Cale is so old!!!

I remember on my 10th birthday my older sister acted like it was a big deal that I had hit double digits. I was of course too busy playing my new Indiana Jones Atari game to pay her any mind but I know realize it is a very big deal. 10 years ago I held a new born, rocked him to sleep, and carried him around in a car seat. 10 years from now he might have a beard more impressive than mine. He will probably be on his 20th girlfriend. He'll certainly be in his 2nd year at MIT.

The Pizza, The Panda, The Laundry Ghost

Lazy Saturday

With soccer canceled due to snow, this was our first weekend in a long time with nothing to do. The kid's stayed in their PJs all day on Saturday. We carved pumpkins, make pumpkin cookies, and roasted pumpkin seeds. Yes my pumpkin plants did very well this year.

Horsetooth Rock

On Friday the entire family set out to conquer Horsetooth Rock. Our party was doing well until we neared the top and the trail became rocky. Maya, Aden and Carrie decided to wait about a quarter mile from the top while Cale and I went on. At the top Cale said we should pick easier hikes. One day I'll make a hiker out of him.

Mt Rushmore

Mt. Rushmore is the main attraction in the Black Hills and is swarming with tourists. If your in the area I would recommend stopping by for a quick view because it is impressive. However, I would not think it would be worth the drive to South Dakota only to see Mt Rushmore. If you go take advantage of the national parks (Wind Cave, Badlands) and check out Custer State Park (buffalo and feral donkeys!)

Waterslide

When asked what their favorite part of our trip was. the kids will without hesitation say the waterslide in the hotel. Admittedly it was a really sweet slide. It was my 2nd favorite part of the trip after the Badlands.

Poor men want to be rich, rich men want to be king

An hour and a half east of the Black Hills sits Badlands National Park. Out of the high prairie spires and castles suddenly appeared. This was probably my favorite place we visited in South Dakota and I would love to return to do some hiking/backpacking. I think a spring or fall trip would be ideal to avoid the heat. I would also like to return so I can once again sing the word's to Bruce Springsteen's "Badlands" while I am in the Badlands and feel super smug with myself.

Wind Cave

After the mammoth site we drove north to Wind Cave National Park. The land above the cave is a beautiful mix of untouched prairie and ponderosa forest. We saw a few buffalo relaxing in the afternoon sun. We took a tour that headed down about 300 to 400 stairs and saw lots of interesting formations. Just like Cave of the Winds in Colorado Springs, we got to experience true darkness for about 30 seconds.

Of Mammoths and Men

The first step on our trip to South Dakota was a mammoth dig site in Hot Springs. I must admit I was little skeptical to go to the site. The Black Hills are littered with tourists traps and I thought this place might not be any different. However, it turned out to be a nice little non-profit dedicated to continuing mammoth research. Basically the site used to be a pre-historic sinkhole that the not-so- bright mammoths would fall into and not be able to get out. I don't know what it means but of the sixty mammoths they have found so far all of them are male.

Camping with Grandaddy

On Saturday evening we went to Jack's Gulch Campground with Grandaddy. Just across the road from the campground is the western edge of the High Park Fire and people are mostly avoiding the area. This meant we had a popular campground almost to ourselves on a Saturday afternoon/evening.

At the top of the world

Yesterday was probably not the best day to drive up Mount Evans. Fog and rain greeted us on the way. While at the summit hail and ice began to fall from the sky and rushed to get back in the car. We sat it out for 10 minutes and then drove down with an inch of hail on the road.

Horseback

 Badger contemplates biting Aden's hand off.

Maya, Nana, and Butch.

 Cale holds on for dear life.

And of course we had to visit Zeke before leaving.

Spider in the ash

On Tuesday it drizzled ash during the afternoon.

Smoky Sunset

This was on Sunday. Since then it's just been hazy/smoky. I ditched the bike riding this week b/c my asthma was kicking up.

Fire in the Sky

Yesterday I took the kids to the Browns Lake Trailhead and wanted to hike 2 miles to Crown Point. However, both Maya and Aden did not feel well. I think it may have been altitude related as they both had ear issues. In fact - yesterday evening Aden had severe ear pain and had trouble sleeping until we went out and got him some better medicine. Maya was fine when we got home but on past camping trips she has complained of not feeling well. Oh well... guess we'll move to Florida.

On the drive up we noticed a small wisp of smoke south of the canyon. On the drive down a massive cloud of smoke could be seen. For a few miles on the way down the sky was orange.

Last Day of School

Yeah our dining room light is super pink...

Fox

Hanging out in neighbor's backyard driving many dogs insane.

April Update

Since I am a slacker for both taking pictures of my children and posting updates to this blog I thought I'd share some of Carrie's artwork from her Fibers class. Fibers is her favorite art class and she works hard at it.

In other Watkins related news; Maya scored her first soccer goal this weekend. She had been wanting to do this since the fall.

Pinewood Derby was also this past weekend. Cale had a Thor-themed car and raced other Bear scouts. Maya had a Muppet-themed car and Aden had a monkey-car. They raced other scout siblings. How did they do? Well not so great but they didn't seem to mind. I think I was more bothered by the poor performance than they were. I have a Masters of Engineering so I feel as though I should be able to help the kids build amazing cars. Of course my degree really has very little to do with actual engineering so that might explain it.

Finally, we have a brand new car. A 2013 Mazda CX5. It's awesome. Now that we have two cars I still plan to ride my bike around but reserve the right to take a car when snow, rain or wind create tough conditions.

Spring Break in Colorado Springs

This week was spring break so of course that meant it was time for the Watkins family to drop in on one of America's most right wing, fundamentalist cities. I mean we didn't want Colorado Springs feeling too safe. After some time spent looting, vandalizing, and placing Dennis Kucinich bumper stickers on random Hummers we decided to visit some of the local attractions.

On Monday we went to the Cave of the Winds. The tour through the cave included many tight passages and a brief demonstration of what it feels like in total darkness. Later that day we took a drive up to the Florissant National Monument where we saw 40 million year old fossilized red woods and a brief demonstration of what is like to be a 40 million year old fossilized tree.

On Tuesday we finished are break with a trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. Maya was obsessed with the orangutans. Aden loved all the various monkeys and lemurs. Cale, always striving to reach a higher level of individuality, declared the naked mole rats to be his favorite animal at the zoo.

Maya's Letter to the Tooth Fairy

Less than 48 hours ago Maya had a loose front tooth just hanging from the gum. Yesterday at breakfast she noticed that it was no longer there but she did not recall when or where it went.

To rectify the situation she wrote the following to the Tooth Fairy:

Dear Tooth Fairy,

I lost my tooth. I have no idea when I lost it. I think I swallowed it but can I still get some money?

Love Maya

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