Family Fun in Boulder

About a month ago, we decided to use the last of my 2015 vacation to visit our daughter and her family in Boulder. We hadn't seen them since their trip to Canada in July. I wrote about that visit here if you missed it.

Since our plans were relatively last minute and we had tons of stuff we wanted to take including a table, four chairs and a bike, we decided to drive. We drove two years ago. It's a long drive covering 2,240 km. 

To save time, we packed the car ready to leave straight from work Friday. We drove 6 hrs before stopping in Michigan City at a Super 8 motel. 

We drove 570 km and crossed a time zone Friday, so an early start Saturday was easy. We hoped we could make it to Boulder before bed. We took regular breaks for toilets, coffee, food and fuel. It was tough, but we did it. My husband did ALL the driving. He's amazing.  

Our grandchildren were sleeping when we arrived Saturday night around 9:30 p.m. Boulder time. We greeted our daughter and her husband, unpacked our bags and went to bed. We were exhausted and our ears were buzzing from being on the road 15+ hours. 

Sunday morning our grandson was excited to wake us. It was wonderful to see our grandchildren and hug them properly. After a shower and coffee, my husband started unloading our vehicle. Watching kids opening gifts is so much fun. We loved seeing their excitement.

After gifts and breakfast, we packed our swimsuits and rode our bikes to the North Boulder Rec Center to swim. We all had a blast with the water slides, splash pad, pool and hot tub. Swimming with kids keeps it fun.

After swimming, it was time for lunch and naps. Later in the afternoon, we headed to Coot Lake for a walk and some photos. Our daughter takes fabulous photos. She was hoping to get a few of us to frame and hang with her growing collection of family photos. 

 

Our son-in-law worked all week, but he was there every morning for breakfast and every night for bath and bed time with the kids. He's a terrific hands-on Dad who loves to spend time with his children. 

Monday morning we visited Cottonwood Farms. It was a lot of fun with a bale maze, corn maze, pumpkin patch, old farm equipment and animals.

After the farm, we headed home for lunch and naps then out to a nearby play park before dinner. Play parks are way more fun with kids.

Tuesday morning, we packed the wagon and drove East of Boulder to hiking trails near Mesa Reservoir. It was fun hiking with the kids.

After our hike, we headed home for lunch and naps. Our granddaughter naps most days, but our grandson only naps when he is particularly tired. Usually, he enjoys quiet time while his sister naps. 

After naps, we headed downtown to wander around and look for a restaurant for dinner. We love the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder. 

We decided to eat at Tahona Tequila Bistro and loved it. We plan to eat there again next time we visit.

After dinner, we treated ourselves to bubble tea and basil lime gelato. Mmmm so yummy. 

It finally rained on Wednesday. Instead of biking, we drove to our grandson's soccer class. He loves soccer. Our granddaughter enjoys hanging out and watching. 

In between activities, my husband kept busy assembling bikes and accessories. This bike is too big for our grandson. It will be fun when he grows into it. In the meantime, my husband attached a bar to the big bike with a link to our grandson's little bike. There are so many cool bike accessories for kids these days.

Since it was raining and we couldn't play outside, I wandered around the house taking photos of my daughter's decor. She has been busy framing and displaying some of her favourite family photos. She has a real talent. I love her work.

I love this idea for rotating the kids' artwork. 

This is their chicken coop in the backyard. It is safe and secure housing six chickens. The chickens are hiding from the rain under the coop. Our son-in-law is busy adding siding. I expect it will be finished next time we visit.

It rained again on Thursday. Fort building is a fun 'rainy-day' activity. Our grandson collected blankets and pillows to build this fort.

By afternoon, the rain stopped and we were able to get out for a walk. The fresh air and exercise felt wonderful. We didn't see bears, but we did see a herd of deer in town.

Walking up this hill kept us warm despite the cooler temperatures. I never get tired of the mountain views in Boulder.

The weather improved Friday morning, so we biked to our grandson's rock climbing class. I was impressed when he climbed all the way to the top of this wall. I'm not sure I could do that. It's really very high.

Our granddaughter is happy to wander around and watch while her brother climbs the walls.

We took my Devinci touring bike to Boulder for our daughter to use. My husband had to fix the front shifter because the chain kept falling off. He had repaired damage done by thieves earlier this year, but the bike had not been ridden properly since then. He hadn't realized more adjustments were needed. The chain and brakes are still a bit noisy, but he managed to get everything working again.

We finally got out for a real bike ride on Friday afternoon. We love riding in Boulder. With the hills it is challenging, but fun. I love the views. It's just so different from London.

Our week flew by. Saturday we were on the road heading for home shortly after 7 a.m. I drove the first 4 hours from Boulder to North Platte before letting insisting my husband take over. My drive was easy with absolutely no traffic for part of it. We drove all day, finally stopping in Iowa City at a Comfort Inn for the night.

On Sunday, we enjoyed an early breakfast before heading out again. The weather was perfect and the fall colours were amazing for much of our trip. 

Heading towards London, if you squint and use your imagination, the clouds almost look like mountains in the distance. I do love mountains.

We're home now and back at work. I have enjoyed spending my evenings sorting through our photos and documenting our week of Family Fun in Boulder. I hope it helps keep our memories fresh.

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