Cheyenne Mountain

This morning we tried to go to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. We got off later than we had planned and when we got there, there was absolutely NO parking.  We drove all through it with a ton of other cars also looking for spots.  So we decided to just bag it and go another day when we can get there right when it opens.  So I checked on our GPS to see if there were any parks close by and Cheyenne Mountain Canon Park came up, so we drove a couple minutes over there. It was gorgeous! Winding roads going up in the mountains and trails all over.  We stopped at one spot and checked the map. We found where there were a couple waterfalls (Helen Hunt and Cascade Falls) up the road, so we drove up there and hiked around.  It was so pretty. 

Garden of the Gods

Today we headed out to the Garden of the Gods. We hadn't been out there since we've moved here. We've taken the kids out when we've visited before, but this was our first time this year.  (In fact, we were looking at pictures of when we went the very first time. Tink was only about 18-months-old at the time, so that was neat to see.)  The weather was gorgeous and we just did a bit of hiking.  It was hot though and we all got a little bit of sunburn.  Goofy hadn't ever really had a sunburn before and his neck was burnt bad enough for him to NOT like getting them. 
Speaking of Goofy, he has said some FUNNY things lately.  One thing he did for about a week was Papa had downloaded a racing car game on his iPod so the grandkids could play.  Well, Goofy was showing him how it worked and all that when he first got it, so anytime after that when Papa would get on his iPod, Goofy would run over and tell him not to play the game!  He would tell him that he didn't know how to play and he might lose.  It was super cute.  Another thing lately that he has been doing is telling PC that he will help him find a job.  So sweet. We got him a bike last week, so he keeps telling PC that he has his bike and will help him find a job.  One of the other kids got onto him one morning, saying he wasn't really going to help Daddy find a job.  Goofy came running in and told me what they said and I told him that he was definitely a big help with Daddy finding a job.  He wants to help so much and he felt lots better when I told him that.  One more funny thing: I put in a movie for him one night and pushed play. It then went to the screen where you can pick "widescreen" of "full screen."  I picked full screen, and PC said, "You like full screen?" I said, "No, I like widescreen, but the kids like full screen." A couple seconds later, Goofy said, "I like ice cream!"  I wish I could type the inflections in his voice, because it is so funny, but this will just have to suffice. 

Spring Break, Week 1

Two weeks of spring break may seem a bit long, but I think it's great.  We had thought about going to visit my sister, but in the end, just decided to stay around here and do things local.  Monday we went swimming. We had finally gotten the kids some goggles, so they all couldn't wait to try them out. In fact, Goofy cried himself into a nap on Friday, threw a fit Saturday afternoon when we didn't go, but by that evening, was resigned to the fact that he had to wait until Monday.
Wednesday we got two kites and flew them in the backyard.  It is so windy here that getting them up was not a problem.  Holding on was though, as Goofy did let go at one point. Luckily it wasn't very high yet and just flew into the fence. I thought it was cool when a plane flew overhead and it looked like the kites were flying with it.

Today we went to a special story time at the library with Mother Goose. The kids really had fun and we met up with some friends there so that made it even more fun.  After that, we headed to Chuck E. Cheese's.  We had a couple of good coupons, so thought it would be a fun lunch.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We went for a walk in Black Forrest park today.  It was perfect weather and we walked maybe 2 miles, which was plenty for the kids.  It was gorgeous though, and I know we'll be doing a lot more hiking in the months to come. PC is already planning backpack camping trips.  Colorado really is a beautiful place.

Minnie's Birthday

Minnie turned 6 today!  We have been wanting to make these rainbow cupcakes for a year and finally did it for her birthday. After going to the library for story time, we quickly mixed up the cake batter and divided them up to mix the colors so Minnie could help before she had to go to school. She LOVED helping to mix. It was pretty cool with all the colors, but it took me about an hour to divvy them up between all the cupcakes, which was much longer than I had expected. 

PC's brother and his family were able to come and celebrate with us as well. We played a few games of musical chairs, which they all enjoyed. Then we had pizza (stuffed crust from Pizza Hut, per Minnie's request) and cupcakes.  She got a present from Tink. She made her a doll and a couple other princess things, which was really sweet.  Her cousins got her some lip gloss and a Webkinz.  We got her a watch, a couple new leggings, and a Rapunzel doll.

Nana and I had to rush off to a birthday celebration at the church for the Relief Society.  They had a Broadway theme and I came home with an awesome poster for Tink.  She has been in love with all things Wicked since she and PC went to see it last summer in London.  They had printed out a poster of Wicked, but it said "WICKEDness Never was Happiness." It is awesome. I got her a poster frame and it looks so cool. She loves it.

First Fire

After Family Home Evening tonight (where I taught the lesson on the importance of prophets and apostles, in anticipation of General Conference coming up soon), we went outside and enjoyed the warmer weather we've been having with a fire. We only had a few marshmallows, but the kids each got one, so it was perfect. It was nice to just sit around the fire and enjoy each other's company and the beautiful outdoors.

Recent Projects

The girls needed some new skirts (well, Tink did and Minnie would never allow herself to be left out of getting new skirts) so I bought some fabric and made them 2 skirts each.  I tried 3 different patterns before deciding that the last one was the best and easiest.  I followed the tutorial shown here. I changed mine a little bit from how she did it on her site, but they were SO easy and super fast to make. 
With the leftover scraps, I made fabric flowers and glued them onto a hair tie or clip.  I was very pleased with how well they turned out. Here's a picture of Tink in her new skirt with the ponytail flower in her hair.

Minnie was able to dress up for Dr. Seuss day today. She was so excited, but we had to figure out what to do.  We were going to make a Cat in the Hat costume, but when we were at the store, she changed her mind to be Thing 1.  So we got some sweatpants and shirt for about $3 for both together and then I bought a piece of white felt to make her "Thing 1" and a skein of yarn to make a "wig."  I crocheted a headband and then tied the "hair" to the headband. I thought it turned out well, but she was too embarassed to keep the wig on at school.  There were several others dressed up as Thing 1 as well though. I was able to read There's a Wocket in My Pocket and The Cat in the Hat Comes Back to her class. That was fun for both of us! 

Family Pictures!!

PC's sister has been delving into photography, so we were blessed over the Christmas break to have her take pictures of our family.  We got the cd today and wanted to share some of our favorites!