Swimming in the Hot Springs

While on our mini vacation this weekend, we went to the Hot Springs in Ouray, CO. It looks like a regular public pool, but it has several different areas according to temperature. The pool is heated by the local hot springs and there are three temperatures--cool, warm and super hot.
The slide area is in the cool zone, and the boys enjoyed going down the slides although it was alittle cool waiting in line. Landon went down the slide with Kyle and the other boys went by themselves.
Landon loved the warm water, although his face kept getting red so we would take him in the cool water to cool him down and then he would be ready to get back into the warm again. He loves to jump in the pool with his floaties on, but he couldn't wear them on the slide.
Here is a big shot of the pool. It was really nice and since the weather was overcast and 65 degrees I am glad the water was warm.
Cole is our fish and really loves to swim. He was upset because they wouldn't let him in the deep pool without passing a test. That would be fine because he swims really well, but you had to swim one half of the pool on your stomach and come back on your back. He doesn't swim on his back yet, so he couldn't do it. Bummer! We all enjoyed the hot springs and this was our last thing to do before we headed back home. School starts on Tuesday, so it is back to the real world.

Jeeping in Southern Colorado

Friday and Saturday we rented a jeep and went on the alpine loop 4x4 trail in Southern Colorado. The Alpine Loop connects Silverton, Lake City and Ouray in a scenic four wheel drive road/trail. Some of the roads were questionable at best, but the views were beautiful and the wildlife were fun to watch.
The first pass we went over was cinnamon pass in between Silverton and Lake City, CO. It was cool up there on top. We also went over Engineer Pass where we got snowed on alittle.
All in this area of Colorado there are ghost and mining towns that we were able to look at and explore. It is just amazing the places they mined and how they were able to get to them because they were way up on the mountains. The ghost towns that popped up because of the mining were pretty large for the day and are spuratic throughout the mountains.
Here is a picture of the boys in the jeep we rented. The boys really loved riding in the jeep and took turns riding on the outside seats so they could look for animals and mines.
This was an old ghost/mining town that we expored up in the mountains. It was mostly rubble, but it was by this nice stream and there were lots of old mine machinery left there. The metal crumbled as the buildings collapsed but the base of the structures were still there.

We really enjoyed our jeep tour in this beautiful part of the country. There is so much history here with the ghost and mining towns. We camped overnight and enjoyed the cool temperatures. It was a nice little vacation the weekend before school starts and only 2 hours from home!

A New Member of the Family

Last night we added a new member to our family: Peter Rabbit. Corny name, I know, but we didn't name him. We got him from Kyle's co-worker who couldn't keep him at her apartment anymore. We are keeping him this week for a trial period to see if the kids and my allergies can handle him in the house.
He was really scared of us and wouldn't come out of his cage ( I don't blame him). We are keeping him in the dining room becuase there is no carpet in there. The kids were really excited about him, so I hope it works out. Kyle is his biggest fan and really wanted him. This is the kids first pet, but with my allergies I don't know if we will ever have another one.

The Last of the Twilight Saga

Well, I finally finished it. I didn't want to start reading until I had time to finish within a few days. I did enjoy the last book of this series, although book 3 is still my favorite. There were definately some twists and turns that I didn't expect, but I thought everything was worked out well in the end. I would recommend these books to other readers, although I don't think it is the best book or set of books I've ever read. Good entertainment, thats all.

New Adventure!

We have been going to our local outdoor pool a couple of time a week for the whole summer, but this week the older boys wanted to try something new. They asked me if they could jump off of the diving board. I wasn't sure if they were ready at first, but after they did it a couple of times and were able to jump in and swim to the side, I knew they would be okay.
Here is Kaleb pondering what jump he is going to do. And yes, I do feed this child, he is just naturally skinny.
Here is the jump (no diving yet) he decided to do. He can also do flips and turns now, although on his flips he usually lands on his back which hurts. He still has to practice that one.
Cole is my dare devil and it was his idea to jump off the diving board first. He does dives and flips and spends most of his time on the diving board or jumping off the side of the pool into the deep end.
I wasn't quick enough to get a picture of Cole jumping, only his feet entering the water. He is a little fish, and I hope we can put him on the swim team next year.

Is it time for school yet?

