Family Hike

Angela and I were feeling a little cooped up lately and were looking to get out this weekend. We decided it was time to make use of the kiddie backpack and take the kids for hike. We opted for something closer to home just in case disaster was looming and went to Red Rocks Park. It was a hike Charlie, Daniel and I had done before with Tyler and JP last summer. On that hike, I carried a small backpack and Daniel in the Baby Bjorn. In addition, for about the last quarter of that trip I carried Charlie on my shoulders. I must have looked like a Sherpa. I was hoping for better results this time around.

The hike started great. As you can see in the pictures, Ana was perfectly content in the baby backpack and the boys ran around. About half way through, Daniel pooped out and we made the switch to put him in the backpack while Angela carried Ana in the Baby Bjorn. Charlie was a trooper and made it almost to the end. He and Ang found a good stopping point near the end of the trail while Daniel and I finished and came back to pick them up in the car.

In the end, the trip had the desired results. We spent a great day outside as a family and the kids burned off lots of energy. You can’t beat that.

The other pics from the day are here:

Red Rocks Hike

Daniel is Two!

Daniel's 2nd Birthday Party

We broke down this year for Daniel’s birthday and bought him a sand table. You can see from the pictures that he absolutely loves it and I have to admit it hasn’t been as bad as I was expecting. Since Daniel very rarely has shoes on anyways, there’s not a whole of the sandy-shoes-dumped-on-the-kitchen-floor issue. The worst we have to deal with are extremely dirty socks. The first part of Daniel’s birthday was pretty low key just us and Nana, but this weekend we celebrated with family and friends. Laure, Walker and the kids came up from Colorado Springs and Kevin and Marie came over with Nick. The kids had a great time being pushed on the tire swing and climbing on the play set.

Daniel had a great time playing with his friends and cousins, so a big thank you to you guys for coming over.

Happy Birthday, Daniel!

A Springs Hike

Last weekend we spent Sunday in the Springs.  The women-folk had a baby shower to go to and the men taught the kids all about roughing it in the wild.  Well, maybe not, but we did take a fun hike up to a reservoir to throw rocks in a lake.  You can't beat that!

The kids climbed every single rock within a two mile radius, which made for some pretty slow going at times.  They don't call it The Rockies for nothing.  They also picked up more than their fair share of sticks and met lots of friendly pups out for an afternoon stroll.  The hike finished up just in time for us to get home before a pretty fierce storm blew over the mountains.

Fun in the Backyard

Charlie and Daniel have really started to enjoy the tire swing this summer.  Every day after school they beg me to push them.  Last weekend I snapped these photos of them swinging together and laughing.  Later in the day Sammy from across the street came over to play and everybody had a great time. 

Fun in the Backyard

Shots of Ana

This album is just a few shots of Ana as she played on the floor, in her gym and saucer.  We think she's too cute for her own good.

Shots of Ana