a DAY in the life: July 2018

Road Trippin'- Day1-3 states and 13+hours in the car. Even being trapped in the car, we still made lots of memories. The boys did amazing in the car and we were very pleasantly surprised by our very cute and spacious B&B. Dinner and drinks on the patio with live music definitely wasn't something we were expecting. Much better than the fast food we had planned on.

Day2- After an early morning walk around the Main Street of Walsenburg, a few trips to the local coffee shop (as each person got up) for coffee and souvenirs and a nice home cooked breakfast at our B&B, we made a quick stop in Alamosa because I forgot the boys toothpaste (OOOPS!). Then, we headed for Lake City. We heard Creed was a fun little town so we made a quick stop there. Zak and I loved the fun little town full of people and shops. The weather wasn't great so after a little bit, we headed onto lake City. On the way, we even saw some snow on the side of the road and had a little ice on the road. We arrived in Lake City to The Inn at the Lake and it was even more beautiful than we imagined. The inn was such a laid back place full of kind welcoming people. People you just meet, you feel like you've known your whole life! The boys loved building a little dam in the creek across from the inn (even if I was on them to not get the only pair of shoes we brought wet!). After a bit of time, we ventured into town in the rain to have dinner at a restaurant called Cannibal Grill, ice cream and pick up the jeep! Zak was as excited as a little kid waiting for Christmas.
PS- Notice the middle picture in the bottom group of pics Zak's drinking COFFEE in a BAR!

Day 3

Was full of views and adventure! We circled the Alpine Loop in the Jeep and as much as I didn't want to do it, we did both Cinnamon Pass and Engineer Pass. It was 60+ miles and 7 and 1/2 hours of driving one-lane, rocky, loose gravel, ledges with some narly switch backs and the MOST AMAZING VIEWS! There were a few parts that were absolutely terrifying. Going down the the Forks and back up again and ALL the way up Engineer Pass but coming back down I felt myself relax and enjoyed it, On our way back in, we stopped at Whittmmore Waterfall and it was BEAUTIFUL. Quite a treck down and back up, but awesome! The American Basin on the way to Cinnamon Pass was beautiful. It's where I took my favorite pictures. Full of Wild Flowers and Zak and Colt decided next time, they'd climb Handy's Peak.

We ended the day with Mini Golf, pizza and ice cream (again-its vaca!!!) Then we went back to the inn and the boys played with new friends and squeezed in one round of smores before a quick heavy rain.

Day4
Was suppose to be a more laid back day. It wasn't. We stayed busy all day. We even forgot to eat lunch! We did start it with a yummy home cooked breakfast and were sent off for the day with a devotion and a prayer from Rosie, David and one of the volunteers at the Inn. After breakfast the boys worked a little on their dam and then we headed off to find a good place to fish. There was no shortage of that! The boys weren't successful, but they sure enjoyed it. I enjoyed my view while watching them. But, man there were lots of bugs! (LOL-not the outdoors type!) We headed into town to a small craft show on the main streets of Lake City. It drizzled on us a little and the temps dropped quite a bit. We grabbed the kayak and canoe we rented on the way back and when we got to the lake, it was quite choppy! Chase and I did NOT like the canoe so we got out and sent Colt and Zak on their way. After a while, Chase tried the canoe and loved it. I stayed on the dock and watched a very large group go jr. high kids from Dalla kayak. They were quite entertaining! After about 3 hours, Colt was WIPED! He got out and fished on the dock, under the boats, and caught his first Colorado Trout! He was so upset Zak wasn't there (he and Chase were still out on the water). I was upset too because I had no clue what to do!!!! The fish was flopping around and I didn't mind touching it but I had NO CLUE how to get it off the hook. Thankfully a sweet camp Counselour, named Wilderness, came to our rescue!
After 4 hours on the lake, we headed in for dinner. Finding a place was harder than expected and we were starving! We were squeezed into the fanciest little restaurant in town and it was pricey but the absolute BEST alfredo I've ever eaten. With every single penny. The boys had the alfredo too and I've NEVER seen them eat so fast! We ended the night on the side of the lake looking for Moose. Chase saw the tail end of one, but we never saw him again. We enjoyed the company we made while waiting though!

The Inn At The Lake
One of the most awesome places I've ever visited in my life. David and Rosie were absolutely amazing hosts. Some of the most kind people we've ever met. They made a huge impression on us with their faith and kindness.
And this view, nothing could be prettier.

Day 5
We started the morning in Lake City. Did a little fishing, shopping, and Moose watching. On the way into Crested Butte, we stopped in Gunnison. I didn't love the main street but we did stop at a quirky little taxidermy type place and Zak was in heaven. Unfortunatly, Colton wasn't feeling well/ I think he was just really tired! We checked into our resort in Crested Butte and it was beautiful. The room was one of the nicest I've ever stayed in. We walked to the back of the hotel and found something called Adventure Park. We bought the boys tickets and they played putt putt, jumped on a bungy trampoline, mined, rock climbed and we all rode the bike chair lift. Instead of skiing people were biking down. We heard a few falls and some of those trails were crazy. I was too scared on the chair lift to take any pictures of the bikers but they were impressive! Of course Colton was dying to try to ride a bike down. We didn't say no to much on the trip but on this one I put my foot down. He's never even ridden a mountain bike with gears, much less DOWN A MOUNTAIN! For dinner, we ate at a funky pizza place called Secret Stash. It was so good! Then, had ice cream at a place called Third Bowl with the most phenomenal homemade cones. Thank goodness we were very active during this trip. We ate as much as we played and NONE of the food disappointed!

Day 6
Still in Crested Butte. Sleeping in, scenic ski lift riding, shopping, mini donuts, mining, eating and swimming. That about sums up Day 6! It was a bit of a slower day. Much needed after all we've done. We were sad it was our last full day. The boys want to come back though, once to ski and once to ride the bike trails. What have I got myself into!?!?!?!

Day 7

Ending with a bang or maybe i should say JUMP. Breakfast in town at Izzy's then back to the resort to pack up and jump into the air bag! The boys thought it was so fun!

The Lodge at Mountaineer Square
Our hotel ended up being MUCH nicer than expected. We can't say the same for the hospitality in the city of Crested Butte or even at the hotel for that matter. Tourists were friendly enough but most people working in the town just didnt seem thrilled to be there. Specially the lady in the coffee shop at the hotel. It was disappointing but didn't take away from our fun! Maybe our expectations were too high after being in the friendliest town in America for 4 days.

Our whole trip was so exciting. For me, the whole trip (aside from shopping :)) was way out of my comfort zone. Anyone who knows me knows I'm not very outdoorsy but, the views, they made it worth it! And, seeing my boys, all three of them, completely in their element made it even more worth it. Really, in the end, it ended up being equal amounts of what everyone wanted to do. We had the most amazing time and even made the trip home -18 1/2 hours - all in one go! At the time it was torture but it sure was nice to be home earlier than expected and no one wanted to unpack and pack the car again!