We had so much fun in Colorado! The trip was filled own lots of adventures - hiking up to a waterfall, zip lining, archery, horseback riding, roller skating, swimming, crafting, and campfires. And, running into an escape bull from cattle ranch!
Yep, we made lots of memories this week! And if given the choice, I'd do it all over again!!
We stayed in a 4 bedroom cabin at YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch located in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was one of the most affordable, kid-friendly vacays ever! Yes, the cabins are fresh out of the 70s, but I don’t seem to mind when you are surrounded by awesome scenery!
Our view from the cabin, morning and night:
And at dusk, we’d see dozens of deer venturing nearby 
We packed in a million and one fun things. Yet spending time with our cousins – and seeing the magnificent people they're growing into – was still my favorite part! Emma who's hitting the "too cool for teenager stage" but decidedly not too cool to frost sugar cookies, Miriam is as confident, funny, witty, game-loving, book-reading, and Leah had Tanners attention 110% of the time, having him laughing and giggling like a school girl, and Miss Sophie, smiling, laughing, and justifying all her wrong-doings (I *Had to* throw that rock cause I didn't want anyone to trip over it!) and Teagan, got a small glimpse of what Rylee is going to be like in a few more years, a passion and zest unmatched by most. We have a pretty awesome family…and glad they were able to come too!
Horseback riding -
We loaded up these cowgirls and cowboy for an adventurous horseback riding trail tour.
Brooke loved the idea of horseback riding, but when it meant getting on the horse, she was a no go. But she did get a kick out of petting the horses nose and trying on each hat. Maybe next time!
Getting “acquainted” with the horses. 
Leah was the first to get on…she looks like a pro!
At some point, Tanner asked, “Mom, are they going to hold onto the horse when it goes too?” Nope, this isn’t your typical pony ride.
Miriam on top of Monkey!
And Sophie, whose love of My Little Ponies easily transferred over to these real horses.
OMG, I’ve never seen a little girl so excited to ride horses! Teagan was having the time of her life! Asking a million questions, giggling and laughing, she LOVED all of it!
I admit, I was nervous taking all these little kids on the trail with us. But the horses were AWESOME and super TAME—and never even once tried to stop and eat grass like they warned they would.
There was one small moment where we were going up a hill and Sophie pulled back on the reigns, signaling to the horse to go backwards. We had a small bumper horse action with me right behind her, but otherwise, there was no horse shenanigans to be had. Mine even tried to talk :)
When we first got started, we could see our cabin! 
We texted Anthony to look the balcony and he snapped a few pics of us!
Tanner’s bum had a hard time staying in the saddle, he definitely ‘preferred’ one side to the other. Next time, I’ll make sure he doesn't wear slippery athletic pants!
The scenery was beautiful!
One of my favorite moments was when Sophie struck up a convo with the trail guide – telling her all about our trip. At one point, she got so excited and proclaimed, “Guess what I did? I barfed everywhere!” as if she had just one a million dollars. Awesome!
When we were finished, I asked Tanner what he thought. “Mom, that was not fun, it was SUPER FUN!” Whew, for a second I thought I was perhaps spent a small fortunate on a spoiled brat!
Hiking -
I've seen a million of pics just like this...but experiencing it...is an entirely different feeling. The grandiere of nature makes me feel so small compared to the beautiful majesty God has created.
The views were breathtaking. (Or was that the altitude!)
Here we are – just starting out on the 3 mile adventure!
We saw lots of “evidence” of beavers – entire tree trunks “chewed” down
And a large damn constructed in this stream
We took lots of breaks – some out of necessity 
And we even saw SNOW!
Why is the ground all noodle-ly? - best Teagan quote
And alas, we made it to the beautiful waterfall!
Proof that Rylee and I came along too!
Rylee slept in the Ergo baby most they way…and when she was awake, she was in complete awe. Never seen her so content!
The happy hikers!
