Days 5 to 7: Ouray

We love Ouray! We want to spend more time in Ouray!

Unfortunately, we experience a few not too pleasant things in Salida. I mention them here, as they followed us to Ouray. We think Saul was impacted by a combination of elevation and change in foods. The result was a long night of vomiting and a very sleepy day recovering in Salida while Aaron went out mineral collecting. There was further vomiting in the car on the drive to Ouray and we ended up taking the whole car seat apart at our Ouray hotel in order to get as much smell out as possible.

Then, whatever Aaron had for breakfast in Salida caused a couple of days of food poisoning (the entire time in Ouray). The first 24-hours were awful and he compares it to Montezuma's Revenge in Mexico. All I know is that in a small hotel room, the sounds coming from the bathroom made me feel awful for him. By the next morning, Saul and I ventured out and got some activity and fresh air while Aaron took a warm bath and slept. They took their afternoon nap together while I escaped, er, I mean, went for a walk around the beautiful little town and sat in a great coffee shop and read my book. Saul clearly wasn't 100% yet. Aaron called when I was only 2 minutes away and all I could hear was, "Mama. Cuddle you!!" It was one of the only times he didn't wake up happy during the trip.

Aaron was determined to get some good pictures of the gorgeous terrain and scenery in the Ouray area, so he drove a portion of the infamous "million dollar highway" and called that good for exploration. We ventured out to get dinner and then both boys were asleep by 8ish. Unfortunately, Aaron's system was only partially improved and his sleep remained very broken. The next morning we drove on to Moab. I insisted on doing the driving! Aaron was still quite weak and very tired. It was the only driving I did the entire trip!

Saul exploring.

"Hello?!" I'm seriously thinking about sending this to Smartwool!
They pay extra in City taxes to have a view like this! (child not included)

Enjoying the day.

I finally bought new sunglasses and Saul immediately claimed them, even though I got him his own pair! There was a 30 minute crying/whining fit in the car on the drive out of Ouray because I wouldn't let him wear these sunglasses. Yes, he's almost two!

Saul was so sweet while Aaron was feeling awful. At random time Saul would say, "Feel better, Dada, soon!" Here he is checking in on Aaron who clearly is not yet better.

CO Trip Days 3 - 5: Denver to Leadville to Salida

On Saturday morning we went to a gorgeous community center in one of the burbs outside of the city for a dragon boat team practice that Aaron found. While he was paddling in a boat held stationery in a pool, Saul and I went for a very crisp morning walk and then ended up playing on the playground at the center. It was a great way to burn off some energy before sitting in the car for a while.

Dry air = static electricity + bright sun = hair-lo (halo)

Fortunately, we had room for Saul in the car! This is his one nap of the day while driving from Denver to Leadville. We experienced a brief snow storm cloud and beautiful but very cold weather on the drive. So amazing and such beautiful mountains.

Saul sleeping while surrounded by luggage.

By the last few days he would say, "Move bag. No bag!" (Also notice the winter sweater.)

Salida is one of the towns we visited on our honeymoon. We fondly remember the pizza and brew pub and the rose quartz location. It really hadn't changed that much in the historic area off the main highway. We had coffee and explored the little shops on a quiet Sunday morning, also letting Saul burn off some energy before the drive to the Sand Dunes.

The next few are at Sand Dunes National Park. It was really cold and ended up snowing on our hike back to the car. Saul was NOT pleased with this, was tired, and generally was ready to be done. However, on the way up and while exploring the dunes during Aaron's 33 minute hike up and 6 minutes down, Saul definitely had fun walking in the sand with bare feet.

Fussy cold face.

"Go this way," he would tell me.

I'm not sure what his directional sense was telling him,

but he definitely knew which way he wanted to go.

CO Travels Days 1 through 3: Denver

We had the opportunity to meet Aaron in Denver at the end of April and drive home as a family. This was great for a number of reasons: (1) We really, really needed a family vacation; (2) We'd wanted to get back to some places in CO for some time, as we hadn't been since our honeymoon - nearly 13 years ago!; (3) We have a little guy that we love to spend time with and want to introduce him to the joys of travel and exploration. Off we went!

Saul experienced his first plan trip. It was a breeze! He's so interested in life and people and his surroundings! At the airport at the gate while we were waiting to board, he entertained everyone around him with his activities and communication about them. "See planes. See big planes. Get down. Go see baby. Little, little baby. Come see mamma. More planes. Lady sit down." I really don't think it stopped.

Below are pics from the first few days.

Saul giving a fist bump to the mamma bear statue outside the Denver REI and right along the gorgeous pathways around the city river rapids.

Baby bears get fist bumps, too!
The new "smile" on command. Showing off his whole teeth and fabulous cheeks.

I really don't know, but it's so opposite his personality, it just makes me laugh!