The Road to Colorado

These were each taken on my iPhone in the same day.

We popped in the mini before the summer was over and made our way to Colorado to visit our wonderful, DIER friends. They were stationed in Germany for a few years and moved stateside last year and we got a one day visit with them then. Mr B and Dave were best men at each other's wedding. We are the kind of friends that will be separated by miles and years but when we get back together, it just picks right back up. I'm so grateful to have them in our lives and hope they know that we think about them often.

The ride to Colorado was a little more than 16 hours. Booth Bugs are made for travel and this trip was made with minimal complaint! Thanks to various Apple devices, we were pretty happy campers. We took off about 4:30am and everyone pretty much slept until Vegas. We made a decision to minimize the junk that can normally be consumed on road trips. We packed a lot of snacks, fruit bars, granolas, nuts and crackers. When we did stop for breakfast it was oatmeal at McDonalds all around. When everyone gets the same thing it leaves little room for complaint. Needless to say, when we finally arrived in Aurora, these guys were wiped out.

Little ladies played dress up and had lots of fun being girls.

Playing in the sprinkler with M was such fun for Hea Bug and JT. They enjoyed just running around the backyard, shooting each other with sprinklers. The Diers had a pond in their backyard and fruit trees. Little Einstein (the puppy not of Disney Junior) raced around the yard chasing them too. For dinner one night we had applewood smoked salmon with wood from their trees! It was awesome.

Baby G, Baby T and Baby W. Each had such a personality all their own! It was great to be around these little guys (and gal), listen to them laugh and watch them figure things out.

The Children's museum in Denver was a lot of fun. So many cool interactive exhibits, bubbles were an especially great hit!

Miss Riss started 1st grade the day before we left. Her school was just around the corner but our own kiddos were so excited for her to come home so that they could still play! We went swimming in the neighborhood pool (which was huge). Mr. B and I continued our Insanity workouts thanks to the mobility of dvd's and MacBooks. It was definitely hard considering we were a "mile high". The altitude was killer. 

Dier Babies have love for Uncle Rob

We just can't get enough of these guys! Love lOvE LOVE them!!

At the Cheesecake Factory in Denver.

The drive home was significantly longer. After driving for about two hours we were stopped because the highway was closed! It had been closed since 2am and it was at the time 6am and there was no estimated time as to when the road would open again. There was an overturned semi blocking all lanes. We weren't trying to wait around and feeling confidently armed with Google Maps and our Verizon service, we detoured! Our original journey was about 1,050 miles and would have taken us across Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and back into California. Our detour down through Colorado took us through the High Back Country, The San Isabel, Uncompahgre, Gunnison and San Juan National Forests, through Mesa Verde National Park, The Four Corners Monument, across the Arizona Desert and into Flagstaff where we chose to stop for the night after 18 hours on the road. 

We drove through monsoons, the fog and cold of the mountains, small towns at least 50 miles from the next, mountains, rivers, lakes, plains, rolling hills... We saw signs to watch for Deer, Bison, Sheep, Cattle and Horses. We drove by cyclists and the thought occurred to us that as they were headed in the opposite direction, there was nothing for more than 50 miles... At times they were riding through pouring rain! We saw countless fishing spots, rafting opportunities, and camping sites. 

4 Corners USA.
It was right before taking this picture that I "LOST" my iPhone... AGAIN! As we were leaving the area we pulled over to take a picture with the Mini by the sign. I got out of the car and couldn't find my phone! I had only taken my phone and big camera for pictures so that I would hold both in my hands and not be at risk for losing either. I took several pictures on my phone and then we got back in the car because it was so hot. We drove back over to the monument and looked around the car. We asked a few of the Navajo Vendors if they'd seen it. One offered to let me use her phone to call mine to see if I could hear the ring. Mr. B walked the 150 feet from the parking area up to the sign to see if it was along the side of the road. This was all in a matter of less than 10 minutes. I asked my kids to pray for me and HeaBug prayed that "Daddy wouldn't be mad at Mommy for losing her phone... Again. Just like Laughlin"... Out of the mouths of babes. If I weren't so desperate for her plea I would have been a little irritated.

He walks back to the car and lo and behold, my phone,

in his hand. with tire tracks on it,

because we had run it over with the mini
,
because it was in my lap and fell off of my skirt when I climbed out to take the picture.

Thank you otter box. For saving my phone um and my life.

JT Backbends in four states.

It was amazing to see the majesty of the world that surrounds us. The very world we can take for granted. It was such an experience to take this "detour" that allowed us to see places that in all likelihood we may never see again. Even the vastness of the desert was breathtaking.

Since we stopped in Flagstaff for the night, it was just a few hour drive to Kingman AZ where we were able to meet up with Gramma GG and Uncle Ronnie for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Yay for good company and blackberry pancakes!

We tried packing as much as possible into these last few weeks of summer. Us B's, love ourselves a good time.