table into a war zone! It really was inevitable and oh so much fun to clean up.

Realization

2009-02-08T18:59:00.000-08:00

Since we just recently took a trip back to Nebraska I've really started thinking about some of the differences between Colorado and Nebraska. Now I'm not going to talk about how flat and boring Nebraska is and how the landscape just goes on and on and on and on for hundreds of miles and the only difference in the scenery is if you're looking at cows or pasture. No, no I'm not going to talk about how hard it is to drive in Nebraska because the monotony of it practically lulls you to sleep.

Instead, I'm going to point out the differences in the seasons.

First up, Colorado:

1. Tourist Season - This is when the weather is beautiful and everyone comes to hike, kayak, fish and be a minor nuisance to the locals.

2. Fire Season - Yup, not just a California thing. Things get real dry, real fast and people get pissed off that they can't light up huge bricks of firecrackers.

3. Bear & Mountain Lion Season - We're in their territory so let's face it, they're going to be around. Really the only inconveniences are the people who don't secure their trash and the lovely, huge piles of poop that they leave on my front porch for me to clean up.

4. Ski Season - This is pretty much just like Tourist Season accept with a few feet of snow on the ground.

Now Nebraska:

1. Freaking Hot Season - This is when every day is like 104 degrees with, oh I don't know, 80% humidity and all you do is fight with other members of your family over who gets to either stand in front of the fan or sit on the air conditioner vent. This season is also sometimes referred to as Tornado Season - when everyone in Nebraska remembers why they pay for insurance.

2. Freaking Cold Season - Yes it is insanely cold in Nebraska. In my opinion it's much colder than here in Colorado, go figure. And most of the time Nebraskans don't get the benifit of nice snowfall. It's either just cold or you get dumped with 4 feet all at once.

3. Freaking Windy Season - Okay this one is a little tricky because it's just windy all the time. It usually pairs up with season 1 or 2 (mainly 2) to really drive people crazy and have you so cold that you have that burning & stinging feeling on every bit of exposed skin whenever you step outside.

4. Football Season - You had to know this was coming. Undoubtedly the most popular & well-liked season in Nebraska. Really It's a wonder any businesses are open, outside of Lincoln, on a football Saturday. It's a great day when drunk college kids can put a corn cob on their heads and try to tell coach Pelini how to do his job. Go Huskers!

I hope all my relatives still living in Nebraska will forgive me for these ramblings. If you live there, you know it's true and that I'm pretty much right.

Best idea - ever

2009-02-06T22:30:00.000-08:00

I thought this was a fantastic idea. I could bring snow inside for the kids to play with and I wouldn't have to mess with snowsuits and everything else. As you can see the twins didn't quite get it and still felt the need to be totally decked out in snow gear, inside the house - complete with snow boots!

They did have alot of fun and did an excellent job of attempting to turn my living room into a swimming pool.

School This Week

2009-02-03T10:14:00.000-08:00

We did alot this week & I am really trying to do things with the younger kids that involve Caleb more. He has done very well & feels like a "big boy" now.

This is his favorite thing to do. Numbers with Hershey's kisses because he gets to eat one when they're all done.

And now for something completely different...

2009-02-02T10:23:00.001-08:00

Even if you've never heard of the Snuggie or seen the comercials I still hope you'll find this funny.

I'm thinking of all the crazy things you could do with your Snuggie - maybe I'll buy one....or not. Hmmm, maybe give a couple to Kim & Steve for Christmas and see what great pictures they can take for next years family calendar.

Funny

2009-01-30T07:17:00.000-08:00

I thought this was very funny. Star Wars re-told by someone who hasn't seen the movie. You can watch it here.

2009-01-29T09:57:00.000-08:00

We had a great time visiting everyone back home. We did alot of things with the time that we had. I've added photos to our online album but here's a picture of my sisters -love you guys.

We are very happy to be back in the mountains and are getting back into our normal routines.

