Adam's 40th Birthday Getaway

Adam is a guy who deserves a celebration.  He is a true and complete partner in this journey of life, and I am grateful for all that he is all the time.  He works hard to provide for our family, sacrificing 'fun things' for the 'must do,' but at the same time, keeps a healthy work-life balance and is a very present father for his sons and a support system for me.  He loves me in all of my imperfections and values me for me.  We laugh together, cry together, and talk and talk and talk.  Time together is still my favorite time.  I just like to be with him, even if it's simply for a late-night trip to the grocery or a walk to school to pick up the kids.  He makes me feel like a million bucks, and, amazingly, after 17 years of marriage, can still look at me like the girl he fell in love with forever ago.  What we have is not perfection, we are both human beings after all, but it is as close as I could ever have hoped it would be.  I don't know how else to say it other than we are a right fit, a great match, kindred spirits, made for each other, and I realize how lucky I am to have this gift of us.  Adam as my companion through it all.

That said, as Adam's fortieth birthday approached (say what?!  40???), I wanted to make sure he knew how cherished he was.  So I plotted with my mom to plan a little birthday getaway to coincide with Luke's birthday trip so she could be here with the kids while we were gone without raising his suspicions.  My secret plan was in the works for months...and then I had to let the cat out of the bag because he had to figure out his vacation time for work and let his boss know about his planned days off for the rest of the year, so the team could coordinate their time out of office.  BUT, I was able to keep the location a secret, which was fine because it took me some time to finally settle on what I wanted to do anyway.

Over the years here, I have fallen in love with our Colorado mountain towns.  I've even tried to convince Adam that we need to move up to Eagle County to hike and mountain bike all summer and ski all winter (he hasn't agreed...yet).  So I wanted to share more of this place I love so much with my love.  Then, following this year's Colorado Ragnar, I knew just where I wanted to take Adam: Snowmass/Aspen.  If it happened to be an early winter, we could spend three cozy days snuggling and maybe snowshoeing, but if it was a long summer (as it turned out to be), we could hike and explore and bike.  Either way, it was sure to be a success!

We took off Sunday afternoon for a three-day getaway.  Hooray!  Here at last!  Adam guessed where we were going somewhere around Vail, after a LOT of clues.  Once we arrived at our condo in Snowmass, we set about planning the adventures we wanted to have.  On day one, after a delicious brunch in Aspen at Annette's Mountain Bake Shop, a place we heard usually had really long wait times, but because we were there between seasons we got a table right away, we set out on a bike ride along the Rio Grande Trail.  The trail follows the old Rio Grande Rail Road line and the Rio Grande River.  It was a beautiful ride, so we decided to push out for 15 miles, instead of our planned turn-around at 10.  But when you go out, you have to go back, so....  It was long.  Fortunately, we were able to stop for lunch and really good salted caramel milkshakes, and a few games of Pick, at a cute little cafe along the trail to give our legs and bums a break.  By the time we were back to the car, we were sore and tired, so we treated ourselves to caramel apples to ease our pain!

Day two we KNEW that we would go to the Maroon Bells Wilderness, no question.  This stunning setting has been on our to-visit list for awhile now, and we were really excited to make it happen.  And it was every bit as beautiful as we had heard and seen in the pictures.  We hiked out to Crater Lake (lake? more like mud pit at this point in the season), and then carried on up the mountain to Buckskin Pass.  We said, "When we want to turn around, we will."  But...the pass!  So up and up and up and up we went.  The breathtaking view from the pass, an altitude of 12,462 feet above sea level, defines the word: beyond beautiful, but very low on oxygen!  Photos of peaks, that jut into the heavens over 14,000 feet above sea level, don't do the majesty of these mountains justice.  There is just something about them that is awe-inspiring and humbling.  From the pass we could see both of the Maroon Bells, Pyramid Peak, Snowmass Mountain, and Capitol Peak, all Fourteeners; in addition to that there were several 12- and 13,000+ peaks in sight and the aquamarine waters of Snowmass Lake.  The 14-mile round trip hike was really nice.  The trail between Maroon Lake and Crater Lake was not difficult and pretty busy, but once we diverged from the Crater Lake area, the trail became very steep and we didn't see many people on the trail.  And then at the top, it was so lovely, quiet and peaceful, with only a little bit of a breeze, and just the two of us.  We felt for a bit like we were the only people on earth.  It was our favorite day.

