Fort Collins

RedRocks, RedRocks

Two Saturdays ago we were afraid we weren't going to get our hike in so we made a quick run for Red Rocks.

It was quite a steep walk up to see the amphitheater, where we saw some pretty intense cross-training. People were running up and down the stairs.

Then we turned around and these turkeys were crab crawling backwards up the steps. Insane. I kept waiting for someone to land on their face.

It was a rather beautiful view from the amphitheater. We traveled back down and began our hike.

Springtime was evident everywhere we looked.

Springtime is very serious business.

Easter Weekend Exploring

The Saturday of Easter weekend we did indeed go hiking. We visited Evergreen Lake. A nice little lake hidden away in the foothills. Betsy brought along her trusty little monkey--hello little monkey, you are very cute! There were also lots and lots of geese and ducks and other little birdies.

For example, we met this goose. Hello little goose, you look very nice!

As we continued our walk, we noticed that suddenly Mr. Monkey was missing.  Do you see him, way back there in the distance?

Mommy bravely walked back to retrieve the monkey.  But you know what? That goose right there, he decided he really liked that monkey too. I cautiously waited for that goose to turn his back while Daddy laughed at me. So, I approached and that goose, he hissed at me, hissed LOUDLY and THREATENINGLY.

Fear not, Mommy was brave. 

And I reached down, took a quick picture, grabbed that monkey 

and 

ran like the wind! 

Hooray! Mr. Monkey was rescued!

Not sure what this is all about. Maybe it keeps wild mean geese away from innocent unsuspecting monkeys. 

The water draws her in every time. She is her mommy's daughter. 

On the way home we drove by the Colorado Railroad Museum.  A cool place we'll have to visit another time, a lot less closer to nap time. It was especially cool because there were no geese in sight. 

Thank you Aunt Katie!

 A few days before Easter we found a wonderful surprise on our front porch. A box full of goodies from Aunt Katie! Hiding inside was a super adorable handmade Rooster finger puppet. Cock-a-doodle dooooo!

Also inside, a great handmade brown hat, presumably made by Aunt Katie herself.

And a lovely pink scarf which I adore!  I'm sure the hat and scarf are for mommy and daddy, but Betsy had some other ideas... 

Thank you Aunt Katie for the wonderful box of surprises.  

Maybe next time you can deliver them in person!

Easter!

Betsy is now at an age where she gets very, very excited about fun (!) and magical animals that bring her gifts overnight. And, we have moved far, far away from everyone we know and love (except for our dear friend Kathleen). That means Easter was a great opportunity for the Easter Bunny to show her the love. Woot woot!

Thursday night has turned into our traditional weekly dinner with Kathleen, or Kath-ah-leen, as Betsy calls her. So, we decided to color eggs on Thursday so Kathleen could join us. It never hurts to have a two year old around to justify our childhood indulgences.


Between 3 adults and 1 child, we colored twenty four eggs. We colored the eggs outside. This provided us with a great opportunity to experiment with the camera. When we bought the camera, we bought at 50mm lens, which we've found to be super great for these kinds of shots.

At Kathleen's suggestion, we put some of our dye in a muffin tin. This was both adorable, and a great way to color the eggs.










Betsy took the coloring very seriously.

So did Jeff.

Sunday morning Betsy awoke to discover the Easter Bunny had come! Yay!

In addition to her rather practical Easter basket gifts (big girl hair brush, pony tail holders, Boo-Boo bunny), she received her first Chocolate Easter Bunny!





Betsy also received her first cash from Grandma and Grandpa. She immediately said "My money! Mine!" Oh boy, oh boy...we are in for some trouble.

Sunday we had brunch at a great place down the street with Kathleen. Apparently, Betsy could have came in her pajamas. But what fun is that? It's Easter. One must have an Easter dress! How else does on justify a Bloody Mary bar before noon? And yes, that is bacon. I should note, I did display some self-control.

The Easter Bunny was large and in-charge, which made Betsy very happy, and a little timid. She did wave and stare in disbelief as he very casually walked around the restaurant. Unfortunately she was not interested in getting close enough to him to take a picture. She did watch him adoringly from afar.

After brunch, we all went outside for to the patio to hang out and grab a few photos. Betsy was mesmerized by the fire.





She was, however, not so mesmerized by the idea of a family photo. Sigh.















While Betsy took a well earned nap, Jeff and I were busy preparing some provisions for the big Easter Egg hunt. Jeff made deviled eggs, I made kale chips. One was more of a hit than the other...

That's right! Kale chips are super delish!

The Big Hunt!