Hiking

M, Aunt R and I went on a hike yesterday. It was great fun. We only went 3 1/2 miles, but had all sorts of adventures. We hiked right alongside the river, so we had to stop a few times to enjoy the refreshing coldness and beauty. It was tiring work, so I had to take a little rest on the rock.

Aunt R and I had to contemplate the road ahead.

I decided that we should go this way!

I had the best of both worlds. When I got tired, I got to ride in the pack. Aunt R. says that she has to pay back for the time that she was 2 and rode on Aunt M's shoulders for a backpacking trip. I think I was the better passenger!!!!

Cute girls.

After the hike we enjoyed a lunch at a little bed & breakfast outside of Estes Park. They had some fun benches and swings on their porch. I took Aunt R. to check them all out.

One way M and Aunt R got me to move in the right direction was to promise "more water". Here I am all excited about the "More water" ahead!!

Finally getting to completely enjoy the cool, refreshing water!

Potty adventures!!

On our hike yesterday, I found an outdoor potty. I just had to try it. This is as close to nature as you can get!!!!!

Just hanging out!!

Aunt R. came out to stay with us for a few days. Tonight I was helping her and M make supper. In other words I got a little piece of bread dough that I was able to roll out. I also found a way to get into the flour bowl!!! On Saturday my cousins Grandpa had a end of the summer pool party that we were invited to. I had a wonderful time. I went back and forth between the pool and hot tub. I even got brave enough to not want M to catch me when I jumped in. However, after going all the way under 3 times, I decided it was better for me to reach out to her (I still wouldn't let her reach her hands up to catch me!!). Here's a cute picture of my cousins enjoying the hot tub. M didn't get any pictures of me since she was always in the water with me.
Hey, where's the excerise room....I'm all ready to work out!!!!

I like to challenge myself, so the other day at G's house, I decided I needed to make a train out of all my trikes and drive them around the loop between the kitchen and living room.

Hope you all have a great day exploring y0ur world!

It's a girl!

M sporting her belly at 5 months!! My little baby sister is growing fast.

I am going to have a baby sister!!!! Hope you enjoy some of our pictures of her!

Just having fun

I always have fun exploring. Here's just a few pictures and videos of me having all sorts of different kinds of fun!

I think I'm a Jack in the box!Sunday, M&D helped with registration for YC '09 up at YMCA of the Rockies. I fell asleep in the car on the way up and continued my nap in the corner. D pointed out what banner I was in front of and thought it was very funny. The comment was made that hopefully when I attend HLA I don't sleep in class!!!!

Sleeping soundly!!

Playing fort and gonna get you with D while M tried to fold laundry!!

Playing a little hide and seek with the laundry basket!

Just a little bathtime silliness!

In my puzzle, the skunk looks a lot like a kitty, so I was always pulling it out and saying, "Meow." M has been trying to teach me what "it" really says! (Ok, what people say when they see it!!!!)

Getting out!

So I finally discovered my way out of the crib also!! Luckily I don't feel the need to do it every morning. I am usually pretty content to stand at the end and try to peek out the door until M comes and gets me. Hopefully I get more graceful as time moves on, but I probably won't be in my crib much longer anyhow!

Chalk drawings

I discovered sidewalk chalk this week. On a walk around the neighborhood, we passed some drawings in the park and the girls had left half a piece of chalk. I was enthralled with the idea of being able to write on the sidewalk, so M had to go out and buy me my own!

My cousin came over last night to check out what M & I were doing.
Notice the lifesize me on the ground. I helped M color it in so that I could have a twin!!

I have a little bit of growing to do to catch M's feet!

After we got tired of drawing, L and I found a new way to use chalk.....I call it Chalk Rolling!

Second weekend of camping

This was the 2nd weekend of our camping experience. M&D and I headed up Friday after work. It rained a little on our way, but let up shortly after we got there. The rest of the weekend was absolutely gorgeous.....sunny, warm and hardly a cloud in the sky!

I finally was able to have my first s'more. Usually I'm in bed by the time these come out, but M let me stay just a little bit later so I could try one. It was so good I wanted more, but M said only one before bed! My friend Deliliah was also there the 2nd weekend. She's the one I made friends with over the Fourth. (just as an additional side note: tonight when I was over visiting my cousin, he was watching Homeward Bound II and I went running into the living room to get M to show her Deliliah....apparently the young female golden on that movie is also named Deliliah. M told D I guess if we have a girl we need to name her Deliliah since that's the only name I can say.....however D said no girl of his is going to be named Deliliah!!!!)
It was very cold Friday night. So cold in fact that our stove had frost on it Saturday morning.

While I napped on Saturday, G and L made a G.I. Joe fort and city. Didn't they do a wonderful job?

While everyone was out riding on Saturday morning, I sat with G and drew some pictures.

I had time to explore and discovered that if I knelt in the bushes I was hard to spot. A perfect hiding spot!

I even had time to perfect my jumping. I just have to work on my landing still.

The log I was playing with last weekend made a really good rocking chair also.

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend of camping. Hopefully we get out at least once more in August before Labor Day.

Fair days

The fair was in town this weekend. After we got unpacked Sunday evening, M&D along with Uncle S and Aunt S, L, P&G, and Cousin A we went to check it out. Sunday evening we ate fair food, then checked out the barns before heading to do some rides. I had so much fun on my very first fair ride that evening, M&D decided to take me back again Tuesday.

Tuesday was just M&D and I. We ate a quick supper at home then headed out for an hour of fun. I even won a prize. It's a balloon dolphin on a stick, but it worked really well as a horsey!Daddy taking me on the Carousel Tuesday evening.