Thursday 1/8

2009-01-23T15:02:00.000-08:00

Before we left for Nebraska the kids spent one last day in the snow. The tunneling zapped alot of their energy so they were ready to just relax in the van for a few - 9 - hours.

Yummy.

Caleb

2009-01-04T17:19:00.000-08:00

Caleb is getting to be such a silly boy. He loves attention & always seems to want to have his picture taken. Here I'm trying to take a picture for my coupon blog.

Caleb and Kaitlyn love to play together. They are becoming great friends.

He needs to grow some more to catch Kate, Nathaniel - not so much.

They are all very excited about visiting everyone in Nebraska. They have been counting down the days for a couple weeks now. Five more days left, they can hardly stand it.

New Blog

2008-12-30T16:18:00.001-08:00

I've started a new blog for my couponing stuff to keep it separate because it was begining to dominate what I posted. http://www.crazycoloradocoupons.blogspot.com/

75% off at Target

2008-12-30T15:48:00.000-08:00

Great deals on Christmas stuff at Target today.

$6.41 before tax - unfortunately we have 3 taxes at Target so OOP was $8.81

15 bags of chocolate - used either $1/2 or $1.50/3 coupons

4 Starbucks chocolate - used $1/1 coupon

2 M&M premium - used $1/1 coupon

3 scotch tape - used $1/6 rolls coupon

11 Scotch wrapping paper cutters - used $1/1 peelies on tape rolls (work great for coupons)

I'm putting some chocolate in the freezer for Valentine's Day, we gave some to the neighbors & the rest will, hopefully, be gobbled up by all our relatives when we visit Nebraska in 10 days.

Rite Aid Trip

2008-12-28T09:04:00.000-08:00

I found some great deals at Rite Aid today. The first transaction totaled $2.07 (I actually still had a $3 coupon for the Pantene that they wouldn't use because the total was less than the coupon) & the second transation was $4.44.

Here's what I got... the makeup was a great deal they were all free. And I'll get $6.99 in rebates on the Orajel rinse & Crest so it will end up being a profit. I think I'll make the kids some S'mores with the chocolate - I have too many marshmallows anyway.

I added some Christmas pictures to our photo album, so check those out.

More snow

2008-12-24T08:45:00.000-08:00

Here's the kids having some more fun in the snow. They love the neighbor's snowboards.
Here's Caleb getting swept off his feet by the girls.

Snow... finally

2008-12-16T15:33:00.000-08:00

Oh, we love the snow! We've been spending our afternoons outside in the snow. Caleb had a bit of a run-in with a sled and now the other kids call him Rudolph.

Umm, I think we need a bigger sled. Gotta love 'em.

Safeway savings

2008-12-16T15:27:00.000-08:00

I had a good shopping trip at Safeway the other day. The woman behind me was shocked when she heard I saved 91% and paid a total of $10.04 for my groceries. I love Safeway.

Beautiful Babies

2008-12-07T14:44:00.000-08:00

We all enjoyed staying at Uncle Barney & Fran's house (the kids called her "the nice lady").

I was very happy to be able to go into the NICU before we left for home.

Danielle:

TJ:

We are all looking forward to visiting next month. Kaitlyn especially is looking forward to meeting the babies.

The kids did marvelously well for such a long trip. I am very thankful for the DVD player in the van. We made the trip home in 7 1/2 hours which is fantastic.

Nebraska

2008-12-02T19:51:00.001-08:00

The kids and I made a flying trip to Nebraska because my sister, Angela, was having twins scheduled to be born on Monday Nov. 24th. We left Kelly at home & he got quite lonesome after a couple of days. First we went and saw my sister, Christy & her son Cooper - he's only 2 but is almost as tall as my 3 & 5 year old. Here's Cooper pushing Caleb around the store.

They all had a blast in Coop's backyard, Kaitlyn loved pushing him on the swings.

Sizing each other up...

KMart Double Coupon Days

2008-12-02T19:44:00.001-08:00

This week was double coupons up to $2 at KMart. I didn't get most of the deals that I should have because our KMart does not run a sale flyer & basically doesn't have things on sale. I was able to get these items for a total of $9.23 I especially like the 8 holiday candles.

