Mountain magic

I was summoned for jury duty today. The bad news? I had to set up childcare for my three kids. The good news? I got to set up childcare for my three kids. And it's quiet in here in the jury room. And apparently I get paid $12 for my service. That will almost cover an hour of childcare....

But it also gives me time to write about our family trip to the mountains! We grew up coming to Colorado for Spring Break, but I have never visited Colorado in the summer and it didn't disappoint. After Sawyer's accident, it didn't look like our trip would be happening. What seemed like bad timing turned out to be great timing, and a great opportunity for our family to come together and begin to heal. Sawyer certainly left an unfillable hole, but if there is anything to help you cope with the loss of a child, it's other children, and our house was filled with them!

 

Before we got to Breckenridge, we flew to Denver and stayed with a friend for two nights. Due to flight delays and general slowness getting bags and our car, we to their house in Denver at 1am, which felt like 3am our time. Our kids, per usual, handled the evening with as much grace as  a 2, 5, and 7 year old can muster. On Sunday before heading up the mountains, we made a brief stop at Red Rocks.

 

we stopped at my brother, Brad's alma mater, Colorado School of Mines. My kids were happy to be reunited with one half of their cousins!

 

 

On up the mountain we traveled to a big house in Breckenridge. In the mornings, I'd go out on the porch to drink my coffee, wrapped up tight in a blanket to protect myself from the 45 degree cold blast. And midday I'd put on my shorts and tank and lather up the sunscreen to fight the sun and heat. But a dry, welcome warm it was. 

I love hiking and Colorado is definitely the place to be. But I also like breathing and in that way, it's a tough place to be. Eric and I attempted to run up a mountain and while we made it to the top, we certainly didn't get there by running.

 

Here's Avery, texting while hiking.

 

BHe doesn't want to hold hands with me but Brady was very happy to hold Emma's!

 

Skipping rocks on the pond. Or just throwing them....depends on who you are.

My first time (maybe last?) on a tandem bike.

 

 

And the most fun of all, our fun day at Epic Discovery, basically a fun park at the top of the mountain. The most popular ride was the alpine slide. You take a chairlift up to the top and then you fly down the mountain in your own roller coaster (where you determine your speed). Brady was barely tall enough to go himself and Avery rode with me. She loved it, and I tried not to be nervous on the chairlift.

 

Amy and Hudson. 

 

Ropes course!

 

The whole crew! Don't mind Avery, the difficult one in life and in pictures!

 

The mini golf course behind us? I think the cousins played 36 holes, and would have been happy to play 36 more.

Trips like this always make me wish we lived closer to family. But the weeks we spend together are always special and I hope my children will remember them as fondly as I do.

 

 

Also, spoiler alert (it's now one day later)....I was picked for the jury! Perhaps my story on that to come!