Glenwood Hot Springs

We met Auntie Hodder in Glenwood Springs today for an enchilada lunch and some fun at Glenwood Hot Springs. It is HOT here. 98 degrees in Glenwood Springs to be exact, for those temperatures I could be in Houston. At least it is a dry heat. We rode the water slides a ton of times and Finley did amazing by herself down the slide. I was a little bit frightened by how fast it went, but Finley loved it. I was worried she might be scared, but she was just happy that she got to "go upside down" on the slide. I think she was sliding all around in the tube. She also did somersaults and handstands in the water. It was the perfect temperature. The hot springs are open all year round, I am not sure I would be able to handle it when it was cold outside.

Instagram Fun

Ghost Town

Back in May, we drove up to Independence Pass and on the way stopped to check out the ghost town on the way. Unfortunately, there was too much snow on the ground to access the town from the parking area.  Things sure have changed in a month, there wasn't a bit of snow on the ground, just water running down the side of the mountain from the melt.  Finley was excited for some "hitchhiking ghosts" like she sees at the Haunted Mansion in Disney.  There were no ghosts, but there were a lot of neat buildings, even a general store set up with information about the former mining town.  Finley and I hiked earlier this morning, so we got a couple more runs today in her hiking shoes, so hopefully they are well broken in by now.

Arches National Park: Day One

After leaving Snowmass just before noon, we made the four hour drive to Moab to visit Arches National Park, with a quick stop in Glenwood Springs for a Target and Sports Authority run. We needed snacks, a hat for Finley (she decided her old hat was too tight) and socks for me since I forgot to pack any. We stopped at a Mexican place for a very late lunch in Moab before we checked into our hotel. We geared up and headed straight out for Arches National Park. After a flash of our annual pass, we were in. We made a quick stop to the Visitor's Center and decided that we would hit the Windows Section first. This included the Windows Arches (both north and south) and the Turret Arch. We waited our turn for a photo op at the North Arch and I climbed up with Finley. As soon as we reached the top, Finley's hat blew off and down the other side of the arch. I was yelling at her to stay put, Clifton was clueless yards away trying to take a photo and I was climbing down the other side of the arch while watching her hat blow further and further away. I eventually got to it, Finley was fine by herself at the top and then a nice family offered to snap a photo of all of us together. We walked down to South Arch and Finley was complaining about her socks and shoes. Turns out climbing may have not been the best idea for her first wear of her new hiking shoes. Clifton carried her to Turret Arch. There was a guy climbing up in the circular arch, which Finley thought was really neat. We then drove through the Parade of Elephants on our way to the Balanced Rock. We did a quick walking tour around Balanced Rock with Finley in her favorite sandals instead of the hiking shoes. Our next stop was the view point for Park Avenue. There was a one mile hike through the canyon that Finley insisted she wanted to do the next morning. It was getting late and we headed back to Moab to rest up for our full Saturday at Arches National Park.

Arches National Park via Instagram

Snowmass Swim

We left Houston yesterday for a two week trip to Aspen to stay with Clifton. Yesterday's flight to Denver was great, but the flight from Denver to Aspen seems to be cursed for me. As soon as the plane started to taxi, Finley starts screaming that she has to go potty. The flight is only 22 minutes and is super bumpy, so the seat belt sign was never turned off. We had just gone in the airport, but as soon as we landed in Aspen, she had to potty again. She didn't even have time to hug Daddy!

We decided to check out the pool today. I was worried it was going to be freezing, but the water was surprisingly warm. The weather was sunny and in the 80s, so it was the perfect day for a swim. Finley did lots of diving and swimming, but I could tell the altitude really got to her. Hopefully by the end of our trip she will have the lungs of an athlete!

Instagram Fun

Instagram Fun

Instagram Fun

Happ Birthday, Joseph!

Reposting this with the CORRECT pictures...

Last month we headed out to Pump It Up to celebrate Joseph's birthday. Finley had a fantastic time in the hurricane wind machine with Joe (different from the birthday boy =) Joseph loves to clean...really loves to clean...so a group of us pooled together to buy him a purple Dyson vacuum cleaner. Fun party!

Bowling Fun

Every day Finley asks, "When are we going to see Max again?" Even though they aren't at the same school any more, they are still the best of friends. Courtney found a free bowling for the summer deal and we signed the kids up. Finley gave her best efforts, but bowling does not look to be her strong suit. She is quite good at eating popcorn and watching others bowl.

Happy Birthday, Micah!

One of Finley's former classmates, Micah, had his fourth birthday party at Monkey Bizness.  Finley had a blast climbing all around the obstacle course.  Her most favorite thing to do was to go down the slide with Clifton.  As is usual lately, she did not want to wear her hairbow.  I keep threatening to bring back her bangs...

Happy Birthday, Joseph!

Last month we headed out to Pump It Up to celebrate Joseph's birthday. Finley had a fantastic time in the hurricane wind machine with Joe (different from the birthday boy =) Joseph loves to clean...really loves to clean...so a group of us pooled together to buy him a purple Dyson vacuum cleaner. Fun party!

Auntie Hodder!

On Tuesday night we drove up to Glenwood Springs to meet Auntie Hodder, Uncle Josh and Uncle Steve for dinner. We are lucky to have Heather nearby in Vail for at least the next month. I look forward to more visits and Finley does too! I am still holding out hope that she and Josh won't move to Seattle.

Braves T-Ball

A few weeks back we headed out to Sugar Land to watch Max play "under the lights" as his Braves played their final t-ball game of the season. We took Clifton's tomahawk from the Atlanta Braves to help cheer Max on. As all games do, it ended in a tie, but Finley and Max felt like winners!

Snowy Day

That's right, it snowed today. It's May 29th and it snowed. We were going to spend the day in Aspen wandering around, maybe playing at the playground, but the weather had different plans. Luckily, we had bought craft supplies in Glendwood Springs last night at Target, so Finley and I were set for a snowy/rainy day inside. We made a butterfly made out of handprints and a footprint. Finley is getting really good at using scissors. She cut the foot out all by herself, as well as two of the hands. Then she was getting tired, so I helped with the final two. I understand her frustration, cutting with safety scissors is no fun. She also told me she was the best cutter in her class...so modest!