Not sure why it shows $92.44 in savings & only $14.15 in coupons.

Redstone Castle

2008-11-14T01:14:00.000-08:00

Today the kids & I went with some other homeschoolers to take a tour of Redstone Castle. If you feel like reading, here's some history behind it http://www.coloradohistory.org/RIPsigns/show_markertext.asp?id=893

Some of our favorites were the carriage house, the bell in the courtyard, the high, curved, gold-leafed ceilings and the sprawling grounds. Here's some pictures...

Gotta have more? Check our our photo album on the right.

Afterward we spent some time in Redstone & had a lovely and somewhat cold day away from home.

Sunset

2008-11-03T18:51:00.000-08:00

I know for everyone in the flat part of the country this will not be a big deal but because where our house is in relation to the mountains we do not see many sunsets. We caught this beauty out our window and the kids and I just sat and stared for awhile.

Joshua turns 9!!

2008-11-03T07:42:00.001-08:00

Joshua turned 9 on Nov. 1st. He wanted an aircraft carrier for his cake (no pressure). We had alot of fun and the kids have so much candy now our dentist will probably want to retire. Here's some pictures...

Halloween

2008-11-01T05:07:00.000-07:00

This year we went to a Halloween carnival in New Castle. Always a great alternative to trick-or-treating. The kids had been up since 5am and seemed to lack some enthusiasm. I swear you can almost see them nodding off in some of the pictures. Joshua - King Arthur, Caleb - The Grey knight, Kate - Guinevere, Nathaniel - The Black knight (I"m invincible!", "You're a looney" - gotta love that movie)

What can you buy for $20?

2008-10-31T11:19:00.000-07:00

At Safeway today my bill started at $98 but I paid only $21. Here's what I bought:

-6 Cheerios

-2 Smart Balance butter 2packs

-2 Whole wheat spagetti

-Velveeta cheese slices

-2 boxes whole wheat waffuls

- box of mandarins

- trash bags

- Green giant frozen veggies

- 2 cans olives

- 2 cans Progresso soup

- bag pancake mix

- Joshua picked some ice cream for his birthday - it wasn't on sale & I didn't have a coupon so it alone cost $4.99.

22 items for $21

Good Deal!

2008-10-30T21:41:00.000-07:00

I am a fanatic about saving money & gettting things for free. I just came from Target & got 4 Glade apple cinnamon scented oil candles for free. So I'm passing this on to anyone who reads my blog before the sale is over. You should be able to print 2 B1G1 coupons here http://print.coupons.com/couponweb/Offers.aspx?pid=13927&zid=ym31&nid=10 and here http://www.glade.com/offers.aspx?offerId=102

Take these to Target and buy 4 of the holiday Glade scented oil candles on sale for $2.50 each so that's a total of $5 for the 4 candles. When you purchase them at the register they give you a $5 gift card for buying 4. So they pay for themselves. Actually they do more than that because each one also has a B1G1 & a $2 off coupon inside the box. I love to find deals like these & hope it works for someone else also. And they smell great too.

Haircuts!

2008-10-29T13:58:00.001-07:00

The boys were getting very shaggy so they all got a "Dad's special" haircut.

Here's a glimpse at what the boys will look like in 60 years.

They seem pretty happy about it.

New Camera

2008-10-23T15:28:00.001-07:00

The kids took turns taking pictures of each other with my camera.

I think the flash may be a bit brighter than the other because many pictures turned out like this...

All of the kids have colds right now so we have spent the majority of our time indoors this week.

Another Birthday

2008-10-14T09:32:00.000-07:00

Another year, gone... We had a great time going back to Rifle Falls with Kelly. We brought a couple flashlights and really were able to explore some of the limestone caves. The pictures inside the caves didn't turn out but here's some that did. Also check out our online album for more pictures. It was nice to let Kelly take over for the day. He got me a new camera also, which I am very excited about. I'll try not to loose this one. Kelly, making me very thankful we have life insurance.

