Westward Bound

Last week we got a little taste of what our life is going to be like once we are settled in Colorado!  We initially booked our trip out West as a vacation, but once we realized we were moving there it turned into more of a pre-move preparation trip, with some fun activities mixed in.  We did a lot of furniture shopping, appliance shopping, and I even had a job interview.  But more importantly (and interestingly), we spent a weekend in Steamboat Springs, visited our new town of Golden, saw our house, and spent time with good friends.  Colorado, here we come!

In our Uber on the way to the airport.  As I mentioned to Chris, the next time we make this trip, we'll be going "home."

Pretty soon after getting to Denver, we caravanned with our good friends the Smiths into the mountains for a weekend in Steamboat Springs.

Our Steamboat lodgings did not disappoint.

Nor did the weather.

We had five families and a total of 12 kids ages 7 and under.  It was chaotic and awesome!

Cheers to good friends and good times...

...and the promise of many more to come.

One of the kids' favorite things to do was to play in the creek.

Footloose and fancy-free.

There were also a ton of kid-friendly activities, like these water balls.

45 minutes of waiting for 3 minutes of fun?  Totally worth it.

Danny takes his mini-golf very seriously.

Weightless.

American Ninja Warriors!

The highlight of the weekend was definitely the rodeo.  Here are the kids getting into the cowboy spirit.

We probably need to work on our rodeo outfits a bit.  The hats are a good start, but the Cubs shirt is a dead giveaway.

Who taught her to pose like that??!

So sweet to see these two reconnect like no time had passed at all.

Pretty incredible backdrop for a playground.

Rizzo might have met his match.

The rodeo crew.

Ready for the show.

Best view in the place.

I may have been the only one there drinking wine.

West by Midwest.

The kids got to go into the ring to chase a ram (for the littles) and a calf (for the bigger kids).  Nobody won, but everyone had fun.

After Steamboat, we stayed with the Smiths for a few days.

Even the playgrounds in Colorado look like mountains.

The cartoons are the same though.

We took a day trip to Golden to see our new house, which we'd bought sight-unseen.  It relieved a lot of anxiety to finally be able to walk through it and get a better sense for what it will feel like to live there (we have the townhouse on the right, FYI).

We also stopped by the kids' new school, which is less than half a mile away.

And finally, we checked out the cute downtown area, which is also within walking distance from "home."

Parfet Park is right on the creek and has tons of kid-friendly activities.  And a dragon.

After we'd worn out our welcome at the Smiths', we moved in with the Moroneys, who introduced us to their favorite ice cream shop: Sweet Cow.  Jill approved.

And then it was off to stay with the VanBerschots in Evergreen, which is even further up the mountain than Golden.  They regularly see elk and deer in their yard.  No bears yet, but it's only a matter of time.

Quite a veiw from their deck.

Selfies with Ella.

They can rock climb in their own backyard!

And roast marshmallows in their own living room!  (I guess anyone could do that, but only the VanBerschots are cool enough to actually do it).

On our last day there, we took kayaks to the lake.  Once again, the background speaks for itself.

What's the weight limit on that thing?

Bliss.  And blisters.

On our last night there, we savored some beer and bar games at a local brewery.  The kids' favorite game was a wooden stand with a dangling ring that you had to try to catch on a hook.  I couldn't do it without cheating, but Danny was a pro.

Colorado, we're coming for you!