June Adventures Kick-Off

School let out for the summer at the end of May, so the boys and I decided that we would forgo summer camps and become "Colorado Springs Explorers!" We picked out some of the cooler things to see here for the next month. Come July, we are heading home to WA. We have planned two or more places each week of June that represent quintessential Colorado. The deal I have with the boys is that on the days we do the free explores we will go to Sonic for happy hour juice slushes afterward...YUM! School is back in sesson August 14th, so it is going to be a quick summer!

Today is the first post of our explorations. Adam was able to join us on this one since we hit it on a Saturday. Below are pictures of our spelunking in the Cave of the Winds (OK, so not so much spelunking was done, since there is a paved path, stairs with hand rails and electric lighting, but it was still very cool). Imagine 3 little boys, bizarre rock structures, and semi-darkness and you have a recipe for fun and amazement. I have to note that in the cave there was a $2500 fine and drivers license revocation for touching the walls, which we joked about the whole way through, but don't worry, we never touched! We learned all about stalagmites (stand up from the ground) stalagtites (hang down from the ceiling), and what they called "Colorado Cave Bacon," these really cool ribbons of mineral deposits that really do look like giant stone bacon (it is kind of a gross name for such a pretty thing), and saw many amazing creations of nature, really it was very cool.

Next week is the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo (W) and the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center (Th), followed by a hike with our new neighbors (F) and on Saturday we will go to Royal Gorge with dad--weather permitting since we hear it is cold enough up on the bridge over the Gorge without the freezing wind blowing. We are excited for all the cool things we will see, AND if anyone comes to visit we will know which things we must take you to! So be looking for more posts of our adventures. Ben keeps asking, "What's our exploration today?!"

The boys and I looking at the view while we wait for our tour to begin.

Adam and the boys outside of the entrance, still waiting....

Adam and I had to duck through a handful of the passageways, one was only 3 and a half feet, even Zach had to duck. How convenient, railings in a cave! It was helpful though, since in this picture there are only about 5 steps separating Adam and I and I am directly above him.

I had to put the picture of these rocks, they are called "Romeo and Juliet" because they were once connected, but due to seismic activity they were separated, sadly never to be together again...at this point in the tour I am thinking, "Great...my entire family is deep in this cave, and NOW they tell me there is seismic activity here. Nice."

A really thoughtful couple offered to take a picture of all of us...how rare to have a snapshot of the entire fam!

The boys liked this one because it looked like squid tentacles (Zach), earthworms (Ben), and tree roots (Josh).

The guys are by an 8-foot stalagtite--impressive since it can take up to 1000 years for each cubic inch of mineral deposit, that's 96,000 years!!

Look closely at the wall behind the boys, this formation they call "The Grinch," and, appropriately, Zach and Ben are making thier grinchiest faces to go along with.

Fun with Nana and Papa, Grandma and Grandpa

Two weekends ago my mom and dad came out to visit us here in The Springs (the pictures from that visit I posted below in the slide show of things we have done since the computer was broken, so glad to have it back!). This last weekend Adam's parents were here. What two very good weekends we had, and it makes me miss home and all of them all the more! I have such wonderful parents and am fortunate to have amazing parents-in-law too. I love them all so dearly. And I can't even say how very cool the boys think these four people are. We love you Nana, Papa, Grandma and Grandpa!

Grandpa and Luke

Our adorable cousins Quentin and Sheridan who live here too. After Luke's birthday dinner all the kids decided to go out and run through our sprinklers...fully clothed.
Walkin' around in Manitou Springs, an old Gold Rush and now artsy little town just down the road nestled in the mountains
Manitou Springs, Nicolle and I think we need to go back for a day...sans kids. There are a lot of "hands in your pockets" stores.
"Spray my neck too, Mom" Josh showing me where the sunblock needs to be applied
No that is not a scenic backdrop, that really exists about 10 minutes from our house, called "Garden of the Gods" for good reason.
Back on the Boulders, Ben likes this as much as Legos, and that is saying a lot
Notice the comfort level with heights...Ben and Dad, "what a lovely view"; Dan, "not going to build a summer home here, but I can get by"; Zach and Josh, "take the dang picture so we can get back from this ledge!"

Luke Chatting with Grandma

Colorado Crazy Weather

Have you ever actually seen the National Emergency Broadcast System in action? I mean something other than, "This is a test, it is only a test." Well, we have now! They use it here to alert us of potential tornadoes or damaging hail storms. I knew that Colorado gets a lot of snow, including blizzard-style snow storms, in the winter, but what I didn't know is that Colorado gets a lot of extreme weather in the late spring and summer too. High wind, hail, lightning, flash flooding and tornadoes frequently occur here. Don't worry, the NEBS alerts are always for the towns east of where we live, out on the plains. We don't live in a city that has had tornadoes hit, since we are close to the mountains, but technically we could if the weather system moved in just the right way and towns just 40 miles to the east have had some big ones (look up Limon, CO). Nice. Anyway, we have been having afternoon/evening lightning storms for the past week or so, and I hear they come in pretty much every day through the summer. Yesterday's brought us more than lightning, but some hail too, and not the little dinky stuff we used to get in Washington, take a look at the pic below. From what I hear this isn't even kind of "big" on the scale of what sometimes comes.

