4th of July - Crested Butte

We spent the 4th of July holiday at our favourite Colorado town, Crested Butte. It was stunning, as always. The wildflowers were almost at their peak and whole mountainsides were coloured yellow and purple with mini sunflowers, lupines, delphiniums, columbines (CO state flower), etc. Unfortunately, I don't have photos of the flowers to share, as we were too busy to take any. And when we were out mountain biking, we weren't stopping the flow of the ride along phenomenal singletrack for snapshots.

On the way, we stopped for some very fresh air at the top of Cottonwood Pass. The little lake was still mostly frozen over! Rylan was really taken with the view, saying "ooohhh".

We have never seen this much snow in Colorado in July.

We arrived just in time for the crazy 4th of July parade through town. This float was to advertise the pro cycling tour that will pass through in August.

Always a horse or two.

Not a bad spot for a playground below Mt Crested Butte. Rylan is getting good at walking now, although the right arm is always out.

Rylan and I took a nice walk one morning while Chris was out biking.

Headed up a dirt road...

... which soon turned into a nice trail.

Tree graffiti.

Made it to the Judd Falls overlook.

Saying "meow"... he thought a chipmunk was a cat!

Taking a well deserved break before heading back down. Rylan is harder to carry than a 26 pound pack because he's always moving around to look at things.

Enjoying a coffee break with Daddy.

Rylan - 15 Months

Fun at the local water park.

The summer heat has cranked up, so it's a nice place to go to cool off.

Meeting a nice cat at Ben's house. Rylan was so sweet, saying "ahhhh" as he gently stroked it. He has been meowing ever since!

Fighting over who gets to pat Ben's cat.

"Yes, it's MY cat!" Toddlers are so funny.

Father's Day.

A healthy brunch for Chris. Yes, those are eggs, ribs, and fries on the same plate - the perfect meal apparently!
 

We picked this horse up for free at the community garage sale. How could I resist?! Rylan likes riding and patting his horsey.

We finally got round to filling the sandpit. Rylan loves sand, but the sandpit will be empty in no time if he continues to pour it over the edge and down his clothes.

Our sweet boy.

Relaxing in his chair. A real bookworm.

Poudre Canyon Camping

Memorial Weekend 2011: Our first camping trip of the summer was up the Poudre Canyon, a couple of hours from home. We had planned to be away 2-3 nights, but only lasted 1 due to the cold weather.

We found a pretty camping spot by the river and Rylan was immediately in heaven playing in the dirt.

More playing with dirt.

The next morning everything was wet, so we had to shut Rylan in his pack 'n play to keep him clean and dry. He wasn't so happy about that. Rosy red cheeks were a combination of teething + wind, sun, and cold.

Storytime with friends, Linda, Sophie, and Zoe.

All three in the pack 'n play. Rylan kept a vice-like grip on his tractor.

We did manage a nice walk up the side of the canyon before heading home to the warm.