Thickankles

Spring is definitely upon us in the great NW, and summer weather keeps trying to sneak in from time to time too. Last weekend it was in the mid-70's and Zoya decided to set up a lemonade stand on the corner. She ended up making over $10! At 25 cents a cup, that's a lot of lemonade!

Brother helped a little too (for a small fee) :)

A few weeks ago the weather was nice enough that we were able to go on our first hiking trip of the year - we went up to the Boulder River waterfall. It was so beautiful and lush, and the smell of the spring forest was so yummy! It was about 4 miles round trip, and the fact that Zoya made it without whining gives me hope that we might be able to do some real camping this summer (you know, the kind where you hike into an alpine lake and stay for a week. Well, maybe not a week, but at least a few days)

This area is one of few remaining low elevation old-growth forests in the Cascades. Some of these trees are as old as 750 yrs!

Dylan contemplating life's mysteries at the smaller waterfall

An attempt at sibling affection

It's hard to see in the small version of this picture, but you may note that Dylan is, in fact, taller than his Dad.

This tree was so cool - its roots are wrapped around a nurse-log (stump, actually)

Here they are at the end of the trail. They NEVER cooperate with a good pose for these pictures!

A few weeks before Christmas we travelled to Denver for a long-overdue visit with Carrie and Heidi and their families. It was really fun to see my sisters and catch up, and the kids had a great time getting to know their cousins better. Dylan bonded with Max, and Zoya with Cloe, Emma and Riley. We all got a big dose of baby fix, too, with cute-as-can-be Brody – what a calm, wonderful boy! He made everyone in the family, except ME (it’s just not happening, folks. Really.), think twice about adding another wee one to ours.

Emma, Zoya & Riley, snug as bugs

Riley, Zoya (it's always the PEACE sign!) and Brody

Dylan and his best little buddy, Max

After spending a night at Carrie and Ryan’s home, we all drove up to Estes Park (which I’m told is more of a summer destination) to stay for three days. We saw our first snow here and experienced record-breaking low temperatures (I believe it was -15 F when we awoke on our last morning there). This is how a bunch of Seattleites deal with the novelty of snow and cold:

***sorry, there was supposed to be a picture here that involved some bare feet, bare legs and boxer shorts, but my pre-teen respectfully requested that he not be exposed to the world "sin ropa!" Can't say that I blame him...:)***

Because there isn’t a whole lot to do in Estes Park during the winter months, we ended up at the local YMCA compound – we went roller skating and did a bunch of crafts.

Heidi, Cloe and Emma

Dylan

Riley and Zoya

MAX! (Seriously, this sweet boy requires the "!" after his name. He's SO FUNNY!)

After Estes Park, we spent a few more days at Carrie and Ryan’s and then ventured down to Colorado Springs, where we visited the Olympic training complex, drove through the Garden of the Gods, braved the Royal Gorge Suspension bridge (highest in the world), s-l-o-w-l-y trekked the dangerous switch-back of Pike's Peak, wandered through ancient cliff dwellings, and had an unexpected run-in with a semi-famous person (I say semi- because we’d never heard of Michael Garman before, though he appears to be quite well-known in the art world). We LOVED Colorado Springs (to visit, not to live), and hope to return when it’s not bitter cold (I admit, I’m the big wimp in the family) so we can better enjoy all the outdoor adventures there.

Cliff dwellings

As far as we could go up Pike's Peak

Garden of the Gods

Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge

On the tram over Royal Gorge

With Michael Garman (one of his spectacular creations behind us)

Olympic Training Center

When we got back to Carrie and Ryan’s home, we got to go watch Emma and Riley in their dance recital – a great time, except for the cut-throat nature of some of the parents trying to secure the seats closest to the stage! It was actually pretty funny to sit back and watch. Apparently it was a really big deal, as I think the parents outnumbered the performers 25:1. In any case, Emma and Riley were beautiful, and both executed their dance moves with absolute perfection! (I'll post pictures as soon as I can figure out how to edit the red-eye on Dyl's Mac!)

We tried to leave Denver and return home on the 20th, only to find that Seattle was all but completely shut down because of wind and snow. Our flight out was at first delayed for 5 hours, and then as we were getting ready to board, was cancelled altogether. At first they told us that it was not likely to get on another flight for AT LEAST 3-4 days (christmas, you know), and a more realistic estimation was more like 5-7 days. Just as we were getting ready to rent a car to DRIVE back to Seattle, Alaska Airlines announced that a special flight had been arranged for those of us whose flight had been cancelled, and it was to leave the following morning. By that time it was late enough that it didn’t make sense to leave and get a hotel, since we’d just have to turn around and come back in a few hours, so we bedded the kids down in a corner (along with a hundred or so strangers) to sleep, while husband and I kept vigil until morning. We caught our flight and landed in Seattle during an ever-so-brief window of opportunity (flights at sea-tac were all cancelled shortly thereafter). How great it was to be home after 17 hours in the airport and a sleepless night!