One beautiful cabin in the Colorado mountains; three families, two boys apiece, ages 3 and almost 1 = a fun, silly, awesome weekend.
All our younger boys have birthdays within a month of each other, so our friend Kari had the great idea to celebrate their first big day with a weekend getaway. The timing was perfect: fall was just hitting the high mountains, turning the aspens bright gold and the roadside and creekside brush all sorts of reds and oranges. We rented a beautiful cabin between Buena Vista and Salida, in a stunning area of the state that is just a couple hours' drive from here. I wish I had pictures of the golden-lit trip there on Friday afternoon, but the boys were sleeping hard in the backseat...
We ate dinner in Buena Vista, and we even managed to find a restaurant with organic food and lots of veggies. Next door was the coolest store, selling all kinds of garden sculptures and old western treasures like wagon wheels. We all had fun poking around there after we ate. It was starting to get chilly - jacket weather!
We arrived at the cabin in the dark. Kari and family were already there, and we went down to the finished basement to see them...and discovered a wonderland. There was a train set full of trains; a box of toy vehicles; scissors and paper and other supplies for crafts; bunk beds; and a sort of tunnel room that was just the right size for kids. The owners apparently have a bunch of grandkids, and the place was tailored to them. We hardly even had to worry about childproofing for the little guys.
The whole place was beautiful - built of thick logs, with quilts and handmade wooden furniture. Here is Jonah, rolling around on our bed, happy to kick his legs.
In the morning, we could see a clear, beautiful creek running just out back. Out the front door were tall white cliffs against a deep blue sky. We were in the woods.
We tried a hike but didn't get very far, since we'd forgotten to look up a trail...So we put the babies in the packs but just walked around on the property and played by the stream.
The toolshed had a playhouse on the front of it.
Thanks to Brian for this picture and all the best ones below. We were lucky to have a great photographer with us!
The boys were ready to go.
We stopped to sit on a comfy wooden swing by the creek.
I LOVE this shot!!!
There was a beautiful spot where we could play in the water. I spent a long time here with Jonah later that afternoon. Jonah, of course, just wanted to walk in as far as he could.
All the babies:
Isaac discovered that he loves cutting paper.
But mainly, all he wanted to do was play trains. With all the hiking, creeks, and other fun things to do nearby, Isaac just wanted to stay at the house - in the basement. On Sunday, he cried when we left and asked when we could go back to the cabin. It was pretty hard to leave all those great toys behind.
It was so exciting for the big boys to spend a weekend with friends, that they got pretty crazy. Still, Isaac's crazy is much more mellow than many boys his age...and sometimes he seemed a little left out. But he didn't seem to mind too much, and two months later, he still says he wants to go back to that cabin again.
The little boys loved it too - all the activity, toys, people to watch.
There's a fire ring outside with log seats around it. Adam couldn't pass up a chance to make a fire, so he bought S'mores ingredients, and we all enjoyed the warmth and gooey chocolate as the sun set and the air cooled considerably. I'd forgotten how good S'mores are - yum!
After I put Jonah to bed, Adam and Isaac and I snuggled up by the fire in the dark. It was freezing cold by then, and I had Isaac in my lap, with a jacket and a blanket and unfortunately sandals! The stars grew brighter as our eyes adjusted, until the whole sky was lit by tiny white pinpoints, and the Milky Way streamed across them all. It was one of the most spectacular night skies we've ever seen.
After a while, Brandy and Sean came out, and we grown-ups hung out for a few hours, talking by the fire, our backs too cold, almost too warm in front. All the boys were asleep, Isaac still curled up in my lap. Woods, stars, friends, and a big fire...pretty perfect.
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