Estes & Rocky Mountain

What an amazing day we had at Estes and Rocky Mountain National Park!  When we arrived on Saturday one of the kids got a little boo-boo (I can't even remember what happened), but the ranger got out the "Boo-Boo Kit" and gave Freddie a bandaid to make him feel better.  Then, the ranger told us that we should have all of our kids take part in the Junior Ranger Program, so we got books for each of them to complete (based on age).  We had 7 kids participate and it made the hike so exciting for both kids and adults! 

On the way up to Estes, we stopped at the most amazing cinnamon roll place in the whole world!  Now understand that I don't randomly designate a title like that.  I LOVE cinnamon rolls and Alain's Aunt Jocelyne makes some of the best, but these were above that quality. . . so light, fluffy and just the right amount of glaze.  Now I have to take Jeannie there with her kids!

We spent some walking around downtown in Estes and found the greatest sock shop to outfit the whole family!  Zach really wants to see a moose while we are traveling, so we decided to get him moose socks just in case we don't actually see one on our trip.  They also had Nemo socks, so Alain couldn't resist indulging our little guy in socks from his favorite movie.  Emilie and Annabelle got ballerina socks that look like ballerina slippers going up their legs.  Alain and I both got some warm moose socks because we couldn't resist.  What happens in Colorado, stays in Colorado. . . except the moose socks!

After we headed to Estes Brewery for buffalo burgers that were delicious!  Zach was getting tired, so he fell asleep as soon as we got in the car.  We traveled next to Bear Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park.  That's where our kids participate in the Junior Ranger program.  We hiked around the lake and took tons of photos, then we hiked on to Nymph lake.  I feel very strongly that Nymph lake should be called "Blood-sucking Insect Lake" as we were attacked by little insects immediately upon arrival!  The hike up there was a bit more steep than Bear Lake, so I was completely out of breath carrying Zach up at the high altitude on my chest!  I fell once coming down from the lake, but my friend, Lauren, grabbed my arm for the rest of the way.  I think Zach was really throwing off my balance.  ;)

 As we were leaving, we stopped at the Visitor's Center so that the kids could receive their Junior Ranger badges and be part of a small ceremony.  After the ceremony, Alain was rushing the kids to get their seat belts on quickly so we could keep up with Rob's car, but Emilie calmly commented (as she was buckling) "Daddy, why can't you just be patient?"  It's a phrase that he says to the kids quite regularly, so it was hilarious to hear it repeated to him in such perfect context.