Mesa Verde Day 3- Long House

The Millers had to leave early Saturday, so it was just us and my parents on a tour of Long House. Even though Cliff Palace is more popular, I think Long House was a better tour. The tour goes into and behind the ruins so you get to see more. Our tour guide was great and had a lot of extra insights for us. It's too bad my sister had to miss it, because Long House had even MORE original bricks. ;) (Kidding Ashley. Love you!)

Audrey wasn't in the mood to sit and listen to the tour (shocking!) so she and I hung around in the back area exploring. She ate some rocks and ruined her clothes. :)

Starting as soon as we arrived all of the cousins started constructing forts. Steven and Adam finished theirs on Saturday and it looked really cool. 

There is a lot of Mesa Verde we didn't get to say, and we hope to come back some day when Audrey is a little older. 

Mesa Verde Days 1 & 2- Cliff Palace

We went with my parents and the Millers to Mesa Verde during our fall break. The weather is usually warmer, but it was a little chilly. We camped in the Morefield Campground inside the park and didn't realize until we go there that they were only going to have one loop open and that most of the sites were meant for tents. It was a tight fit for our trailer, but the kids LOVED our spot. They immediately started exploring and found great spots for forts. We had Angelina and Tony with us, so we had a very full car for the 8 hr drive.

On Friday we took a tour of Cliff Palace, which was inhabited by the ancestral Pueblos in the 12th/13th century. It was remarkable to see them so well preserved. My sister was a little upset to find our there had been some restoration, but 75% was original, so I think that's pretty good. ;) A lot of the dwellings weren't visible.

These next two pictures aren't to poke fun of my mom, just to point out a well known fact: My mother is not a photographer. I needed someone to take a picture for us and my mom grabbed the camera before my dad. She had the camera for a while and I tried to get it back. I figured she'd taken a bunch of pictures and I just needed to pick the "best" one. She only took two. These two. Out of all the opportunities. We got a kick out of it and love her for trying. 

Happy Birthday Mike!

On October 14th, 2019 something momentous happened. Mike FINALLY turned the big 3-9. FINALLY. That means I no longer have to endure nearly daily jabs about my age. ;) I love this man! Every day I think about how lucky am I that he is ours. Mike almost always works on his birthday, but decided to take his birthday off. He walked the kids to school and then I went for a run and we had a great day together doing a whole lot of nothing. Pretty perfect. Happy almost 40th birthday babe!

Bush Baby part deux

Mike found out Bush was coming to town again, so we bought tickets and had a great time. It was FREEZING! Actually freezing. Utah had an unusual cold front and we were in leggings, jeans, down coats, winter coats and a blanket. Still cold. The band Live came with them, and they are one of my all time favorite bands from my teen years. They put on an equally great show. The lead singer talked about the age of their fan base a couple times and it reminded me I'm not 20 anymore. ;)

When Rossdale came into the crowd last year I came right by us and I tripped getting a picture. (Oops!) This year I got close but people were in my way. 

No more Brace Face en nuestra casa.

Sarah got her braces on in October 2016 and got them off in October of 2019. The orthodontist wanted to take longer, but Mike insisted he do whatever he needed to, to get them off in October. She had to wear two sets of bands and had a sore mouth, but the time finally came. Her smile is as lovely as ever.

Steven the Lacrosse Boss

Steven played his second season of Lacrosse and loved it. We're glad he's found a sport that he's passionate about. I think it's the fact that it has physicality along with ball skills. Because of the new high school near us he's on the Mountain Ridge Sentinels team. His coach this season was great (loud and intense) and he improved a lot. He was worried he wouldn't know anyone, but really liked his team. He played the "middie" position, which means he plays in the midfield and tries to get the ball from the opposing team before they get near the goal. (I think. I have a "Lacrosse for Dummies" book I should probably read.) We're glad he found a sport he's passionate about. He never threw a fit about going to practice and enjoyed the games.

I took quite a few pictures of him, but they were always far away.