last week we loaded up the kids and flew to colorado. we had a wedding in denver saturday night, but got there thursday and drove into the mountains (breckenridge, specifically). it was heavenly, especially the weather which was 30s in the evenings and 50s to 70s during the days, depending on the rain.
thursday after landing (our flight was crazy early, so we were there by 8:30 local time), we ran by costco for some supplies and then stopped for brunch at a cafe in aurora. justin's brother, mom, and cousin julianne (2 months younger than ek) joined us, then we caravanned out to breck. randomly, i got altitude sickness shortly after arriving in our mountain home (~10,600 ft) for the first time in my life. it sucked. i was dizzy and nauseous and had less than no appetite, which for me is unheard of. after laying low for a bit in the afternoon since it was rainy and i felt horrendous, we drove down into town and walked around. we saw a fox digging through trash, and just window shopped all the cute downtown boutiques. we ended up at a burger joint called empire burger for dinner, which the kids and other adults enjoyed, but i couldn't handle. lame sauce.
friday i was feeling quite a bit better, thankfully. we drove into dillon and went to a great farmer's market that was coincidentally very close to a park. while there, we picked up wild salmon, fresh corn, carrots, potatoes, and yummy bread for dinner that night. we also had lunch at a cute spot outdoors.we headed back to breck and spent some time walking along the river/stream before aunt rose and cousin maddox arrived. once they got in, we made dinner and the kids ran around, played, and watched movies.
saturday was probably my favorite day. we drove into town and rode the gondola up to the top of peak 8. emme called it a gon-dee-la and both kids loved the ride. hollis kept saying moun-tain! and pointing outside. at the summit, there are chairlifts and alpine slides, putt-putt, zip lines, and all kinds of other fun activities. marilyn treated everyone to some alpine slide runs - hollis was too little, but ek rode once with me and once with her daddy. she was so brave and happy. she let me know after her run with justin that daddy goes much faster than mommy. i could not have been less surprised.
anyway...after sliding, justin and i headed back to the cabin so we could gather our gear and drive back to denver for the wedding. the kids stayed with gram and their cousins and went to the big breckenridge duck race, though sadly they didn't win. the wedding was fun and it was super fun for jb and i to have a night away. it was a small party on the rooftop of the museum of contemporary art downtown. they left the exhibits open, so you could run around and explore at your leisure, which was really cool. we ate and drank and danced and hung out until the end, then cabbed back to our hotel. i never sleep well in hotels, but we did ok that night. we were up by 6:30 and hit the road back to the mountains, hoping to avoid labor day weekend traffic, which we did.
when we got back to breck on sunday morning, it was rainy and chilly. the kids had done great without us, so we got everyone dressed and decided to drive to vail, hoping the rain would move along by the time we got there. as luck would have it, the downpour ended right as we found parking, so we spent time exploring the outdoor market, having snacks, and eating lunch. after lunch, we walked up a trail to the alpine gardens. there was the most amazing playground i've ever seen and the highest altitude botanical gardens in the world, started by betty ford. hollis napped in the ergo and the other kidlets ran around climbing things and exploring. super fun.
we drove back to breck in the mid-late afternoon and stumbled upon an art festival. there were cool paintings and various other stuff to check out. the highlight for the kids was the geode guy - he had geodes by size and you could pick one and he'd break it open for you there in front of everyone. emme is obsessed with rocks and crystals right now, so she was super excited about her little real crystals. she even brought one to show-and-tell at school yesterday.
for dinner sunday night, we ate at a place called the warming hut. we took over the back patio and watched the sunset over the mountains and had salads and chowder and shrimp&grits and all kinds of tastiness. the kids danced in the parking lot and sang and played. it was a great evening. a cold front started moving through as dinner was winding down, so justin and i hit the outdoor hot tub once the kids were down.
monday we packed everything up, grabbed the picnic aunt rose had made, and drove up to st. mary's glacier. it was an amazing hike and an unbelievable view. being a holiday weekend, it was fairly crowded, but we had a blast. the kids loved scrambling around and throwing rocks into the lake and all that good stuff.
we drove back into town and over to the cousins' house for the last night. rose made bratwursts and corn and salad and we drank wine and visited while the kids went buckwild on the trampoline and in the sandbox. hollis really really loves a sandbox, so i know what our weekend project is going to be very soon. we got everyone bathed and pajama'ed and into bed, and the grown-ups visited a little bit longer before cashing in. our flight was at 6:15 the next morning, so we had to head out by 4. brutal. but totally worth it.
all in all, such a fun, good trip. i am still astounded by how well the kids did without any of our usual structure around naps, bedtimes, etc. they just zonked in the car (or hollis in the ergo) any time we went anywhere and then rallied to whatever activity was happening when we arrived at our destination. this trip totally made me feel like family vacations are possible and will be super fun and amazing (contrary to the mayhem of our florida trip last year...although a year out, my memories of that trip are that it was a blast as well)...
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