Camping at Meeker Park

We went camping with friends on Friday and Saturday, June 17-18. I had tried to book a campsite at Camp Dick or Olive Ridge in May but found that every single weekend for the entire summer was booked up! I guess that I shouldn't have been that surprised seeing as we live in such an outdoorsy place but last year, I had booked sites without any trouble. Strange. Now I know that I need to book sites for next year in January.

So, we decided to go to Camp Dick and see if we could find a site. We hadn't come up with a game plan for how to get people to where we would be because we assumed that we'd be able to get one of the first come, first served sites since we'd headed up early on Friday afternoon.

It turned out that the campground was full and had been since early morning. The camp host told me people were knocking on his door at 6 am getting sites. We knew then that we were in trouble.

We had three families coming up to camp with us and luckily, we found the Fergusons as they were pulling up to Camp Dick and we were leaving.

We went to Olive Ridge and it was also full... We didn't know what we were going to do. I thought that I'd led everyone on a wild goose chase and regretted planning and being responsible for such a disaster.

The camp host told us that there was an overflow camp ground called Meeker Park that had no water but was just up the road. We went there and snagged a couple of sites next to each other. Then, Don went to Estes Park to get cell reception to try to get ahold of the other two families who were coming (the Snows and Cam and Zach).

Don lucked out and got ahold of the Snows just as they were losing cell service and also got ahold of Cam. So, amazingly, everyone made it to the site and we actually really loved where we camped.

We made tinfoil dinners in the fire and had s'mores and dough boys for dessert. The kids had a great time running around picking wildflowers (which we later got in trouble for - oops!), throwing rocks, and getting ridiculously dirty.

We put Sammy in three pairs of jammies and packed him tight into his pack n' play with blankets but he kicked off the covers and got cold and ended up sleeping between me and Don in our sleeping bag (two bags that zip together - just like my parents had. It's so nice to cosy up to Don whilst camping!). Unfortunately, though, the bag was not nearly big enough for all three of us and it was probably the most uncomfortable night I've spent camping. Sam slept well, though, so that was fantastic.

I woke up with a swollen knee. Why this happened, I don't know but it was funny. 

Everyone trying to wake up around the fire. It was a cold night and was pretty rough for several of the kids and their parents.

I think Kyle is the handsomest little baby. He is just gorgeous!

Sam and Shawn (below) had a hard time waking up. I love Don and Sam above with the same expression.

The girls eating breakfast.

Avett (the dog), Sam and Cam. Sam loved sitting on this cooler and eating his granola bar while Cam pulled him around. 

Another picture of Kyle being ridiculously cute.

Xion and Oriah made warrior sticks.

And Sam and Kyle destroyed the dog's water bowl with sticks, pine cones, and grass.

Shawn always gives me the best stink eye. He is such a funny kid.

We had a good morning with everyone before the Fergusons and Snows headed home. We had attempted to go on a hike but we had two dogs and the trail ran into Rocky Mountain National Park (no dogs allowed) and some self appointed rule enforcer told us to leave so we did. 

On our hike just before getting kicked out of the National Park.

Cam and Zach hung out with us as we unsuccessfully tried to put Sam down for a nap after lunch. We then all headed to Camp Dick. Sam had fallen asleep in the car on the way so we ended up sitting in the parking lot waiting for him to wake up. Then, Don, Sam, and I went on a hike and Cam and Zach went home. 

We put sunscreen on Sam's head because his hair is still kind of thin and I'm always worried he'll get sunburned on his scalp. His hair gets so disgusting and greasy when I do this, though, that I decided to give him a nasty, greasy mohawk. That, along with his dirt mustache, made him look pretty hilarious.

Not sure what he's doing here but I thought it was a funny face.

And here we are on our hike at Camp Dick with Sammy.

We had such a great time. I love camping with friends.

Strider Bike and Water Days

Kids around Smiley Court learn to ride their bikes early. I see kids that have just turned three riding a bike without training wheels. Yes, these kids are all offspring of very smart people, but beyond that, I don't think they are unusually coordinated. What makes the difference is that most of these kids have ridden a Strider Bike from the time they were two. The Strider is a balance bike. Kids push themselves with their feet and eventually, they get going fast enough to cruise and then they'll put their feet up on the bar which teaches them how to balance and steer. Then, when they get on a bike with pedals, they've learned the basic balance technique and within a few weeks, they are riding like pros without training wheels.

