Colorado- Day 2

After a restful night's sleep we woke up refreshed and ready to start the day.  Brian made breakfast and coffee which continued thru the week.  It was nice to have someone else do the cooking!  He even cleaned up after too!

Our first stop of the day was Seven Falls.  Since Colorado didn't have a lot of precipitation this spring the falls weren't all that grand, but still it was pretty to see.  Brian had good intentions to do a little hiking/walking trails but the girls were "too tired" and were a bit lazy to walk the 1.5 mile loop.  So instead we walked the .5 mile loop after walking up the 224 steps that led to the trail.  The highlight of this leg of the trip was when we got to the end of the trail there was a little water fall area that one might think they could climb up and follow the creek, but the signs clearly stated "do not climb on rocks".  If you're a Salfer, the sign was for everyone but you.  So away we went up the rocks (we weren't the only ones doing it though :))  Brian was holding on to Natalie when he biffed it.  Protecting Natalie's head, he landed on his elbow and wrist.  Luckily he's a tough guy and didn't show any signs of weakness in front of the girls.  Natalie was shocked and kept saying, "Sorry Daddy, you be alright?"  The sound of the fall sounded worse than it actually was.  He scraped up his arm a bit and that was it.  He did lose his sunglasses somewhere in the midst of all the craziness.  We headed back down the 224 steps, hopped on the elevator to bring us to another viewing area and then walked 185 steps back down again before heading to the car to find a picnic area for lunch.  Oh, I forgot about the rainbow trout.  There was an area where you could buy fish food and feed the trout.  The girls had a good time doing that and then found that the chipmunks like the fish food too.  They'd come right up to you and eat out of your hand.

at the top of the 224 steps

Natalie for some reason wanted to pose everytime we took the camera out.

right before "the fall"

hard to see but there are actually 7 water falls behind the girls.

After a nice quiet picnic lunch at 7 falls we headed to The Manitou Springs Cliff Dwellings.  The girls LOVED this place, exploring the actual homes of the Anaszi Indians.  At full adult height they would be right around Caitlin's height.  My kind of people!

Natalie posing again...

After a fun filled day, we ended by going to this cute/quaint little ice cream shop in Old Colorado City.  We headed back to the house had Spaghetti for dinner and played a family game of Pictionary.

Good Morning Colorado! Day 1

After leaving St. Peter on Sunday, May 27th at 6:15pm, we arrived in Denver around 6:30am.  It was quite the road trip, one to be remembered for sure.  Shortly after we left our house we noticed the skies getting quite dark off to the west.  It rained off and on, nothing major until we got to Windom.  So since the girls were a little hungry we decided to stop eat something quick and wait out the rain for a while.  Well, it never really let up so we thought we might as well get back on the road.  The line of thunderstorms was quite large and we basically drove into it until Omaha Nebraska.  I'm glad I didn't have to drive because there were times it felt like we were hydroplaining.  I was sick of hearing the raindrops and seeing the lightning and wondering if there was more serious weather (like a tornado)  Amazingly, the girls fell asleep thru it and it didn't seem to bother them.  Once we got past Omaha the trip got better.  I was able to fall asleep for a little while until it was my turn to drive.  Around 1am we stopped for gas and bathroom break, even the sleeping girls.  Brian drove 2 more hours before he had to pass on the reigns to me.  So I took over from 3-6:30am.  I didn't like being the only one awake and it seemed as though there were "Deer, next 5 miles" signs every 5 miles.  And there were a lot of blown semi tires littered on the highway.  I did enjoy though watching the sky get lighter and lighter as the sun rose behind me.  It was beautiful and the shadows of the mountains got me excited because I knew we were close to Colorado.  I was the only one quietly cheering as we passed over the state line and Colorado welcomed us.  Just outside Denver we stopped and got a coffee and switched drivers.  The pictures above are of the girls as they woke up in Denver.  They did spectacular on the drive out!!

We could't check into our rental house in Divide, CO until 3pm so we continued on to Colorado Springs and ate breakfast and freshened up a bit.  Our first big stop was the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

This zoo was so cool because it was up in the mountains overlooking Colorado Springs.  The major attraction was the 30+ giraffes you could get close to and feed and pet.  They're such pretty animals.  Natalie loved this part.  It was perfect weather, sunny with a cool breeze.  After a few hours there we found a nice little picnic area had lunch and then headed to Divide.  We still had an hour before our arrival so Caitlin and I got groceries for the week in Woodland, CO while Brian and the other 3 stayed in the car.  After Woodland we had about a 25 minute drive to our house.

Here's the awesome house/cabin we stayed at while vacationing in Colorado.  It was perfect for our family and a good base camp for all of the local activities and attractions we were planning on going to.  It had 3 bedrooms, dining, living, kitchen, 2 baths, 2 decks, a hot tub and laundry onsite.  Every morning we opened the blinds to see Pikes Peak in all its glory.  The girls enjoyed the hot tub the first evening we were there and later in the evening Emily broke down and wanted to go back home.  Pretty sure she was exhausted and tired!  All was better once we woke up in the morning after a more restful nights sleep!