Grandpa & Grandma visit

2008-10-07T09:31:00.000-07:00

We were able to do many fun things while Grandpa & Grandma where visiting. In 3 days we went to the park, the fish "patchery" (as Nathaniel calls it), a corn maze, Rifle Falls, a great pumpkin patch & Grizzly Creek - just to name a few. It was a challenge for Grandpa, as he would prefer outings to not be so spontaneous, but he did wonderfully. I only got pictures of Rifle Falls & the pumpkin patch.

There are great caves that the kids really would like to explore some more.

Which is the older brother?

Excited

2008-09-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

The kids are anxiously "waiting" for Grandpa & Grandma to come visit. I told them about it a few days ago & they talk about it constantly. Here's some pictures Missy, next door, took of the kids.

Transfer Trail

2008-09-07T20:14:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Kelly & Joshua went on Transfer Trail, a 4 wheel drive trail. It took 7 hours. While they were gone I took the other kids out & lost my camera. Kelly got some pretty good pictures though. Take a look on our online album.

PHOTO ALBUM

2008-09-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

I'm still working on it but I added a link on the right to our online photo album.

Rash

2008-09-01T16:07:00.000-07:00

The kids had this crazy rash that looked like a dozen mosquito bites on their arms, legs and torso. It seemed like it got better but then it would spread.

I was about to take them all to the doctor when I found out that they had been playing with these caterpillars. They look so cute. Not a good picture but they are bright yellow with about 5 long black hairs on them. The dagger moth larvae can aparently cause a reaction on the skin. Thank goodness for Google, I read someones blog that had the same thing happen. Benadryl & calamine lotion and 3 days later - no more rash, and no more touching these caterpillars.

Labor Day

2008-09-01T15:43:00.000-07:00

We had alot of fun together this Labor Day weekend. First we went to Parachute to visit Kelly's aunt & uncle. We always enjoy visiting with them. The kids especially like to play with their dog, Sadie.

We also had planned to go over Independence Pass, but we slept in & didn't get out of the house until 2:00 so we went to Redstone instead.

The beautiful Crystal River flows by Redstone and feels like a secluded paradise. We hiked along the river and were amazed by some of the rock formations.

After hiking around Redstone we continued on Hwy 133 a few miles and saw this little gem.

The rocks and logs were very slippery and Caleb did fall in the very cold water. Good thing mom packed some spare clothes.

This was a beautiful area with red sandstone rocks and many tree roots to climb. We will have to go back and spend more time at this waterfall.

After Hays Creek Falls we continued a few miles to the summit of McClure Pass.

We found this trail and took some pictures of the surrounding mountains. It was a cloudy day so the visibility was limited.

Even though it made me nervous, we took the van on this trail. The aspens were beautiful.

Many have carvings like this one.

The trail got a little too rough for the van so we turned around after a few miles. It worked out perfectly because we were able to catch a glimpse of this rainbow.

We drove back to Redstone and ate at the Crystal Club Cafe. It is such an interesting community I wish we had taken pictures during the daylight. We had fun at the park and then drove about 30 minutes to get home. It was a great day.

Saturday Outing

2008-08-28T17:27:00.000-07:00

Had a nice time. Took lots of scenic pictures. The kids really enjoyed throwing rocks into the creek.

Kelly climbed on these logs.

Caleb thought he could too. I felt this big rock was high enough. Caleb, obviously, is not impressed. He thinks he should be able to do whatever dad does.

Air Fair

2008-08-20T14:18:00.000-07:00

We went to the Air Fair in Rifle. Kelly was in Vail again so I had fun trying to keep my herd of kids together.

This is the fastest S-10 aparently. It was extremely loud & hot.

Afterwards Kaitlyn refused to uncover her ears.

Company Picnic

2008-08-09T08:52:00.000-07:00

We had a good time at the company picnic. They have it at 4 Eagle Ranch in Wolcott, near Avon. http://www.4eagleranch.com/

Joshua's pictures & videos from trip...

