We needed a vacation. Bad. Danny had been gone so much, and I was heading straight for a complete emotional breakdown! :) It was getting to the point where I was resenting every text, phone call, meeting, and visit that Danny had to do. I needed some time away from home, with a husband and father by my side. A week in Colorado with our family and friends seemed like a pretty good solution!
We made our way to Colorado on Saturday the 13th. I have been feeling like it was important to visit my Grandma, and since we would be driving right past Berthoud it seemed like a no-brainer. Well, Grandma wasn't going to be home on Saturday. She was planning on being at my uncle's house in Loveland, and since that was also on our way we decided to go there to see her instead. It turned out that there was something of a family gathering there! I got to see a lot of my family that I haven't seen in over a decade. Danny has only met my Grandma and my cousin Dawn, so it was neat to get the chance to introduce him to some of my family. I got to visit with my uncles James and Jerry, my great uncles Bob and Gilbert, my aunts Mary, JoAnn, and Roxanne, and my cousins Jason, Jessica, and Janice. It was really neat to visit with Janice. She married my cousin Skott, who I idolized as a kid. Skott passed away six years ago from a sudden heart attack. Skott is one of my only other family members who was a member of the church. He served his mission in Hong Kong, where he met Janice. After his mission, the two of them were married in the temple. Even with the trial of losing her husband at such a young age, Janice has stayed true to her covenants and is raising their three children (Mac, Doug, and Cora) in the gospel. I could have spent all evening talking to her and the kids! I felt strongly impressed to share stories about Skott with his children. It was a really tender experience for me. I also enjoyed visiting with my Uncle Bob, who said he knew who I was as soon as he saw my smile. :) "Katie-By-The-Door", he said. Uncle Bob gave me that nickname because I was always waiting by the door for my dad to come home.
But the best visit of all was with my Grandma. She didn't know that I was coming...she had been worried all day that she would miss me since she wasn't at home. She started crying as soon as she saw me! I love my Grandma very much. But between my parent's divorce and an interesting time between my Dad and I for a while, I haven't seen her much at all since I married Danny. For a lot of reasons, I've all but removed myself from my Dad's side of the family. But I have been feeling a pull to see my Grandma, and to have my children meet this wonderful, gentle, strong woman. She had so much fun speaking with Claire and Sophie in Spanish, and she held my hand as we talked about Luke. She took particular delight in holding Joseph, and commented again and again about how beautiful he was. I don't know how she manages it, but I swear she hasn't aged a day in the last 10 years! She does manage to get shorter somehow. :) Claire was as tall as her!! When it was time to go, Grandma walked me out. She gave me one last hug and told me how grateful she was that I came. She told me thank you for loving her, and to stay close to Jesus. I'm so, so grateful that we made the stop to see her!
We went from Loveland to Colorado Springs. We got to Robbie and Kris' house rather late, so their kids were already in bed. We were planning on heading to Parker early the next morning to attend church with Jeff and Jami and then spend the day with them. We put the kids to bed in their cousins' rooms, being quiet not to wake any of their kids. Well, Danny and I started hearing the pitter-patter of children's feet at about 3:45 am. Yes, the kids started playing together at 3:45 am!! Needless to say, we didn't get out the door early that next morning. :) We called an audible, and went to church with Robbie and Kris for Sacrament Meeting and then made our way to Parker. We enjoyed a wonderful afternoon with them, especially knowing it would be the last time we'd get to visit with them in the home they've been in for 13 years. I have so many wonderful memories there, and it really is a home for me, too. I still can't believe they're moving to Georgia!
The next day we were all pretty tired from our nighttime shenanigans that first night. :) But Andi, Liam, and Remington were so happy to know that for the next three days they had our kids all to themselves! So they were okay with a slower day. :) We took the kids for lunch at Chick-Fil-A and then came home and watched a movie. Well, the kids kind of watched a movie and the adults all took naps.
There were two things I wanted to do during our time in Colorado Springs: Garden of the Gods and Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. So we decided to do Garden of the Gods for our family night activity. Per a Colorado summer, there were storm clouds on the horizon. But we were pretty sure we could enjoy a bit of a hike before the rain started. :)
Robbie told us that this formation is called "Kissing Camels", and it quickly became a favorite for all of us! It's so cute!
One of the cool things about Garden of the Gods is that it was given to the city of Colorado Springs, with instructions that it would remain free to the people forever. I think that is so neat!
The kids were in heaven. So many rocks to climb on and slots to explore! Andi, who had just had her first day of kindergarten, took a more academic approach...recording all of her observations in her notebook. Too cute.
