Grand Lake, Colorado

This past weekend Wayne and I...and Sam..went to Grand Lake, CO. This is quite possibly the most beautiful little mountain town I have EVER been to! The entire little community is centered around a "Grand" lake which is bordered by gorgeous cabins...the kind you have to take a boat to get to! The town itself is just peaceful and everyone is very friendly! The place seemed very pet friendly too since just about everywhere we went the store owners gave sam dog treats!

My First Battle Wound on my Road Bike! SWEET!

Ok, so I learned a very important lesson today while roding my road bike...clip-in shoes do not do that well in the dirt when you are trying to stop yourself from flying over handlebars! HA HA HA! I know, it was pretty dang awsome after I finally stopped!

I decided to take my bike to Garden of the Gods (as I usually do on Saturday mornings), and pump out a ten mile ride. The ride around the park is pretty "hilly" which makes for a good butt-kicker on the way up. On the way down, however, you have to be oh so careful of the famous "red dirt spills" that frequently happen after our ginormous rain storms.

I came down around a corner going about 30 miles an hour and proceeded to "lean" into the turn. Just as I looked up I saw a pile of red sand/dirt. CRAP! Yup, there was no stopping it, my thin little tires began to wobble out of control, and eventually my bike went completely sideways. I unclipped my right shoe, but it didn't really do much. Luckily this little battle wound was all that happened. I had my water bottle on it the whole way home so the picture just doesn't do it any justice! The bump was poking out about 1/2 an inch on my shin! I am so FREAKIN excited to go ride again next weekend!!!!

Moonset? Moonrise?...Over Pike's Peak

Have you ever seen the moonset...or rise over a 14,110 foot peak? I was on my way to work last week and just happened to have my camera in my purse from our trip back to Salt Lake. I snapped this photo from the mall parking lot. This is the extent of my mad photography skills! Eat it up!

Tight Squeeze!

Ok, so as if you couldn't tell..this is a self-portrait. We wanted the whole fam in the picture but as we said before, we were the ONLY crazies at the lake that day. It's a good thing my arms are freakishly long so we could have this great, squishy-faced photo to share with everyone!

A Boy and His Dog...

Wayne and Sam are best buds. He won't ever tell you, but he would do ANYTHING for that dog! We both spoil him rotten, but there is a bond between Wayne and his puppy that can't be broken. Sam loves his Daddy!

All Dogs Must Be on a Leash...

Shhhh! Don't tell anyone! After we took this picture we let Sam run like a wild beast on the beaches of the resevoir! He enjoyed every minute of it!

Rampart Resevoir....or Alaska??

Last weekend we took Sam to a beautiful mountain lake named "Rampart Resevoir." It was very cloudy and cold, so of course we were the only crazy ones up there! As you can see from this picture, it was very foggy, making the lake very calm and peaceful. It reminded me a lot of deep sea fishing in Alaska. There was a slight mist coming out of the clouds...enough to chill you to your bones! We didn't end up staying too long....only three hours.

A View from the Top...

Beyond this mountain range is Colorado Springs. Pike's Peak is famous in this region and just absolutely beautiful! Two weeks ago there was a foot race to the top, a marathon and half marathon. (Yes, I am already thinking about it next year.) I could not belive the views from the top of the mountain!

On Top of the World!

Colorado Springs is to the right of me, behind the mountain range. It was so amazing to see it from that far away! The air at 14,000 feet is definately thinner, but sure smells clean and fresh!

The Top of Pike's Peak!

We made it to the top of the towering 14,110 foot peak! It was so amazing to be on one of the tallest mountains in our region! I've never had the experience of being "above" the clouds like that either! We enjoyed the view by snapping a ton of photos and trying the world famous "Pike's Peak Donuts!" Of course they are world famous..there is only one Pike's Peak.

The Car Ride to the Top of Pike's Peak!

On Saturday we decided to take the drive to the top of Pike's Peak. We enjoyed the hour drived to the top by eating a lot of snacks and taking ridiculous photos like this one! Sam did pretty good in the car...this was by far the longest car ride he has ever been on!

Sam Wants in on This!

Apparently Sam wanted in on my half marathon medal...he tried eating it, over and over and over again! You gotta earn it Sam!

2008 ADT Half Marathon-Labor Day

Ok, so today being Labor Day I had a few different choices as to how to spend my day. Hiking with Sam? Riding my sweet new road bike? What did I choose to do? I ran a half marathon on a dirt trail! I haven't done much trail running, and I just decided two weeks ago to sign up for this race so needless to say, I wasn't so sure about it when my alarm went off at 4:15 this morning! In the end I am so glad that I did it! Here's one more medal to add to my collection!

I Got A Road Bike! Woohoo!

So I finally convinced Wayne to let me get a road bike...it only took four and a half years! I actually bought it when I visited Salt Lake at the end of July, but had to wait a couple weeks to get it because Wayne's co-worker was bringing it here in the back of his truck. (I flew to SLC so I couldn't bring it back). Here I am taking it for a test run around the townhomes. I took it to Garden of the Gods for a 7 mile ride last weekend....I freakin love it!

Singing...No, Running in the Rain!

A couple weeks ago we had a total downpour! It was actually like that the entire week, every day about 4 or so it would just dump buckets of rain! I am in the process of training for the Moab Half Marathon in October so after being fed-up with the rain and running on the treadmill, I decided to try something differeny. I ran in the rain and it felt totally awsome! It poured on me the entire time, but it was so refreshing! It got so bad after a while that I had to call Wayne and have him come pick me up! He had Sam in the car so he let him out to run with me....we both needed a bath after this photo!

Meet My Chinese Puppy!

Haha! I know, I couldn't stop laughing either when looked at this picture! I snapped just at the right moment after we had been playing at the dog park. Sam totally got slimed by all the older dogs so I was actually trying to get a picture of his nose and right eyeball, but when I took it he closed his eyes! Now we have a Chinese Puppy! (It's funny to picture him laughing as well!)

Sam Gets Tired after playing in the Lake...He's Spoiled!

Sam usually gets tired on the hike down from the lake so of course he wants to be picked up and carried the entire way down. Although it doesn't seem like it in this picture, Wayne is totally a sucker for his puppy doesn't mind AT ALL carrying him!

Hiking to Dog Lake

It's about a mile hike to Dog Lake. We usually take Sam off his leash and let him run! He stays right beside us (most of the time) and just loves being outside in the mountains!

Sam the Swimmer!

We took Sam to Dog Lake up Cheyenne Canyon and he absolutely loved it! Wayne had to get in the water with him to show him how to swim...and then he took off! The lake probably Sam's favorite place to go besides the dog park. We bought him a harness so when he gets tired we can just drag him to shore!

"Mission Possible" Youth Conference 2008

Wayne and I were recently called to be the Youth Conference leaders in our church. This past weekend we hosted the 2008 Youth Conference with a theme of "Mission Possible." Friday we had a BBQ and played "companion" volleyball where the youth were tied together and had to act as missionary companions. Satruday morning we did a service project for a single sister in our ward who desperately needed some yardwork done. We ripped out all the old sod and weeds in preparation for some rocks she is ordering later on down the road. It was great to see so many youth get up early on a Saturday morning to perform service for someone in need!