Fun Days

After we got back from Boulder we did a few fun things with Dar and Sean. On Friday we went out to dinner for their anniversary. I can't believe they have already been married for nine years! Such a great couple!

On Saturday we had a barbecue at our house with Bill's family.

We have a pretty relaxed family as you can tell.

On Sunday we went to Red Rocks.

Mia was fascinated with the model and wanted her picture taken by it.

We had a light lunch at the restaurant.

After lunch we left Red Rocks and headed up to Nederland, home of The Carousel of Happiness. I read about this merry-go-round in Southwest magazine on one of my many flights to California. This man started dreaming about building a carousel while he was a soldier in Vietnam. It was the only thing that got him through the war mentally. When he came home he started hand carving all the animals. After he was done with that he moved an old carousel across the country and put everything together. It opened in 2010.

From Nederland we traveled to Denver for All You Can Eat Sushi night. From there Bill and Dawn took Dar and Sean to the airport. It was a fun but exhausting day!

Boulder

Earlier this week Dar and Sean arrived for their annual Colorado vacation. We have a great little system going! We pay for their trip out here and they spend a few days watching the kids for us. We always do it around our anniversary so we can spend some time as a couple. After that, we all have a blast together for a few days! It's a win win for everyone.

This year Dan and I went to Boulder. We were quite drained from the couple of weeks before and spent most of our time reading and sleeping. But we did manage to do a self-guided historic home tour the first day and a hike on the second. We also enjoyed two fabulous dinners.

The sidewalks along the historic districts of Boulder all made of local stone.

There were so many stately homes from the turn of the century. Here are just a few of the pictures.

We ate at a little Italian restaurant on Pearl Street the first night. Pearl Street comes alive every night with street perfumers.

And on Wednesdays in the summer there is always a band. The band played right outside the restaurant we dined in. We were so glad we didn't choose the patio as a rain deluge came and they all got soaked, despite the cover. The band only got to play for fifteen minutes before their equipment short circuited!

Does my handsome husband not seem to age at all???

On the second day we went hiking at Chautauqua Park. The Chautaugua Movement was big in Boulder around the turn of the century. All that's left now is a park with hiking, a restaurant, playgrounds and a visitors center.

We started our hike with an amazing view of the Flatirons.

After the hike, and more sleeping and reading, we had dinner at a place that specializes in local cuisine. It was delicious!

The next morning we headed back home. The girls had a great time while we were gone. What a wonderful sister and brother-in-law I have!

Celebrations

Despite the sadness of the last few weeks there were a few things worth celebrating. Where Joey and Brittany live there is a Third of July celebration. We took the kids to have fun, eat and watch fireworks!

On the seventh of July, 7-7-14, we witnessed Dawn and Bill's wedding! They got married at the courthouse on the day of lucky sevens.

Afterward we went out for ice cream. They plan on having a little reception in September.

Feast of Saint Amelia

Today is the Feast Day of Saint Amelia. We have been trying to celebrate our Saint's Days, birthdays, Baptism Days and Adoption Days. The celebrations are pretty simple, except for birthdays. The special person gets to eat on the special person plate for all three meals and we have dessert. Normally, we don't eat dessert.

Since Mia's full name is Amelia Grace we celebrated her today! For dessert we went out to the fire pit and made s'mores!

Did you know King Charlemagne was in love with Saint Amelia? But she wanted only to serve God. Happy feast day!

The Pre-Ception

A couple of weeks ago we attended Joey and Brittany's Pre-Ception. They are getting married in August in Jamaica and 24 people are attending, including us! But they wanted to celebrate this important occasion with all of their immediate families and very close friends. So they had a pre-ception! It was held at Malibu Cafe and if you have never been there, you've got to go. It is such a fun place. There is a small lake with paddle boats, a huge lawn with lots of games and a delicious brunch.

Dan gave a toast to the happy couple.

Just a few more weeks for this family to be...

...cemented on paper!

Good Bye To Mom

It's been over a week since my mom passed away. We are all still a bit in shock. We thought she was cancer free, at least for awhile. She had a scan in May that showed no cancer. The Sunday before she died she attended Joey and Brittany's Pre-Ception (I'll do a separate post on this.)

She was tired and nauseous. We thought it was the radiation. Unfortunately, her incredibly aggressive cancer was already in her brain, liver and lungs. It was only 48 hours from when we found out that it had metastasized until she died.

We had a memorial service for her last Friday. It was small and intimate, just her children and grandchildren. Of course in our large family that was about 30 people.

It was at her house. She LOVED any home she lived it in, decorating was a passion of hers. Along with Mexican food, we had red roses, peanut butter cookies and See's candy, her favorites. We went around in a circle and talked a little bit about Mom. She also LOVED family gatherings and almost never missed one. I'm sure she was there.