July 6th, 2008: Nymph and Dream Lakes and Estes Park

We decided to head up to Rocky Mountain National Park on the Sunday of the "Fourth Weekend" and were really lucky to get into the Bear Lake parking lot on our second try. So, we took advantage of throwing our lunch in the packs and headed up past Nymph Lake to Dream Lake. Kelly, Nolan and Barrett were trying out their new hiking shoes and there was a nice deck of clouds present so it was nice and cool.

Below the boys are loaded up to head south in the morning. Travis is being his usual "ham" self for a picture.


And here are a few shots from along the trail. We discovered Travis would stop screaming at the top of his lungs if Kelly had the kid pack on, so that worked a little better for us and others along the trail.






We had a great day in the park and enjoyed dinner at Ed's Cantina, one of our favorite eateries in Estes, before wandering some of the shops.

July 4th, 2008: Happy Fourth of July!!

The Cheyenne Depot Museum put on a kids parade for the Fourth of July again this year, so Kelly, Nolan and Barrett decorated bikes so Nolan and Barrett could ride in the parade. The parade is just a couple hundred yards long, but the kids had fun and you can see that Barrett enjoyed waving to all the people watching!


The 3 boys hanging out during the afternoon at home.


We spent the evening at a friends house, and then headed to the front lawn of the NWS for an uncrowded viewing of the fireworks on the other side of the airport.

July 1st, 2008: 1st Day of Swimming Class

Barrett started his second session of swimming classes at the YMCA, and Nolan started his first class at the YMCA.

Barrett floating on his back.


Nolan did great for his first lesson at the Y!

June 29, 2008: Lugnut's End of Season Picnic

Nolan's Rookie League team, the Lugnuts, held their end of season picnic on the 29th, and Coach Sims was nice enough to present each kid with a pose-able trophy in addition to the Cheyenne Junior League Baseball medal they receive. Every kid on the team was able to hit pitches from the pitching machine (35 mph) by the end of the season! The kids were able to try to hit two pitches from the machine each at bat, and then had to try to hit off the tee if they missed the pitched balls.

The picnic included a slip-and-slide, which all the boys including Barrett had a good time with for cooling off on a hot afternoon.

June 28, 2008: SuperDay in Cheyenne

Nolan and Barrett helped out Scott at the Cheyenne Capitals Youth Hockey Association booth at Cheyenne SuperDay. Nolan helped teach kids how to shoot, and Barrett gave out the candy prize to the kids who tried shooting.

After Nolan and Barrett worked for 2 hours at the hockey booth, they went around and enjoyed the festivities of SuperDay with Kelly.

Scott moved over to the NWS booth for the afternoon.

June 23-27, 2008: Nolan's Hockey Camp

Day One:

Chariot races.

Getting ready for the outdoor recreation time.

Switching cars after hitting the "Blue Bell" Ice Cream Store on Colorado Blvd!

Day Two:

Outdoor recreation (aka "dryland training")

Back to Cheyenne for the final Lugnuts game of the season Tuesday evening.

Day Three:

Denver Zoo after camp Wednesday to see the Blue Poison Dart Frog and much more.

Day Four:

Kickball!

Lunch on the concourse near Uncle Jack's seats. Lunch was part of the camp each day so the kids could socialize a little off the ice. Then camp ended after lunch each day and we had the afternoons free.

Day Five:

Breakfast at our room in the Motel 6 in Greenwood Village.

Nice photo opportunity with Coach Gwozdecky

Relay races!

With Coach Julian Marcuzzi

and Coach John Cook

and Coach Patrick Mullen

and Coach Eddie Guinn

Barrett after arriving to watch the final scrimmage game on Friday.

and Counselor Adrienne Gwozdecky

Nolan chatting with Patrick Mullen (along the back wall) before the scrimmage in the DU Locker Room.

...the final scrimmage game.

Nolan receiving his diploma.

and Coach Jesse Martin

Outside at the final picnic,
Barrett with Coach Gwozdecky

and Travis giving Coach Gwozdecky "knuckles."

and then more Zoo fun with Mom after camp.

Penguins!