I mentioned in my previous post that Sage won an award last week in baseball. For being a good listener. Not only did he get a metal. He got this giant yard sing too! I was shocked at first. A strange memento. But, ok! We'll make it work!
Grandma and Grandpa Carter sent Sage some mail to congratulate him on his sportsmanship.
I tell you what...a dollar and some stickers can really make a kid's day!
Sage's baseball games are constantly improving.
Game #1 - sat on mom's lap and cried because he was so cold.
Game #2 - played the whole game, with mom at his side, having a lot of fun, and winning his award
Game #3 - told mom and dad he no longer needed them, and ran off to be with his coach, while we watched from the sidelines.
But baseball was only the beginning of a great week.
We had a mini-vacation to Steamboat planned!!
It was a 3 hour drive. With a couple scenic stops along the way. (You know how kids are... Sage literally asked, "Are we there yet?" several times. Ha! I thought that was just on TV!)
The view as we headed into Walden.
A perfect time to stop for a picnic.
Finally, with patience running low, we made it to the Fairfield Inn!
(Poor Sage - that quick descent into town - super steep and fast - combined with too many Cheetos- resulted in a bright orange vomit - right on the side of my car. But it was one and done.)
Surprise! New pool toys!
After a quick dip, we headed out to the Yampa Botanical Gardens, right as the sun was going down.
At the entrance, we stumbled across the biggest fastest slide in the world.
They don't make 'em like this anymore, kids!
A relic of the 80's, when safety wasn't the #1 concern.
We all had a go. (It was sort of scary....)
Then it was off for a stroll downtown. A visit to the infamous Fuzziwigs candy store. And dinner at Skull Creek Greek.
Singing Old MacDonald, loud as we can, on our walk back to the car. Kale knows the "E-I-E-I-O" part very well!
(Also - notice anything funny about Kale's feet?
He's not just missing a shoe.
He's also missing a sock!)
Day #2
Kale wakes up sleepy, but eager to check our the Fairfield Inn complimentary breakfast. :)
After a quick dip in the hotel pool, we head up, up, and up to the Strawberry Hot Springs Park.
I would never drive this in winter. But in summer, it was exhilarating! The road was steep, curvy, and super bumpy. Both boys hummed a low "uuuuhhhhh" as went over the bumps, their little voices rattling along. And giggling the whole time. :)
Ticket booth to Strawberry Hot Springs.
There are several pools. All with different temperatures.
The hot spring water (boiling hot) is mixed with rushing mountain river water.
And the end result is marvelous!
We went in every pool, except the icy cold one.
Who doesn't love a good snack break at the pool?
View on the way back down....
And guess what?
Those little boys fell asleep. Matt and I seized the opportunity for a solo lunch. We parked in the shade, rolled the windows down, and snagged some patio seating at Freshies.
Back to the hotel, for a round of hot showers.
Kale loves being a "baby." He always wants to be wrapped up in blankets and towels, and snuggled.
After getting showered (and making a few international phone calls), we headed to Rex's for dinner.
Just one parking lot away from our hotel. We hiked in on foot!
Great outdoor patio.
Room for the kids to run while waiting on the food.
(Too bad we had to package up the meal halfway through and haul it back to the hotel. Our kids just cannot sit still! No more restaurants for awhile. The kids haven't earned their badges yet.)
Time to hit the road and head back home. But not before one last meal. (I guess we didn't learn our lesson from last night. Because here we are, at a restaurant...again!)
Breakfast at Creekside.
A final visit to the candy shop.
Kale and I played peek-a-boo on the long drive home.
Sage and Matt hunted around for rocks in the Poudre Canyon.
Matt stepped in doo doo.
And then it was back to life as normal...
World's longest Hot Wheel track!
New shoes for the boys. Target has the best collection!
School pics.
I didn't buy either set....
Doesn't matter how many smiles, or deep belly laughs (ehm..Kale!) they brought me. Too expensive
And don't I have enough pics anyway?
Ipad sessions.
God bless this wonderful little invention! Don't know how I would get anything done without the precious minutes this technology affords me.
And not to be forgotten...
bath time.
