At the summit of Pikes Peak on the balcony of the visitor center

Yesterday, Jude and I hiked to the summit of Pikes Peak. This was no regular 14er hike. For a start, it was our tenth annual hike, haring started when Jude was eight on the Grays Peak hike. But Pikes Peak is also the 14er with the most vertical feet of hiking. It is 7,500 vertical hike over almost 12 miles from the town of Manitou Springs to get to the summit.

The sunrise over the clouds around 6:15am

Jude and I awoke at 3:30am on Saturday morning to drive down to Manitou Springs with the goal of being on the trail at 5am. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the trailhead, the parking lot was full so we had to park in town and then walk up. This added a mile and 20 extra minutes to the hike. But we were on the trail by 5:30am when it was just light enough to see.

Right after we made the summit at noon

It was a beautiful morning and the trail was busy but not like the popular 14ers in the front range. It was all uphill with virtually no respite and we were tired when we made it to the summit at noon. Pikes Peak is unique among 14ers in that it has a fully staffed visitor center and cafe at the summit as well as a train. It was a little jarring to see hundreds of people at the summit, almost all of whom had either driven or caught the train while we had put in a hard 6.5 hours of work. But the good part was that we were able to catch the train back down to Manitou Springs. This made a huge different to how exhausted I felt at the end.

Getting ready for Olivia Rodrigo

Meanwhile, Anna and Marcy went to see Olivia Rodrigo when she came through Denver recently. Anna has become a huge fan and she enjoyed it every bit as much as the Taylor Swift concert last year, maybe even more. She finished her lifeguard shift at 7:15pm and then went directly downtown for the show.

About to start her first day of work as a lifeguard

On Tuesday of this week, Anna started work as a lifeguard at a nearby rec center. Anna is officially a part-time employee of South Suburban Parks and Recreation. Her first week wasn’t without incident but no rescues were needed. She is super excited to have her first job, taking home a cool $15/hr. She will be picking up as many shifts as she can during summer break and hopes to keep some work during the school year.

Anna with some of her Avalanche cheerleading team

This weekend, Anna had Spirit Camp for Cheer – this is basically two full days of cheerleading, and Anna had a blast. They worked the girls hard, but that is way Anna likes it. She couldn’t be happier with her team this year. She loves being on Level 4 and has nothing but good things to say about her stunt group.

Enjoying the thunderstorm

Last night we had a huge thunderstorm. Strong winds, pounding rain and lots of lightning. Anna decided she wanted to be out amongst it, so she enjoyed a cold shower in the wind. And this is after she had just taken a warm bath.

Jude and Olive on the summit of Plymouth Mountain

Today, Jude and I went for a hike with Olive after dropping off Anna at Cheer. Deer Creek Canyon is close to cheer and a park I have never hiked in before. It was a cooler day and perfect for a hike after a little rain last night.

Marcy is away in California for a Ridhwan retreat for the next week.

The Rentons and Dahlens on the bridge at River Run over the Snake River in Keystone

We are just back from a week in Keystone with the Dahlens. It was another great week but this one was a little more eventful than usual.

On Monday, we went our separate ways, with Nathan and me riding our bikes up to Montezuma and back – a great workout and we managed to just avoid the rain.

Tuesday, Marcy, Jude and Lily got up early to tackle Buffalo Mountain. This is the large mountain that overlooks Lake Dillon and dominates the Summit County skyline. Unfortunately, the mountain was in clouds in the morning so visibility wasn’t great. Then they stumbled across some mountain goats near the summit. These goats were not friendly at all and were protecting their young kids and looked like they might even attack them, so Marcy made the wise decision to turn back.

At the top of the Spruce Creek Loop hike outside Breckenridge

Anna wasn’t feeling well (she had pink eye) but the rest of us (including Olive) went on a shorter hike outside Breckenridge. It was a beautiful day for a hike and the lakes at the top were stunning.

Ella and Olive leading the way down with Bald Mountain in clouds in the background

We were all back before lunch and then Nathan, Jude and I went to play golf at The River Course. We had a great time until the 16th hole. That is the steepest hole on the course and there is one turn that doesn’t have speed bumps. I took the turn too fast and ended up flipping the cart. I was a little banged up but Nathan was ok thankfully. Jude watched the whole thing from the other cart.

Wednesday was the rafting day in Buena Vista. I had already volunteered to stay back with Olive as everyone wanted to do a full day this time. They had a blast even though both Jude and Ella ended up in the river at some point. They were both rescued quickly.

Thursday was July 4 and we headed out to Echo Lake for a short hike outside Idaho Springs. Then we wandered around the town of Idaho Springs as they were getting ready for a day of festivities. Then it was back to Keystone where we went to see what was happening in River Run. It was not crowded at all as there was no July 4 bike parade any more.

Anna and Lily paddleboarding on Lake Dillon

Friday is always the Dillon Farmers Market. They have such great food so we all had an early lunch there. Nathan, Jude, and Ella rode their bikes, although it was a super windy morning. That afternoon a few of us went paddleboarding at Lake Dillon. That night was the traditional last-night dinner at Dos Locos.