We stopped to re-fuel and re-hydrate. And of course, Anthony picked a spot on top a rock surrounded 20 ft drop offs. Needless to say, I did not find the break “relaxing.” But alas, no kids were lost in the process.
We weren’t alone either. We saw several deer along the way too!
Brooke wins the holly-jolly hiker award. Singing songs as she went - this lil firecracker hiked 3 miles all by herself. She was awesome! Except for the last 5 mins, she tripped and fell flat on her face. Anthony scooped her up, and she faded fast asleep. 
Tanner was the leader of the pack - kept running way ahead. And Sophie was right next to him.
Love these beautiful blue skies!
Michael and Anthony also escaped for a mans hike. We went horseback riding, they went hiking. Far trade!
The views from the top of their hike were amazing!
And according to the signage, God lives up there. He even has a mailbox and teepee.
And I believe it. God is all around in the quite stillness of nature.
Archery
We also practiced for the next audition of Hunger Games? Haha, not really, but kinda felt like it. Let’s just say I’m thankful that being fed dinner did not depend on our archery skills!
Miriam knew just what to do…and led the way :)
Cheryl made it look easy, and I assure you, it is not!
And Leah – she even did awesome using the bigger bows. Muscles!
This was much harder than I anticipated, especially for a 6 year old. But he still gave it his best…and with a little help pulling the bow back…did great!
Zip Lining
The most highly anticipated event of all – ZIP LINING!
My first and only time zip lining was over the jungles in Costa Rica. Compared to that trip, this seemed like a baby swing.
Yet I admit, it was still loads of fun but plenty nerve racking. The scariest part was having to climb up the pole and then over the ledge. Why couldn’t there be a wooden stair way all the way to the top?!?
We made the youngest go first, aren’t we nice? Leah needed a little coaxing, but once she started, she never looked back!
1-2-3, and away Miriam goes!
Next up…Cheryl! 
Anthony made it look easy - and Michael zoomed by the fastest.
And last, but not least, my turn! Such an adrenaline rush!!!
Brooke was laughing and chasing after Anthony went down zip line, but when it was my turn, she was terrified. She met me at the bottom and her pure heart was racing so fast and tears running down her face. She is so tender hearted!
Tanner must have asked a million times if he could go too. I told him we’d come back when he was 8 – and he’s already reminded me several times since then. Until then, he was happily being a helper running the ropes back and forth.
Fall Festival
There were so many fun things to do at the YMCA resort – and this Fall Festival was one of them. The entire vacay, the only time we left was to get food!
This picture captures our sentiments…exactly!
Featuring free snow cones!
The older “kids” played some badminton.
While the younger ones had a donut eating contest –so hilarious to watch!
And when I wasn’t watching (taking pics), this little one helped herself to the package of donuts. She outsmarted all of us!
Tanner had his fortune told by an old lady with a goat. The goat predicted that he likes sports and would be a good basketball player. We can only hope ;)
And Rylee loved climbing on the haystacks.
Brooke was also being her happy jolly ole self!
And the kids got various “face” hand paintings. Wish I would have gotten better pics of the girls flowers, fairies, butterflies.
Campfire
You can’t spend time in the great outdoors without having a camp fire. And this time, it was cold enough, we definitely appreciated it!
My all-time favorite meal camping – tin foil dinners!
Cheryl and I compiled all the various dinners – while Anthony and Michael wrangled the fire – and the kiddos!
While the kiddos attempted to wait patiently for the food. Trust me, there was no shortage of food around here. First, hot dogs and brats, then tin-foil dinners, and s’mores by the fire. When in Rome…
One thing about Sophie…she is never short on smiles!
Kinda like Ms. Brooke
These two…were cracking each other happy. I’ve never seen Tanner so giddy!
It got dark, and cold, super fast! Our campfire stories were limited, yet everyone wanted a chance to hold the flashlight in their face and recount a scary story. Tanner may have monopolized the time by telling (and re-telling) his stories with monsters and aliens.
