A Walk in the Clouds

All spring, we have been itching to get out hiking. After all, that's why we choose to live here in Colorado, right? Unfortunately, Mother Nature is repaying us for our unusually warm winter, and we have had one cool, damp spring. We can't complain too much, but somehow, Mother Nature and the calendar must be in the midst of some kind of feud, as each weekend since mid-March has been either cold, snowy, rainy, or some combination of all three.

This weekend, we finally decided we've had enough! Really, we have Ryan, Katie and Teddy to thank for that. Tim's cousin has been in Colorado for the last couple of months on a job site down in Pueblo. They've been staying in Manitou Springs, which is about an hour and fifteen minutes south of us. We were able to spend Easter with them, and knowing that their days here are numbered, we headed out for a hike in spite of the damp day.

Earlier this spring, we had finally bought a backpack carrier off of everyone's favorite online shopping site- Craig's list. This was our first opportunity to put it to use. Since Sophia weighs more than Noah, she got the "luxury ride" in the new backpack with Tim. Noah is about 10 pounds lighter than Sophia, so he got the "antique ride" in the our old, borrowed backpack. By the time the hike was done, both Noah and I agreed that that would be our last trip with that pack!! It's time to retire and return the antique. Sophia says it's bad because it's just an "old, cheap one". I daresay she has that right! Project number one today: back to Craig's list for another backpack. :)

All said, we were so glad that we made the effort and took the walk in the clouds. The fog and mist definitely changed the view, but we can always imagine! And besides, it was great to be able to spend the time with the Alcotts before they head off on their next adventure.

Katie, Ryan, and Teddy

Over my shoulder

Christmas- 4 Months later

Let me go back to the time when I fell off the wagon- the blogging bandwagon, that is. I've been plagued by thoughts of updating this blog ever since Christmas!

Christmas of 2008 found us here in Denver for the third consecutive year. While we miss being with the Nielson side of the family so much, we must say that it is highly convenient to not have to travel thousands of miles with two small children in the thick of blizzard season. And we have yet to know what Christmas without family is like, as the Ulferts side has been willing to make the trek to us for the last few years.

So there you have our Christmas equation: Nielson 4 + Ulferts 8 + Christmas decorations = one full house!! But thankfully we have the space (although many more additions to either family might start to change that fact), and we love hosting anyone that is willing to come visit. We truly look forward to hosting Christmas at our house, and this year was no different.

Unfortunately, this year, we discovered that we had a faulty camera at the onset of prime picture season. I did manage to snag some of my mom's pictures from the holiday season, but don't have as many as I would like. I'll share just a few of what we do have.

Cousins-Titus, Noah, and Sophia

Noah and Eric sporting their new beanies (okay, the one falling over Noah's eyes was really for Tim)

Ashley and Todd helping Noah and Sophia
open some early gifts on Christmas Eve

Sophia and Todd posing

Is Anyone Out There?

I bet you all thought I had abandoned the current trend of blogging! Ah, not so, my friends!! The truth of the matter is that life has been so crazy in our house in the last six months, that there simply hasn't been time. Nearly each week, I put it on my mental "to-do" list, but somehow it always ends up at the very bottom of my priority list. I have several friends and family members that blog regularly, and I always find myself marveling at how they have found time.

Well, I've had an epiphany lately. As many of you know, Tim loves baseball so much that to say he is an "avid" baseball fan is quite simply the understatement of the year. Sometimes I feel very much like a baseball widow. Graciously, Tim is usually more than willing to give me time for my hobbies in return for the time he commits to baseball. But we usually come back to the same thing: what can I do that will not put any kinks into our very strict budget?

I have found the answer! As someone who once fancied herself as somewhat of a writer, I have decided to make an attempt to commit myself to this outlet. So there it is, published out there for all to see. Now I'm accountable. Let's see how I do! I'll keep my fingers crossed and jump right in...

Fall in the Rockies

Last month, we made a conscious attempt to get up to the mountains to enjoy fall in Colorado. Although I would have preferred a good, long hike, it didn't work out that way. By the time we were finally able to find a free weekend, it was late enough in the season that it was too cold up in the higher elevations. So we settled for a day in Estes Park. We were looking forward to seeing all kinds of animals, as Estes Park boasts of it's elk population. In fact, while we were there, they were preparing for the Elk celebration that would begin the next day. For those of you who haven't witnessed it, the elk roam freely through the town of Estes Park and are no uncommon sight right along the main drag through town!

We ended up seeing a pair just as we were pulling into town, but that turned out to be about the extent of our time. Tim had never been into Rocky Mountain National Park, and so we debated long and hard, and then decided to spend the exorbitant fee to get our van into the Park. We spent most of the day meandering through the Park, both in the van, and on foot.

We found one little trail that wound around Sprague Lake that was just over a half a mile long. (Or short maybe would be a better word.) But it was a perfect length for the kids, so we decided to give it a go. Although the day was overcast, it was still beautiful. Sophia walked, or more realistically ran (she claimed she was "taking some exercise) most of the way, and even Noah hoofed a good portion of the trail on his own.

A little dock on the Sprague Lake

Noah was so excited to climb over these rocks. Until he got stuck like this.

Sophia takes a little break from all her exercise.

Noah was very excited about all the water.

Tim Turns 30

Tim's birthday was last month. And it wasn't just any birthday; it's a big one. He officially became old. And I knew I needed a good plan. I really wanted to do something just for him and to surprise him. So it worked out perfectly that I got tickets to see the Twins (his all time favorite baseball team- sometimes I wonder if he loves them more than me :) In Florida. In the midst of a pennant race. Against the play-off bound Tampa Bay Rays. And I managed to keep it a surprise all the way until we left for the airport!