The scenery was beyond beautiful, and I decided that I really want to take up some rock climbing! Nothing crazy...just fun. We had been there for just about an hour, and it was right after insisting we all gather for a selfie that the rain started. Perfect timing if you ask me!
Tuesday was Cheyenne Mountain Zoo day! It worked perfectly, because Andi and Liam didn't have school. We made our way there just as soon as everyone was ready for the day. I was kind of geeking out, because Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is on Cheyenne Mountain! As in Norad. As in...the SGC! Stargate Command! :)
Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is famous for their giraffes...and the fact that you get to FEED the giraffes! That was our first stop, and it was one of the coolest experiences of my life. All of us just loved it! The kids want a pet giraffe now, and I totally see where they're coming from. :)
This zoo was amazing...I thought it bested San Diego Zoo, hands down. There were these ugly warthog things that I had never seen before, and the meerkats were so close! The lions were in an enclosure, but it meant we got to see them very close-up. They are so big! This was Joey's first trip to a zoo, and he though the animals were pretty amazing. :)
And if feeding the giraffes was cool, feeding the rhinos was incredible! Who knew you could feed rhinos?! Apparently, giraffes like romaine lettuce and rhinos like carrots. :) The kids lined right up and let that rhino take those carrots with his big, floppy lips. Seriously cool!
We saw some elephants while Joey slept with "Blankephant". That Joey is too cute! Then the kids cooled off by being in the way of a rhino that was marking its territory. Eww. Good thing it was just water. This time. ;)
Next was the Australia Walkabout...and there were wallabies just hopping around and shading themselves. They are the cutest things ever...well, aside from our Joey, of course. There were so many cool animals, and they were all very close to us and very active. We saw a tree kangaroo, which none of us had seen before. And the snake and reptile house was so cool! They arrange the snakes in the coolest exhibits. It made you feel like you were walking through an Indiana Jones movie or something. It was while we were there that Jami and her kids met us to hang out for the afternoon. We've got to get our fill of the Downs while we can!
After the Australia Walkabout, Johnny and Joey consulted the map to decide where to go next. Johnny loves a good map. :) Next we saw a snow leopard and a tiger before making our way to the bear exhibit. That's when things got exciting!
The grizzly bears were incredible. They were huge, and beautiful, and majestic. And silly! They kept wrestling with each other and playing around. Then one of the bear decided to go for some of the trout swimming in the pond. Lucky for us, said trout were hanging out right by our underwater view. At one point, the bear actually seemed to take a swipe at Bowen's face! The twenty minutes we spent with the bears was a definite highlight of the day.
We moved on to see some otters, bald eagles, cougars, moose, and even got to do the petting zoo!
At this point, the zoo was set to close in a half hour. The Downs kids had been waiting all day to feed the giraffes, so we hurried toward that part of the zoo. But we made a quick stop to see the penguins and hippos.
When we got to the giraffes, they were all inside their enclosure! We were so disappointed! We decided to go inside to at least see them, and much to our surprise they had someone there selling lettuce! Everyone was able to feed the giraffes, and everyone was happy. :) The zoo finally kicked us out, and we called it a day. It was so fun to spend the day with these nieces and nephews of mine. I'm just going to miss them.
Wednesday was our last day in Colorado Springs, and we didn't have anything specific planned. We spent a quiet morning hanging out while Andi and Liam went to school. Johnny mostly wanted to play on Uncle Robbie's America Ninja Warrior gym in their garage. Even Danny got a bit of a workout in. :)
When Andi and Liam came home, Danny and I knew we needed to get the kids out for a bit. Poor Remington really needed a nap! So we took our kids and Andi and Liam over to the Air Force Academy to cruise around the visitor's center. We also went to see the famous chapel, and it didn't disappoint. What a magnificent structure! We got to see all four chapels: Roman Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, and Jewish. The organ in the Protestant chapel was incredible! And the inside lighting really was that blue.
