Colorado Trip: Last One!

Here's my last post about Colorado.  Since my parents went with us, Jeremy and I were able to go on a couple of hikes just the two of us while Mady got some Mimi and Papa time.  She is definitely a blessed little girl with wonderful grandparents!  
Here are a few pictures of one of the hikes we went on.

This is one of the lakes that makes up the area called Twin Lakes.

We hiked on a trail for 2 miles that led to a series of buildings called Interlaken.  This used to be a resort in the late 1800s for the wealthy people who lived in Leadville.  What's really neat is that they are restoring these buildings and we were able to go inside a few.  Since it was raining, we didn't get a lot of photos of the different buildings.

Dexter's cabin.  We went inside and it was really neat!

Colorado Trip: Fish Hatchery

On our last full day in Colorado, we took Mady to the Fish Hatchery.  This is a place I remember coming when I was a little girl and I wanted to share it with Mady.  We probably should've gone earlier in the week because by the time we went, the weather was rainy and cold.  Oh well...the next time we go, she'll be more interactive with the fish anyway.  

We fed the fish.  They were surprisingly not as crazy over the food as they have been in previous years. 

We went inside to look at the tiny fish in the tanks. 

Jeremy and Mady looking at the Rainbow Trout.

This picture is precious!  One of my favorites!

 

Colorado Trip: Hike Number 2

Mady's second hike of our Colorado trip was a short hike that took us by some incredible views of rushing water.  It was a beautiful trail!

We had to cross a wooden bridge to get to the trail first.  Mady was a little unsure and to be honest, Mommy was nervous too!

The stream that ran under the bridge.

Papa and Mady looking at....

This.

Daddy and Mady!  Such a cute picture!

Mommy and Mady:-)

Exploring the leaves.

"That hike was SO fun!"  I love this wrinkled nose smile of hers!

 

Colorado Trip: The Mt Massive Hike

One of the main things Jeremy and I were looking forward to on our trip was climbing Mt. Massive.  It is the 2nd tallest peak in Colorado at 14, 421 feet.  The hike is a 13 mile round trip.  My dad, Jeremy, and I started at 5:00AM on Labor Day and it took us a total of 9 hours to complete it.  (5 1/2 hours up, 1/2 hour at the top, and 3 hours down)

Since we left in the dark (we used headlamps) we were able to get to the tree line before sunrise.  It was an amazing site to see the sun rising over the mountains in the east!

One of my favorite parts of this hike was going through these fields of brush right after the tree line.  This is also the easier part of the hike. 

I just love this picture!  This was when the sun was coming up in the east and making all the brush look golden.

Nope, we're not at the top yet!  This was one of many "sitting rocks" we found along the way.  We're at the ridge at this point and we have about 45 minutes more of climbing.  The next 45 minutes are pretty scary since we had to hold onto rocks with sharp drop offs and a narrow path.  The views are amazing from here anyway though!

We made it!!  The top of Massive is literally a boulder field.  We're standing on the tallest part of the rocks! 

Looking off to the West.  AMAZING!!!

This is to show you how rocky it is at the top.  Basically the summit is one huge boulder field.

We had so much fun climbing and experience the beauty of God's creation!  We were exhausted by the end of the day (We meaning Jeremy and I because for my dad, this was nothing!) but we are now trying to figure out our next one to climb!  And in case you were wondering, no it won't be Everest!

Colorado Trip: Views from the House

AHHH...I miss these views already! 

My parent's house has the best views!!  This is from their front deck.

This picture is of Mt. Elbert (tallest peak in Colorado).  We climbed it 2 years ago.

Colorado Trip: Mady's First Hike

We had so much fun on Mady's first hike!  We took her to one of my favorite places to go. It is a really easy hike with beautiful waterfalls.  

Found this carrier at a garage sale for 2 dollars.  It was great!  Jeremy loved the awesome turquoise color and 80s print on it.  Here's Mady and Daddy getting ready to go on the hike!

Checking out everything!  The girl had a death grip on Daddy's shirt the whole time!

Mady was intrigued by the sound of rushing water.

Papa's turn to carry Mady!

Look at our big girl!

Pretty sure I was telling Jeremy not to stick her hand in the water because it was freezing!

Family Picture!

Me and My Girl!  (Please ignore my mom in the back ground...probably should've edited this one...)

 

Colorado Trip: Hanging Around The House

We had so much fun last week in Colorado!  We miss the mountains so much but it did help to come home to 80 degree weather unlike the 100s we had before leaving.  

Mady did amazing on the trip!  I was expecting a difficult car ride(9 hours) and a baby who wouldn't sleep or eat very well because of the altitude (and being off schedule).  She did have a couple of those things every now and then, but overall we couldn't have asked for a better week!  We were so proud of her!

Since it was cold, we only got Mady out of the house only once a day.  She had lots of toys to keep her company along with her Mimi and Papa.  Here are a few pictures when we were just hanging around the house. (Other posts will include our Mt. Massive hike (without Mady), hiking with Mady, and some amazing scenery shots!)

When we first got to Leadville and were unloading the car, we sat Mady down in the living room so she could play.  

She emptied all of the toys out of her box onto her lap or the floor.

When we tried to pick up the box behind us, we fell over!

A fox greeted us as we pulled into my parent's driveway.  Not a great picture because we had trouble finding the camera in the mess that was our car.

Mady helped unpack the suitcases.

It was COLD!  Mady usually ended up wearing a long sleeved onesie, a sweatshirt and pants.  Also notice her adorable shoes that I got on sale.  She had to have her own running shoes!