So you can see the size...this was taken before the really big ones came.

Josh is holding one of the big ones, yes, that is ONE hail stone.

Grandpa: "There are some out there the size of golf balls! Wait, that is a golf ball!"

Happy Birthday Lucas Daniel Conlin!!

One Year Ago

Luke is one-year-old today, and he is amazing. I can't believe it has only been a year that he has been in our life, but I also can't believe how quickly this year has gone by. I love watching these boys grow, watching them become unique little men, hitting their milestones so perfectly but in such different ways, witnessing them develop their individuality. It is no different with our Luke. He is a miracle we get to witness every day. We love you Luke, you are a blessing and a gift to us! Happy Birthday Baby!

At one year, Luke is a sweet baby who really knows what he wants and will make sure you know it too. He loves to be in the thick of all the activity, and does not like being left behind or removed from the fun. He babbles like he has something really important to say, and you can see in his eyes that he hopes you understand him too. The only words he really says are "Dada" and "Daw" (meaning Dog), I only get some "Mmmuh" for now, but "Mama" will come in time. But he does make a beautiful high-pitched squeal, that I am sure given a slight increase in pitch would break glass. He tries to hold as many toys in his hands as possible, and gets frustrated if he can't get them all. His favorite toys are balls and cars, and his favorite game is dropping (and watching you pick it up!). He loves snuggling, especially with mommy, and will tell you he is tired by climbing up into your lap and laying his head down on you. He loves to dance, and whenever he hears music he will start bouncing to it; he plays his musical toys over and over so he can dance and sing along. He has a killer smile that lights up his face, but he won't smile for the camera easily, most smiling shots I post are one of at least 20 tries (thank goodness for digital). He loves his brothers, although he gets quiet when it gets too noisy around him, preferring to watch what is happening than force his way in. He is eating and sleeping like a champ, but it is sometimes hard to get him to settle in for the night. He doesn't stop wiggling until he is sound asleep! He loves to play, loves to laugh and we are so proud of every milestone he has reached...including the appearance of his first tooth five days ago!

Feelin' the Groove

Happy First Birthday Luke!

His favorite part was the frosting. What kid's isn't?! See my toys?!!

This is a picture of that excited high-pitch shriek I was talking about

Mommy and Luke-One Year Later

Birthday Rock Climbing

Waking up Birthday Morning

See that first tooth?!

Ta Da!!!

Computer diagnosis...$25. New memory for the computer...$34.50. Being able to post pictures again...Priceless.

Yes!! I finally have pictures to post!!! The computer is back running at full capacity and the camera has been emptied. I do have to say that today is a lovely day in Colorado Springs. It is finally gettting green here (hooray!), the Thunderbirds (the AF version of the Blue Angels) are tearing up the skies over our house for the Air Force Academy graduation...so wonderfully amazing and loud, and it was a great weekend with my mom and dad here from WA. I miss them already and it has only been two and a half hours since I dropped them off at the Denver Airport.

All right, I will stop delaying and get the pictures...pause to watch Thunderbirds...posted (this could take awhile with all the pausing to watch, fortunately for you, you don't have to pause with me). First you will have to endure a slide show of pictures from March through today of our life since the last picture post. Then I will get to the house pictures, too bad for you!

Two things: First, any color you see on the walls in the house pictures is from our amazing painting skills. We may have to start a family business with the experience we have been getting between the Everett house and this one. The house was completely white, and begging for color. However, I think we will take a LONG break before tackling any more painting for awhile. Second, the outdoor pictures were taken when Adam was here with the inspector back in early March. Things have gotten much nicer and greener, especially thanks to our built-in sprinkler system, a luxury I cannot believe we ever lived without. Really...get one. Not having to rotate is like a little slice of heaven.

March Through May

The House

Front of House (early March when the Inspector was there-hence the ladder)

