Colorado Vacation- Day 6

On Thursday, Cory decided to take Parker on a gold panning tour.  He got to pan for real gold and came home very excited to show me his vial of gold!

I knew the girls would not like the tour so I took them to the local Children's Museum.  They have been asking to go to the museum for a few years but we have never made it there to play. 

We spent several hours at the museum and the girls had a great time!  They enjoyed playing doctor in the hospital station,

fishing in the fishing pond,

playing with marbles and sand in the discovery station,

flying a helicopter,

hanging out with some bears in the bear cave,

playing dress up,

putting on a puppet show,

and making arts and crafts.

I wasn't sure when we got there if it would hold their interest, but they played nonstop for over three hours and were sad when we finally had to leave that afternoon.  It was well worth the money and I'm sure we will go again the next time we are in Breckenridge.

 

That evening, Granna and Granstan went out for dinner together so we decided to take the kids for a fun family night out.  We found a pizza joint called Downstairs at Eric's that was very family friendly and had an arcade for the kids to play in while we waited for our table.  We all five had a blast and I really enjoyed getting to spend some time with just our little family of 5.

After dinner, we found another little play area on Main Street for the kids to play at until bedtime.  Other than Parker getting a little scared about jumping off the big rock and throwing a teensy little tantrum (or maybe a huge crying fit that made everyone within earshot turn to look at us), it was the perfect end to a fun evening with the kids!

Colorado Vacation- Day 5

Wednesday started with a trip to the donut shop with Granna and Granstan- yum!

After two very busy days, we decided to take it easy on Wednesday and let the kids (and mommy) rest a little.  They played Legos, watched a movie and went to the park after dinner.  It was a much needed day of rest for everyone!

Colorado Vacation- Day 4- Bike Ride to Frisco

Uncle Craig flew into Colorado and got in very late Monday night.  The kids were so excited to see him when they woke up on Tuesday morning.  Meredith and Craig wanted to go on a bike ride from Breckenridge to Frisco that afternoon and wanted to take the kids with them.  I wasn't thrilled about the bike ride because I didn't want to go on a bike ride with the kids without Cory being there to enjoy it with us. 

 

Things like this are always hard for me.  It's hard to stay positive about life with MS when you see "normal" families enjoying activities together and you know that it's not a possibility for your own family.  The kids have never in their life been on a bike ride with Cory and it's one of those things that I had pretty much just given up on for our family.

 

It seems like every time I start getting down in the dumps about MS and the things it has taken away from us, God is faithful to come along and show me that he is always bigger than our circumstances.  As Cory and Craig were walking back to the condo from breakfast that morning, they passed a bike rental shop and noticed some electric assist bikes for rent.  After talking to the store owners, Cory excitedly called to tell me that he was going to get to join us on the bike ride this year! (Last year, electric bikes were banned from the bike trails but they recently lifted the ban and started allowing them again!)  I don't know who was more excited- Cory, me, or the kids!!  The family bike ride that I have always longed for was about to happen!

 

We finally got all of our bikes rented, got the girls' trailers hooked up and then we were on our way to Frisco!  With the exception of a one mile uphill stretch, the ride was easy and enjoyable!  The kids kept making comments about how their daddy was riding a bike with them!  There were several points along the 10 mile hike that I found myself tearing up as I watched Cory and the kids riding together.        

It truly was a great day and we were able to make memories that will last a lifetime.  I absolutely can not wait until next summer when we will be able to go on our next family bike ride! 

Colorado Vacation- Day 3- Fun Park

On Monday we rode the gondola to the top of the mountain to spend the day at the Fun Park.  The first thing on the agenda before the lines got too long was the alpine slide.  After Cory's horrible accident on the slide last year, he decided to sit this one out and stay at the bottom to take pictures.  Meredith and I each rode with one of the girls and Parker rode on his own. 



After riding the alpine slide twice, a short thunderstorm rolled in, so we headed inside to eat lunch while we waited for it to pass.  The first thing the kids wanted to do after the rain was over was the bungee trampoline.  Parker and Lily both wanted to jump but neither one of them tried to do any flips like they did last year.  Meredith and I were the only ones who attempted any back flips this year!  We thought that Eden was finally going to give the bungee jumping a try, but she backed out at the last minute.  Maybe next year we will finally get her on it!

While Parker and Lily were waiting for Meredith and I to finish jumping, they went through the huge maze and may or may not have gotten lost a few times!

 

Most of the activities were the same from last year but there was one new section that included a tubing hill, a ropes course and a zipline.  Meredith took Parker to try out the new area while Cory and I stood in line for the roller coaster, but after several minutes in line, the girls changed their minds and joined Parker on the tubing hill. 

After waiting in line for a ridiculous amount of time, it was finally Parker's turn to get harnessed up for the ropes course and zipline.  And then wouldn't you know it... another quick rainstorm blew in.  Because we had already waited so long and did not want to lose our spot in line, we braved the rain and wind until they reopened the course.  Parker LOVED the zipline the most and did a great job on the ropes course too! 

While Parker was finishing up on the zipline, Meredith took the girls to play mini golf.

Parker rock climbed while the girls finished and then we all went back up the mountain to ride the alpine slide one more time.

At the end of the day, Cory took Parker to play mini golf while Meredith and I took the girls to the tubing hill again.  While we were up there, they both decided they wanted to try the ropes course and zipline.  Luckily, there was no line at this point so they quickly got harnessed up and started the ropes course.  Eden did a GREAT job on the first half of the course but got scared on the second half and had to be taken off by the workers.  After that, she could not compose herself enough to try the zipline.  Hopefully next year she will be able to complete it all but we were so proud of her for being brave and at least giving it a try this year!

Lily completed the entire ropes course and was the last zip liner of the day!  She loved every minute of it!

 

It was an exhausting but great day!  We definitely did not have anyone put up a fight at bedtime that night!  We can't wait to go back again next year!

Colorado Vacation- Day 2

We were all exhausted from the hike so we spent most of Sunday relaxing.  Parker and Cory threw the baseball by the river for a few minutes while the girls played on the playground in the center of town.  Then they attempted to wade in the river but that didn't last too long! 

We walked around town and went to the Farmer's Market for a little while.

After lunch, we took the kids swimming at the condo.  The pool is supposed to be heated but it did not feel warm when I stuck my toes in.  I honestly don't know how the kids stayed in so long.  They went back and forth from the pool to the hot tub to keep from freezing but they ended up spending most of the time in the pool. 

 

 

Parker made a new friend named James while we were swimming.  He and his family were visiting Colorado from England.  They played and played and Parker was sad when we had to leave. 

It was nice to have such a low key day after being so busy on Saturday.  We all needed the rest before starting another busy day on Monday.