Wow...what a full fun week of vacationing in Colorado. A lot to tell and share, so here I go.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles: We used all kinds of modes of transportation this week. Just to get home yesterday we took: a rental car, then a shuttle bus, next a train, then an airplane, onto a shuttle and finally into our own car. Both plane rides had their own mishaps. On the way to Denver right before we took off we had to move seats because of Shane's car seat. Sounds easy enough, except his car set got stuck and we couldn't unbuckle it. Nerve racking to have the whole plane stare at you. On the way home Shane threw up all over. It got both of us really good. Luckily we learned to bring him a change of clothes, but not myself. I stunk so bad!! Sorry to all the people around us on that flight.
Shane in his car seat on the way there.
We decided to ditch the car seat for the trip back, which helped a lot. The big boy sitting in his own chair, enjoying the views.
Visit with Kenny's College Friends: After arriving safely in Denver (2 hours later then we had expected), we got Shane down for a nap in the hotel. We had a little time to unwind, but because we were late getting to the hotel we had to wake Little Guy up from his nap so we could go visit with some of Kenny's college friends and have dinner. We headed to Arvada to Sean and Jessica's house, where Shane got to play with Xalen and we got to meet little Brinlee. Katie, Josh and their son, Ethan came by also to visit with us, also! It was great to catch up with friends and have yummy dinner. Thanks guys for starting our trip off on the right foot!
Three thirsty boy's at dinner (Shane, Xalen and Ethan)
Shane playing with Brinlee. He just loves little babies.
Coors Baseball Field Tour: We had some free time one morning, so we all set off for a tour of the local baseball field. Shane was a bit behind on sleep and made the tour quite interesting for all of us. Totally melt down the majority of the time. Can't say this was my favorite part of the trip, but not everything can be, right? Another big sorry to all the other people on our tour! Not a lot you can do with a grumpy and tired two year old!
In the locker room, trying everything possible to keep Shane happy.
Meredith, Carolyn and Shane (cousins).
Bachelor and Bachlorette parties: We were in Denver for Kenny's younger sister, Aimee's wedding. We had a busy few days of pre-wedding events. The first took us both in separate directions to bachelor/bachlorette parties. While Shane stayed at the hotel with Grandma and Grandpa Booth and got to play with his cousins, Carolyn and Meredith. Kenny went to an all you can eat Brazilian steak house, were he and all the other guys ate themselves silly. They ended the night with a few games of bowling. The girls headed to a Mexican restaurant and then to a comedy show called "Girls Only". It was absolutely hilarious! The show was two women doing skits about women. Two hours of gut rolling laughter! We had a great time meeting Aimee and Chris' friends and getting out for a night! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Booth for watching the kids while we all got a night out on the town.
Bridal Shower: Claire, my sister-in-law, was in charge of the bridal shower. She put together a great event where people from both sides of the family got a chance to mingle and learn more about the two. We learned that Aimee can play 13 instruments and that Chris loves his meat. I lended a hand where needed. Thanks Claire for all your hard work planning a bridal shower from a far.
Rehearsal Dinner: That evening we had a fabulous dinner at Maggiano's Little Italy Restaurant for rehearsal dinner. Shane was the ring bearer for the wedding so he needed to practice his part. Turns out he wasn't so up to practicing. But we had a yummy dinner with friends and family. The food just kept coming and coming. We watched a great slide show of the Bride and Groom, as well as, hearing some hilarious stories about the two of them. Kenny even got up and read a very funny poem about the Bride and Groom. I'll post that in the near future. Thanks to Chris' Mom and Dad for a fun rehearsal dinner!
We brought along some Hot Wheels for Shane on this trip. I got them for .50 cents at Fred Meyer. They saved the day on many occasions!! Here Shane is entertaining himself at rehearsal dinner with his Hot Wheels.
Swimming: During some of our down time we would hit the pool. Shane turned into a little fish over the week. It was the first time he had used floaties. He would jump off the side of the pool into Kenny's arms, would kick and "swim", he started to float on his back and flip over to his stomach. He was the most comfortable we had ever seen him in the water. Mommy or Daddy still couldn't go to far, but it is a start. Swimming lessons start in August for us, so it was great timing.
"I do."
The Big Wedding Day: The day finally arrived. We had a casual morning eating breakfast and driving around the town of Golden. We saw the Coors brewery. Kenny couldn't believe how big it was. Shane even got a chance to play at a local park. After a much needed nap for all three of us, we were up and dressed in our wedding clothes and out the door for pictures at a near by park. The weather so far had been quite warm and this afternoon was not different. We had some shade to take refugee in when we weren't having our pictures taken, but Shane wasn't so happy to be told to sit still and not get dirty in his cute little tux. He wanted nothing to do with getting his pictures taken with the wedding party (those should be interested to see how they turned out). But did better with the rest of the pictures since Mommy and Daddy where in them, too.
Getting his hands on the ring bearer pillow.
Shane, Meredith and Carolyn.
Papa and Shane before the wedding pictures.
Isn't he handsome!
The wedding venue was up on a hill with a beautiful view of the Denver area below us. There was a little creek with goldfish and a bridge that Shane was super fascinated with. We weren't so sure he was going to make it over the bridge to the wedding party. We talked and talked to him about what he needed to do as a ring bearer, but he just wasn't having it. He got hungry and tiredness set in right as the wedding began. It was melt down city!! Finally, we decided it would be best if Kenny escorted him down the aisle. Right as Shane started to walk down the aisle, he pulled himself together, handed his cracker over to Kenny, took his ring pillow and started walking. He was signing "water" the whole time. Kenny walked behind him a little ways. Shane stopped at the bridge, where he threatened to throw the pillow in the water. Kenny collected him at that point and took him to our seats. Where we had another close melt down, but was averted with the candy we had been bribing him with the whole afternoon. He made it threw the ceremony, the tux jacket came off and he was ready to party.
In love with the bridge!
Shane and Carolyn checking out the stream. Luckily the only thing to end up in their was Shane's shoe as we were leaving.
Shane right after the wedding party exited. He just couldn't get away from that bridge.
Second cousin Brent being silly like always!
What a day!
Papa and Shane on the bridge.
Me and Shane being silly at the end of the evening.
Little dancing man.
The wedding was lots of fun! Good food, yummy cake, friends and family to visit with and lots and lots of dancing. Finally around 10:30pm, we decided Little Guy needed to hit the hay. It had been a long day and we were all pretty tired. Congratulations to Aimee and Chris for a great wedding. They are currently enjoying two weeks in Hawaii! We can't wait to see all the wedding pictures!
Brunch: The next morning we headed to Aimee and Chris' house for a brunch with close friends and family. It was a nice chance to say good bye to people heading out. But for 25 of us we had a whole other adventure ahead of us.
Stay Tuned for the events of the Family Reunion in Breckenridge, Colorado!
Remember, the August SOTM is only available until August 31st, contact me to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!
