Colorado!

So I'm breaking this up into days because I took over 300 pictures this vacation. It's taking some time to sift through them, but I think I'm good to go. I'll post the days separately, but it occurs to me now that it will be posted backwards. All, well- you guys can deal!

As some of you know, Matt's dad and step-mom own a timeshare in Estes Park, CO, so they invited us to spend the week with them. Matt's aunt and uncle, Cindy and Kevin, were also there with their son, Phil, and Sara, his girlfriend. Phil and Sara are two of Charlotte's favorite sitters. :) We had a fabulous time and I was so bummed we had to come back before everyone else, but alas, I haven't earned enough vacation time to take the whole week. Fooey. We had a great time while we there, though!

Days 1 and 2: St. Louis to Kansas City to Estes Park, Colorado

We drove from St. Louis to KC the first night in an effort to break up the trip a little. It was Charlotte's first long ride in the front facing carseat, so we wanted to get her acclimated. She did awesome!

The armrest Matthew made me. It was perfect!

Dinner at Arby's before heading for KC

Having fun in the fun zone!

And we're off to Estes Park

Charlotte did quite a bit of this on the trip...

A little of this

Quite a few sleepy stares,

But also lots of fun!



Entering the windfarms- the highlight of Matthew's trip.

We intended to take Charlotte's picture at each state line, but she was asleep, so this is what we have...

Right after crossing the border

The AWESOME sky coming into Colorado

No pictures yet

Well, I was hoping to post some pictures of our fabulous Colorado trip as it was happening, but I forgot to bring the camera connector for my computer. So instead, a list of things to look forward to seeing:

1. Charlotte's first long car ride (she did awesome!)
2. Charlotte's first hike, up and down a mountain (again, she did awesome)
3. Daddy time in Estes Park while Mommy hit the golf course
4. Some amazingly exciting firsts that haven't even happened yet!

See you all soon!

Working on the car

Charlotte has a future as a mechanic. Her "Uncle" Jeremy would be so proud.

Charlotte is 10 months old today.

Unreal.

Nothing further.

A Mommy/Daddy Getaway

I'm warning you right off the bat that there are no pictures of Charlotte in this post. Matthew and I decided that since we are fast approaching our third anniversary (May 27th) and desperately needed some time for just us, we took a weekend trip to Augusta, MO and left Charlotte with my parents. Grandma and Grandpa Charlotte spoiled her quite nicely and she left their house with some new toys and a baby pen (thank you! thank you! thank you!). She even went to bed nicely for them. I am also proud to report that we (and by we, I mean "I") only called three times. My mother told me to stop calling, so I did.

We stayed at a lovely bed and breakfast called the Lindenhoff and had some sinfully delicious breakfasts. I will leave you with the words "white chocolate cheesecake french toast with strawberries" and you might have an idea of what amazing treats we had. The B&B was close to the Katy trail, so we packed our bikes. The first day we biked to Blumenhof Winery, about 15 miles round trip. It was a beautiful morning- a little chilly, but perfect for the ride.

Starting out at the Augusta "station"

Matthew checking out the formations along the trail

Me not believing that this is the trail to the winery

Me being wrong

We also stopped at two other local wineries, Augusta Winery and Mount Pleasant Winery. Two very different wineries, but both wonderful. Augusta Winery was small and quaint and the people were super nice. Mount Pleasant was definitely more corporate, but the view from the property was AMAZING. We sat outside and listened to a pretty decent band. Wonderful. We then headed out for our fancy dinner at Cafe Bella. The food was really good and for future dinner guests, you may be seeing a Gorgonzola with cinnamon honey appetizer gracing the table. Phenomenal. We went back to the B&B, lit the outside fireplace, and just sat and talked for a couple of hours, a luxury I had almost forgotten about. It was great to get to know my husband again as my husband, not just the father of my daughter.

Relaxing on the patio before headed out to the other wineries

The views at Mount Pleasant

Dolled up for our night out

Sunday we hit the trail again and biked to Sugar Creek winery, about 12 miles round trip. All I can say is that thank goodness the trail was beautiful because the winery was AWFUL. The property was pretty, but we got there about 15 minutes before they opened and even though there were a ton of employees there and everything was set up, we were promptly informed that they did not open the terrace until 12. So we sat on a bench outside the winery and waited until 12. Then they searched our bags. Seriously. They advertise as being right off the trail and we welcome bikes and hikers, but then we were told that they don't allow outside beverages, including bottles of water. Are you kidding? We just biked 6 miles. Of course we have water! It left a really bad taste in my mouth, so we left. I was mad. At least they had nice bathrooms.

Thumbs down for Sugar Creek Winery

The trail goes right along the river here. It was beautiful!

Once back in Augusta, we packed up our bikes and hit the road back home, but not before stopping at Montelle Winery for lunch. Oh my gosh, it was wonderful. The view was breath taking, the food was amazing and the employees were super nice. Totally worth the trip and a great way to forget about Sugar Creek. Then we made our way back to my parents house. I was so excited to see our little girl! As much as I enjoyed our weekend away, the best part of the trip was seeing the huge smile on Charlotte's face when we walked into the living room. I missed her so much! I'm glad we went away so we could come back relaxed and ready to be better parents than we were when we left.

The view at Montelle

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day we went to Kansas City to visit Matt's mother since this year was his year (thought I reminded him that it was my mother's day, too!). Charlotte had a great time with Papa Kirk and Gramma Ridley. She even went to sleep for them while Matt and I hung out at Andrew's for his farewell to single life party at his now former apartment. How fast they grow up. Sigh.

Sorry in advance for the number of pictures!

Playing with Mommy in the back seat

No, Daddy! Not another bump start!

First ride in a Radio Flyer

Yucky, smelly hat

I know you want me to smile for pictures, but there's too much to do

Ooooh, what's this?

Yummy mulch!

Playing with Uncle Andrew

He's so much fun!

Want to eat my bow?

With Mommy on Mother's Day

The picnic table builders

Playing with Snowball