So, when the local consignment shop called me to tell me they had a strider bike come in, I immediately packed Sammy into the car and we went over and bought it.

Sam spends a lot of time watching and helping daddy fix his bike. He is absolutely fascinated with bike mechanics and is always getting his hands covered with chain grease because he plays with Don's road bike that lives in our kitchen hallway. He loves to push the pedals around and make the wheel spin and watch how the chain moves over the sprockets.

Naturally, once we got his strider bike home, he got out his hammer and screwdriver that came in a toolbox Cam and Zach gave him for his birthday and set to work fixing up his bike.

Making sure the screws under the seat are all nice and tight.

Just using the wrench to tighten up this bar, mom...

He hasn't really taken an interest in riding the bike but he often talks about fixing "Sammy's bike" and gets his hammer and screwdriver out and helps daddy fix whatever bike Don is working on.

I'm hoping he'll eventually like the strider but as for now, he keeps it tuned and ready to go for the moment he decides he wants to take the bike for a spin.

He walked the bike to this point from our gate (which you can see behind him). This is as far as he's ever been interested in going. He just looks so cute in his little mushroom helmet; like the Mario Brothers mushroom. I love it!

In Family Housing, we have water days. Basically, on a different day of the week for the entire summer, each of the three Family Housing courts puts out pools, sprinklers, slip n' slides, etc. and the kids come out in droves to cool off.

Sam is usually pretty hesitant about getting in the water. In fact, at the first Smiley Court water days (where our apartment is) he refused to get in the water for the first hour and a half and only jumped in as the Resident Managers started cleaning up. He then had such a great time that the RMs were nice enough to leave the pool out so Sam could keep splashing.

He would stand up and jump and land on his bottom making a huge splash over and over and over. He would also roll onto his belly and usually ended up snuffling up a bunch of water on accident. He'd splutter and cough and then start the process over. Jump, splash, jump, splash...

Roll, snuffle, splutter, cough!

Splash!

I love water days and one of the best parts of not being a Resident Manager anymore is that I don't have to set up and clean up (which means I get to avoid the wet, muddy, grass clipping covered, hot sweatiness).

Visit to Vernal for Garnet's Baby Blessing

I'm finally starting in to posting about all of our amazing summer adventures. We were so busy having fun (and working) I haven't taken the time to blog. So, now, things are winding down and my blogging will ramp up. Get ready for about a billion pictures and tons of posts...

Our first summer adventure started on Friday, June 3rd. Don, Sam, and I drove to Vernal, UT to visit Don's sister, Christine, her husband Josh, and their new baby girl, Garnet. 

There are several ways to get to Vernal and instead of the old I-70 to Rifle route that we've done in the past, we decided to go through Steamboat Springs, CO. Everything was so green and lush and Steamboat itself is such a neat town. 

We stopped at a park near the river and watched kayakers surf huge rapids. And when I say "surf", I really mean it. They would paddle back to this crest and attempt to surf on the edge of the wave for as long as they could. Sammy loved watching them and so did we.

Don had always told me that Steamboat was home to many past and current Olympians. It is a ski town with a beautiful resort and as we were watching the kayakers, we saw a girl with an Olympic ski jump shirt carry a kayak down to the water. I can't blame these athletes for wanting to settle in Steamboat; I'd jump at the chance to live there.

A kayaker surfing the wave.

Sam and Don watching the kayakers.

We played at the playground and I caught this adorable smile from Sammy. He sure loves his daddy.

There were several chunky statues of people playing instruments scattered around the park.  Sam ran up to this one and said "nana!" The saxophone totally looks like a banana. Funny kid.

Another kayaker riding the wave.

We got to Vernal late Friday night (about 11 pm). Sam didn't fall asleep until about 10 minutes before we got there. He is so good in the car when we travel but won't go to sleep, so long trips are difficult. He gets so off schedule.

Luckily, he got some good rest and so did we. Don's parents got in to town in the middle of the night, too, and in the morning, Christine and Don's parents watched Sammy and Garnet so Josh, Don, and I could go mountain biking. 

Vernal has some awesome mountain biking. We rode for a couple hours and barely scratched the surface of the trails in the area. 

The mosquitoes were unreal! It surprised me, seeing as the area is so barren, but with the prolific snow and rain fall, the mosquito population had blossomed. There was so little in the area for the mosquitoes to feed on (a few cows here and there, but that's it) so they were voracious and we were eaten alive. I had put on 100% DEET and was still getting bit to pieces every time we stopped moving. I forgot to spray my spandex and I got bit about 20 times through my shorts. It looked like I had some kind of contagious disease. I was so itchy! The ride was well worth the blood loss, though. It was a great ride.