I love the summertime- going to the pool, camping, vacations and warm weather. That being said, I am ready for school to start and fall to begin. I love fall because of the changing colors outside and cooler weather. And I know most of you think I am a bad mom because my kids drive me crazy, but I am so ready for school to start. Here in Colorado they went back to starting school after Labor Day, so our first day is on September 2nd. Kaleb will be in first grade, Cole in kindergarten, and Landon in preschool. I know this seems selfish, but I will have 4 hours 3 days a week without any kids. I am sooooo looking forward to it. I can go workout at the rec center without paying child care, go to the grocery store by myself and maybe even keep the house clean. But the biggest thing is that I won't have to hear my kids fighting. I will enjoy the silence. I respect those of you who home school, but I know my limits and I know I need some quiet time too. 3 more weeks until a little peace and quiet!

Hiking in Colorado

Kyle and his friend Matt went camping and hiking last weekend between Ouray and Lake City Colorado.
Since I wasn't there, I don't know exactly which pictures are from which mountains, but I know they hiked 2 14ers (14000 ft) in 2 days. Kyle was alittle sore on Monday morning.
Love the sheer drop.
Here is a little waterfall they found on the way to one of the mountains.

Everything was really green because of the big winter we had last year. There were wildflowers everywhere and Kyle says the pictures don't do it justice. It was a great weekend for Kyle and his friend Matt (even though they got rained on alittle and it was cold in the mornings). I am glad he had the opportunity to get away and reflect on the beauty of the earth alittle after all that has gone on in the past few months.

Are you watching?

I love the Olympics! We have been recording everything we can of the olympics since the opening ceremonies. Last night was really awesome when USA won gold in the mens swimming 4x100m free relay. It was so exciting at the last minute. Did I say I love the Olympics!

My scrapblog

Still Catching Up!

I am still catching up on these blogs and pictures from last week. The day after we got home from Texas we went out to the lake and played around on a friend's jet ski with kyle's dad.
We had so much fun in the sun out on the water. All the boys took a turn riding with "Da" around the lake.
The boys also went hiking around the beach to find treasure. We had a fried chicken lunch and enjoyed the afternoon together.
Kyle is trying to bounce his dad on the jet ski, just like he did to me when I was driving. I prefer to drive by myself because of that.
Right before we left kyle went out by himself and did some tricks and stuff. The boys swam by the beach and watched. It was nice to get out of the car and have some fun.

Lake Whitney, Texas

The day after Becky's funeral, the Gropp family decided that we wanted to do something together to release some stress, so we went to Lake Whitney (which is about 45 minutes from Waco). We used Doug's boat to do some tubing and some of them went cliff jumping. I went tubing with Landon but did not jump off any cliffs. Chicken, I know.
Both Kaleb and Cole joined their dad and others cliff jumping. I really didn't think they would do it, but they did and they loved it.
Here are Kyle and Cole jumping together and above that is a picture of Kaleb's first jump.
Mindi and Cailynn enjoy the water together.
Landon uses baby Jessica's float to explore the water with Maycie. The boys really enjoyed spending time with their cousins on this trip. We had a great day at the lake and most of us came home with a sunburn.

We're Back!

Actually, we got back on Thursday night, but we have been so busy since then that I haven't had a chance to post anything. We drove from Waco, Tx to Amarillo, Tx on Wednesday and stayed in a hotel that night. Kyle's dad Chris caravaned with us home so we traded off being in both cars on the way home. We got home Thursday night and arrived to find an overgrown yard and garden and a hot house. Friday we took a friend's jet ski out on the lake here just north of town for the afternoon and then gave Chris a tour of the mountains nearby. Saturday we had a Ward Temple Day in Monticello. This is the second time our ward has done this, where a couple of ward members watch the primary kids while the other youth and adults attend the temple. Afterwards there is a lunch and this time we played a ward softball game. It was alot of fun. Then Saturday afternoon we went to a tri-state firemans conference, where we watched local fireman compete in several different events and had lots of food. Today Chris left to visit his other sons in Salt Lake City and Rexburg ID.
So, like I was saying, we are home now and trying to get back into our routines again. Kyle goes back to work tomorrow and we have one more month to enjoy the summer before school starts.
Thanks for all the support of everyone for Kyle and his family during the past months and years. We really appreciate it.