Camping with our new toy!

We have been looking to buy a travel trailer for a few years now, but a couple of months ago we found out that our HOA won't let us store them at our house. We didn't want to pay to store it somewhere else, so we decided to go a different route. After a few months of searching on Craigslist, we found just what we were looking for.

A 1986 Coleman Pop up tent trailer!

Last night we got to take it camping for the first time to our Ward Camp out. It was perfect! It kept us off the ground and out of the elements. It was plenty roomy. There are a few things we are still learning, but we are very excited about our new toy.

We had fun at the camp out. The kids made their own ice cream and got to roast marshmallows and sing campfire songs. Of course, nothing could beat the novelty of the camper, however, and they wanted to spend the entire camp out inside of it! We did drag them out for a few pictures.

As usual, no pictures of Isaac as he was off running around with his friends somewhere.

Here is an interior shot right before bed.
Yay for the camper!!

Fun with the Fam

We got to see all of our Colorado cousins as well as the Michigan ones on Thursday! Angela and her boys were in town visiting her family, so we all went over to her Mom's house to enjoy a nice family dinner and time together.

The kids loved playing in the water...


but didn't love saying goodbye. We had to leave earlier than everyone else because it was a school night. But the cousins did a great job of making my kids feel loved as they shouted, "Bye!" repeatedly while we packed up to leave.

Ode to my husband

When we first moved into this house, almost 3 years ago, we knew the eyesore of a backyard would have to be a priority. We had a few other priorities that came first, but when this summer hit we were ready to beautify the back. I knew exactly what I wanted. A nice big deck and lots of green grass. Then Ryan started talking about doing a patio instead. I couldn't really envision what he was talking about, so I balked. I wanted a deck, a nice wooden deck. Like the kind I had growing up. I wanted something level with the house. How on earth would a patio accomplish this? Ryan wanted a patio that was level with the house. That seemed like a lot more work than a deck. He agreed but said that it would be much lower maintenance once it was finished. And so back and forth we went. Finally, although I still had no idea what he was really envisioning, I relented.

And I have to admit, my husband is brilliant. Yes, it has been hard work. (No, it's not done.) But because we were planning to get rid of the back planter anyway, we were able to reuse all of the rocks, flagstone and filler dirt. In all we have spent a mere $150 on this patio so far. I have a feeling the deck might have been a wee bit more expensive...and we would have had to get rid of a ton of rocks, flagstone and dirt. Look at what he has accomplished!!!
We have been sitting out there at night and talking. We have never been able to do that in this backyard before. I can't wait until it is all finished!

...And the other, gold.

You know the song, right?

I met Leslie when we moved to Texas. I was 10 years old. I walked into my church class and saw this little girl with very blond hair wearing a frilly red dress. I still remember it. We became fast friends. We lived in the same neighborhood and were the same age, but more than that we had a lot in common. We made up dances--in fact we involved all of the girls our age in our own little ballet production that we orchestrated for the church talent show. We wrote novels together--she wrote one, I wrote the sequel. We would go to the library in the summer and set our summer reading goals--always higher than anyone else's. I think one year it was 85. Of course we both reached it. We grew up together. We fought, we made up, we went to camp, we went to dances, we went to high school, we went to college. After we both got married, we ended up living across the street from each other. No matter how long it has been, or how far we have "roamed", we have always been able to pick up as if it has only been a matter of hours. And I got to see her yesterday for the first time in almost 10 years!!!!!

Leslie took our book writing adventures as 12 year olds to a whole new level. She is a published author! (Well, technically she has been a published author for a long time in magazines, but now she has a book!!) She published a book, The Journey Takers and is on her book tour. She happened to be stopping in Colorado for a day, so we drove up to Estes Park to meet her and spend the day with her family. We had so much fun! I got to meet her three youngest and she met my three youngest. The last time we saw each other we each only had one little baby. It was really great to reminisce and catch up. Her mom was with her and pointed out to us that we are the same age our parents were when we met. That seems so crazy to me (my parents seemed OLD back then!! I'm certainly not that old!!)

We went into Rocky Mountain National Park for the afternoon. We stopped off at the visitor's center so our kids could get their Junior Ranger badges. Then we hiked to Alberta Falls. Unfortunately, it rained on us for most of the hike, but we survived. We also stopped off to see Bear Lake before we headed back down into Estes for a nice BBQ dinner. The kids hit it off and were fast friends by the end of the night. We got back late (10:00 pm on a school night!!) but it was soooo much fun!

At the visitor's center--the ranger is inspecting the kids' work.
Before the rain started.

It was sunny, but raining. Here we are at Alberta Falls.
The kids at Bear Lake.And I just had to do this...

Us, 10 years old. She is the one with the really blond hair. I'm the scary looking one next to her.