Here's some others:

Picnic

2008-08-02T15:14:00.000-07:00

We met Kelly and had a picnic in the park for lunch today.

Then we went home and the kids had a water balloon "fight" . Basically they just threw the balloons around the yard and laughed.

Kelly's Birthday

2008-07-28T17:00:00.000-07:00

Pretty sure Kelly had a good birthday. I made him a Pac-Man cake to remind him of the good old days. We had fun, Josh took these pictures.

Caleb was so sugared-up he ran around the house in his boxers. And Nathaniel spun around on the barstools until he nearly got sick.

Caleb's impersonation of toilet bowl water

2008-07-08T08:46:00.000-07:00

Independence Day

2008-07-06T18:35:00.000-07:00

We went to Avon for their 4th of July celebration. The Westin resort & spa puts on a huge event. I'm sure we will go back next year. They had a nice fireworks display with live music, food, vendors, etc. All the Prince fans liked this portion, however maybe someone will explain to me what Purple Rain has to do with celebrating our independence.

Strawberry Days

2008-07-05T20:11:00.000-07:00

Strawberry Days this year was once again crazy & fun. Kelly had to work in Vail so I took the kids by myself. Only got a couple of pictures because it was insane trying not to loose one of the kids.

Waiting for the parade. Kaitlyn made a friend, Arianna. And, yes, I'm pretty sure Joshua is picking his nose.

Tuckered out

2008-07-02T15:52:00.000-07:00

We were all fairly exhaused from all the exciting things we did on vacation.

Museum of Nature & Science

2008-07-01T16:46:00.000-07:00

We spent the entire last day of the trip at the Museum of Nature & Science. We had a great time here. Kelly forgot his camera so I don't have many pictures.

Joshua really liked this part & the various models they had for kids to take apart and explore.

Botanic Gardens

2008-07-01T05:52:00.001-07:00

We all went to the Botanic Gardens, we were a bit rushed but still had a good time. Numerous fountains & art as well.

The kids seemed to enjoy the discovery area and the goldfish pond.

Casa Bonita

2008-06-24T08:31:00.000-07:00

In Denver, we went out to Casa Bonita. It's all about the atmosphere. I think everyone had a great time. We definately had the best seat in the restaurant. All the kids got to meet the cliff diver when he climbed up the rocks to the table.

The cliff diver trying to give Cooper a high-five, Cooper doesn't want any part of it.

Still working on the juggling.

Denver

2008-06-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

We loved having Grandma, Christy & Cooper come to see us in Denver. We had a great time.

We went to the Children's Museum & great fun was had by all. Bonus points to Kelly & Christy for spending so much time in the recycle construction area helping Josh build a birdhouse, helping Nathaniel saw wood & Christy building a tractor.

Other Stuff

2008-06-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

Our hotel was directly across the street from Focus on the Family. They have a great area for kids. The kids would have loved to have stayed here longer.

They had a 2 story slide that went from inside to the outside & ended inside in another part of the building, very fun.

Caleb haning out in our hotel room.

Garden of the Gods

2008-06-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

Went to Garden of the Gods. It was pretty warm that day. We started off on the main path but there were alot of people.

We went off on a dirt path & didn't see any other people. It was nice & we found many cool places like this rock.

Saw some climbers.

We'd rather be at the pool, mom.

Colorado Springs

2008-06-22T10:37:00.000-07:00

We spent a couple of hours driving around town trying to find a Vitamin Cottage or Whole Foods store. Our navigation system kept directing us to ones that were still under construction or had closed, it got so ridiculuous that all we could do was laugh.

After we checked into the hotel we drove to Woodland Park to the Dinosaur Resource Center.

Josh took this picture of Dad, grrr...very scary.

They had a kids corner to dig for fossils, make fossil rubbings & feel dinosaur poop. Here is the dino that Josh made with magnets, Kate is deciding what to name it.

It was neat to be able to see in their Paleo lab and look at the exhibts in progress.

