Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Roadfessionals Recap - Part 4 - Days 6 and 7 (and kind of 8)

Sunday morning was extra chilly and we stopped by the Vail Farmer's Market on the way to the Gondola.



It was chilly and there were so many amazing smells.  My idea of a perfect morning!






We took the Vail Village gondola up to the top of the mountain and it was BEAUTIFUL despite the rain.




When we got on the gondola the sweet attendant at the base told us that there was a "road" we could walk (with our stroller) about 1/2 a mile to the Eagle Bahn gondola.  We would get great views, an easy walk and we would ride the other gondola down.  Well.... I have no idea how, but we ended up on the trail instead of the road (I swear it started out as a road!) and we hiked (with a stroller!!!)  about a mile and a half through the woods. hahaha







It wasn't our original plan, but it was AWESOME!







The hills are alive.... with the sound of whining :) hahahaha  It was a LONG hike!


He's the kind of the mountain :)




This super sweet couple (who have two boys and a girl as well.... but were hiking alone) offered to take our picture.  I will be FOREVER grateful!!!





Who hikes with a stroller???  Apparently we do. :)
Dear Joovy - your strollers are awesome. Love, Andrea


We reached this road and it was at this point we were all done. 




After a BIG uphill push we FINALLY arrived at the gondola.  HALLELUJAH!!!






A quick shuttle ride back to Vail Village and it was cupcake time.


Double fisting the cupcakes!  #thatsmyboy






Back at the house we had lunch and everyone took naps while I did laundry.  Mason had the prime spot.  Windows open, breeze blowing, creek rushing by.  Perfection.


Our last dinner outside!





After dinner we headed back to the creek to throw rocks one last time.  I ADORED the time we spent down here.  Simple, laid back and reminded me so much of evenings spent on the beach at my grandparents cottage in Canada.


How did we get our picture???  Thanks to Chloe :)


My little photographer.





Luke was walking out in the water and fell - so he ran back home, threw on Mason's pj pants and was right back for more.  One of my favorite pictures of him :)




SPITTING image of his Daddy!!!





Griffin was tired and so Dave took her back to the house, but the boys and I stayed.  I had the best time watching them find slugs, throw rocks and wade across the creek.











Back across the lawn and straight into the tub :)


The next morning we were up bright and early to pack up the car and hit the road.  We attempted one last creek picture and when we broke the news to Mason that we were getting back in the car to drive home he lost it.  I felt the same way about setting off on almost a whole day of travel.  hahaha






 We drove a couple of hours and then took a pit stop at Tiny Town where we rode the tiny train.



After the train ride, we explored the town and had so much fun pretending we were giants :)


  


This girl waved at the passing train every time like it was her job :)


We got back in the car and gave the kids all their lunches we had packed and set off to Amarillo.


 After lunch, all the kids napped (G only slept if she was touching me - true story) and while I didn't sleep, my arm did :)



We drove through some crazy rain, which was fun...


And we stopped around 4:30 for Sonic Happy Hour and a leg stretch.  I took this screenshot and sent it to my mom and wanted to cry a bit at the same time. hahaha


We made it to Amarillo around 8:30 in the middle of a HUGE thunderstorm and we ended up eating dinner in the van parked in the Chipotle parking lot.  We changed the kids into jammies, turned off the movie, stopped for caffeine and PRAYED that the kids would sleep.  At this point we were about 6 hours away from home.  Around midnight we pulled off the highway to retrieve a lost paci and Luke burst into sobs complaining of an earache.  At the same time Griffin was inconsolable and Mason was pulling at the straps of his five-point harness while yelling "WHY ARE WE STILL DRIVING?!?!?!"  If you've ever driven this route you know that there is literally no option but to keep on driving, plus the thought of stopping somewhere and continuing the trip in the morning was almost enough to send Dave and I over the edge.  We powered through and pulled into our driveway after 3:00 a.m.

This is where it gets funny.  Luke cheered in the driveway and as we were all making our way inside, Luke threw up all over the floor. All. Over. The. Floor.  We cleaned him up, tucked him in and he was fine in the morning, but it was a classic end to the trip and we were thanking God that he wasn't sick in the car.

We had so much fun on our first "real vacation" as a family.  We made so many memories and enjoyed the time together (even when we were trapped in our van driving for a day and a half).

Happy Tuesday, girls!


45 comments :

  1. I'm telling you....you convinced me the Slaughters need a Colorado trip asap!!

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  2. I have loved reading these vacation posts!!! I love to see not only where other people go on vacation, but what all they do too. We went to CO about 4 years ago for my best friend's wedding...we're hoping to go back when my kids get a little bit older, so we can go hiking & do tons of outdoor stuff w/ them. I felt Mason's pain about getting back in the car...we live in Northern IL & the past 2 yrs we have drove down to FL!!! Thank you for sharing your family & vacation posts!!! :)

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    1. I was feeling Mason's pain too :) hahaha Thanks so much for reading, Julie!