12 years old. Gotta love the hair...
14 years old.
15 years old
17 years old (Remember, we lived in Texas.)
At my wedding. She was pregnant with her oldest.
And yesterday!!

First day and other news

Yesterday was the first day of school. I have been surprisingly anxious about the girls being in school all day (as much as I've looked forward to it!) We decided to split them up into two different classes and I wasn't sure how they would do. So far so good! They both seemed to have a good time and they were able to find each other at recess. I think it will turn out fine.

Yesterday was also Isaac's first day as a Bear.


And check out our backyard! Ryan is really the hardest working person I have ever known. He has been working so hard every night and weekend. I have been helping, too. I'm pretty proud of the mid-section of that wall--that was all me! :)

Isaac's Day!

Yesterday we celebrated Isaac's ninth birthday in style. We wanted to have a fun BBQ with some of Isaac's best friends and family, but since our backyard is under construction, we had to find a new venue. I decided to rent a pavilion at the nearby reservoir and it was perfect! The kids loved playing at the beach and we all enjoyed the beautiful weather, yummy food and great scenery. After awhile some clouds rolled in, which was even better--it never rained but the foreboding sky chased the crowds away and kept us from roasting.


Watching the boats, geese and windsurfers.
Eating dinner! We had hamburgers and hot dogs, corn on the cob, watermelon, chips, salsas and salads galore.Being cheesy...what we do best.

The kids jumped right in and swam--even though the water was a bit cold. Hmmm...I wonder whose paranoid mom has had skin cancer on her head?!
The boys worked hard building this sand tunnel thing that ran all the way down the hill to the water. I think they could have stayed there all day and been completely content.
We made Grasshopper Pie for dessert--rather than throw the leftovers away or let them melt, I told the kids to dig right in! They almost finished it. I didn't get any pictures of Isaac blowing out the candles because I was trying to serve the pie before it melted. Also, it was too windy for us to light the candles, so he just pretended anyway.The most random event of the day was the appearance of this rabid goose. It came right over into our pavilion and it was drooling everywhere. It kind of freaked me out. We had to keep chasing it away. Nasty.
The end of the day--it was beautiful and we stayed a little longer than everyone else to watch the sun set over the water and get in some last minute swimming.

And a party just isn't a party without an appearance of Mad Jack.
Ryan and Isaac had filled a bunch of water balloons but we forgot to get them out at the beach, so when we got home we had our own little water balloon fight on the front lawn. I think we can safely say that Ryan won.
Happy Birthday, Isaac!!

Happy Fourth of July!!

A night in a tipi

Audrey wants to be an Indian (Native American) when she grows up. It is a lofty goal. To show our support, I booked us a tipi to stay in down in Larkspur on Thursday night.

Unfortunately, both Isaac and I had been feeling under the weather the whole week and I wasn't sure if we were going to be able to go. I slept all day Thursday and had decided that the last thing I needed was a night in a tipi, but when the girls heard that I wasn't going to be joining them, they were devastated. Against my better judgment, I decided at the last minute to go with them.

Of course, since I had been sick and sleeping all day, absolutely nothing was done to prepare for our trip. The tipi is located only about 30 minutes from our house, so I thought we would just fly by the seat of our pants. Isaac and I both wore the clothes we had been sleeping in all day (and we slept in them that night and wore them home the next day!) I knew I had no energy to get the food together to cook anything, so we got dinner to go and ate it in the car on the way. I didn't pack any clothes for us to change into, any soap, any toothbrushes, NOTHING. We told the kids to get their own stuff and put it in the car. Somehow we ended up without sleeping bags for Chloe or Isaac. Isaac didn't even have a pillow. But we did have 2 American Girls dolls, a pioneer bonnet and a purple jump rope. You know, the important stuff.

We had a lot of fun. The place we stayed was so cute and quirky and kid friendly. They had a place for the kids to "dig" for "dinosaur bones" as well as a place where they could "mine" for "gems."


They had pedal carts that we had a lot of fun with.

There was also a park and a pool and a lot of planned group activities that we didn't participate in. It was a beautiful night and we explored a bit, then headed back to our campfire where we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores. We also told campfire stories which was just hilarious. Lincoln was full of them. "Once upon a time there was a tiger. Chasing a buffalo. The end." "Once upon a time there was a ghost. Chasing a ghost. The end." Over and over. We also attempted to teach the kids some classic campfire songs. It was fun!

Sleeping in a tipi...not so much. I can't sleep in things that don't have real walls, I guess. Even on an air mattress. Oh well, the kids loved it.

We got up in the morning and headed home bright and early. Next time we go we will definitely spend more time there--hopefully we will all be feeling 100%. I'm glad I went even though I was seriously dragging the whole time.