Goodbye Canon City

2008-06-22T10:26:00.000-07:00

We spent some time at a nice park right by the train depot. It has a wide bridge that crosses the Arkansas river.

On to Colorado Springs...

Royal Gorge Park

2008-06-19T17:50:00.000-07:00

Next it was on to the Royal Gorge Park. The park is on both sides of the gorge.

We went on the longest incline railway all the way to the bottom of the canyon. They pack you in like cattle, the trip down made the children a little nervous.

At the bottom we saw some people rafting that had 2 people go overboard. Because of the sheer cliffs the 2 guides were having to do some rock scrambling to find them.

They did get to them and here they are emerging from a tunnel in the cliff wall to a cheer from the crowd on our side of the gorge. The other folks nervously waiting.
The children especially enjoyed the carousel, petting zoo & burro rides. Funny, we could have done all those at a local fair.

The aerial tramway across the gorge was also fun. We walked across the bridge first & took the tram on the way back, much faster. Here's a picture from the tram. Kelly's waving for the camera because the kids refused to go out on this platform.
Other pictures.

Royal Gorge Route Railroad

2008-06-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

For 2 nights we stayed in Canon City, I wouldn't recommend it. First we went on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad.

The big selling point was the open air car which provided great views of the gorge and the bridge from the canyon floor. Kelly took a billion pictures, but here are some of my favorites.

I know it's really shaky, but considering I was standing on a moving train - it's not too bad. Really the bridge is just massive.

Kelly, fully looking the part of a tourist...

Hoosier Pass

2008-06-16T15:33:00.000-07:00

First on our vacation we went to the Royal Gorge in Canon City. To get there we wanted to take Independence Pass but because of the snow we took Hoosier Pass instead. It's much less scenic but we did really enjoy a whole foods deli in Frisco. The drive from Breckenridge to the summit of the pass is nice with alot of switchbacks.

Here's the view...

Packing

2008-06-16T15:22:00.000-07:00

Caught Caleb goofing around while we were packing.

Hiking

2008-06-06T21:32:00.000-07:00

Kate having fun & showing off.

Kelly finally had time to go with us on a hike. The creek was quite high with some water over the path in one place.

Nathaniel got his feet tangled up with a snake and screamed like a girl. Because Kelly was with us we were able to go farther where the trail gets quite narrow & steep.

Got all the kids to, reluctantly, sit for a picture above the roaring water.

Here's the view from the rock they were on. Caleb was mad we wouldn't let him lean over the edge, fearless child...

2008-05-29T10:10:00.000-07:00

What the sprinkler is really meant for - a drinking fountain.

This little guy and a few of his friends moved into the tree outside our living room window.

Unfortunately this little guy's been hanging around too.

It's a skunk if it's too dark to see.

Twins turn 5!

2008-05-23T06:56:00.001-07:00

Even though I am still in denial, Nathaniel & Kate turned 5 yesterday.

I made Nathaniel a pirate ship cake.

Kaitlyn wanted a castle cake.

Nathaniel loved his present from grandpa & grandma.

Kaitlyn did too.

Kelly hard at work...

Chow time!

NO NAME

2008-05-21T08:28:00.001-07:00

We went a couple miles down the road to No Name yesterday to check out the trail by the river. It's mainly used by cyclists because it is paved.

Saw some people kayaking,

And many trees that beavers had chewed on.

It is a nice trail through the canyon but I think we prefer trails more off the beaten path.

Zoom Happy

2008-05-06T16:45:00.000-07:00

The children made these footprints all over, including in the house, by crushing chalk and dumping water on it and then walking through it.

Went to Grizzly Creek again & brought the neighbor, Izzy, with us. Here's some pictures:

Joshua showing how strong he is & Izzy posing to show how cute she is...

Caleb was particularly difficult during this excursion & tried to walk off on his own a couple of times. This was his temporary time-out spot.

The snow is really melting and so the creek was really moving in some places, much faster than the last time we went.

Joshua loves the zoom function on the camera. Here are the videos and pictures he took.