It's Okay...

Here's the background on this unusual blog. This is in response to a challenge on another person's blog to take a photo of whatever you are doing when your clock says 10:11 am or pm on 07/08/09. I decided to coordinate this with another cool post on her blog (the "it's okay" one). Here goes...

It's okay that I look forward to reading Liz's "just us" blog every day.
It's okay that I am envious of the fabulous pictures and scrapbook pages I see on Liz's blog (and I'm NOT just sucking up!!!).
It's okay that I am so anxious to win one of Liz's yummy give-aways!
It's okay that I actually put a reminder on my work calendar to take a picture of myself.
It's okay that I stepped away from my work for a minute to take a picture of myself.
It's okay that I took more than one snapshot for this "what will you be doing on 07/08/09 @ 10:11:12" challenge.
It's okay that I quickly ran into the bathroom to fix my hair after looking through my first couple snapshots.
It's okay that I deleted a couple snapshots because the angle was unflattering.
It's okay that not every picture was taken at exactly 10:11:12.
It's okay that my desk was messy and there was clutter in the background of my pictures.
It's okay that I am SOOOOOO doing a layout based on this challenge (what a fun idea!).
It's okay that I am also considering taking ANOTHER picture at 12:34:56 on 07/08/09!!!

First Day of School

Well, I officially have a 5th grader and a 3rd grader (and a little girl who cannot wait to start kindergarten). The boys went back to school today. I can't believe how quickly those 5 weeks of summer vacation flew by. The boys can't either!!! Alex wasn't very willing to get his picture taken on the front porch this morning, but Josh is always ready to pose for the camera! Typically, Mattea sneaks into the first day of school pictures, but this time she was still snoozing away! After a summer of staying up late, playing hard during the days and sleeping in, I thought it would be quite a feat to get Josh out of bed this morning. He surprised me by getting ready quickly and without any trouble. Alex, that sweet big brother, helped Josh get his breakfast and put together a snack for him. It's going to be a great school year. Bring it on!

Jamie & Lindsey's Visit to Colorado

Jamie & Lindsey came to visit last weekend. We had a total blast! Jamie had never seen the mountains, so we knew that was an absolute must before they left. They arrived Friday afternoon and we whisked them off for lunch and then to the pool. They had fun playing in the pool with Alex & Josh (Mattea was at preschool and it was nap time, so we didn't want to interrupt that!!!) Jeff actually came home from work early that day, so he was able to spend more time with them. We had some dinner and then did a fire in the backyard fire pit. It was great catching up with them!

Jeff had the foresight to urge me into making a reservation for a cabin in the mountains to make sure we got to spend a couple days there. On Saturday morning, we took off for Estes Park. We arrived close to lunch time, so we stopped at a mexican place for a bite to eat before heading to Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). After lunch, we did a little shopping at the cute Main Street shops. Mid-afternoon, we finally headed up the mountain. Unfortunately, the weather had turned hazy and rainy, so the views weren't as spectacular.

After our drive through some of the park, we decided to check out our cabin. I had a hard time finding a reservation for just one night, so we were at an out-of-the-way location which turned out to be scary!!! We drove 12 miles away from Estes Park to the 2 Eagles Resort near Loveland only to discover that the cute stone house we had reserved was dingy, unsafe and just unacceptable for what we were going to pay! Jeff talked to the manager and we left in a hurry! YIKES! We were able to get a one-night reservation at Solitude Cabins where we had stayed one other time. The accommodations were fantastic and we were much more comfortable! Jeff & Jamie headed to the grocery store for some food & drinks and then came home to make dinner for the rest of us. It was WONDERFUL to just watch a movie with the kids and not worry about a meal!!!

On Sunday morning, we celebrated Father's Day. We had funny cards for Jeff and he got a new watch, a toothpick holder and a Rocky Mountain National Park t-shirt from the kids. We wanted to get Jamie & Lindsey back into RMNP for some hiking and some better views. It was a beautiful day with sunny skies and fluffy clouds. We decided to hike to Alberta Falls. The hike was fun and adventurous... we stopped for lots of pictures and took many detours off the beaten path. The views at the falls were spectacular and we took more pictures. By this time, the kids were getting hungry, so we headed back to the parking area for some lunch. We lunched at a picnic table near a stream which was really relaxing and nice. After lunch, we went further on Trail Ridge Road and stopped near the summit to walk the stairs to "the top of the world"! Mattea was napping and Josh had a really sore throat, so Lindsey, Jamie, Alex and I went up the stairs. It's a brutal effort as the air is very thin and the stairs seem to be never-ending, but the views from the top are amazing! It was very windy at the top and we were hurried back down as it started snowing!!!! The snow quickly turned into little hail pellets... not sure if that's what you call them, but they hurt when they hit our faces! During our travels in the mountains, we came across deer, elk, moose and even a black bear! It was unbelievable!!!

