Durango Trip

We just returned from a four day trip to Durango, Colorado to visit my Dad and Step-Mom. Well, technically, we arrived on Saturday afternoon and left on Tuesday morning...so it was really only a 2 and a half day trip. But, we crammed a whole lot of manly activities in those 2 1/2 days. Since Joi hurt her knee and was required by the doctor to stay off of it for 3-5 days, we figured this trip would be a great opportunity for her to relax and put her feet up. And...unlike Joi, she actually stayed off her feet for the most part. I was proud of her. Dad, the boys, and I  spent most of our time out and about. We hiked Dad's property. We shot BB Guns. We rode in Dad's mini-tractor and took rides in the bucket of his large tractor. We made hiking sticks out of these weird twisty bush sticks. The boys sculpted things out of plasticine. We listened to music. We played football and horseshoes. We played pool.  We celebrated Mom's birthday with a BBQ and a yummy (from scratch) chocolate cake that Joi made. We cleaned up bark and debris from under Dad's cabin where he stores his firewood. We cut down nine trees that were either "standing deads" or were in the way. Dad taught me how to notch and fell a tree. By the ninth tree I got pretty good at felling it exactly where I wanted it to go. I was like Babe Ruth and I pointed the chain-saw in the direction I wanted it to go...and after some sawing, I laid it down exactly where I said it would go. But, holy cow, was I tired after that endeavor. I've never used some of those muscles before. But, a soak in the jacuzzi afterward helped. All in all, it was a fun weekend. The boys seemed to enjoy themselves and it was fun to see them come in after a long day with dirty faces and tired bodies. Durango is only a short six hour drive from our home in Lakewood and most of it is through some very pretty scenery. So, the drive went by pretty quickly. We plan to go back their next year. Hopefully, we'll get a few more days...so that we don't have to cram so much into so little time. Here are some photos of our activities. Enjoy!