Colorado

The boys didn't think that Rocky Mountain was very exciting!

The boys watching the train at the station!

Our Train!

Mason and Mitchell!

Our Family!

Mitchell and I on the train!

Connor trying hard to get the ball in the hole!

Mitchell having fun golfing!

We made it to the top of the rocky mountain!

The four wheel drive road!

What a great view!

Me and my boys!

Elden playing with the boys!

We were blessed to be able to go on vacation to Colorado this summer! We were very excited to go and couldn't wait to see the beautiful mountains! We left on early Saturday morning and got to Colorado around 5pm that evening. The trip went really well and the kids were pretty good along the way. On Sunday we went on a four wheel drive road. This was Elden's favorite part of the trip. We went on this steep road with huge rocks all the way up. We would have never made it without our four wheel drive vehicle! Elden loved every minute of it! When we got near the top of the mountain we found some people who have gone on this mountain before! Thank goodness they had wenches and shovels in case we got stuck. They were headed up the mountain too, so they said they'd help us if we got stuck. We went through this huge snow pass and thankfully we didn't fall off :) We managed to make it to the top!

Tim and Shari Westercamp and Mason came on Tuesday night and stayed with us the rest of the week! We were glad they came and enjoyed their company! On Thursday we went to Rocky Mountain National Park for the day! We were hoping to find some wildlife, but we only found a moose. We were quite disappointed! But we had a great time climbing the mountains! On Friday we went on a train ride in GeorgeTown called the GeorgeTown Loop! The boys had a blast on the train! That was their favorite part of the trip! On our last day there the guys rode bikes down the mountain in Keystone while us girls brought the kids mini putt in! They had fun trying to get the balls in the holes! Before we knew it our week was over and it was time to go home! We had a great time and hope to go back again someday!

Ozarks Vacation

This past week we had a great time spending it in the Ozarks! As many of you know, we spend a week on vacation with Elden's side of the family every year in the Ozarks. I think this has been my 11th year in going with them. We always have a good time together spending time together! This year's weather was great, it was mid 90's every day and no rain except on the last day! We kept busy taking boat rides and looking at all the big houses and just relaxing in the water. Mitchell loved jumping in the lake and even went on the tube this year by himself after daddy "accidently" fell off the back! Connor was much more comfotable in the swimming pool jumping in and swimming around. I think the lake was overwhelming for him since he didn't have a side to hang on to. The last night we were there we went out for dinner. We had a great time relaxing and watching all the big boats come in for dinner too. It was so enjoyable just going for rides and enjoying the bueaty that God has made. Here are a few pictures of our week. Now we need to get ready for our next vacation to Colorado...I am sure you are thinking that we have a pretty rough life :)

Happy 4th of July!

Connor splashing through the water puddle!

Mitchell on the smiley train!

Future Farmer!

Connor having fun driving this tractor!

Elden and the boys!

On this cold, wet morning, we ventured out to see Newton's Fourth of July parade! We look forward to it every year, however this year wasn't quite as warm as the years before. For the past couple of years Elden has had the opportunity to drive an old John Deere tractor in the parade and today he drove the JD 820. After the parade they park the tractors on the square so that people can have the chance to look at them. The boys always enjoy getting on the tractors and checking them out!

Mitchell enjoyed the parade, even though he didn't want to go at first b/c he didn't want to hear the loud steam engine tractor. He made sure he covered his ears this year! Almost everyone that went past threw candy at us and it seemed as though Mitchell spent more time picking up candy than watching the parade! Connor loved the tractors and said "vroom, vroom" every time one went by. There was even a CAT with tracks and a Kinze grain cart (just like Elden's CAT and Kinze) at the parade!

We had a great time this morning, despite the dreary weather. We are looking foward to going to the Ozarks tomorow morning for some R&R this coming week. It looks like the weather should be nicer than it was today, thank goodness! We hope everyone has a great 4th of July!