Back of house (also early March-hence the snow and brownness) The Living Room-the front door into the house is just to the left of this picture
More Living Room-finally room for the piano. Its keys have been tickled multiple times a day since day one. It is wonderful having music in the house, although Luke would like me to add that we do not appreciate it at naptime. Dining Room-we have the light we are replacing that one with, Adam just has to finish 10 other projects first. Kitchen-that is a new microwave, since ours broke one month after move-in (thank goodness for home owners warranties!) We plan to eventually replace all the appliances with stainless steel. Now I just need to win the lottery.
Family Room-with all the windows and the yellow on the walls this room is our happy room. But that couch is GREAT for snuggling too. So maybe it is the happy snuggle room. Living Room from Upstairs-including the regular presence of Legos on the desk and floor (I wanted to make it look realistic, or maybe I just forgot to have the kids pick them up before taking this picture). Built-ins Before...OK, so can you really call these built-ins if they are just shelves that are bolted into the wall? Apparently you can if you are the agent who was listing the house. But don't worry, with some inspiration from our bro-in-law Zach, who used wood floor trim to finish his breakfast bar, we came out with the lovely shelving you see in the next picture. Built-in Shelving after Adam worked his magic! Great job Honey! Stairs Up
Luke's Room-Babies need blue rooms. I think even girls do, because blue is such a calming, cozy color. Doesn't this room make you sleepy?More Luke's Room-notice the ever present humidifier. It is dry here!! Zach's Room-the orange accent is awesome with the light brown walls. Point of interest, when we first moved in Zach's room had floors that were covered in the same linoleum as the bathrooms (see below) even if there hadn't been five dogs living here, you can see how new carpeting was necessary.Kids' Bathroom-we added the chair rail in addition to the green paint Ben and Josh's Room-a shout out to my girl Sarah for the stripety stripe idea from her girls' bathroom, it looks so cute!Master Bath with Green Counters (all the bathrooms have the green counters, which aren't as hideous as I first thought, but still need updating soon. On the other hand, what is truly hideous are...)...faux black marble linoleum floors in the two upstairs bathrooms...YUCK! These will go ASAP. Can you see how winning the lottery would be a plus for me? On the positive side, the master bath has a delicious soaking tub that, depending on my childrens' moods, I may one day choose to live in. The Master Bedroom (AKA The Fortress of Solitude)
I really do love the green walls we chose (they match the green in the leaves on the bedding). They are LOVELY and make me feel like I am at peace with the world...ahhh, just thinking about it makes me calm.
And that is about it. One day we will finish the basement so I will have more pictures to post, but, barring me actually winning the lottery for which I don't actually purchase tickets, that will be a lot of saving from now. I am off to stop the baby from eating all the Legos that are on the family room floor. See? I wasn't kidding.

Still Here....

As is obvious by the lack of pictures on this post our computer is STILL not working, but I wanted to let everyone know that we did not disappear into space, I just figure it isn't nearly as interesting reading without pictures, so I haven't been posting. As for the computer, the original problem was that part of the memory that helps it process broke down. They removed that, but didn't have a replacement at the time. This computer store is not close at all, and there are no stores closer that carry this type of memory, so Adam has not been out to get it yet. It is incredibly slow without that piece of memory, so I can't upload pictures. It is really frustrating. So hopefully everything will be fixed soon and I can put up 1000 pictures of all the fun and craziness that has been going on with us.

Luke is feeling better again, he has a new little cold, but hopefully it will stay little. We took him to an ear specialist who said we could put tubes in, but we decided to wait. So hopefully we can keep him ear infection free for awhile. He is less than a month from his first birthday, as crazy as that sounds, and tries so hard to be a big boy like his brothers. We still only get "Daw" for Ruby, and "Hi" when he sees you for the first time out of him as far as words go, but I am hoping "Mama" is around the corner. But the GREAT news is that Luke is finally sleeping through the night 95% of the time! It is amazing; I feel so rested and ready to take on the world. Ahhh, sweet sleepy bliss. I know, who has a kid who still wakes up 3-5 times a night at 10.5 months? ME! But no longer and with Adam's willing help (he was tired too) we got him sleeping well in just three days without much mommy guilt at all. So nice.

Zach is still enjoying his new school and is beginning to feel less like the "new kid" every day. He even had a playdate over at his new friend Corey's house, which he just loved.

Josh, who two months ago I was ready to sell to the first gypsy who passed by the house, has turned into the biggest helper and best listener. I think he just needed dad around again. He is so cute! As we say about our Joshie, he "feels big" whether it is joy, sadness, love, frustration; he does it with such gusto, it is so endearing.

Ben has been loving being home and having all the time in the world to play Lego. It is amazing what he can build. The sets for 8+ years-old? No problem!

All the boys are in swim lessons at the Y and are really enjoying them. Josh is in his first ever lessons and has to wait 45 minutes for the time slot that is after the other boys. He sits still next to me on the bench, wearing his little goggles the whole time! He just can't wait! And then spends half the lesson under water, to the disdain of his teacher. Zach and Ben are also both playing soccer too and have had a fun season. It keeps us kind of crazy busy, but I guess that is what having four boys is all about.

Things are settled nicely here. I still love our house, minus the unfinished basement. But that is ok, I can be patient. I have a bad habit of always saying, "Where we used to live...." And then going on to explain why Washington is better or different from here. I annoy myself with it, so I am sure I am annoying everyone else, but it just kind of pops out! I also had the chance to go to Women's Conference down at BYU with three friends from MBA school. It was incredibly uplifting. Hearing President Monson, Sheri Dew, Julie Beck, John Bytheway, and so many others speak and teach us really comforted me and gave me peace, but also made me want to come home and do so much better! And it was so nice to have a weekend off after six months of part-time single parenting, especially with three such incredible women who I admire greatly. My mom came out to see the boys and lend a hand where needed, especially with Luke (who, at 11 months, still wasn't taking much of a bottle at all before I left-what finally worked? Nuby sippy cups). All went swimmingly here, so much so that I felt like I wasn't missed much at all. Even though Luke was pretty dang glad to see me; and I to see ALL of these wonderful guys.

Anyhow, that is a little update. I hope with all hopefulness that our computer is up and running smoothly very soon, so I don't bore you anymore with pictureless posts!