We had a wonderful trip to Colorado for my sister's wedding.
Of course prep for the trip was half the battle. I thought it was tough packing for two (me and Connor), but packing for three was even more difficult, especially since it's summer time and the only downtime I had to pack was when Connor was napping, but of course I still had to hold Avery. Boy, was it challenging, but we got it all done and I think we packed everything we needed.
We were nervous about flying with both kids and maneuvering all of our luggage, but it worked out alright. We had a little bump on the way out as our flight was a little over 2 hours delayed and we were already at the airport when we found out so we had to keep the kiddos occupied at the airport, but they did awesome. Connor happily played with his trucks and we had lunch. The only issue with the delay was that our flight took off directly during Connor's nap time. He was a trooper though and even though he said he was tired, he never slept (he refuses to sleep on airplanes). Avery was a delight. I fed her and then sat with her and eventually she fell asleep in my arms. She liked the rocking and noise of the plane I think. Good girl.
The best thing we did was rent a house instead of doing the hotel thing. We stayed in it with my sister and her family and we had Brian's son John too, so all the cousins had fun together. Plus we had our own rooms, a refrigerator and of course a much needed coffee maker. Ha! It also had a great patio and outdoor space which was nice for the kids to have.
The weather was incredible. It is already in the 90's and humid in Houston, so chilly mornings and evenings and upper 70's for a high was amazing. We wanted to be outside all the time. The town of Estes Park is so cute and we got to try out a couple of the local restaurants in between wedding events.
We also made it out to the Rocky Mountain National Park. We got out at the top at the visitor center but it was about 45 degrees and none of us were dressed appropriately, so we only stayed for a little bit. The views from the drive were awesome though. Connor was excited though, because he got to touch snow, which doesn't normally happen in June.
Julie and Brian hooked us up by finding a babysitter for us, so the kids came to the rehearsal, but they didn't come to the dinner. Avery came, but she slept like a little angel in the Ergo baby carrier the entire time. She loves that thing. We had a great dinner at a nice restaurant. Both Jeff and I agreed that it was really nice to get out for a nice dinner. We still can't really get a babysitter since Avery's schedule is still pretty unpredictable, but she's getting better. Hopefully there will be a date night in our near future.
On the wedding day, I got my hair and makeup done at 9am and then I met Jeff and the kids at Lilly Lake. I felt a little silly with my hair and makeup all done on a hike, but since the weather was so glorious I wasn't worried about sweating.
The wedding itself was at 4:30pm and it was outside on a gazebo with views of mountains in the distance. Connor and his cousins were "flower people" and dropped aspen leaves up the aisle. He had to wear a super cute suit and he did a great job. I was very proud of him. The ceremony was really nice and I'm so happy for my sister and her new husband. Congratulations Julie and Brian.
The kids stayed for dinner and then we took them home for the babysitter (except Avery who stayed with us). The rest of the reception was really fun and Avery stayed awake the entire time. She must already be a party girl. She was happy and let everyone hold her, but she just didn't want to sleep. She was a hit.
The trip home Sunday was smooth as silk. What great little travelers we have. I feel like this was a good dry run for our big trip to Loon Lake in two weeks. I hope they do just as good. I have high hopes.
Now enjoy some pictures from the wedding weekend. I didn't take that many since it was pretty jam packed and there was a wedding day photographer, but you can see some of the activity.
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| Our rental house patio became the after party hang out. It was so nice to have this house. |
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| On Friday morning, we went to a local coffee shop and Connor got to feed the ducks. |
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| Views of the Rocky Moutains as we drove around Rocky Mtn. National Park. This was before the forest fire started, which we did see begin the Sunday we left. Scary. My sister has been evacuated since her wedding. Yikes. |
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| Little Avery driving around Rocky Mtn. National Park. |
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| Tap the Rockies and check out those blue skies. |
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| Cousins Winnie, Connor, and Martin checking out the Colorado views safe inside from the cold and wind. |
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| Connor checking out the snow. We were very high up. We all had headaches on our first day due to the elevation. |
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| Avery dressed up in tights and patten leather shoes for the rehearsal dinner. |
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| Rehearsing the ceremony. Nice location. |
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| On our way to the rehearsal dinner we saw wild Elk just roaming around. We saw a ton throughout the weekend. |
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| Bride to be Julie, Matron of Honor Melissa and baby Avery sleeping soundly. |
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| Avery on the wedding day was such a little angel. She liked hanging with the girls. |
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| Excited bride to be and the mother of the bride in the gorgeous bridal sweet. |
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| Avery getting some TLC from her Aunts. |
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| Libby, Aunt Erin, Avery, and dapper Connor at the wedding reception at Taharra Mountain Lodge. |
