Visitors Galore!

Alright, this time Jamie, Brian, Allison and Jacob came right after Grandpa Don left, and it was awesome!  We ate at a great brew pub downtown, walked over to the baseball stadium, went to the mountains, swam in the pool (and rode the slide, after the swimming lessons were over.  FINALLY.), played games (both electronic and not...yay for Cooties and Carcassonne), ate great food and enjoyed each others company.  All in all the kids got along well.  Since Allison and Jacob are a bit older, they also enjoyed horseback riding, visiting Rocky Mountain National Park, and hiking.  I must say, visiting Colorado does have a lot to offer.  Who's next?

Mr. Fix It

No, we didn't have visitor after visitor.  There were plenty of baby showers, baptisms, school field trips, Matt traveling out-of-town for work and dinner with friends in-between.  At the end of June, Grandpa Don arrived (and just in the nick of time).  He was here to watch the kids while we went to our dear friends, Kathy and Will's wedding.

 Their dance.

I also got to attend a wedding shower of my good friend Arwen.  We had high tea at the Brown Palace.  Delightful and delicious!

 Left to right:  Arwen's Aunt, Arwen, Me, Kat, Baby Susan, Arwen's Mom

Matt and Grandpa fixed the side fence that the neighbor's obnoxious weeds had pushed over.  While Matt and I worked (and the kids were at school), Dad touched up paint on the garage, painted the window sills, fixed Ezra's door, worked on the side porch and hopefully got a little time to relax.

Grandpa Don and Elias make hummus.

Over the weekend, we headed up to Fraser.  We went on a great hike and enjoyed being outside.  I was glad that Elias did the 1 mile hike in and back with minimal whining.  Since then, we have walked to the library and back with the same results.  Some day I want to take him on some fourteeners, so this is just the beginning (I hope).

 Elias learns to climb over the fence.  Great.

 Ezzy likes hiking.

 A stream about 1 mile in.

 Snacking.

 Gotta throw rocks.

 On the bridge.

 All that hiking wore me out.

On the way back into town, we had a birthday party to attend (they really do never end), Audra's.  It was at a gymnastics place way out-of-town.  But with a little backtracking, and stopping only once for directions, we found it.

 

The birthday girl

 

 Too cute

 Chillin'

What a fun-filled week!  No wonder the kids always want to know who's coming next.

Trinidad or Bust!

We finally made it down to visit Grandma Marjie and Grandpa Paul's new digs in Trinidad, Colorado at the end of May.  We played with the toys Matt played with as a child, went to some playgrounds, watered the plants (and the driveway), survived the crazy winds, Matt helped dig up an old clothesline, ate the best pizza I have ever had, the kids picked a toy from the treasure chest, and had a wonderful time.

 Yummy thumbs.

 Tired.

Cheese.

 

Cheese 2.

I'm not sure what it is about Grandma and Grandpa's, but Elias seems to want to get into trouble whenever we visit them.  See THE nap to be reminded of what happened last time.  This time during quiet time, Elias managed to find Marjie's makeup and apply it quite liberally.  Sigh.

 

Luckily we are family, so they have to put up with us!

Bithdays, Birthdays

My cousin Kate, who lives in the Denver area, has two girls, and one has a birthday near Elias'.  We celebrated with a small family party at our house.  We had balloons, German Chocolate cake and lots of giggles.  Elias even got a belated car/train birthday gift that was so cool.  Thanks Kate!

 Carina

Angelina and Elias

In May, we celebrated Storm's birthday, a girl from Elias' class.  The kids ran around at the Little Gym.  After Elias warmed up to it, he loved it.  He is a little monkey after all.

 Storm and her Mom ready to knock down the big wedge mat.

The whole gang.

Then there was Jack's party, a boy from Elias' class.  We went to a place called Great Play where the kids play different sports and activities while interacting with projected images on the walls.  They ran around looking for Buddy, played football, soccer, basketball, balloons, threw balls and screamed at the top of their lungs.  Each of them got a medal when it was over.

 Jack ready to blow out the candles.

Ezra likes to run around just like the rest of them.

It turns out I really enjoy watching the adults who run these birthday parties.  Some are better than others.  I love the ones who really get into it and get silly with the kids.  I usually end up laughing way more than the kids do.  If I am ever in need of a job, I think I know where I'll look first.  May be my true calling.

Better than Dessert

Grandparents never disappoint.  Grandma Marjie and Grandpa Paul brought some wonderful things they had made when they visited back in April.

 Paul made Elias his own stool, so now it was Ezra's turn.

 Beautiful.

 Ezra siting on his new stool.  He loves it!

After dinner one evening, Elias was eating his dessert when Grandpa Paul started setting up his newest creation in the living room.  Elias opted to skip his dessert in order to see what was going on.  Paul didn't let him down.  He had made and painted a wooden castle set, and Grandma made a special bag to hold it all.  Paul told a story with all of the characters as each one made an appearance.  Elias loves to play it still.

 

A birthday celebration story.  It is almost always a birthday party when Elias sets it up himself.

What wonderful toys we will cherish always.  Thank you!