The last day we decided to start our drive home and make a stop after passing through Glenwood Springs to hike to Hanging Lake and then catch dinner and see a movie if time allowed.  We were so glad we did it, and did it on a Wednesday in the autumn.  The trail was so busy!  We could only imagine what it was like during the summer.  But there is good reason for that, what a beautiful marvel of nature!  The lake sits at the top of a heavy incline in a crevice valley between two foothills and reminded me a bit of something you'd see in prehistoric times or on an alien planet.  It's fed by a really cool waterfall that shoots straight out of a hole in a cliff wall and you can walk right behind it.  I actually enjoyed the upper falls as much as Hanging Lake itself.  It was really pretty!

We finished up our getaway with dinner at the Colorado Rocky Mountain Brewery and The Walk in 3D at the theater.  A great, relaxed ending to three days of adventure!  It was such a wonderful time.  Really and truly just perfect.  We are already entertaining ideas for what to do for his 41st....


  

Brunch

Part of the old rail line.

Turn around point!

yum.

The sunset view from our condo.

Yes!

The Maroon Bells reflected in Maroon Lake.

The selfie stick!  Had a lot of good laughs over this new toy.

We were about two weeks behind the peak of the aspen colors, but we still caught glimpses here and there.

A man and his gorp.

Aspens give way to evergreens.

Just below the treeline.

Life will find a way.

That's where we are headed!

Getting closer!

And closer!

Capitol Peak, Snowmass Peak and Snowmass Lake

Pyramid Peak

Kissing on top of the world!

You can see North Maroon Peak poking between the closer 13,000+ peak and Maroon Peak.

Beaver Dam at Maroon Lake

Goodbye, room with a view!

Hanging Lake trail.

Spouting Rock waterfall.

Hanging Lake

It was steep.  If the kids came we'd have to rope them together.

There were actual FERNS and MOSS...not scrub bushes and lichen!

No Conlin party is complete without a visit to the movies!

The Bits: October 10th Through October 19th

Mid-October Bits:

Being a goalkeeper mama has really opened me up to a new perspective of the game of soccer.  Coming to new realizations is one of the great things about growing older and having new experiences, so I wanted to make sure I wrote it down.  Josh's team has struggled to come together a bit this season, and they've faced a lot of defeats.  It's easy for general spectators to get frustrated with the goalkeeper when they fail to stop the ball, the keeper is an easy and obvious target because the results of their mistakes or failures are obvious.  I'm not innocent of directing frustrations at the keeper in games past, but, as parents of a keeper now, we've learned how wrong we were.  Soccer is truly a team sport!  For example: at his most recent game, Josh faced 15 shots on goal, with 11 saves.  The other goal keeper only faced 3 shots on goal, with 2 saves.  Our team lost 1-4.  Looking at percentages, Josh saved nearly 75% of shots, while the other keeper saved only 66%, yet we still lost because other elements of the game weren't coming together.  It goes to show how much every player needs to do their part!  Fortunately, we have an awesome team that supports Josh and recognizes his success, but it has been eye-opening to me to have this fresh vantage point.  Plus, it's always good to be reminded that everyone has their unique perspective on any experience in life, it keeps us compassionate and humble.  Play on, keeper!  

In a double-header last Saturday, Tommy scored his first and second goals ever!  He was thrilled!  Go Tommy!

Mom arrived in Colorado to watch our boys while I escaped with Adam for his 40th and then to take Luke on his 8th birthday trip.  Hooray!  But we got a little together time too.  Time with Mom is happiness!

Never backs down, our Ben.

With years of practice and games behind him, Zac has developed so many great soccer moves, like this little fake-out that I caught last weekend.  Coming in to smash it in the forward's face?  No!  Just a nice little pass to a teammate.

Nana wanted to make sure she treated our October birthday kids to special dinners out while she was in town.  Tommy chose Red Robin because they had macaroni-and-cheese and because the servers would sing to him at the table.  All dinner long he kept asking, "When is my surprise coming?"  Not such a surprise, I guess!

Finally!  The Martian was at the top of my 2015 "To-See" list since the first preview I saw last year.  And it didn't disappoint!

It's easier to be away from the kids when we know they are in such good hands and are loved so well.  Nana jumped right into the insane fall schedule and got it all down just fine, even with several changes that were communicated to Adam and I last-minute over the three days we were gone!  Here Tommy and Luke are playing at the playground while Josh attends goalkeeper clinic on a nearby field.

The Book Fair wrapped up successfully!  It's one of my favorite events.  When the fliers were sent home, Tommy whispered to me, "Mom...there is something really inappropriate in the Book Fair magazine...it says 'underpants!'"  Haha! 

Tommy asked for a Minion Build-a-Bear for his birthday, so while I closed up the Book Fair, Nana took Tommy to build his not-bear, Bob.  Bob is definitely the new favorite stuffed friend!