Game Nights
The real fun happened when the kiddos went to bed and the older ones stayed up way too late playing games.
We introduced them to one of our favorite games, 7 Wonders, and everyone instantly loved it. Well, almost! Michael insisted he needed to buy the game, and asked Cheryl what she thought, she responded straight-faced, “I couldn't imagine a better game to miserably lose to!”
But the most hilarious moment occurred when Leah entered the room...obviously half-asleep with no clue where she was. Cheryl asked, "Do you need to go to the bathroom?" And what transpired next was the most wicked, death stare by Leah. She may have been half-asleep and barely functioning...but she was still awake to deliver the most hilarious, wicked death stare "no" response I've ever seen. Her eyes – it was if her mom has just asked if she was on her period in front of mixed company. This coming from calm, sweet Leah. She had us all rolling with laughter.
Cookie Decorating
We were all exhausted from the days activities so we spent a night indoors making Halloween sugar cookies. Everyone joined in to help…even the big kids!
Miriam with her overly dramatic face. Pretty sure she was having a blast!
Emma should win the prize for being the most creative – at one time re-creating the Mucinex snot-monster.
Tanner’s Jack-O-Latern cookie!
Sophie should win the prize for loading up her cookies with the most “stuff.” But it sure did give her something to smile about!!!
Brooke should have been in bed and knew it. Not until she had one more bite of the yummy cookie!
MISC
The gym had an on-site roller skating rink and we attempted to skate. Cheryl and Emma being the only successful ones,
But it didn’t take long for these two to catch up.
Tanner, on the other hand, was another story. The start…and end!
There were also a few mad games of ping-pong and foosball going on.
Beyond the bouts of altitude sickness (and related puking), thankfully there was no other injuries or casualties throughout the week. Except for when Rylee attacked the slide head first - and the slide won. Now she has a nice shiner to prove it! That Rylee, always living life on the edge.
Crafting
What do you do with 3 tired, sleepy kiddos (2 of which need naps) when it’s time to check out of your cabin and your husband goes on a 4-hr roundtrip to pick up the rental car in Denver (see below)?
Head to the craft cabin…
Although if I would have known it was a 1.5 mile hike…I would not have attempted single-handily with a 1 and 2 year old in tow.
Or if I would have known how there was no way I could contain Brooke and Rylee in a room full of 100+ crafts (and ceramics)…each heading for opposite directions…
But on a positive note, Tanner did get to do a really cool project – assembling a model jet plane and then paint it. I tried to get him to look up at the camera, but his only response “Mom, I’m trying to concentrate!”
We also colored pictures…and I actually love how this one turned out!
Car Crash --
Here’s what running into an escaped bull from a cattle ranch can do to your car!
Not just an ordinary bull, a limousine bull, which happens to be the largest, most muscular bull there is, weighing in at nearly 2500 lbs. I’d swear it was a buffalo, but nonetheless, Holy Cow is RIGHT!
If it would have been Anthony driving, I’d say he was doing his part to ensure we never leave this beautiful state…but it was me!
$10k of damage to the van, yet everyone was just fine - including the bull!
Not exactly what we had in min d as we were making a girls trip to the grocery store to grab a few more supplies before the Sabbath. Cheryl and my niece Leah may never ask to venture out on a girls trip with me again!
Poor Tanner woke up the next morning and upon learning our van was gone, he went and cried in a closet. After explaining how cars can be fixed but people can’t, he was just fine. Especially once he realized the rental car would also have a DVD player.
We rented a car back to KS and our van should be fixed in 3-4 weeks. Now were just having fun getting the insurance to pay for everything. Ugggghhh!!!
Yep, we made lots of memories this week! Call me crazy – but if given the choice, I'd do it all over again!!
Now excuse me, I must start planning Colorado Trip 2015. Who wants to join us?!?!
You’re invited…as long as you’re willing to have this one in the car. Nothing we could do to console her…she *HAD TO* scream most the way…until she finally…FINALLY…conked out!
