we left town on friday one hour later than scheduled….no surprise there. we dropped off waffle with friends.
he got to be outside the whole time with a new doggie friend.
we got in to colorado before dark so the kids got that view…one minute there are no mountians…
i remember my first time seeing that…so awesome.
we checked into a hotel in fort collins, colorado.
and went straight to the pool.
we had two rooms…everyone went to bed at the same time.
then craig and and i watched a recorded 30 rock on a dvd player sharing headphones in the dark.
i saw lauren was reading by the light of her camera.
in the moring, we ate our free breakfast….spilling only one hot chocolate
and dropping one glass syrup bottle.
not bad for our family.
then we were off towards utah.
this picture cracked me up…taken by someone in the back seat…
me using the internet on craig's phone.
i looked back at one point & told craig "everyone is using a personal electronic device of some kind."
kind of funny between the dvd players, video games and iPods how they can all be entertained.
not necessarily okay….but also much appreciated for such a long drive.
and another photo from the back seat…
i love dramamine.
it's my new favorite travel friend.
they were all out for a long time…it was awesome!!
we arrived at our friends' UTAH home early afternoon.
so good to see them!
so nice of them to let us all crash with them…seven is not a small number.
their oldest son josh took us to the skatepark near by so we could see his skills.
not too shabby….
as a mother i was nervous and i kept flinching.
josh was fun to watch
but can you imagine that view at the park? it was everywhere….mountains!!
pretty cute right?
josh is the nicest guy..my kids just adore him.
our friends we stayed with, rod and lynette, were our youth pastors when craig & i were in high school.
(long long ago..)
they had to put up with so much from us as kids…and now they had to put up with OUR kids.
they moved to utah a few years ago to be part of a church plant called
Daybreak.we got to go to it!
that was awesome…we saw their ministry up close…met their friends…we loved it.
rod and allie, their 14 year old daughter play guitar on the worship team.
then you walk out of church and there are those mountains again!
i couldn't get used to it.
we all ate lunch with other friends jason and nicole and their kids after church.
10 children and we actually got to talk…we went to playplace.
what a smart choice…i wouldn't have thought of that.
i noticed that one child is missing here…a twin.
he must have scooted right out of the shot.
they played on this curb for a long time.
so funny what they choose to entertain themselves.
it was fun to check in with jason and see how utah is for them.
they moved to utah from oklahoma.
and i finally met nicole! i've heard about her for years. she's a blog reader. ;)
i got annie down for a nap and immediately the big girls left for….
it was all i had hoped for…i miss that place.
i found goodies. (not the stuff on the car…that's an ikea display)
lauren found goodies.
we saw this license plate right after….very appropriate.
we met up with everyone else for dinner.
pizza.
such good pizza!
then over to boondocks where josh works.
it's got an arcade, lazer tag, go-karts and bumper boats.
so basically….heaven for my kids.
everyone rode go-karts but annie.
oh yes…that means me.
i got to ride.
we said "we're just going for a sunday drive"
and after four laps we asked to quit.
we were the only two out on the track.
we pulled over and i shouted "we're bored!"
the guys were disappointed in us.
the thrill is just not there for me…no desire to beat my friend in a go-kart race…crazy, i know.
we got back and put everyone to bed.
they had a big day of skiing to rest up for.
i sat on the floor in lynette's living room pinning flowers on shirts for etsy.
we all watched a movie…talked and laughed…just like old times.
don't you love the real friendships…that never change…over years and miles?
i do.
ok…that's it for this post.
you are awesome if you made it this far.
it's like getting trapped watching someone slides…sorry.
but just think of the mountains when i bore you.
Betty - So this is where i can find you! It all looks so fun! No wonder i havent heard back from any of my e-mails! Miss you. xoxo
traci - it looks beautiful. we did park city last year and loved every minute of it.
Mommy - Looks like you all had a great time!
I have been reading your blog for a long time but never commented until now. I just LOVE your blog. I love the photos! I have also tried several of your recipes and love them too!
Keep up the great blogging!
-AM
My First Kitchen - It looks like you had a great vacation! I’m not a skier either. I usually stay in the lodge and sing karaoke. I actually won one year and got a gift certificate to the ski store. Did I need anything in there? Nope. Since I don’t ski. So I bought A LOT of chapstick.
Steph - I’ve never been skiing. I would love to try it sometime. It looks so beautiful out there. What a fun time those kids must have had with Craig. Lauren is beautiful! 🙂
sandy toe - What great pictures~
sandy toe
danyele - so much fun…
i am the watcher…me and annie can hangout in the lodge sometime. last time i skied, i bit it hard and ran smack into hubs with my skis on either side of his chest…i gave up!
