Camping. For reals.

                           

Finally, we can say we've gone camping as a family.  Real camping.  Sleeping bags in tents on the ground.  Chilly mornings with my dad working over the good ole Coleman.  Washing our faces with frigid water out of a bowl.  Mosquito bites.  Camp fires and roasting marshmallows on sticks found in the woods and whittled down.  Clear night sky with more stars than I remembered.  Hikes.  Three of them.  Running water in streams, afternoon sunbeams through dense wooded area, wildflowers galore.  Rain.  And lots of it.

The boys did great through it all.  Heck, who am I kidding -- I did great through it all!  It was a 48 hour period of time from Friday afternoon to Sunday lunch, and I wouldn't trade it for anything -- mosquito bites and all!  The Colorado Trail ran strait through the camp ground and we took full advantage of that, enjoying gorgeous scenery as we hiked.  The weather was fickle, beautiful for a few hours and then pouring rain like we hadn't seen in quite a while.  It rained so much our campsite started to flood and Scot and my dad dug a trench to divert the water and "drained" the site very effectively.  We were so thankful for my parent's EZ-UP canopy and tarps.  If it weren't for those niceties, we would have packed up and head the hour home.

The other sweet thing about this camping trip was that the boys were able to sleep in the van with my folks.  They got to sleep in the same spot my brother and I did as kids.  Used the same blankets, even.  It was very special for my parents and for me.  Vanna is truly a generational vehicle.

Our favorite parts of the trip were the marshmallows, the stars (I had seriously forgotten how many there are!), the hikes/wildflower, and all the family time.  We played frisbee and card games, the guys played a version of ping-pong over the hammock, and we had adventure walks.

Evan gave the best compliment at the end of the trip before we started packing up.  He asked if we were staying another night, and when I told him we weren't, he was bummed and said he really wished we could stay longer.

The funniest moment, potentially, was Drew telling me that the I couldn't go pee in the bathrooms because I could fall in because they were many many feet deep.  

...and July 4th

While I'm at the computer, I guess I should quickly post some July 4th pictures!

We went down to "the springs" to celebrate on post with my folks for the weekend.  We packed a picnic dinner and enjoyed people watching as we waited for the festivities to begin on the 3rd.  There was a great band playing and it was wonderful to be with family.  There was about an hour where the sky opened up and there was a chill in the air and we all wished for mugs of hot cider or cocoa, but hey, it's Colorado (and we were prepared)!  In true Colorado fashion, everything cleared and we were good to go by the time the first firework went off!  The boys faces were priceless -- it was their first true show -- and really, it was my first in many years so we were all in for a treat

On July 4th, Scot and my dad woke up crazy early to "do the incline" -- Scot was a beast and made it up in 32 minutes!  The rest of us slept in.

A hike was in order for us, and we tried a new trail that did not disappoint.  The vistas were beautiful and it was just hard enough that the boys felt they really worked hard to get to the top.  We picnicked by a stream, spent the early afternoon at an Arts & Music Fest, and then laid low the rest of the day.  It was great.

I hope you all had a great 4th as well!

I now have a 6 year old!

I don't know how it happened, but it did.  It's been six wonderful years since Evan was born!  We celebrated with a very low-key, family-oriented day -- just what the birthday boy wanted.  We tried to catch crawdad is a nearby stream, we played frisbee in a field, we just sat and talked.  He requested a picnic lunch and "lots of just hang out time".  He is still sweet as can be and others-centered and I can't wait to see what this next year holds!

We love you, buddy!

 We got him a harmonica and he loved it!  

Almost as much as his playmobil-sized pickup truck and cake...

He requested a cake "with mountains" -- I had no idea what to do, but I can up with this and it worked like a charm.  He was so excited when he saw it.

Happy 6th, Evan!!

Unexpected Sweetness

I'll sit down for a little long later today (hopefully.  maybe... ) and write about Evan's 6th birthday and our 4th of July festivities.  But right now, I wanted to very quickly share about some unexpected sweetness that occurred, very literally, last night.

When you move into a new house, there are highs and lows.  The delight of new (insulated) windows and the cleaning up of a creepy basement.  Uncontrolled excitement and back-breaking work.  Sheer joys married up with shadowy unknowns of home-ownership.

And sour cherries.

We have a sour cherry tree in our back yard and for the last 2 weeks the boys have been picking a few of the more-red ones and popping them into their expectant mouths only to have their cheeks suck in as I watch their faces turn into a pucker.  And then a smile.  Repeat.  Needless to say, I didn't think they would be good for anything but attracting squirrels.

Last night, the boys came in and asked if they could please pick only three cherries, so as to not ruin their dinner.  I said yes, and as I watched them out the kitchen window as I was making said dinner, I noticed that most of the cherries had turned a deep dark red.  I grabbed a couple bowls and headed outside, instructing them to pick as many little cherries as they could and if they picked enough, I'd try to make a little dessert for us.

Mind you, I don't normally like cherries and have therefore never tried my hand as anything cherry related.  And also keep in mind, dinner was 25 minutes from being on the table.

They picked and picked to their hearts content -- 2 bowl-fulls each -- and I had 6 cups of cherries when all was said and done!  Evan wanted to "be a team" and helped me wash and pit each. and. every. one.

And then, because we were out of time and dinner was getting cold, I just sprinkled some sugar on top of the pitted cherries, gave it stir, stuck it in the fridge while we ate dinner, and hoped for the best.

All I can say is that sour cherries taste mighty fine in a little sugar and there wasn't even the slightest pucker on any of our faces as we enjoyed the fruit of our labors.