We got into FL without a lot of time to spare, and headed straight to Tampa Bay. We got there just in time for the game and quickly found our seats. Turns out, they were pretty decent for "cheap seats." Three rows up in right center field. It was a little crowded in our row, so we moved down to the wide open front row. We knew all along we were in perfect home run ball territory. Unfortunately, Tim had left his glove in the car, thinking it wasn't likely he was going to need it in our cheap seats! He hauled it all the way to FL, only to leave it in the car!

As it turns out, though, his glove probably would have cost him his moment of fame. In the 4th inning, the Twins were already down 6-0. It wasn't looking good. Carlos Pena came to the plate with two runners on. He hit a LONG fly-headed straight for Tim from time it left the bat. Tim stood up and cautiously put out his hands, after all, he didn't want to interfere with a play! The ball hit his hand with a SMACK- and bounced back down to the warning track. And in spite of Tim's conscientiousness, it was called an automatic ground rule double for fan interference.

Pandemonium broke out- amongst us, in the stadium, and the players. It wasn't long before the play was reviewed. For those of you that know anything about baseball, you know this is a new phenomenon, only a few weeks old. We've heard several times that deliberations lasted 4 minutes, 10 seconds. And the result was: Tim made MLB history!!! TRUE STORY! This was the first instant replay reversal in baseball. It was decided that Tim's thoughtfulness paid off, he never did cross over into the field of play and Carlos Pena was awarded a 3 run home run.

The story topped Sports Center news. Several of Tim's friends saw and recognized him on TV before he even had the chance to tell them. (Although several of them doubted what their eyes clearly told them was true. After all, they were convinced that if that fan sporting the Twins shirt really WAS Tim Nielson, surely he would have caught that ball!) Tim was interviewed by the St. Petersburg paper. We've seen the replay on mlb.com several times. He's famous! And he's taken a lot of heckling for not catching the ball. But if he had, he wouldn't have gotten his time in the spotlight.

So as it turns out, Tim's had a pretty good birthday weekend.

Except that the Twins lost!

Tropicana Field

Enjoying the game, pre-fame status

All of us, post-fame

Enjoying a beautiful Florida day, near Eric's work

The crew

Sophia's Birthday Party

We had a VERY small party for Sophia's birthday, with just a few of her closest friends and their families. Summer birthdays are so easy (at least when the kids are this little) because we can play in the park right across the street, have dinner, have cupcakes, and splash in the pool to clean up when we are all done! So that is exactly what we did- with a carbon copy agenda from Sophia's party next year.

We had been round and round about what kind of party Sophia wanted this year. She started out wanting a "sheep cake," mostly because Noah had sheep cupcakes and she had those stuck in her brain. It wasn't my first choice, since it had already been done in our house, but if that's what she wanted, that's what we were going to do. Then we went to one of her friend's birthday parties with a ladybug theme, so that was her next plan. I didn't want to be a thief, so I tried talking her into something else. The next idea was a princess party. This would have fit her perfectly, but she has maybe more boy friends than girl, and how was that going to go over? I am sure they would not find it nearly as fun to be little princes as girls do to be princesses. So finally, I sat Sophia down with me to look online and get some ideas.

FINALLY, we came up with something I could work with. She saw Curious George party paraphenalia and was hooked! I was thrilled; it would be too easy.

I told Tim and he said, "Didn't she already have a Curious George party?" Way to rain on my parade. Yes, she did, but I thought that would be good; I thought I even had some of the supplies left over that we could just reuse! (Turns out, I think they were long gone, and I had to start all over from scratch.) But, Sophia was excited about it, I talked it up, and it all worked out very nicely! She had a GREAT time!

And she totally gets the fact that she is NOT 2 any more. She will be only too proud to tell you that she is "FREE!"

Now she is gearing up for Tim's big birthday later this month. She's packed presents for him already (a recycled gift bag from her party, full of baby's accessories and play kitchen utensils), and she keeps talking about how Daddy is going to be old this year!

Monkey cupcakes

Noah loves some sunglasses!

Chilling with the party favors
Will Ballard, Mia Heck, and Andy Robinson
(Sophia's best friends)

Ready for a party! How can you not love that face?

We play in the pool in our underwear around here
(Curious George underwear for this occasion!)

Always the princess, blowing out her candles

Opening presents

The shirt was her gift from Will. Does he know her well, or what? She has now taken to saying every time she wears the shirt, "Mommy, why I'm a chatterbox? Because I talk so much?"

Sophia's 3rd Birthday

Sophia's birthday happened to fall on a Friday this year, which is perfect because that is Tim's day off work. We had grand plans to take her swimming some where- either the local water park called Pirate's Cove or one of our local reservoirs (yes, folks, for all of you back in Minnesota, we do not have real lakes, we have two local reservoirs, which we generally avoid, but thought that Sophia would have a great time at the beach on her birthday). Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate with our plans, and it was cold and rainy all day. And in all actuality, I think Sophia might just have pre-arranged that with God, anyway.

Since Noah's birthday is in the winter, we hosted his birthday party at a nearby bounce house. In the week prior to Sophia's special day, she had been telling me that she wanted to go to the "bouncy place" for her party just like Noah did. This was NOT the plan for her, but she kept talking about it. (How does she even remember these things, anyway?) I was convinced that the Bounce House was closed for the summer, but upon waking up to pouring rain on Sophia's birthday, a quick internet check proved me wrong. So Sophia's wish came true and we spent the morning at the Bounce House! (As did every one else in the city because of the rain :)

Sophia's 1st present of the day (hence the pajamas!)

Sophia's favorite present of the day- Sleeping Beauty dress and accessories.

Clearly Mom is not a natural cake decorator, but Sophia loved it!

My little princess is growing up too fast!

Ready for some cake- FINALLY!