Sandy - Thanks for clarifying about the pictures, Lauren; I was wondering who took them. Your mom has taught you well. I will say the one of you with your chin on your hand is the best one – I love the look from behind the glasses. It looks like a GREAT vacation!
Jeanne - Nothing is better than a day skiing. What great pictures. It looks like everyone had a wonderful time.
ang - Great pictures!!! It looks beautful(and fun-for others) I’m such a horrible skier!! Glad you’re back!
carissa... brown eyed fox - annie & riley… would have been two peas in that pod!
the first time we took riley… in her lesson… she sat down on her bottom & wouldn’t get up! she didn’t even have a tidge of interest… OH wait… she LOVED the ski boots! 🙂
GREAT pics! my word yall DID do alot on that trip!
Ashley - So fun! I miss skiing… haven’t been in a few years.
Katie - Love the pictures of your trip. My hubby and I lived in Utah for a couple of years while we were both in college. Those mountains are what we miss the most! We still talk about them, and that was seven years ago. We live in Oregon now, and while it’s pretty, there’s just nothing like those mountains.
Rachel - Some day I will try it for the first time. I love these pics!!
Nicole Quiring - Yeah, I made the blog!! HA!! It was so great to meet you in person after following your life via blog and hearing about you from Jason, Rod, and Lynette!! You have a great fam, so glad you enjoyed Utah, it really is a breathtaking state to live in!! Your pictures of Josh are AWESOME, you have to share those with Lynette. I’ll have to let her know how many of your readers think he’s HOTT!! My kids adore him too, I’m hoping at least one of my boys grows up to be like Josh!! Glad you made it home! Thanks for the craft blog sites . . . I’m lovin them!
Mary Beth - I used to like skiing, but then I became a MOTHER and that skiing gene was replaced with the “eyes in the back of my head” gene.
No more skiing for THIS mama.
Staci - Yep, I’m with you…maybe some day I will ski again…but I doubt it. I “learned” to ski when I was 23 and it was VERY icy…NO FUN 🙁 Bad experience, I need to overcome because my almost 7 yr old LOVES IT! I think it’s key to learn when you are little—NO FEAR 🙂
Aubrey - Your kids have officially gone skiing a lot more than I have. I’ve only done the water kind, and not even that lately. I’m so out of shape, I think I’d last 20 seconds. Oh well, can’t do that right now anyway, seeing as how it’s stinking snowing again.
Did they take you to Gardner Village? There’s a very cute quilting store there.
alyssa - I hate skiing. My mom is from Colorado Springs, so my family has gone skiing A LOT, but not me. I have gone twice and hated every second of it both times. The second time was when I was maybe in 8th or 9th grade. Yeah, pretty sure I cried when we got to the top of the mountain. Not for me. Your idea for the few days sounds more like my kind of thing. Hope you and Annie had fun.
Mindy Harris - Don’t worry about the skiing part…I tried it once in Junior High–at Snow Creek in Ks City, mind you, where the hills are manmade…& I didn’t like it. At all.
I’ll let everyone else perfect their pizza wedge.
traci - HOW SAD that Annie did not like Skiing!!!! I would have cried. There is nothing like it. The beauty, the crisp air, the flying thru the mountains, the fun, oh my word….OH AND AGAIN….FANTASTIC pictures, as always!!!!!!
Suzanne - what a great trip!!
now that we’re all back into “normal” 😉 i’d love to see what we can do…are you still interested in doing the t-shirts for my kiddos?? if not, i’m happy to make a donation to the playground, but would LOVVVVE to have a piece of you in our house…you always make me smile!! we talked about the kid’s initials, but didn’t know if you had boyish fabric and would just rather do annie one or what…you tell me!!! i’m waaaay easy:)
happy monday!
Kim - Looks like you had a great vacation! We have the count down going for our Spring break trip (11 days). This is the first “real vacation” we are taking as a family!! However, we are leaving snow and going some place warm!
Lanny Stanard - what a nice family trip! still looking for Mr. Waffle! LOL come on over for a visit I havr something to show you 😉
Lanny…
Laura Phelps - I’m with Annie!
Wendy - Great pictures! They sure make me miss skiing… My husband won’t go with me because he’s afraid of running into a tree. *insert eye roll here*
Wendy - I’m with you on the skiing. Museums, shopping, bookstores. All much more preferable than skiing for me even though I married an Austrian who was born with skis.
Love your pictures. Your daughter is beautiful.