Our Trip to Colorado

At the end of June, we did something super exciting. We went on our FIRST EVER family vacation! We traveled someplace new - Colorado - with the intention of just exploring and having fun. Although we get a chance to travel frequently, we're always headed to visit family or friends for just a few days in places like Ohio, so having a whole week to relax and do whatever we wanted in a new place was a bit different for us.

Our tour guide, Gandalf the Grey

While we were there, we spent some time at Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), which was completely beautiful. We enjoyed the mountains, some close-ups with wildlife, and snow! We went canoeing at a local YMCA ranch - Julia even got her own paddle! We visited Winter Park, a town near where we stayed, with the intention of riding the gondolas up the mountain. It turned out that they only had a slightly scary looking chair lift without any restraints, so a ride up to the parking lot in some mini-gondolas had to suffice - and it was just perfect! We went on the Georgetown Loop Railroad, a 1 1/2 hour round trip tour through the mountains on a 100 year old railroad with beautiful views. This was one of Julia's favorites! Before we left, we got to spend a few hours with my Aunt Randi and Uncle Juan, who live in Evergreen. It was so nice to see where they live, since they've been there for 10 years and we'd never visited before! Our time with them was short, but sweet.

A stream along the Georgetown Loop Railroad

Flowers in the park

Taking a ride on the Georgetown Loop Railroad

Our locomotive

Near a lake at RMNP during a walk

Playing at Winter Park

Snow near the Alpine Summit at RMNP

A rendezvous with the wildlife

At the Alpine Summit at RMNP, elevation 11,796 ft.

Family photos at Aunt Randi and Uncle Juan's - unfortunately none of the pictures with them actually turned out :(

A view from a walk in RMNP

Overall, we had a great trip! Joe and I would love to go back again when we have a chance to enjoy Rocky Mountain National Park a bit more (sans kid), so maybe there will be another Colorado trip in our future sometime down the road. A special thanks to my Dad and Betty for gifting us the week to use their timeshare. We really loved our time away!