The traditional photo of the five cousins

It was all over very quickly and this morning we all made our way home. For us, our next holiday begins tomorrow on our Colorado road trip to the southwest of the state and Mesa Verde National Park.

The traditional photo of the five cousins around the pool

Last weekend, we drove to West Des Moines, Iowa, for the annual summer trip. It was a great week. As always Baba had the kids doing all kinds of fun things. There was bowling, a movie afternoon, a trip to Adventureland (Marcy did that one, with Anna and Ella) and lots of games and time in the pool.

Ella and Anna on the train at Adventureland

Jude decided he wanted to play golf with Nathan and me for the first time in Iowa. So, we took one morning and hit the golf course. We also watched Ella compete in a swim meet while we were there. She had the whole crew cheering her on.

Jude being goofy, wearing Olive’s food toy

It was over too soon as we drove back on Friday so Anna could attend the cheerleading skills camp that started on Saturday.

Olive might look happy but she hates long car rides

After the long car ride on Friday, it was a quiet weekend. Anna loved being at skills camp, which continues this week. Also, Anna received big news just before the trip to Iowa. She did the lifeguarding course at DU over Mother’s Day weekend and has applied to many jobs since then. She heard that she got the job at the Buck Recreation Center in Littleton. She has a shadow day on Monday and her shifts will start in mid-July. She is very excited.

Jude, Olive and me on the summit of Windy Peak at around 9,400 feet

It was another stinking hot day today so Jude and I decided to beat the heat and head out for a morning hike. We did a loop around Windy Peak in Golden Gate Canyon State Park. It was a perfect morning to be on the trail.

At the Walker Mansion ruins on the Mt Falcon trail

It was a beautiful long weekend here in Denver and the three of us had so special plans. Marcy flew to Des Moines on Saturday afternoon to attend our niece Lily’s high school graduation but we had a low key weekend here. Some trips to the gym, Anna went over to a friend’s house, Jude and I watched some English soccer, and we went to Red Lobster one night.

Marcy, Lily and Mandy at the graduation

This morning Jude and I decided to go for our first hike of the year. It was a picture-perfect day, you couldn’t ask for better hiking weather. We chose Mt Falcon, a solid 8.5 mile hike with almost 2,000 feet of vertical. We finished in 3 1/4 hours with some stops at the top. Olive loved being back on the trail, too.

At the summit of Mt. Falcon at 7,842 feet

Anna is still in the throes of Cheer tryouts. She did well in her first set of tryouts and the final callbacks are this week. She is hoping for a Level 4 team and is excited about another year of cheer.

Anna’s White Out team performing at Summit

The cheerleading season culminates in a huge international competition known as Summit. You have to be invited to compete at Summit, which means you have to do well in one or more of the earlier competitions. Both Anna’s teams, Frost Cats and White Out qualified and Anna was beyond excited to go.

So, Marcy and Anna left on Tuesday night to head to Orlando. Due to a hotel scheduling snafu and some fierce negotiating from Marcy she ended up in a 2-bedroom cottage so Jude and I decided to come down on Thursday night for the weekend. This would be the first time Jude and I would see Anna compete at a competition outside Colorado.

Frost Cats about to start a practice session the day before Summit

Frost Cats performed on Thursday night and they did really well. The top 17 teams out of 56 teams make it through to finals and Frost Cats came in 18th, so while they “hit zero” (no major mistakes) they just missed out on the finals by one place. Anna was bitterly disappointed.

Is that the Millennium Falcon? Yes! In the Star Wars area of Disney’s Hollywood Studios

The consolation prize is that Anna got to spend the day at Hollywood Studios with us. We had a late afternoon break so she could practice with White Out, but we spent most of the day there. The kids had a blast and so did the parents for the most part (I am not a big fan of some of the more adventurous rides).

Saturday was competition day for White Out and while Anna did great in her parts of the routine the team did not do their best and so did not qualify for the finals today. Jude and I left late morning for the trip home and Marcy and Anna decided to head to St. Augustine Beach for the afternoon.

Jude doing well halfway through his 1,600m run

Earlier this week Jude had his last track meet of the year. He did four events and I was able to watch three of them. He ran strongly but did not quite hit any personal bests. He placed in the top eight for both the 1,600 and 3,200m runs. He enjoyed his first season on the track team, and he certainly got a lot fitter over the past couple of months.

Jude ready to go to Prom

On Saturday night it was Prom night for the juniors and seniors of South High School. They had booked out a suite in Coors Field but Jude met with some friends beforehand and they all had dinner together before heading downtown. Jude said he had a great time, that included a short stay at Dave & Busters and then a party before he got home about 1:30am.

Skiing the powder at Breckenridge

Today, he was a bit tired but he still wanted to head up for one last day of skiing. While Keystone closed in early April, Breckenridge stayed open and it just so happened to get dumped on yesterday with 12″ of fresh snow. That is rare for this time of year so we took advantage and headed up the mountain after the Arsenal game this morning. We skied about half a dozen powder runs, it was heavy snow and hard going but still a blast. That will be it for us this ski season.

