June Updates

crazy neighborhood boys :: the cutest buddy wearing his boat shoes

A very rare site of him passing out on me :: hiking the Castle Rock incline with sweet friends

The best babysitter ever took the boys for a field trip down to Castlewood Canyon

Spending more time at the reservoir this summer due to less pool time.  So lucky to have neighbors who invested in paddle boards

The cutest little friends... I can't with Rowan's sunglasses and purse :)

Lunch date with my little boyfriends

Killing time at baseball practice

Soccer camp

The boys made Grayson the cutest ice cream truck one afternoon

Declan & Drew's birthday... most of our neighborhood gang

best buds :: testing out new bikes

More baseball :: taking over the Blackstone pool this summer

Visiting Oklahoma

 {May 28th - June 1st}

Our annual camping trip to the Sand Dunes was cancelled so we made the last minute decision to head out to Oklahoma to see Brian's family.  We had flights booked but decided to drive and it was a great long weekend out there just hanging with family.

We mostly just played outside at Jackie and Nana's and did a little swimming.  We also finally got to fish on the Brooks' pond and the boys found a new hobby they loved!  Their son, Carson, is a year older than Braxton and they have played together when we've visited since they were babies.  They get along so well and Braxton had the best time learning to fish with Carson and putting around their pond on their little fishing boat.  Tamara and Josh were so sweet and and let us use all their fishing gear and helped all the littles catch fish.  Braxton caught at least 6 or 7, including a large mouth bass.  Everett got himself a large mouth bass too and a snapping turtle, and Grayson was completely entertained in the little bucket of live minnows we had for bait.  Such a fun afternoon with cousins and neighbors!

Everett caught a huge catfish but wouldn't touch it

Braxton with a big mouth bass (trout??)

South Dakota

 {May 21st-24th}

We booked a last minute getaway to explore South Dakota at the end of May.  We had been going a little stir crazy and South Dakota hadn't really shut down anything.  So we drove up the 6 hours from Denver and had the best weekend!

We rolled into town about 4pm on Thursday and went straight to Mount Rushmore.  There was hardly anyone there.  Grayson freaked because of the wind so we took turns hiking the path that gets you closer to the bottom of the monument.  They also had a ton of construction going on so we weren't able to get very close but that's ok.

We got up early Friday morning and went straight to spend the day at Custer State Park.... one of our favorite parts of the trip!  We did the wildlife loop first and saw tons of bison and some wild donkeys.  We ate lunch at this little grill on Legion Lake and fished with the boys for a little bit.  Then we did Needles Highway and ended up at Sylvan Lake to hang and let the boys swim a little.  We rounded out the day checking out Crazy Horse Monument but were a little disappointed we couldn't get closer.  

Saturday morning we hit up Bear Country first thing, which was the coolest experience!! Probably a tie for favorite thing we did.  We drove the loop and saw amazing wildlife, including so many bears!!  And they were so close!  Then we parked and walked around the grounds where they have smaller animals and the baby bears in areas similar to a zoo.  We loved this experience and it would be a must do for anyone.

We left Bear Country and drove all the way up to Deadwood to explore.  It ended up raining all during lunch and in the afternoon which put a little damper on walking around town, but we ate lunch there and loved this little town!  Such a fun feel and landmark.  They had an awesome spot we saw driving up where you could fish out your own Trout and then they'd clean, prepare, and cook it for you for dinner.  The boys would have loved it but our timing was off and they weren't open yet.  Next time!  We drove back down near Rapids City and did the Cosmo Mystery Area for our last activity.  Another super odd, but really fun little stop.

Our hotel had an indoor water park attached so we woke up Sunday morning, let the boys swim for an hour or so and then hit the road back to Denver.  We've debated coming up and checking out this area for years and I am so glad we finally did it!  It was the perfect Covid getaway since everything was open.  We loved this area so much and will definitely be back to visit again!