Don and Josh with two of Josh's friends (Dwight and someone else - can't remember his name). 

Don crashed on a rocky section and ripped open his arm. He's pretty hardcore.

Sam loved Josh's guitar and at one point, was over by it strumming it singing "Fish...water..." He had been playing with the cat's fish toy and Don's mom said "Fish live in the water", so he proceeded to throw the fish toy into the dogs water bowl. He is such a funny kid.

We drove to Dinosaur National Monument and this was a beautiful view of the striking landscape as we entered the park.

We got out to see some petroglyphs on the rock. 

They were neat - probably about 1,000 years old from the Fremont Indians. They chipped away at the darker areas on the rock to expose the light rock below. 

We saw a few more fantastic views...

The dome of Split Mountain is cut in half by the Green River. Geologists are still debating why the water didn't deviate around the rock rather than cutting straight through it. The current thinking is that the dome, along with most of the Uintah Mountains, were buried deep beneath a softer layer of ash from nearby volcanoes and by the time the river had eroded down into the denser strata, it was trapped in it's path. 

We went to Josie's Homestead to learn about the strong, independent woman who homesteaded this area in early 1900s. Josie chose to live without many of conveniences of the time; she used oil lamps, raised cattle and pigs, and lived in log cabin similar to the one below 'til she died in 1964. 

Sammy loved running through the cabin and peeking through the windows. 

We walked out into the fields near Josie's homestead and there were thousands of wild irises in bloom. They were beautiful, particularly contrasting against the red dirt and green grass.

This is a classic picture of Sammy - running as fast as he can and avoiding making eye contact with the camera.

Sam had so much fun putting sticks and rocks and twigs down this gutter. This was the biggest stick he attempted to sail down the roaring river. 

And here are a couple pictures of sweet baby Garnet. She is the most content little girl! She never cries and is such a good sleeper! It was so wonderful to get some snuggle time with her.

We hiked up one of the box canyons that Josie used as a natural corral for her animals. Sam loved the hike and kept finding sticks and reeds to play with along the way. He was either at a dead stop looking at something or running full tilt away from us. Hiking with him is always an adventure. He's at a dead stop in the picture above...

And running away from me as fast as he can in this picture.

A typical mom/Sam moment. Me wanting a picture and him wanting to play...

We found a little alcove filled with soft sand. Sammy loved it.

Don climbed up here while Sammy was distracted and playing with the sand. He hadn't even noticed Don was gone...

So when Grandpa picked Sam and showed him daddy hiding in the hole in the rock, he thought it was the best thing ever and laughed and laughed. I love this picture of Sam and Curtis. Such happiness!

Another beautiful view!

Christine, Don, Curtis (Don's dad), and I went on a bike ride that evening through Vernal. We found a couple fields full of dirt hills and had so much fun riding up and down them. Well, I'm kind of a ninny about riding down really steep things, but I did a little and Don and Christine had a blast. Christine is far braver than me. 

I just liked these next few pictures with Don and Christine's silhouettes.

Sammy pretty much ignored Garnet the whole time we were there but ocassionally would go over and pat her on the belly or give her a stuffed animal.

This is one of my favorite Sammy faces...

He eventually held her with a little help from Don and then gave her some random things he found on the ground.

One funny story about things you should never say to your child: I was putting Sammy down for his nap and he was looking at Garnet's stuffed animals (most of them Dr. Seuss characters). He found one he liked (I think it was a star bellied sneech - a girl) and I said "Do you want to take her to bed?". Don just looked at me and laughed and I realized what a terrible thing I'd said to my son!

Another time, I was giving Sam some ibuprofen and had forgotten the medicine syringe on the counter. I said "Bring mommy the syringe" to Sammy and then realized that could be seriously misconstrued, too. Funny.

Ok, back to Garnet...

Sunday was Garnet's baby blessing. She wore the same dress the Christine had worn for her blessing and the same slip that Don and Christine's mom had worn for her blessing (and that Garnet's great grandma Garnet had made). 

Garnet looked so beautiful in her dress and Josh did such a great job with the blessing. We were so happy to be there with them for this happy day.

Don, Sam, and I said goodbye to sweet baby Garnet, Josh, and Christine, and headed back to Boulder. It was such a great weekend.