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  3. OH NO! POOR LUKE! But yes, it's a teeny bit funny. :) Your pictures from today are GORGEOUS! I feel like this was the perfect trip for your family!

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    1. At that point the only thing we could do was laugh (well... clean him up, comfort him, tuck him in and then laugh). hahaha :)

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  4. This is my favorite vacation post yet! The pictures are great and what a memorable story of the trail! ha!

    Linds @ not a mom

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    1. It's definitely something we'll be talking about in years to come :)

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  5. What an amazing trip!! I love that y'all had so much fun!!

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  6. WHY ARE WE STILL DRIVING!?!? I fell out because I totally always felt the same way. When I was little we lived in CA and our relatives lived in Texas~not fun! : ( Be that as it may, you made some really great memories and maybe next year he might get into a car for vacation again! : )

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  7. These are the things memories are made of! You will tell this story when your kiddos are big and it will be the best thing ever!

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  8. After all the beautiful GREENERY in Colorado (none in CA right now) I could feel Mason's pain about not wanting to go home. Sounds like it was a wonderful trip and a great time was had by all. Except the drive home...

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    1. It was GORGEOUS and the weather was fantastic which didn't make the trip back to the surface of the sun any easier :) hahaha

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  9. This post just made me so homesick for Colorado! We just made the move from Boulder CO to Austin TX and the drive down here was brutal! We also got some of those HUGE storm fronts on the CO/OK pan handle and we were towing our boat- talk about nervous! So glad you had a great time in CO, if only the cooler temps would flow down here!

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    1. Oh, girl!!! I'm sure you miss CO, but Austin is so much fun!!!

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  10. I have been reading your blog for awhile now and LOVE your Colorado vacation posts! I remember as a child driving from Ohio to Colordo springs thinking we were going to waste our whole trip sitting in the car!!
    What type do camera do you use for your pictures?
    I have a 6 month old baby boy and I'm looking to get a "good" camera! Thanks-Penny

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    1. Thanks, girl! It's a Nikon D40x... really easy to use :)

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  11. I go to Toronto every summer with my church and we take a bus all the way from Oklahoma City. It is 24-26 hours. I completely understand "WHY ARE WE STILL DRIVING?!" Hahaha :) It looks like you had such a great time! What a fun trip & great memories. :)

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    1. That's CRAZY long!!! We used to drive from Raleigh, NC to Toronto all the time... but I was little and thought it was awesome :) hahaha

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    2. Yes, yes it is. It is our high school mission trip. :) Some people might hate traveling that long with teenagers, but I absolutely love my kids and honestly the bus ride is part of the fun of the week (until it gets to the overnight hours, then I am just done as there is no comfortable way to sleep)!

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  12. What a great trip! Family vacations and making memories is the absolute best!

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  13. We did a lot of the same things as you guys...can't believe we stayed in the exact same place too! Did yall get the cupcakes from the farmers market? I had the s'mores cupcake...to die for!!! Also..hudson puked all over the entry way as soon as we walked in the door too 😂

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    1. So fun! Did you stay in the townhouses??? The same townhouse??? hahaha

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  14. Loved your vacation recaps! We just got home from Vail and stayed at Vail Racquet too! The creek, mountain views, Lionshead Village, cool mountain air ~ perfect vacation! So much fun to relive the trip through your pics!

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  15. Love love love all the pictures! You've convinced me! CO is definitely on our list of family vacations now! :) Happy Tuesday!

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  16. We took a road trip from California to Dallas about a week ago and we were on that highway from Amarillo to Dallas. It is beautiful, but man that was a long drive. We visited McKinney for the day and your town is beautiful.

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    1. I love that you visited McKinney! I hope you made it to the Square! :)

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  17. I have loved reading these recaps. Looks a great vacation!!!!

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  18. So pretty......cracking up at the boys picture with the statue!!

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  19. I mean, there are too many cute pictures to choose from....
    That is one cute family!!! :)

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  20. I'm really glad I found your blog!! What a great memory for your kids!

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    1. Thanks, Danielle!!! I love that they'll have it to look back on one day :)

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  21. Gosh, I'm so glad you had such a wonderful vacation as a family. So many wonderful photos too. I'm sure your kiddos will look back on this vacation with many fond memories. Treasure time :)

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  22. Looks so fun .. I love Griffin's let them be little tee !!! Do you remember where you got it ?

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  23. Gorgeous pics! What a great trip you guys had. Gives me the itch to go on vacation. :)

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  24. We just did a road trip to Red River, NM (11 hours) and we felt the same way after Amarillo. Got home at 1am. It was a LONG day!

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