This summer has been insane for us, especially July. Tob left July 1st for a dispatch down to Dolores Colorado and during that time I worked 9 out of 14 night shifts. The kids spent 10 days in LG with my parents and I would visit on my days off here and there. It was so nice for all of us involved to be able to ship them off for that time. Tob arrived home the evening of the 18th and then I left the morning of the 19th to re-trace his steps back to Colorado for an Emergency Nursing Conference.
As you can see Barley was quite thrilled his dad was home and hoping that maybe he would remove the cone he had on almost the ENTIRE time he was gone for some ouchy hotspots he developed while romping around in the wilderness with me. The kids were also thrilled to see their daddy too! Within 12 hours of him walking in the door, I was walking out.
Myself and 3 co-workers drove the 17 hours to Snowmass/Aspen Colorado over 2 days. I felt blessed to be able to stop, even if it was only a few moments, by the site where our dear friend Dan was killed in a van rollover in 2002. 5 firefighters were killed in that accident and Dan was the oldest at age 28. I placed a photo of him there and a mountain dew in remembrance. We sure loved him and to this day it's hard to think that he is no longer here. It gets easier throughout the years but we will never forget. Tob has been fortunate to have stopped by the site 3-4 times over the past 10 years to take a moment to remember what a great man he was. A necklace and fire shirt he placed there shortly after the accident is still there and intact.
Along the way we stopped multiple times for bathroom breaks. Mostly due to me. I have a drinking problem. I won't hesitate to pound 4 or 5 liters of water on any given day if given the chance. This was one of the overlooks we stopped at. 2 of the girls had never been to Utah or Colorado so they were enamored with the rock formations and scenery and sheer beauty of the landscape.
I know this may surprise you all but, one of the huge pluses for me to attend this conference with the super long drive was the ER conference went from 8-1pm every day leaving us to explore Aspen and Snowmass Colorado ALL afternoon, for 4 days. I was in heaven. I thought because I am fairly decent shape I would be exempt from the lack of oxygen at the higher elevations but, I could feel the difference for sure living at greater than 8000ft for the week. Every now and then even during lectures I would need to take an extra breath. It was crazy. I have a lot more respect for my husband and his firefighter cohorts when they are sent over to climb these crazy steep mountains at super high elevations they aren't acclimated too.
Andie and I spent our time running and hiking, some alone, some with the other girls. On one trek into the Maroon Bells Wilderness at about 4.5 miles in and 10,000ft we ran into a local who pointed out the bear to us on the hillside. We watched him (the bear, not the local) for quite sometime and then headed back up the trail. On our way back down he had made his down the trail as well and we ran into him again. He was gorgeous and fun to watch.
Goose mama who is lucky enough to live at Maroon lake.
Maroon Lake. We did an evening hike up here on our last night. Loved it.
The wildflowers were in full bloom and Andie was a WEALTH of knowledge teaching me the proper names of all the flowers we encountered, as well as the birds.
Hula hooping (I look pretty serious) at 11,200 ft after riding the gondola up from Aspen. After lunch Andie and I walked 5 1/2 or 6 miles down to town. Pretty cool views. I am aching to go back with my mountain bike for sure.
Group photo Deidra, Andie, Wendy and ME.
One of the best parts of being in aspen were ALL the incredible aspen trees of course. Some were super old and BIG, but I love trees. My top 3 are probably the redwoods, joshua trees and aspen.
Oh and to stay on the topic of WHY I went to Colorado (Emergency medicine, if you had forgotten). Here is their sweet Ambulance. Their fire trucks matched. I was tempted to call 911 just so I could take a ride. The conference was great and location even better! Now we are home and looking forward to quilting, 4H (fair), a wedding, hiking, and maybe a quick backpacking trip before the kids head back to school.
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