Emily & Caitlin's Piano Recital

The girls had another fun year of piano and did very well at their piano recital.

In early May they participated in the Guild Auditions where they played a few pieces from memory 

in front of a judge.  They both did very well, receiving Superior ratings.

End of the School Year Wrap-Up

Totally forgot to update the end of the girl's school year!  We had so many things going on in May, it's all really a blur.  It'll be a miracle if I remember to recap everything!

Rachel had many field trips and fun activities planned for the end of the school year.  They went to the Police Station, Fire Station and Mill Pond fishing with their 6th grade buddies.  They also celebrated their 6th grade buddies with a 6th grade graduation mass and reception (which I was head of but don't remember signing up for :))  It all went off without a hitch and alot of fun was had.  I was able to chaperon the Police Station and Fire Station trips and remembered my camera only for the Fire Station.  My friend, JoAnna, took pictures of the Police Station but I haven't gotten them yet.  Brian helped with the fishing, which all Dad's should do!  The kids also celebrated their love, Miss Eichler's, golden birthday.  (25 yrs young)  Kindergarten definitely had it's ups and downs, mostly ups, with only 9 kids you'd have thunk it would've been a breeze.  BUT....lots of different personalities bring out lots of different situations. :)  Rachel thoroughly enjoyed Kindergarten and was sad to leave Miss Eichler.  At least she'll see her in the halls next year!  Rachel was the only kindergarten with perfect attendance for the year.  She and only 3 other students school wide received recognition at awards day.  She was pretty proud!  So was Brian! (he also never missed a day of school)  Another exciting award Rachel received was the National Presidential Fitness Award.  She again was the only Kindergartner to receive this award.  

Perfect Attendance Ladies (Nicole, Abby, Rachel & Ellie)

Presidential Fitness Awards (Caitlin & Rachel with  the Blue Patch & Emily with the Red)

Some of the Kindergarten Class

Rachel's FAVORITE teacher, Miss Eichler!  (I loved her too)

Emily had an interesting 3rd grade year.  Let's just say this...both her and I are happy it's over!  Lots of stress, anxiety, organization, structure, discipline, homework, etc.  This is the transition year and it's down to business and not alot of playtime.  She learned alot: multiplying, dividing, writing reports, presenting reports, researching, states and capitals, presidents, and last but not least, writing in cursive!  She has a big class (19 in all) and the boys were definitely being boys.  There was some inappropriate behavior that I wasn't quite expecting from 8-9yr olds.  Topics I wasn't wishing to discuss just yet, but was basically forced into sitting down and having "the talk".  :-)  She received the Red Patch in Physical Fitness but knows she could've gotten the Blue if she'd had at least tried to run the mile.  She now knows she should have.  A learning moment for sure.  She also received Top Reader award in her class and did very well on her AR tests.  We are very proud of her as we know it was a difficult year.

Mrs. Lynch & Emily

Emily rocking the hurdles!

Emily at Field Day

The 3rd Grade goofs

Caitlin had a fabulous 5th grade year.  Every year she says, "this is the best year of my life!"  Gotta like a kid who likes school and can roll with the punches.  It's strange to think she has one more year at JI and then off to the high school.  She's growing up WAY too quickly!  She also had some fun field trips this year.  The State Capital, History Fest and Science Museum.  She took it all in and loved every moment!  In 5th grade they also Adopt-A-Grand Parent at one of the nursing homes here in town and monthly they go visit and play games with their grand parent.  Caitlin's grandparent is named Karl.  I think this is great for the kids to have a connection to the older generation and the older folks loved seeing and hearing the energy arrive at the door!  Caitlin LOVED her teacher, Mr. Reuter.  She loved how he made everything fun even while they learned.  He's alot like Brian so maybe that's why we all loved him!  He also has 4 kids!  Caitlin received the National Presidential award and got on Mr. Reuter's 100pt club for reading.  Good incentive for the kids to push themselves to reading alot or reading more challenging (larger) books.  She enjoys any challenge whether its physical or mental.  She is very prize driven!  We teased her when we got her report card-all A's, every quarter.  How boring!! :)  We are very proud of her!

Caitlin and Ken drag racing with cinder blocks!

The 5th Grade Class

Mr. Reuter

 Field Day Pic's

Natalie trying out the Long Jump

Mrs. Lager giving out strict instructions before the wild water balloon fight!

Mass chaos during the water balloon fight.  We love Mrs. Lager too-she totally gets into it and lets the kids drench her!

The winning Field Day team-Team Red (caitlin, prize driven, was very excited to be the winner)

So Special and only at a parochial school
The staff giving the kids a final blessing before
sending them off.  It usually makes us all tear up.

This special lady, our Principal, Sr. Therese
She retired after 50 years of being in education
She was Brian's principal in Wabasso when he
was Emily's age.  How ironic!  She will be missed!