Celebrating the last Sunday practice before heading to Summit

Anna is all about cheerleading right now. The last and biggest competition of the year, called Summit, is in Orlando next week. This competition is a big deal, you have to be invited so only the best teams are going. Both of Anna’s teams, Frost Cats and White Out received bids so she and Marcy will be heading out on Tuesday night next week. And because of a reservation snafu where they screwed up our reservation, they upgraded Marcy and Anna (after a huge amount of pushing from Marcy) to a 2-bedroom villa. So, we cashed in more points for Jude and I and we will be heading to Orlando next weekend to cheer on Anna.

A family lunch in Iowa

Last weekend Marcy and Jude were away in Iowa on college visits. They did University of Iowa on Friday and Iowa State on Monday. And they got to spend the weekend with the Des Moines family. Jude did not care for Iowa that much but he liked Iowa State.

Frost Cats competing at NCA in Dallas

We have had some technical issues on the blog but I think they have now been fixed. So, it has been a while.

In February, Anna and Marcy had a trip to Dallas for a big cheerleading competition called NCA. Both of Anna’s teams did well with Frost Cats scoring the highest of any time at CA-Denver. They ended the competition in fifth place with a score of 98.45

White Out at NCA

Meanwhile, Jude has been on a couple of college visits recently. We visited Tuscon to tour the University of Arizona 10 days ago. We checked out their College of Business and did an organized tour of the campus. It is very impressive. While it is a very big school with north of 40,000 students, the facilities are some of the best I have ever seen.

Anna was the Rookie of the Year on her high school cheer team

Right after Anna came back from Dallas, they had the banquet for the South High School cheer team. She was delighted to be awarded the Rookie of the Year and received her first varsity letter. She worked so hard for her cheer team so it was great to see her recognized for that.

Outside the football stadium at the University of Arizona

In Arizona, Jude and I met up with my friend Julian and his wife, who is from Tucson, and they gave us a great recommendation for dinner: an authentic Mexican place that was more than 80 years old. The next morning, we went for a hike in the Tucson mountains. The terrain is so different from Colorado but still very beautiful.

Hiking in the mountains west of Tucson

We flew back to Denver and we were home for just a few hours before we drove up to Keystone for Spring Break. My birthday was last Sunday and I wanted to wake up at our Keystone place. This was our first family ski trip for several years because until this year the kids had different dates for Spring Break.

Snowshoeing on my birthday in Keystone

They hadn’t had much fresh snow in a while so I decided I wanted to go snowshoeing on my birthday. We found a trail near the Keystone Ranch golf course and did a six-mile hike in the wilderness there. Then it was home and to my favorite Mexican place for dinner.

A powder day at Keystone

The night of my birthday it started snowing so we had a powder day on Monday. It was our first family ski day since before the pandemic and it was fantastic. We had a few powder runs and some bumps as well. It was Marcy’s first ski day since before she had bunion surgery and her feet felt so much better.

The CSU Rams in their admissions center

We came back from the mountains on Thursday and then on Friday Marcy, Jude and I drove to Fort Collins to tour Colorado State University. This was another great tour, and Jude came away impressed. It is was a little smaller than U of A but the campus was still very impressive.

Easter morning with full baskets

Today was Easter Sunday. No Easter Egg hunt this year (we thought it was the first time ever, but Anna reminded us we didn’t do one in 2022). Marcy still filled their Easter baskets with their favorite treats. We decided to do a non-traditional Easter dinner. I wanted to grill some ribs so we had a good old barbecue dinner with ribs, potato salad, coleslaw and cornbread. And Marcy made a delicious strawberry cream cake for dessert.

The annual Iowa birthday cakes from Baba

We had planned to drive to Iowa on Boxing Day (Dec 26) but a winter storm was pounding the plains and it looked like it could be dangerous driving. It was a good decision as the roads were terrible. So, we left home early (for us) on the 27th and made it to West Des Moines just after 7:30pm local time. Anna and I both missed the summer trip to Iowa so it was our first time in Iowa since summer of 2022.

Playing the “Saran Wrap” Christmas game

As always on our visits Baba keeps us entertained with endless games. We played Code Names several times, we had an epic game of Christmas Bingo with prizes and then there was the “Saran Wrap” game. Baba had wrapped dozens of small Christmas gifts inside an endless ball of Saran Wrap. There was well over 100 layers that we had to undo but you had time until the person next to you rolled a double on the dice. It was a lot of fun.

Toasting in the New Year with the cousins

New Year’s Eve was spent watching a lot of football and then all the kids toasted in the new year with “kids champagne” around 7pm. We also did the confetti poppers which were very loud and scared the crap out of Olive. Soon, there was confetti everywhere.

Shooting off the confetti poppers

Letting Olive know everything was ok

The trip was over too soon and today we drove back to Denver. It was a long but uneventul trip home. The kids have the day off tomorrow before returning to school on Wednesday.