After Grandma and Grandpa left, Daddy had an extra day off work, so we decided to spend some time with him. We headed up the Poudre Canyon to do a little fishing. Riley has really gotten excited about fishing this year, and even caught a fish in the pond near the front of our addition. So we thought we'd let him try some river fishing. It's not as easy, and not as fun, but I think they still enjoyed it. We even stopped at walmart to pick up an extra rod for Jayce.
While we were up there we thought we would stop by my family's cabin. My aunt and uncle were visiting there and I missed getting the chance to meet up with them earlier in the week. Just our luck (but not theirs) the water was our at the cabin, so they were home, waiting on the plumber! We had a nice visit. Talked to my uncle PJ more than I think I have in my entire life....combined!!! ;) The kids had fun running around and digging in the dirt. Of course. So thanks for your crappy luck Aunt Elaine and Uncle PJ!! ;)
Later that week we took a trip to the zoo with our friend Jan. It was a perfect day. It started out busy, but the clouds rolled in just after lunch, and scared everyone off. We hid out in the apes and monkeys area until the rain stopped and I'm so glad we did! The gorillas were going crazy!! One kept pounding on the walls while we were there, the orangutans were out and about, and all the other animals were really active too! We saw animals out that I had never seen there before because they were always hiding. And the TIGERS!!! We got to see a cat fight! So cool!!! The only bummer was Jan was really wanting to take the littles for a ride on the carousel and train. but they had shut them down because of the lightning.
That weekend we did one last Summer hoorah. When Cam was running in Rocky Mountain National Park a few weeks earlier the kids and I spent a great deal of time on the west side of the park, which we don't usually do. And I fell in love with it! There aren't as many hikes, or peaks, but there is definitely more wildlife and more wildflowers. And the best part - LESS PEOPLE!!! It was so much less traveled it was a great alternative on a Summer weekend. So after driving by it a few times I decided I wanted to camp at the campground on the west side of the park. Timber Creek Campground. It is first come first served, so we didn't need a reservation, and that meant we might be able to get a spot if we get there early enough. So that's what we did! We packed everything up Thursday night, and the kids and I headed out Friday morning. We got to the campground around noon, and found quite a few spots to choose from still. So we ate lunch, set up camp and went hiking!! We headed back up to the top of Trail ridge to visit with Justine again, and hike the Alpine Trail. It was SO WINDY!!! But all the kids were troopers, and made it the whole way! I was so proud of them! We headed back down for some dinner (hot dogs cooked over an open flame! - which the boys LOVED doing!!) and waited around for Daddy to meet up with us from work. I was really proud of myself, setting up camp, hiking and making a fire and cooking with three little kids all by myself! It was a great accomplishment for me, showing me I still have it! ;)
Everyone slept great that night. I was a little chilly being on the end, but the kids slept like a dream, even Amara did great in her new sleeping bag! We headed out early that morning to meet up with Trista, Jamie and Kinsey, who just happened to be camping jsut a few miles from us in Grand Lake! We hiked to Adams Falls with them, a fun easy little hike to a beautiful waterfall and pools.
Then it was on to lunch and more hikes! We hiked Coyote Valley Trail, and did some more fishing along the Colorado River this time (still didn't catch anything), and Lake Irene looking for fish too. but all we found there were wildflowers, and lots of them!
then back to camp for Dinner!!! Cam made homemade quesadillas over the fire and they were delish! After dinner and some roasted marshmallow dessert, we went out moose hunting. We had seen one moose already, (the west side is the perfect place for them) but we wanted to see more, and dusk is the time to do it. We drove for about 45 minutes, and saw 3 more moose!! And more elk thank we could count! It was amazing and the boys loved it! (Amara was already asleep!)
Sunday we packed up camp and drove back to Estes. I did a little scouting for a photo scavenger hunt for later on this fall with my MOPS steering team, and then we drove home. It was the most wonderful way to end summer! We had so much fun, and I can't wait to go camping with my little crew again! They were so awesome at it, and had so much fun. I loved being unplugged for the weekend!
August 14th Riley became a 2nd Grader! His teacher is Mrs. Dimon (pronounced like diamond without the ending d) and she is really sweet. I met with her on Friday after school, and I think she's going to be a good match for Riley. I'm really excited to see how this school year unfolds, and how much he grows. Jayce too. He starts on the Tuesday after labor day, so soon I will have 2 kids in school. Jayce will only be half day 2 days a week, but still. I may not know what to do with myself! (ok, I'm laughing at that statement too!! The problem will be knowing where to start, and what can I accomplish in the 2 1/2 hours of only having one child!) lol. Hope everyone had as much of an awesome summer as we did!
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