Fall Conference success!  The boys are all doing really well in school and we are very proud of all their hard work, as well as the respect and good manners they practice at school.  We had so many compliments from teachers and staff, not just of the boys' smarts, but of their overall character.  Love my wonderful boys!

Before and after.

Josh's birthday dinner outing with Nana was P.F. Changs.  Yum!  Thanks for spoiling us, Nana!

Scorch Trials for three!

And an outing for us all to Hotel Transylvania 2.  We love the movies!

Luke is all set for his bachelor-in-the-city days.  I watched him walk to the fridge, grab a box of Chinese take-out, pull a pair of chopsticks out of a drawer and proceed to walk around the kitchen chatting and eating from the box.  It was a funny glimpse into a future time.

Beware...she may sniff you to death!

My favorite line from Ben's soccer evaluation from his coach: "You're one of the reasons that I love going to practice everyday."

Tommy is up on two wheels!  He has yet to figure out pedaling and steering at the same time, but he has the balance idea down and is golden on the straightaway.  Woo hoo!!!

Zac's soccer season is coming to an end and we are all a little sad.  It's been so fun watching him play for Rampart's JV team this fall and we can really see his growth as a player.  He regularly plays between 90 to 100% of the game, and when the coach takes him off, it is amazing (really unbelievable!) how often the other team scores the second he is on the sideline; he really makes a difference out there!  Zac just loves being part of this team.  What a great season!!

The Bits: October 1st Through October 9th

The First Bits of October!

Our sweet neighbor, Gabi, has known that I had laying down pavers outside our back gate on my to-do list for awhile, since we were using some of her old pavers.  It was a project that just kept getting bumped for other things.  I've been busier than I thought I'd be!  So one day I discovered that she had done it for me, out of the kindness of her heart.  So grateful for the good, thoughtful people in this world!

When you don't feed your family red meat all that often.  "Chicking" = Chicken.  Haha!

Best skies in the country!

Finally some fall.

I've been feeling on edge a bit this month.  I am so tired of asking the boys to do things, only to have them ignored and then have their choice to ignore negatively affect us all.  Like asking them to get ready to go: I ask, then I start doing things I need to do to get us going, expecting them to be able to take care of the things they need to do because I know they can, and then, when it's time to walk out the door, I find that instead of getting ready, they started up a new game, so then we are all late.  I saw this post on Facebook and was grateful for the much-needed perspective.  11. Kids playing instead of getting ready = happy kids who enjoy being together.  We still have to work on the problem, it's not going away, but it's good to see a frustrating situation from a different point of view from time to time!

More beautiful skies!

We think the only thing to make General Conference even sweeter is delicious snacks to gobble down while we watch.  Our bellies were filled along with our minds, hearts and spirits!

Go Tommy!  It's been great to see him get more comfortable with the ball as the season has progressed.

Getting out some wiggles at the local Ninja Warrior course...erm...playground...between Conference sessions.

Just can't get enough.

Unavoidable.  Ben is so happy!

Chaperoning the 7th grade field trip to the Southern Colorado Manufacturing Expo: seeing Baxter the Robot at work, building a solar powered car and learning about tons of jobs and businesses in the technology and manufacturing industries.  Plus...a lot of freebies, so happy kids.

Been doing some cleaning and organizing recently, and I ran across these icons of ages past.  Guess it's been awhile since I was in the back of that cupboard!

Hail confetti.

The Book Fair Dynamic Duo!  I really enjoy working alongside Mikala to get our book fair running smoothly.  She's a great friend and planner!  It's been a busy week with a lot of time spent stressing over volunteers and working the fair, but it's also been so much fun.  I love the book fair!

Up...and...over!  So proud of my defender this season!  He's been called out nearly every game for his solid play.

Seventh grade band off to a great start!  We really enjoyed Ben's first concert of the year!

Speed....  I. Am. Speed....  No, not really.  Especially when I have friends finishing MARATHONS in 3:16 to 3:37!  Amazing!  But I still felt pretty good about this one.

So far so good on the 'teenager' thing.  I adore my teens!  Zac and Ben are two very cool kids.

Sunrise on the morning of my last long run before the half marathon.  Excited to do it...and ready for it to be over!

My two little boys and I had a fun night out at the Colorado College Kid Stage production of the adorable musical "Elephant and Piggie: We Are in a Play" based on the books by Mo Willems.  We were invited to go with some friends and we are so grateful!  We loved it.  Luke said, "This has been one of the best days ever!"  And Tommy gave it the critic's review of, "It was very good!"  So much of our lives is geared toward the older boys, it was nice to get out and do something fun that appealed to the little boys' tastes!