A Bike Ride Through the Rockies

Our last day in Breckenridge, we rented bikes. We were dropped off at the top of the Vail Pass and rode our bikes down through the mountains for 15 miles. The ride was full of amazing views and turned out to be our favorite part of the trip. Brayden got to ride along in the Burley trailer on the back of Jonathan's bike. He did so good, and really enjoyed the ride as well.

At the beginning of our ride,

getting ready to take off on the trail

Brayden chillin' out in his sweet ride

Me on the trail

BEAUTIFUL!

Jonathan next to some rocky cliffs

I now know where they get the big Christmas trees

like in Rockefeller Center in NYC!

tiny Christmas tree

Brayden enjoyed it so much that he took a good long nap!

A good end to a GREAT trip.

Happy Trails...

While in Breck, one of the things we decided to do was go hiking. You have to go hiking while in the mountains, so we found out one of the most popular hikes to do - the Mohawk Trail. It was "intermediate," which didn't sound too hard. We heard it had amazing views and waterfalls...so off we went. It was a 7 mile round-trip hike to the Upper Lake. No biggie...riiiight!

The first 2 miles was supposed to be "beginner." Jonathan was "wearing" Brayden in a hiking backpack and I was armed with my camel-pack (backpack filled with water that has a fun little sippy straw). About halfway up the 2 miles, I was D-Y-I-N-G! This was not "beginner," whoever classified this trail! Finally, we got to the 2 mile mark...okay, only 1.5 miles to go!

Um, then it gets steep. Steep, as in, I am am scaling a rock wall and hanging on for dear life, steep...well, maybe that's an exaggeration. But it was steep, nonetheless. There was a point where we had to hold onto a thick cable to pull ourselves up the rocks. Jonathan was laughing at me, because I would stop and say, while heaving, "I...CAN'T...BREATHE!"

Anyway, it was an adventure. And, we made it. We got to the Lower Mohawk Lake and decided there was no way we were making it to the Upper Lake. The views were beautiful and we ate lunch next to the lake. It became really chilly and started to spit rain, so we packed up and headed down... Now, you do remember that it was VERY steep, and now we're headed down the SLICK, WET rocks! But we made it. It was an adventuresome day. We did a 6-mile intermediate hike that was more like Everest for me, the untrained hiker. But it was fun...enjoy the pics:

Beginning our hike...happy!

(Brayden's not too sure)

Me with my hiking stick that Jonathan found.

(Crooked, I know...but it worked)

Brayden is having a great time...so cute!

This would be a COOOLD winter!

Say, huh?! We have to climb that?!

Do you see the little people way up top?

EXHAUSTED!

Yep, STILL exhausted...and lagging behind,

but check out the AMAZING views!

A beautiful waterfall along the way

Eating lunch by the Lower Mohawk Lake

So beautiful!

A view from the top...amazing!

Pictures just don't do it justice!

We made it to the top!!!

Sleepy baby on the way down

We were never so excited to see our car! We did it!!!

Now, THIS is Vacation

Juan and Brayden taking a little stroll.

Playing at our lodge's playground.

Peek-a-boo!

Mountain Thunder Lodge...a GREAT place to stay!

Brayden playing in the grass by the river while

we ate our picnic lunch.

Jonathan & BBG eating lunch by the river.

Now, that's a big bear!

Taking a walk down the (non-functioning) train tracks.

Big smiles!

My men!

Silly Times in Breck

Even though we weren't there in the winter to ski, we wanted to act like we were...

We found this hat store that had ALL kinds of hats...

so we decided to have a little fun with it.

Brayden and his fro:

J-Mullet-Gray

I don't like cats...but this is the one

Jonathan picked out for me...ha!

Welcome to Breckenridge!

What a view!

Jonathan REALLY likes the view...

he is trying to jump into it!

Pictures just don't do it justice!

Welcome to Denver!

When we first landed, this is what we saw...

"I thought the Rockies were supposed

to be rockier than this!"

Our first stop in Colorado was to visit some good friends who used to live in Houston - Justin & Emily. We stayed with them one night before heading to Breckenridge. We had such a great time getting to hang out and catch up on life.

Me & Em

Jonathan & Justin

While we were there, we went to a local park to have a picnic. They have a great little water fountain area for the kids to play in. Brayden had a blast!

Their youngest little guy - Hudson...

trying to eat an orange whole! So cute!

Justin & Em's oldest, Jacob, having a blast in the fountains.

This was such a fun stop for us on our vacation.

Thanks, Justin & Em for letting us come visit!

Colorado, Here We Come!

This year for vacation, we decided to head to the Rockies. I have been to Colorado for many youth ski trips during my high school years and then for summer camp a few times, but I had never taken a trip to simply relax in the mountains during the summer. Honestly, I was a bit hesitant. See, I am a 'beach girl.' I love to just lay on the soft sand and soak in the rays for hours upon end, but Jonathan requested that this year's vacation be to the mountains. It took awhile for me to be convinced, but when I realized the thermometer would read in the 50's rather than the 90's at this time of year and that we could do fun things like bike riding and hiking, I was sold.

We headed to Breckenridge, Colorado last week and had an amazing time. I will post pictures over the next few days to recap some of our highlights of the trip. One thing I can say is that the beauty of the Lord was SO evident and majestic in that place. It was awesome to see His glory displayed!

Welcome to This World: Brooks & Reese Bruner

Early this morning, my cousin Stephen & his wife Sarah gave birth to two healthy, beautiful babies. James 'Brooks' and Reese Redding were born a little after 3:30 this morning. They were 5 lbs. 13 oz. and 5 lbs. 11 oz. respectively. I am so excited for Stephen & Sarah and for the adventure that they are embarking on as new parents. Welcome to this world, Brooks & Reese!