52 Hike Challenge

Summer time for me is time for being outdoors and hiking, and taking photos. In the winter I spend most of the time inside, crocheting. So in summer I like to get outside as much as possible. And given my state of mental health while raising 3 kids, it is a necessity for us in the summer time! This year I implemented our usual "Weekly Schedule" of a theme everyday. Monday is "MOPS Monday" Then we have Take a Hike Tuesday, Watch it Wednesday, Thoughtful Thursday and Fun Friday. It's been great at keeping us on a rough schedule. Nothing is really concrete, but we have some guidance as to what we are going to do that day.

This year I took on the task of helping out a friend with her boys during the summer. She works part time and needed a place for her boys just a couple days a week. I figured, easy enough! We did it last year 1 day a week when we went to the movies, so this year it was an easy transition. Also, because our friend Jan is helping out on the other day, Tuesday. Which I named Take a Hike Tuesday because Jan and I both like hiking and being outdoors, but it has really just turned into take a trip to the pool with Jan Tuesday!  lol. Which of course I'm totally Ok with!  Thoughtful Thursday we usually spend at home. We just hang out and relax. This is basically the one day a week we don't plan anything. It's nice to have this day.

I also wanted us to get outside everyday if we could. I love taking pictures and in the summer I try to follow some daily photo prompts to keep me taking pictures. One Instagram account I came across this summer is named @52hikechallenge and it challenges folks to do one hike a week for a full year. I thought, I can do that!  I mean after all I used to be a park ranger. Plus we live in Colorado where there are about a million hikes available to us in just a short drive. So I figured why not!  I added up the hikes we had already done this summer, and it equaled out to about a hike every week. So this is my official line up thus far. And I'll try to use this to keep track of all the hikes we do this year. I'm really shooting for 1 a week, but it may get harder once school is in session and the days get cooler. But then again I will only have to take 1 or 2 kids instead of all three!  Here we Go!

Hike #1: Horsetooth Falls, 5/27/15

Hike #2: Horsetooth Reservoir. 5/28/15

Hike #3: Devil's Backbone Guided Hike 6/2/15

Hike #4: Landscape Arch, Arches NP 6/6/15

Hike #5: Sapphire Point, Frisco 6/13/15

Hike #6: Dillon Reservoir, Frisco 6/14/15

Hike #7: Rocky Mountain National Park: Sprague Lake and Alpine Trail 6/21/15

Hike #8: Horsetooth Rock, 7/11/15

I missed a few weeks in there while we were in Indiana, but we had done a few hikes on back-to-back days earlier in the summer to make up for it. From here on out I'm shooting for 1 a week. Let's see how I do!

Trip to Indiana

Last Month we took a much needed trip to Indiana. It's been awhile since we ventured that direction, at least as a family, and a wedding seemed to be the perfect opportunity for that. Yep, I said wedding! My little sister was married off, and that is something I wouldn't miss for the world. It was a beautiful wedding, her colors were deep purple (almost a plum) and silver. It made for an elegant affair. Her dress was stunning, draping perfectly on her with gorgeous lace and bead details. Of course she looked flawless. It was so wonderful to see her up there!

And Of course the kids had a blast at the wedding! What kid doesn't love a party with hats and funny sunglasses to take pictures in, and CAKE!!  It was great to see them running around having fun.

I of course had way too much fun putting together their outfits!  :)  The boys, naturally, had matching bowties from my friend Trista's shop Sweet Pea Boutique. And with an outdoor wedding in Indiana in June I opted for shorts rather than pants to keep the peace!  Amara was the most fun though, being a girl!  I had a great pale purple dress picked out for her, thinking it would go nicely with the wedding colors. But at last minuted when I was at Once Upon A Child looking for a dress shirt for Jayce, I came across this gorgeous white piece. It was a size 3T, and too big after I tried it on her. I was so disappointed. Until I saw the same dress in pale pink in HER SIZE!!!  I tried it on her and the first thing she said was "Mommy, I'm a Princess!"  Yes, Honey, You Are! And that was that. I had to have it. Checked the price and at $7.50, it was as good as sold!  Yep. Less than $8 for this dress!  I couldn't believe it!  (and after a photo shoot I am planning to take it back to Once Upon A Child and get a few of those dollars back!!  hehehe) I also threw together the accessories last minute. You may recognize the pink pearls on the necklace from one I used for her 6 month pictures. She broke that one, but I still had a lot of the beads left. So I strung them up with some silver beads to space them and it matched perfectly. Of course she broke that necklace too, just minutes before the ceremony started. But oh well. I figured that would happen. Next time I'll try actual wire or something stronger than what I have laying around the house.

We ended up staying for nearly a week after the wedding to spend some time with the rest of our families. It was great because a lot of my mom's side of the family came in for the wedding as well, so we got to spend some much needed time with them as well. It had been YEARS since the 4 siblings were all together in a room together. Needless to say there was a lot of story telling and laughs! And a few "Snider Nose" jokes/comments thrown in there! :)

We were also lucky enough to watch my nephew earn his Eagle Scout Honor!  It was a great ceremony, and we are so proud of him! He's been so active in scouts, so it was great to see him achieve this high award! Congrats Caleb!

As usual we stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Louie. The kids had a great time playing with all Daddy's old toys, running around catching lightning bugs, and riding on the "tractor". We never can get enough of Grandma's yummy cooking and garden.

At the end of the trip we stayed with Rodger and Kathie. No trip is complete without a visit to Pittsboro!  Rodger took the boys to a local toy shop for some things to play with at their house. It was fun to watch them pick according to their personalities. But of course they all played with each others toys, even Cam!  lol. And one more thing, Rodger found a great deal (a steal really) on a couple kiddie sized guitars. They were a hit! We will have to get them some lessons now so they can become famous rock n rollers and support us!

It was a great trip. The kids did really good in the car, and on the way back we decided to split the trip into 3 days instead of 2. We left later on Thursday and stopped in St. Louis. We took that evening to go up in the arch, then the next morning to walk around the zoo. St. Louis has a great little zoo, and it's Free!! (parking is a bit expensive, but if you factor in entrance fee, it's a no brainer!) The kids got to walk around all morning and see the animals, then pass out in the car for a few hours while we made our way west.

We arrived home just in time for the 4th of July, and it was nice to be home and see our local fireworks. I get to venture back again in September, and I'm already looking forward to that trip (partially due to MOPS Convention I have to admit though!) And I'm hoping we can work it out that we see family more than just once a year (or longer) like it has been lately. The kids are growing so fast, and pretty soon they aren't going to want to take these family vacations, so we better take advantage while we can!