Summer Highlights {Post Vacation to Mid July}

We have done so much since we have been back from vacation.  Here is a quick recap.

We went to a super fun birthday party at the Kiddie Park in Bartlesville.

Wayne, Shelly and the girls came over for a beautiful fireworks show and concert at Stone Canyon.

We went to Owasso Stadium to see the city of Owasso's fireworks for the first time ever!  Also for the first time in history(that I know of) Gannon fell asleep about 2 minutes into the fireworks.  They were so loud- I do not know how he slept!!

We enjoyed hosting a few friends, family and old and new neighbors for a cookout and some fireworks(in the rain) on July 3.

On July 4th after church we enjoyed some time with my parents and then we watched and lit fireworks with our neighbors.  We were introduced to a new firework this year that is definitely my favorite- the sky lantern.

We took the kids to see Toy Story 3- 3D.  SUCH a good movie!  Very sad, but what a great way to end such a good 3 movies!

Brandon and I went to see Grown Ups- HILARIOUS!!!

Had to give our guinea pigs ( Moose and Fibble) away due to allergies and such, but thankfully Susie and Erin agreed to take them so we can go visit when the boys want to see them.

Had a great week at VBS at church- Treasure Quest.  The highlights for the boys were  the puppets, great music and seeing Bubba get inside of a 6 foot balloon and tell the story of Jonah from inside.  It was so cool!

We celebrated my Mom's birthday!  At this time last year she was taking radiation.  She is once again cancer free, although she still struggles with some stomach issues that prevent her from eating some things.  We are so thankful that she is cancer free and super glad to celebrate her birthday!

My Aunt Carol came into town for a family reunion so we headed to Fort Gibson lake a couple of days to spend time with her.  The boys really enjoyed getting to spend time with her and she SPOILED them!

I know that there are probably things that I have missed and I would like to add pictures to this post, so this may be a post in progress for a while.  It has been so hot the last week or so and I can hardly stand to be outside.  I was looking through pictures and found this one- I needed to see this to remind me that the seasons will change and before we know it this "Oppressive" heat (as one of our weather men has been calling it) will be long gone!

Summer Vacation 2010 Part 2

On Wednesday morning we headed to Manitou Springs. We took the Cog Railway up to the summit of Pikes Peak.

{ Isn't this the cutest little train depot you have ever seen?! }

{ Getting ready to board the train. }

{ All Aboard! }

{ This is the view known as Inspiration Point.  This was the view that Katherine Lee Bates saw when she was inspired to write "America the Beautiful." }

{ Our train making a turn at Windy Point.  It was just after this that we were asked to put our windows up as the temperature dropped quickly.  At this point we are above timberline. }

{ It was really starting to get cold.  Notice the view behind Koen- there are no longer trees, just rocky soil. }

 { We made it to the top. }

 After one and a half hours on the train we arrived at the summit of Pike's Peak.  This was a breathtaking experience. You could see for miles! We were all bundled up as it was 35 atop the mountain with a wind chill of 32!!

{ It was so windy that Gannon was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. }

{ The view was simply unbelievable.  The pictures really do it no justice. }

{ I really like this picture because if you notice slightly to the right of center is a very red rock formation sprouting up out of the middle of nowhere.  This is known as Garden of the Gods and we were also able to visit here while we were on the trip. }

We were allowed 40 minutes on the summit due to the risk of altitude sickness.  At the top we were at 14, 1115 feet in altitude.  We learned so much neat history about Pike's Peak.  Once we got on the train and started heading down I caught this great shot of the moon while we were still above timberline.

Thursday we explored Garden of the Gods. Before we headed there we ate at The Hungry bear in Woodland Park, CO. It was so yummy!

{ This is the site that you see upon entering Garden of the Gods. }

 { I wished I knew how to use Photoshop and I would take these people out of this picture. }

 

 { See Brandon in this one...} 

 { Can you find all three of my "boys" in this one? }

After Garden of the Gods we began our journey home. We stopped and had lunch in Pueblo, Co at the river walk, stopped and got gas in Trinidad, Co and then we briefly drove through New Mexico- which was a very pretty drive. During this portion of the trip we were able to see the Sangre de Cristo mountains as well as a beautiful mountain range in new Mexico.

{ This is the only picture that I took in new Mexico.  It's not a very good one, but the mountains were pretty. }

 We made it to Guymon, Ok out in the Oklahoma panhandle and we stayed the night there.  The kids were able to swim at the hotel to get some energy out.  We drove home the next morning.  We had such a great trip!  We would love to go back to the Colorado Springs area again because there was so much more that we could have done.

Summer Vacation 2010 Part 1

For vacation this year we traveled to Beaver Creek, Co as well as Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs , Co. The first part of the week was spent in Beaver Creek with my father in law and his family. We stayed in a super cool condo/cabin. Kelsey Grammar used to own the one next door- cool huh?

For this portion of the trip we did very little driving once we got to the condo. We could walk out the back door of the condo right down into the quaint village below and shop, take in the GREAT scenery, ice skate or catch a lift up the mountain.

Our first day there we caught the lift up the mountain.Brandon was not sure if he was going to like the lift(he doesn't like heights and he HATES Ferris wheels), but he did get on and for the most part he did OK. Once we got off the lift we took in the beautiful view and had lunch. We could see the village below as well as the Gore Mountain Range. After lunch we took a short hike and than sat and took in the view some more. The boys enjoyed taking LOTS of pictures with their kid-friendly cameras.

The Village below as seen from the ride up the mountain.

The View of the Gore Mountain Range from the lift.

Proof that Brandon rode the lift.

I love this picture. We saw a Mule Deer and her new baby as we were hiking. The kids were taking pictures and Gannon shared with Isabel so she could take a picture too.

Snow!

Taking a rest.

One day we went to a park nearby in Avon, Co and let the kids play as well as rent paddle boats and spend some time paddling on Nottingham Lake.

Our last day in Beaver Creek we spent part of the day shopping in the village and after dinner we took the kids ice skating. Gannon was not so fond, but Koen loved it. He had never been skating of any kind, but he just took off.

A statue beside the creek that ran through the village.

Gannon and I walked along a rushing creek while the others finished skating. The sound was so relaxing!

The boys were sad to leave Poppa and the rest of the gang, but next up was Pike's Peak...

(To Be Continued...)