The Sutterfields End of the Summer Visit

At the end of August, my parent's decided to come up for a week around Boone's birthday. We picked them up from the airport and headed directly to the mountains to spend Labor Day weekend in Winter Park. We grew up going skiing in Winter Park, but my parents had never been there in the summer, so they wanted to experience what it was like.

When we got into town they were having a festival at one of the local shopping areas. We walked around and heard a bit of music.

Boone and mom checking out the statue!

The next day we drove through Rocky Mountain National Park. The weather wasn't great, but it was still a  pretty drive (and COLD at the top!)

Near the peak of the park is a gift shop and visitor center. Boone really loved the little ranger costume's binoculars!

Later that night we went and checked out a local park. It was a really neat park and Boone had a blast.

Boone playing with Dad

Probably some of the last blooms for these flowers. It was already getting chilly while we were there, so I'm sure snow wasn't too far away.

Once we got back in town, we decided to check out some things in Denver that we hadn't had the chance to see yet. One of those places is the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. My dad was anxious to see this museum, because he had heard it was really neat. 

Boone and Papa checking out fossils.

They had an awesome kids area that was free with admission to the museum. It had just opened last summer and Boone LOVED it!

Playing in the water with Nana.

Boone checking out the nature lesson.

Dinosaur skeletons! There were several and Boone seemed to really enjoy seeing them!

Boone and Nana and Papa. They all seemed to have a lot of fun!

The Robertsons Spring Breaking in Denver

Jeff's parents snagged some super cheap plane tickets a few months ago and made plans to come up to Denver during Carol's spring break. It was fun to see them again, and fun to have a little time to see Denver with them. The last time they came up, we had just moved into our house (three days prior), so it was bit chaotic.

We went to Boulder on Wednesday and Thursday we decided to check out the Colorado state capitol. The Robertsons had been there before on a visit when Jeff and Sam were young, but it had been quite awhile. The tour is free and it was actually pretty neat to see. The building is busy with all kinds of people since the state congress was in session. Here's a few pictures of the tour.

Main area where you meet for the tours.

The dome of the capitol. The blue tarp near the top is

 for some repairs they are doing to the dome/

The Colorado Supreme Court Chambers

The House of Representatives chambers. The Senate was full of politicians 

as they were debating a bill while we were there.

Jeff's parents were nice enough to watch Boone for a night, while Jeff and I went to Winter Park to ski. It was a fun, quick getaway and they seemed to do well with Boone while we were gone. Once we got back on Saturday, we hung around the house for a bit while Jeff did some projects with his dad in the garage, and then we went to check out White Fence Farm in Lakewood, CO. We had seen an ad for the restaurant, but didn't know what to expect. It was a huge place and we got there a half hour after it opened for the evening and it was already packed. The best way I can describe the place is if you took a lot of things in Branson, MO and jammed them into one restaurant. You had fried chicken and lots of comfort food, a petting zoo with farm animals, a big playground area, a little lake with ducks, live country music and lots of random things to buy in their store. It was fun and we would definitely take Boone back again.

Checking out the goats. When we got there we were given the #207 and I think 

they were seating #140. We were told it would take about an hour to get seated and 

I thought that would be horrible, but the wait flew by with all the things we had to check out.

Grandpa Robertson bought some goat food for Boone to try out. 

He wasn't even shy and got right up to feed the animals. 

Robertson guys checking out the tractor.

After a huge dinner, we burned off some energy at the playground.

 I think Jeff enjoyed this toy more than Boone. But he has done a great job indoctrinating

 our child into the world of trucks, construction and building.

Jeff and Booned climbed to the top of the tree house at the playground. 

At one point Boone stuck his head out of the window and made the funniest noise and face. 

I don't think Carol or I caught it on camera, but it had us all laughing.

The restaurant has served over 5 million chicken dinners.

Checking out the ducks. 

A fun truck outside the restaurant.

We had a great second visit with the Robertsons. Looking forward to summer and more adventures around the area.

February Family Visit (Part 1)

Both our parents are so faithful in making trips to wherever we land. They always have been that way, although I think their eagerness picked up a bit after a certain Boone showed up. So I wasn't surprised when both sides made plans to come up in February. The Robertsons were first, and they actually came up the first weekend we were in our house. Which made for a pretty uneventful trip for them, unfortunately. They mostly helped us unpack, put away and clean our new house. We were so thankful for all their hard work though. They really did get so much done for us in such a short period of time. Carol took most of the pictures the weekend they were here, so full credit goes to her for all these next couple of pictures.

So... our house is too small for all of our stuff. So a lot of the extra stuff has ended up in our garage. That being said, we have less stuff than the average family with one child. We move roughly every year and a half, so we really do live pretty simply. I promise, I know it looks like we are hoarders, but we really aren't! 

Jeff had Boone "helping" him fix things around our house all weekend.

We had a long list of things that needed to get done around the house and Carol grabbed a picture of my list!

Carol and Bruce visited right after Carol's birthday, so we had a few birthday gifts for her.

Boone is getting a lot better at navigating stairs, but we have a nice big staircase in the middle of our house that he loves to play around.

Grandpa Bruce navigating the stairs with Boone.

Boone's bookshelf. This kid LOVES books. Like really, really 

loves books and his collection is getting pretty extensive.

Watching the Olympic opening ceremonies. I love the Olympics and Jeff likes watching the events with me and Boone has even gotten into it a bit this year.

Grandma and Boone

Moving is always hard, but it was especially difficult with Boone this time. It takes a lot of time to clean and sort a whole house, so it was great to have Carol and Bruce with us that first week. Another move-in is complete and I am thankful for that!

Until next time,

The Colorado Robertsons

Surprise!

Well... we are finally settled into our house in Denver and it is starting to, sort of, feeling home! I say that because it feels weird to say "we live in Denver!" It is somewhere we've always wanted to live and it has not disappointed so far! The weather has been wonderful, and we've been able to enjoy all the fluffy powder up in the mountains and get out to ski at two different resorts.

The first month we were here was pretty hard though. It took us quite awhile to find somewhere to live that was decent and that didn't break the bank. The rental market here is crazy and everything is in high demand. If we were going to be here for any amount of time it would be worth it to buy a home, but sadly, we will probably be in Denver for our shortest stay yet... But then again, you never know! Since it took us so long to find a place and get settled, I've fallen a bit behind with the blog! So the next couple of posts will be playing some catch up on the life and times of the Robertson clan. First up, my mom's surprise party!

My mom turned 60 back at the end of January! My brother and I decided that we would gather a few of her close friends and surprise her with a dinner at a local restaurant. Boone and I flew in the day before her birthday and my mom and dad took my mom's birthday off work. We went to the Science Center and we all had fun playing with Boone at all the exhibits. Then we went to lunch and came home to let Boone get his nap in. We had to do a little fibbing to get my mom to the specific restaurant where we had planned the party. We told her that my brother had bought a Groupon for the restaurant and he wanted to contribute to the dinner. It somehow worked and everyone was waiting to surprise her when we arrived. It turned out so well and she was really surprised! It was so fun to do something for my mom because she does so much for so many other people!

The pictures are a little blurry, but it was a dark room, so I'm just thankful to have pictures! Happy birthday, Mom! We love you!

Mom opening a few gifts people brought. My Aunt Dorothy made a neat picture books of all different times in my mom's life! Really cool to see all the old pictures!

The cake that I made with lots of help from Mrs. Younkin! It was three layers and completely from scratch! It was quite the endeavor, but tasted REALLY good!

My mom and her sister, Dorothy!

The fam, minus Jeff! We missed him while he was busy getting our stuff moved into our new home.