ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!

Our Amazing 4th of July Weekend! Part 2

What a better way to spend 4th of July then driving one of the most beautiful scenic roads in Colorado? We headed out of Cortez around 8am for a beautiful drive on the Grand Mesa - Scenic and Historic Byway. If you ever get the opportunity to drive this, I would encourage you to do so. In fact, we are talking about going back in the fall when the leaves change colors and drive it again! The Byway takes you from Cortez up through Dolores and several other small cities and then leads you to Telluride. There are tons of camping spots along this road and amazing views. Once we got to Telluride the weather was a little cool still and there was just a hint of snow still on the mountains. We decided to brave the Sky Tram and see how Asa and Lexi would do. I am so glad we did - they loved it! Especially Asa which kinda surprised me. At points he even waved to other people as they were passing us by. Lexi was a little hesitant at first, but warmed up once she saw how much fun Asa was having. After the Sky Tram we came back down the mountain and strolled the main street of Telluride. They had just finished their 4th of July parade (we missed it - on the Sky Tram). The streets were full of people, kids, and dogs and everyone was having a great time. We had a mini-picnic and then hit the road again. Perhaps, July 4th was not the best day to do this drive because for the most part the highway was shut down in all of the cities for their parades, so there was a lot of detours. Ouray was beautiful but there were so many people that we decided not to stop and get out and headed to Silverton. Silverton was pretty much the same, road closed - detours and a lot of people. We drove around a while and again decided not to stop. Plus the kids were napping and we didn't want to wake them up anyway. After more beautiful scenery we came to Durango. Of course we had to stop here! This is where the train is! The trains were out still so we walked the main street and window shopped. They were having a BBQ Contest and people from as far as Florida had driven to take part. It smelled sooooo good! All the smokers and hickory and BBQ sauce - yummy! We settled on the vendor that had the most amount of trophies and awards displayed at their booth. Yes they were from Florida. Needless to say - we were not impressed and this convinced us even more that John needs to start his own BBQ business and show these people how REAL BBQ is made. After the BBQ we headed back to the train depot and got to watch the train come in. Asa had the biggest smile on his face. He thought it was pretty neat and I am so glad he got to see a real live train. Then we headed to the train museum and both kids got to explore a real engine and sit in the engineer seat. After Durango we headed back to Cortez and played on the playground at the campsite until it was time to watch the fireworks. The kids were really excited - until the first firework went off and then they started to cry. They both wanted to go back to the tee pee (or as Asa called it the "camping fire"). So, we left and John and I pretty much walked backwards so that we could see the fireworks and the kids didn't have to. Sunday morning we got up early and headed for home. Decided this time to drive though Gallup to I40 and then hit I17 at Flagstaff and took a side-trip through Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona. Got home about 4pm. Overall it was an awesome trip and I am so looking forward to our next one! Enjoy the slide-show!

http://www.slide.com/r/41Zfc2sX5T_DJBhnPRFub8LfKK6vTR-1?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original

Our Amazing 4th of July Weekend! Part 1

Hope everyone had a wonderful and safe 4th of July! We are glad to be back home, but also very thankful that we had the opportunity to head to Colorado for 4 days to enjoy some amazing scenery and fantastic weather! The kids did great the entire trip and are really turning in to be some Road Warriors! They pretty much just go along with anything we do and as long as John and I show excitement, they get excited too.

We left Thursday morning for Cortez, CO. We stopped in Tuba City and were a little less than impressed. I remembered a huge Truck Stop that my parents used to stop at and I wanted to see it again. Apparently my childhood memories are a little off, because there is no Truck Stop in Tuba City. At least, none that we saw. We did stop at a little Trading Post though - and I'm not joking when I say little. It was more like a mini Circle K though except this store had burlap bags for sale too which I thought was kinda cool. Now I know where to go if I ever need a burlap bag.

The great thing about being on vacation is that you can pretty much do whatever you want and see whatever you want - so we detoured through Monument Valley. I am so glad we did because it was just as beautiful as I remembered it when I was little. It was a little overcast which I think added to the beauty and color of the monuments. After Monument Valley we stopped at Four Corners for a family photo op. And finally, we made it to our Campsite - er, Tee Pee site? - in Cortez, CO. Yep - it was a Tee Pee. Home sweet home for the next 4 days and 3 nights. It was a nice Tee Pee, minus the bare dirt floors (which Lexi LOVED!) and the Orioles Nest and constant bird chatter at the top of the Tee Pee. The Tee Pee was nice and roomy - we were able to fit two queen sized blow-up mattresses with no problem and walking room between. The first night was a little uncomfortable. The kids were excited and didn't want to wind down. Asa wanted on Lexi's bed and Lexi wanted on Asa's bed. Asa wanted to sleep with Mommy, then Daddy. Lexi just wanted to be wherever Asa was. It was a lot of back and forth. Finally they feel asleep and mommy & daddy could too! Except it was FREEZING cold (in the low 50's) and raining off and on all night. No rain got into the tent, but the tee pee doesn't come all the way down to floor level, so there was a little bit of a draft coming in the Tee Pee. The kids were warm and toasty in their fleece footed jammies and blankies, so we just had to layer ourselves up to stay warm. They slept pretty good the first night and the rest of the nights they were so exhausted from being on the go constantly that they pretty much feel asleep as soon as their sweet little heads hit the pillows (that was our goal - yeah it worked!).

Friday morning we left for breakfast and then headed off to Mesa Verde National Park. There are a few ruins that you can see from overlooks and some you have to have a ticket to go see or you need to walk to go see. We stopped at the Visitor Center first to get a little more info before heading further into the park. We decided to not get any tickets this time. Tickets are required for Balcony House and Cliff Palace. Both would be impossible to attempt with a 3 year old and a 22 month old. The Cliff Palace is a pretty steep walk, plus steps and ladders. The Balcony House is the same thing. We made the decision to not see these dwellings after we attempted to see the Spruce Tree House. Needless to say, there was no way that either John and I were in any condition to pull and/or push the stroller up and down a windy trail. We got about 1/4 way down and immediately turned around and headed back up. Definitely something to do when your kids are older - much older! The overlooks were just fine for us!

John and I took tons of pictures (almost an entire card worth). This time though I decided to create a slide show rather than attempt to post a bazillion pic's on the blog. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.slide.com/r/ajuWlcU06z-ycIeaQvjUWlKGgCrnSg0O?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original

There are tons more pictures and I will get those on a slide show hopefully tomorrow night. It's my bed time and my pillow is calling my name. Love to you all!