All excited to go on my very first fair ride Sunday evening!!!!!

Aren't I a cute little bug?

Caution: This video might make you dizzy. But hope you enjoy my very first ride as much as I did. 2 tickets for a 1:25 ride!!!!

Tuesday night when I went back with M&D they let me go in the bouncy castle. I even went down the slide with a little help from a new friend.

I guess I will be ready for our Disneyland trip in October!!!

Water, Water, Water

Sunday was an adventureous day. The theme for the day seemed to be water:

Late morning once it really warmed up, a few of us girls headed down to the creek to wash up. I was going to swim, but Patty and her sister were washing up the muddy clothes from an ATV ride. However, the creek was only 3 inches deep and 16 inches across, so really not a good swimming hole. I put my feet in it and watched the dogs run and play. But P and C made due and got the clothes as clean as they could!
Later, D told M that he had to go wash his bike off. I think it was just an excuse to go run through some water holes! I sat in Papa's lap and watched M&D and a few of their friends drive through the creek time after time! Here's a still shot of M&D running through. Notice how high the water gets!!

Then M had to go just by herself. I have crazy parents.

But they weren't the only crazy ones. Here's one of M's friend Patty going through also!

Later that evening, while everyone was finishing up supper and getting ready to spend the evening around the campfire, a massive storm moved through. It was crazy from the start--you could hear the sounds of the rain & hail miles away. Then we watched it come up from the ridge over, across the meadow and down upon us. It wasn't just the cloud we watched coming, it was the actual raindrops and hail itself. M&D, G&P and I all raced under the canopy, but the water was coming so fast and and so powerfully that even the canopy couldn't keep us dry (D thought God had turned the facuet on it was coming down so hard!!), so we went inside the camper and watched the rain. We weren't inside too long, since the rain only lasted about 15-20 minutes or less. But here's what we saw when we opened the camper door!!
Our campsite had a stream running right through the center of it.

The runoff was coming down the hill and across the road from us before coming down into our camp area. Notice the miniature waterfall coming down.

We had one tenter with us. But luckily the water went right by them and didn't do any damage at all. Just to make extra sure, the guys built a little dam just to protect them a little more.

A few crazy things about this situation. This was the exact location we camped over the 4th--where it rained every single day, the ground was completely saturated even before that weekend and nothing like this. Even more crazy was that our fire survived intact. Once we went back to the campfire it was still burning strong!!

Beautiful rainbow after the storm! M figured we got about 2 inches in about 15 minutes of time. My training toilet was outside the camper and this is how full it got! Granted, some of this is probably run off from the camper, but there in about 2-3 inches in the cup.


Crazy, crazy day!!!

It only took about an hour or so before the water stopped running and the puddles started drying out, so I was able to get down and play some before bedtime (mostly to wipe off all my toys that had mud all over them!!)

Camping

We went camping again this weekend. The great part is that we get to leave our camper up there all week long and go back again next weekend. Some friends are staying all week so they are watching over our stuff for us. It was a great weekend. Here about all the adventures on Sunday, in the post "Water, water, water". But overall it was the best camping weekend yet of this year. The weather was gorgeous (for the most part) and D didn't have to study so he got to relax and ride whenever he wanted. Here's M & I lounging around the campfire. This is my chair I got for my birthday. I absolutely love to sit in it!I had fun moving some logs around also. This video looks impressive, but the hidden truth is that the log is pretty much rotting through, so it really isn't that heavy at all!! But it looks good!

I love the outdoors and getting dirty, so put that all together and you get a perfect camping weekend!!

Work days

M and D have to work during the week while I get to play at G&P's house. It isn't all bad for M&D, sometimes they even have fun at work! Lately though D has been pretty stressed because he was due up for recertification. He's been studying every spare minute since June. So M and I have been trying to stay out of the house when he's studying to give him some quiet time. Last Saturday after playing in the pool, we took some time to paint our toenails!

This week was the big week. I am proud to say that D passed with flying colors. He even got 100% on 2 of the 4 written tests, and passed the practical portion with no trouble at all! So to celebrate, M&D and I along with D's Level 3 tester went out to supper in Old Town, Fort Collins. While we waited for a table, M and I went up the block to the "square" to play and explore. There was a fish and a bear to climb on and a fountain to put my hands into. Once we finally got our food, I helped serve it up. The pizza was stacked two high on a platter and I would not let M eat from the top pizza. (She thinks it is because she had told me "NO, hot", when I first tried to take from it and hey if I couldn't have it, neither can she!!) When she took a piece from it--halfway through the meal--I took it off her plate and put it back, then got her a slice of the bottom pizza. Hey I rule this house....or at least I think I do!

M's drive to work is always a different adventure. Hey when you drive a mountain river canyon you never know what to expect...anything from mountain sheep, tourists, Dive & Rescue trainings/activities to winter weather, spring waterfalls and summer flowers! This week M has been dazzled by one particular lot about halfway up the canyon. She wanted to share the pictures with you.

Race car maniac

I got a tricycle for my birthday and M says I am a maniac on it. Here's just a sample of what she is talking about. Yes I only have one speed....FAST (whether running or biking!!)

My newest thing is ride it to the park and then continue around the neighborhood. But as you can tell from the video it is much easier to go downhill, so M usually ends up carrying the trike about half way around the loop while I run on ahead.

The trike is also fun since it has engine sounds, a radio and other noises. Sometimes I just like to dance along to the music.