Eleven Mile 2010

Something that, in theory, I really enjoy doing is camping. I say in theory because I love 1)the idea of getting away from civilization for a few days; 2)the fact that it's cheap and 3)hiking and eating things cooked over a fire. So, planning a camping trip for me is fun. Then we get there. It's all the things I love (and that's what I remember most from each trip) but it's also really dirty and a lot of work. This camping trip was no exception, in fact it was a lot more work than what we're used to.
A few of our best friends were in town for a wedding, so we planned a camping trip around their vacation. Usually its just Michael and I (this was the first time for E too) and I enjoy being lazy and reading my book and sleeping and he enjoys shooting stuff with his dart gun, so a chance to go with a some of the guys (Neal and Nathaniel) and one of the girls (Camille) was just too good to pass up.
Neal picked the site, so we followed him up:
With Nathaniel trailing behind:
The site that our dear, wonderful friend picked turned out to be quite a hike from the car. Not so good for people like Michael and I that like to bring everything when we camp (just in case). But once the guys made the million trips to and from the car, it was PERFECT!! Gorgeous and secluded and right on the water.
We set up camp, the tent we have was actually the in laws from when they lived here in CO (unfortunately it's on its last leg and the next time we go will be with a new one)
Then go hiking for some firewood
During the first hike we found out that Ethan is part mountain goat, the boy loves to climb rocks

Did I mention it was gorgeous?
We made all our meals on the camp fire
and there was a beaver! (You can't see it very well but it never came out of the water)
We got REALLY dirty
And we just really enjoyed the company of friends
S'mores
Headlamps
Sunsets
Swimming
In the mornings (we stayed 2 nights) the water would be completely still (ask Neal if you want to know why, he knows nerdy weatherman things like that)
You could see to the bottom
We took a nap, all 6 of us
We hiked some more
And saw a gaggle of geese and their goslings
We wore out the dogs (who got along very well, this is Ne-J)
Again, gorgeous
Ethan discovered camel backs, not only great for hydration but also makes a good microphone
We chopped wood, and built fires
Gave hugs
Fished
(the pole was Michael's dad's)
(I have no idea)
And then we were tired and it was time to go home
After doing a little Jedi-mind tricking
When we were leaving Ethan told me "Had fun camping." Yeah that about sums up the trip. Thank you to our friends for taking the time out of their vacations to spend with us, you are all very important to our family.

Fanfest 2010

We had a couple of friends invite us to Fanfest on Friday. Its an event in downtown Colorado Springs where the people that are racing up the Pikes Peak Hill Climb get to show off their cars. It's also a free event where you can take a 2 year old that likes race cars.

This made the night, not just for Michael and I but everyone around us too:


What's all the cheering about? This is what we were watching:

He LOVED it!!! (No he's not getting one for Christmas this year).

*Teaser post

We made it through our 2 night camping trip with our 2.5 year old! As my husband describes it was a "love-hate" trip. I will go into more detail after editing the rest of the pictures and narrowing it down to a reasonable amount to post on here. But for now know that we are safe, sound and a little sunburned.

Happy Father's Day

Happy father's day to all the dads and grandpas out there. Especially to Michael, my husband and a wonderful and adored father; my dad, my father-in-law, my grandfather and, celebrating his first father's day with a teething baby, my brother-in-law, Jamie! Hope you all had a wonderful day (and Jamie we hope tomorrow is a better day).

We spent the morning eating muffins, lots of muffins
Unwrapping presents

and using the presents


(Check out the air Ethan got in this next shot!!)

We had plans to go to an afternoon wedding, so Ethan took his nap in the car
and this is about the only good shot I got at the wedding.
Congratulations to Luke and Elise Johnson!!!!

Pond Scum

Fill in the blank: "A house full of the stomach flu (plus 1 hangover) makes me want to _______"
A. Buy more sheet sets
B. Recarpet the house
C. Invest in a bigger washer and dryer
or D. All of the above?
We were a pretty sad bunch last weekend. Ethan came down with what seemed to be a 24 hour stomach bug on Wednesday night, into Thursday. Then, Friday night and all day Saturday I was in bed with the bug. Sunday, we all seemed to be on the mend, Michael went up to Country Throw Down, a big country music festival in Denver (in walks the hang over). Then Monday we were all out of it again, Ethan threw up a few times in the morning and the rest of the day we spent lounging around the house. We're all doing much better now though and E's back to snacking every 5 minutes on anything we'll let him have.

As I mentioned in a previous post, we've been going through a bunch of transitions with Ethan. One of the main ones is moving out of his crib (tear). It started at Grandma's, where he was still sleeping in a play pen. He asked her to sleep in a big bed, so she let him. She told him he had to stay in bed until she came and got him, AND HE DID!!! I was shocked! After a week of this pattern I decided it was time to try it at home. So we rearranged and moved in a twin bed. He has done wonderfully! I can't believe it! We have been dreading this transition for awhile now fearing a little face would appear at our bed side at all hours of the night or that after countless drinks of water we would finally have to pin him to the bed until he fell asleep. Needless to say, our anxieties have subdued somewhat for the time being.
We're always looking for new adventures now, especially since its summer time and we can be outside (plus the more we stay inside the more he wants to sit in front of the tv). Today we found our own little pond oasis that is so close to home I can't believe I didn't know it existed until today.

It got us very excited for our upcoming adventure of...
Camping! We are planning to head up to the mountains this weekend for a few nights of tent camping. This is the first time with Ethan, wish us luck!