It had been a long day, so we decided to start back towards home. We made a pit stop for pizza at Beau Jo's in Idaho Springs. YUMMY! By the time we got home, the kids were sleeping and the adults were exhausted as well. Jamie & Lindsey headed back east in the morning. It was so wonderful spending time with them. Jeff did his best to convince them to move out here, but I'm not holding my breath. : )

A Visit From the Dolan/Mishler clan

Pete, Carol, Julie, Kevin & TJ made the long trek from IA/IL to visit us this month. We had a fabulous time and it went WAY too fast. Here are some of the highlights from their trip...

Mattea's ballet rehearsal - Mattea's ballet recital coincided with their visit and they were all excited to see her perform. It was a very, very long performance since there were many dancers besides the 4-year olds, but it was entertaining. Mattea claimed that she didn't know her moves, but once they started, she seemed to do just fine. Her costume was adorable and with her makeup all done, she looked so grown up! I enjoyed watching Alex, Josh and TJ check out all the cute dancers, too!

Park/baseball - We got a nice baseball game going at the park and then Kevin hit fly balls to all of us. It was a total blast and it took me back to my childhood days where my Dad hit fly balls at Kennedy Elementary school!

DIA Tour - Jeff lined up a tour of the Denver International Airport (DIA). I was a bit fearful that the boys would find it boring, but it turned out to be an amazing experience! We saw so many behind-the-scenes activities that none of us were aware of and every employee we encountered was friendly & accommodating. The tour was very catered to entertaining the boys -- they got to shoot water out of the fire hoses, ride in the fire truck, go 80 feet up in the bucket truck, watch a training exercise where a test plane was lit on fire and extinguished by the fire team and much, much more. We had a full day at DIA and it was just amazing!!!

Dinner & Rockies game - As we drove downtown to meet up with Dan & Dani Brown for dinner at the Sports Column, it absolutely poured down rain and a little bit of hail. It wasn't looking like good weather for a baseball game, but we stayed positive. We had a very nice time at dinner and sure enough, by the time we were done eating and socializing, it was beautiful weather for a baseball game! Gotta love Colorado weather! The Rockies game was a treat as well! We had great seats along the first baseline and some staff came out at the top of the 4th inning to sing Happy Birthday to Alex!

Pikes Peak/Garden of the Gods/Flying W Ranch - We had one day that was jam-packed to the max! It was a Pete Dolan day for sure!!! We decided to head to Pike's Peak for the day and follow it up with dinner and a cowboy show at the Flying W Ranch. We drove through the Garden of the Gods on our way to Pike's Peak. We got out to walk around and take some pictures. The red rock formations are amazing and the boys had a blast climbing on the rocks! Jeff kept a tight hold on Mattea or she would have followed those boys anywhere! Our family had never made it to the top of Pike's Peak as it had always been closed at about mile 13 due to bad weather near the summit. Well, it was our lucky day! As we pulled up to the pay station before driving up Pike's Peak, they changed the sign to say we could drive all the way to the top! That is what you call Dolan luck! The trip up the mountain was entertaining. The views were great and we chuckled at Carol being a little white-knuckled driving near the side of the road with no guard rails. We froze our tails off at the summit, but managed to snap a few pics and buy souvenirs. We headed back down and arrived at the Flying W Ranch. Pete & Carol had taken Julie & Jeff there 30 years ago, so it was very fun to take them again and this time with the spouses and grandkids, too! We watched an Indian tribal dance, Mattea got her face painted, we wandered thru the village and hiked up some very steep stairs to see some amazing views! We had a cowboy dinner (and lots of beans!) and then watched a cowboy show. Everyone had such a fun time!

Funnel Cloud Sighting in Aurora, CO

What an interesting day! We were having a wonderfully, relaxing Sunday eating lunch on the patio when the sky turned dark, it started to rain and soon the tornado sirens went off. Jeff sent us downstairs and he went outside to investigate. He reported back that he had spotted a funnel cloud near our neighborhood. The kids were a bit freaked out, but it was a good chance for us to teach them what to do if something like this happens again. The danger has passed and we are all fine. Check out the video! (Sorry it is sideways... still can't figure out how to rotate videos!)

Last Day of School

Well, I forced the kids (mostly Alex) into taking a quick picture on the porch for their last day of school. We had breakfast at McDonald's before school and the boys wore old t-shirts to have their friends sign. They get out already at 10:30am this morning. Oh, to be a kid again.

Funny things kids say...

Mattea's teacher told me that the lunch time conversation revolved around religion today. Hello... these are 4-year olds!!! Anyway, the teacher told the kids they could each ask her one question. Mattea asked her "Does God speak Spanish?". I found this quite hilarious and forgot to ask the teacher how she answered the question. I think one of the benefits of being a preschool teacher would be all the funny things you hear everyday.

The kids and I were playing outside this afternoon and one of the neighbor girls went home. Her father had previously installed security cameras on their house to keep an eye on their teenage daughter... apparently, she liked to sneak out of the house at night! Gotta love technology! Anyway, Alex came up to me and said "I think she is setting up the video cameras to tape Josh and I because we're so attractive." LOL! Oh, that one really cracked me up. I mean, yes, I agree my boys are attractive, but hearing that out of Alex's mouth was just too much!