While we were touring the chapel, Uncle Robbie had a few minutes during his workday that he could come hang out with us. He's a teacher at the Academy, teaching tricky things like thermodynamics. Because he's kind of a big deal, he took us beyond the fence and the kids got to check out the static F-15. It was so neat to see the passing cadets stop and salute Robbie. :)
On the way home from the Academy, we stopped and got ice cream cones for the kids and let them play in a play place for a while before taking them back to the house. At home, we enjoyed a yummy dinner and put our stickers on the car top carrier. We got a Garden of the Gods sticker and a Colorado sticker. This is definitely one of my favorite parts of our trips now. :)
Thursday came, and it was time to embark on the next leg of our vacation. Joey was excited!! :) I believe I was in the hospital with Joey when I watched an episode of "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" where they featured a diner in Colorado Springs. They served giant cinnamon rolls with a maple glaze. Well, before we left Colorado Springs we had to check it out! The cinnamon rolls were ginormous!! We had no idea how big they'd be when we ordered two for the table. Between the five of us, we were hard-pressed to finish one! We managed, though. :) It was delicious, and Danny and I couldn't figure out how...but it was moist all the way through! It's a marvel of baking, I tell you. :)
We arrived via a very circuitous route (thank you, Waze) to the Robison's home in Aurora that afternoon. Justin was working, saving lives like he does, and Taija was still in school, so it was just Toshi and their three littlest ones for a bit. We were so excited to meet their new little guy, James. Somehow, with the exceptions of Claire, our two families have managed to have a child anywhere from two days to just a few months apart. It was great to introduce Joey and James, and Johnny and their Luke were so excited to have a boy to play with!! When it was time for Taija to be out of school, we all walked together to pick her up and play at the nearby park. And that's where the Robison kids taught the Call kids how to climb a tree!
The kids had so much fun playing, loudly, all...day...long. :) We parents got a kick out of watching Johnny and Luke go from best friend to mortal enemies and back again. I won't lie though, we were anxious to get the kids to bed and lower the decibel level in the house! Danny, Justin, Toshi, and I enjoyed some dessert and a lot of awesome conversation after the kids finally retired, and just like college kids we stayed up way too late. :) We're so glad these guys are finally living close to us again!
Friday was our last full day in Colorado. Toshi though we'd have fun doing a hike, and so we headed up to the mountains to check out the "Lair o' the Bear" trail. We even picked up Bowen on the way and thus saved him from a tortuous day of back-to-school shopping. :) The weather was perfect, and the trail was beautiful!
We were hiking along, with every intention of making it all the way to the end of the trail, when the kids happened upon a cute little area by the river. They just HAD to stick their feet in! And then they were hungry. And then the babies needed to be fed. And then the kids somehow got soaking wet! Needless to say, we never made it any farther up the trail. :) But we had a great time! The kids tried catching baby fishes in their emptied sandwich bags, and did their best to terrify the moms with their determination to make it farther down the river. Danny, being the Dad, finally just got in the water and helped the kids do all the exploring they could while Toshi and I visited on dry land. The babies enjoyed the fresh air, and it was all around a fantastic afternoon. Even if we didn't finish the hike...much to Danny's chagrin. :)
We had one more crazy night of loud kids, good food, and late night conversation...and it was awesome. We're so fortunate to have such good friends. It's crazy that both Danny and I are still best friends with our best friends from high school. And we're so very glad that Justin is able to do his fellowship so close to us! We look forward to many more memories made together.
Saturday morning came early. We were due in Ft. Collins for the temple open house at 10:00 am, and we had to get everyone up and dressed, packed, and the car loaded! We did it though, and we met Robbie and Kris and their kids right on time. It was the temple open house that started the whole idea of doing this trip. We've been blessed to take our kids to quite a few open houses over the last few years, and this one was close enough to visit. Danny and I feel strongly that we want to give our children every opportunity to be inside the walls of the temple.
Ft. Collins Temple is beautiful. It's a smaller temple, but every bit as exquisite as any other. There were a lot of murals inside depicting the mountain terrain indicative of that part of Colorado. I noticed there were quite a few elk represented throughout, which I thought was neat. Claire noticed a painting that we both loved, and that I hadn't seen before. It depicted a cluster of American Indians gathered by a stream. One was receiving the Holy Ghost from two white missionaries. It was a beautiful painting, and made me reflect a lot on my family history.
After the tour, we enjoyed a few minutes taking pictures on the grounds. Four years ago, we took our kids to the Brigham City Temple open house, and we got a cute picture of Luke next to his year on the corner stone of that temple. Turns out, Joseph is the same age that Luke was then. So we dressed him in Lukey's outfit and took a similar picture! If you take the haircut out of the equation, you can see how much they look alike. It just warms my heart to see these two "together". Anyway, the grounds are beautiful. The cousins enjoyed a last few minutes together before it was time for us to bid everyone a tearful goodbye.
Our drive home was uneventful, with the exceptions of us finishing the fourth Alcatraz book...which was awesome. This vacation was so much fun!! We loved our time with family and friends, and even though we did a lot we also had plenty of down time. It was SO NICE to have Danny with us all the time. I came home feeling rested physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I'm thinking maybe I can be the Bishop's wife for at least another year...we'll have to see what next summer brings. ;)
