end of summer vacation

jeremy took a few days off last week so we could drive up to the condo and stay for longer than just a weekend. all summer long there were things we longed to do but didn't have time to do and we wanted to rectify that. we made a list of potential activities, asked the boys for their ideas and eventually came up with a plan for the week - staycation 2014 was born.

our first afternoon in the mountains was spent riding bikes around lake dillon. we'd walked it many times but had been dreaming of bring our bicycles up to ride it. the past two times we've walked around the dillon nature preserve we saw a bald eagle and baby bald eagle. i was hoping we would get to see how the baby was doing, but we weren't able to find it this time. we parked at the dillon amphitheater and rode to the frisco marina - 6.5 miles. the path took us along a short stretch of heavily-traveled road. i earned 10 new grey hairs watching graham leisurely ride his bike with his head turned in one direction while in the opposite direction his wheels were veering across the white line into oncoming traffic.

jeremy had a vision that the four of us would bike all the way around the lake that day. i squashed that plan in my usual welcome-to-reality manner. we had to stop, park the bikes and chill out near the water for a while to come up with a plan b...

 this is a photo of what graham found on the "beach". 

i call him my little magpie because he is a collector of stuff. 

he always carries something in his hand and tucks treasures under his pillow.

the three of us would hang out at the park while jer continued on to complete the loop by himself. he got some water, ate a quick snack and set off. after an hour of not hearing from him i googled "bike path dillon reservoir" to discover jer's trek would be 13.5 miles and included a 1,100 foot climb up the side of a mountain...and the 1,100 ft descent back down. so thankful i decided to hang back and chill out with the kiddos!

we ended up playing at a small park near the frisco marina for two hours. i was so very happy for, and impressed by jer! completing that ride was no small feat!

it was just past five o'clock when we got back to the condo that evening and we were all starving. we quickly grilled and inhaled hot dogs and s'mores - the perfect finish to a great day in the mountains.