Easter 2017

This was the best we could do for an Easter picture this year. 

The boys loved the annual Easter egg hunt at Grandma and Grandpa's, which featured more than 90 eggs this year.

It was the perfect sunny spring day. 

Charlie got into the hunt, and now has a new word: "candy."

Just Miles

Camping Trip

We went camping last weekend at Backbone State Park, about three hours northeast of Des Moines with Grant's Cub Scout pack. It was a beautiful fall weekend, with the leaves in full color and the weather mild during the day and cold at night. 

After dropping off Charlie at Grandma and Grandpa's house on Friday evening, we arrived at camp around 9 in time for an owl hike. The boys were so tired that they pretty much collapsed in our tent that night. The temps dipped into the 30s, but they didn't seem to mind, sleeping soundly throughout the night while Kent and I tossed and turned. 

Our SUV trunk was filled to the max even for just a two-night trip. 

Saturday morning we had pancakes followed by a visit from a naturalist and fishing. Grant was thrilled to catch a small fish in the pond after waiting patiently for the better part of an hour. Miles didn't have as much patience—he found a steep hill and rolled down it over and over.

That afternoon we hiked a pretty trail, spent a lot of time at the playground and capped off the day with a campfire and s'mores. 

All in all, it was a fun, adventure-packed weekend, and the boys wondered when we could go back again. 

Miles' First Day

While Grant was at a new school this year, Miles was back at Montessori, this year in the 5-7 year-old class. It's the first year he's going to school all day...It's hard to believe he's already old enough! In the days leading up to school, he seemed especially excited about lunch. He loved the idea that he got to eat lunch at school with his friends, followed by playing outside. And sure enough, when I picked him up on the first day, he wanted only to talk about lunch. As the week went on, we heard a bit about his new friends and what he was learning. But when asked his favorite part of the school, the answer was always: lunch.  

Here he is with his BFF Izzy, who started at Montessori this year in the 3-6 class.

Happy 5th Birthday to Miles!

Our sweet Miles is already 5! It seems like he was just Charlie's size, so it's hard to believe that he could be getting ready to go to all-day school. Even as he gets more independent and mature, he remains a feisty, one-of-a-kind guy known to wear his clothes backwards and inside out.

He had been talking about his birthday nonstop for months. It seemed like every conversation was about who he would invite to his birthday party and what toys he wanted. But when he came into our room that morning, in true Miles fashion, he insisted that it wasn't his birthday and that he was still 4 1/2. I think there was so much buildup that when the day finally arrived, he didn't want it to begin or end. So naturally he started the day with a tantrum. Because...Miles.

When he finally admitted it was his birthday, I asked him what he wanted to do for his special day. His choice: build Legos and eat pancakes for dinner. So he spent most of the day parked in one spot, working on a new Lego creation and refusing to take a break. He was in Miles heaven. On Sunday, he had a party with his friends at Pump It Up to round out a fun, sugar-filled birthday weekend. 

Epic Fort

I came home recently to a very quiet house and a room-sized fort with three children playing quietly inside. But I was told to keep out. "No gorrups allowed," Miles told me. "No what?" I asked. "Grown ups!" Grant corrected. So I left them alone to play quietly for hours. 

Telluride 2016

Our trip to Telluride this year was restful, fun and too short. It was our fifth year visiting this beautiful mountain town and Charlie's first. We spent the week throwing rocks in mountain streams, hiking, riding the gondola and eating ice cream. 

For the second year in a row, Kent drove with Grant and Miles—16 hours! And Charlie and I flew, which was definitely the right decision. Charlie was much happier on the airplane than he would have been on a two-day car ride. We timed it so that Kent, Grant and Miles could pick up Charlie and me at the Montrose airport and ride the last 1.5 hours together to Telluride. 

Our first stop was a ride on the gondola and lunch at a favorite local spot.

Our first few days were cool and rainy, but the rest of the week was gorgeous—sunny and mid-70s. It was probably the best weather we've had yet. 

Our fifth year in Telluride, and we finally figured out how to get a front row seat at the 4th of July parade—set up chairs at 4:30 a.m. Kent secured our spot while the rest of us slept. He came back to bed, and then we almost overslept, getting to the parade just as it was starting. But our seats were pretty great, and the boys had a lot of fun catching candy and dodging water fights. 

This year we tried a new hiking trail, which ended up being nearly 6 miles and a pretty steep climb. But the boys did remarkably well, and the views were worth it. 

We promised Miles we would climb a "snow mountain," and when we did find a little patch of snow, he was ecstatic. 

We made it to 11,500 feet! That's Telluride down below the boys. This picture shows just how steep it was, considering we started climbing from well below the tree line. 

Did I mention that I was also carrying a 17-pound baby? He was a good little hiking buddy.

We went in search of a waterfall another day. The boys found a log to cross the stream and lots of rocks to throw in. Charlie fell asleep the moment he heard the rushing waterfall. 

But the elusive search of the week was for a single red gondola. Of about 40 gondolas, there was only one red one, painted in honor of the 20th anniversary of Telluride's gondola system. One day we happened to walk in to the station just as it was coming down the mountain. Grant and Miles felt so lucky, they grinned the entire ride down the mountain. 

Other days we wandered or biked around town, enjoying the beauty of Colorado in the summertime. 

Until next year!