Colorado: Mountains, Family and Friends

by: Kinsey

We left Moab after breakfast at a local coffee shop. I was happy to be going to Colorado but at the same time a tiny bit sad to leave, barley though. We hit 70 like Yogi Bear on a wheely baskets. I tried to convince everybody into playing a game but it didn't work. We headed towards Dillon Lake but it was all filled up. We headed to Clear Lake campground it was a few hours away. Eventually we got there, it was cold but I thought it made since for being in the Rockies. It was rainy and buggy too. There were no sites open there either but lucky us a man offered us their family site because the rest of the family was coming the next day, and we were leaving tomorrow. We got settled.

When you prepare for something what you prepare for always stops.

 While Zoë and I munched on veggies and discussed whose rock was better Mom made soup and quinoa. I personally thought mine was better, but who knows. That night after dinner we roasted marshmallows and Mom made something new, a Chocolate Brownie cookie with marshmallow squished in the middle. We tried playing charades but it didn't work. So Mom explained how to play the Hat Game. Fortunately I was first to go, unfortunately Dad and I only got one point. Then it was Zoë and Mom's turn. They got 4 points. That was the story for most of the game, we had fun anyways. Once we found out how late it was Mom sent us straight to bed.

The next morning we drove towards Darcy's house (my Mom's cousin.) On the way we ended up stopping at Dinosaur Ridge. They were having a family day with all different kinds of booths and fun activities. We pet a skink, leaf turtle and bull snake, saw a barn owl, Peregrine Falcon and Kestrel. We panned for stones and I found amethyst, quartz, turquoise, pyrite, citrine, and a few others. We also saw lots of  dinosaur fossils.

Leaf turtles are so freakishly cute!!!!!! 

The skink.

I got to pet this guy!!!

Pretty!  (Barn Owl)

Wow! (Peregrine Falcon)

Small but mighty! (Kestrel Falcon)

Taming the Utahraptor

We got to Darcy's house after lunch. Darcy and Mark have two kids, Haley and Parker. Haley showed Zoë and I around the house. We decided to do something for the moms because they'd been doing so much for us, so we did a spa. We set up in the back yard and had warm water for their feet and lots of lotion. For dinner Darcy made some yummy salads and Mark smoked chicken and steak. It was delicious. It was fun to meet our cousins and really nice to stay at their house.

Our spa.

Sunday morning we said good bye and went to meet my friend Mia at a sprinkler park. I've known Mia since preschool. She moved to Denver at the beginning of the summer. We played on a big rope climber for a bit and then went to get wet in the sprinklers. It was a hot day and it felt good. We did a big obstacle course around all the different sprinklers. We took a break for a awhile and started digging for dinosaur bones in the sand box. They really had fake dinosaur bones in the sandbox! We had pizza at her house (which I thought was beautiful.) We got dressed up and asked Zoë to do our makeup. We did a fashion show, I was wearing Mia's mom's high heels, they were a bit hard to walk in. Mia's shoes were too small for her. I was very happy in to be in Denver with my friend!

Sprinkler park photobomb 

Dress up time!

Thanks to the Leaverton and Francis families for hosting us!