Iron City Cemetery

I made mention of camping near a cemetery when my lil’ family went on an adventure over Memorial Day weekend. I indicated in that post that I would be sharing additional photos. So, here you go.

The Iron City Cemetery near St. Elmo, Colorado is home to miners who faced death in the late 1800’s or early 1900’s in the Mary Murphy mine either through explosions, collapses, or illnesses. Some children were laid to rest here after fighting a losing battle with life threatening illnesses. Some plots are unoccupied and some burials are more recent. A plaque erected at the entrance lists the deceased along with the cause of death.

As I walked among the headstones, I marveled at the fences, gates, statues, the beauty of the mountains surrounding this sacred site, and pondered what life must have been like working in the mines and battling illnesses that medical advances have annihilated. History is fascinating. May they rest in peace.

May 28

Lil’ Family Adventure

Memorial Day Weekend, my lil’ family decided to take a scenic drive along mountain roads to a music festival. We listened to music while rock climbing, playing on rocks near the river, climbing trees, watching kayakers, eating amazing food, throwing sticks to our lab in the river, and marveling at my son who stopped along the way to write everything down in his journal. We even threw in a little bike riding, shopping, and some ice cream. After the festival, we found an amazing little campsite and enjoyed a camp fire while gazing at the stars.

We ended up camping near a 200 year old cemetery and visited an old mining town before heading to another small mountain town for lunch, more bike riding, more rock climbing, more kayak watching, more throwing sticks to our lab in the river, all while surrounded by beautiful mountains.

I thought I would share just a few pictures from our amazing two days. I will most certainly be sharing more.

Did you add some memories to your memory bank this Memorial Day Weekend? Please share.

May 17

Garden of the Gods

My lil’ family has visited Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs on several occasions. To say it is breathtaking is an understatement. You can fill your afternoon with hiking, biking, rock climbing, horseback riding, or setting up your tripod for that perfect shot.

I hope that you get a chance to visit one day. Wishing you a happy weekend!

May 9

Grayson Highlands State Park

If you are ever in or near Virginia, you simply must visit Grayson Highlands State Park. It is near Mount Rogers and Whitetop Mountain, Virginia’s two highest mountains. On one of our days of hiking, my lil’ family encountered beautiful wild ponies.

Part of the hike is on the Appalachian Trail and provides hikers respite at Thomas Knob Shelter.

It was a beautiful day and a beautiful hike that still makes me smile. Sometimes, it is the little things. Do you have a particular hike or outing that remains etched in your memory and replays in a loop in your mind?

Apr 10

AdVeNtUrE Time last year (#2)

Adventures with my family make me happy. Memories of these adventures make me smile. So, I decided to start a new series each month called “AdVeNtUrE Time last year…” I will load this post with pictures/memories of my family’s adventure this time last year. Hope you enjoy this second post in this series.

In April 2012, my family and I went camping in the Pisgah National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains in the western part of NC. We enjoyed some hiking, fly fishing, bouldering, and just playing in the river.

Hiking our first trail

Hiking the yellow blazed trail

A huge rock face that we encountered on our hike

It was Peregrine Falcon mating season, so access was restricted in some parts.

One lonely flower

N bouldering. We hiked two different trails looking for a bouldering field.

Enjoying some fly fishing on our 2nd day

Can’t wait to share another “AdVeNtUre Time last year” post. To reminisce just makes me smile. Sometimes, it is the little things.

Apr 2

St. Augustine, FL

One of my photos is featured on the Toemail blog today. It is a photo of my hubs and N walking along the beach in St. Augustine early one evening. Grandma and Grandpa live in FL. When we lived in NC, we would hook up our camper and make a leisurely drive taking a couple of days. St. Augustine was always one of our favorite places to stop and camp. I thought I would post that featured photo here today, along with other St. Augustine memories.

I hope you get a chance to visit one day. Do you have a little place that you return to time and time again? Where is it? Please share.

Apr 1

Breaking Up with Routine

RoUtInE…I always tell myself that I thrive when my life revolves around routine. My son was on Spring Break last week, and we enjoyed everything BUT routine. We broke up with routine and loved it! I think that you have to be submersed in routine from time to time to appreciate the moments when it doesn’t hold you hostage. One way we broke with routine was to go to Winter Park skiing for 2 days!

Winter Park, CO

Thursday’s skiing was definitely “spring skiing” with the sun beaming down and the warmth coursing through our bodies.

Loving skiing in CO

I am fairly new to skiing. I am sure seeing my skis flailing through the air as I head towards the snow covered ground does not remind anyone of gracefulness. On one of my falls, this was my view. So to take it all in, I sat there, took off my gloves, reached for my phone, and clicked the button. All the while, my hubs and N were waiting on me at the bottom.

Falling in Beauty

Maybe next time, I will invest in one of these.

When the lifts closed on that first day, we rode the cabriolet back to our home for the night, changed out of our winter gear, revisited the cabriolet and landed in a Belgium restaurant in Winter Park Village called Cheeky Monk.

Cheeky Monk

I enjoyed what seemed like a cauldron of mussels and a Blonde Beer. It was such a nice way to end such a nice day!

Mussels and a Cold Beer

The next day brought a few snow showers and a few more clouds, but a lot more great memories. What a treat that my little guy gets to learn to ski at a young age. Never has my age been so prevalent in my head as when I see him “fearless” flying down the mountain, making quick S turns, skiing through the trees, and making small jumps. Oh, to be fearless again. Oh, and the hubs…fearless and an amazing skier.

Contemplating the JUMP

Going for the JUMP

I walked around a portion of that day just taking in the scenery that is not the slopes.

I welcomed the break up with routine. I look forward to summer break even more!

Do you thrive in routine? Do you occasionally like to tell routine to take a hike? What do you like to do when routine is not holding you hostage? Please share the little things that you enjoy and that make you smile.

Mar 27

Shavano Mountain

Just wanted to make a quick post today because I have some skiing in my near future. I plan to throw in a glass of wine while sitting in a hot tub and enjoying some good food morning, noon, and night. These pictures are from a camping trip I did with two of my favorite guys, the hubs and my N. We decided to check out Salida and Shavano Mountain in Colorado. I hope you enjoy.

Make today beautiful!

Mar 19

Tracking Travels With 3-D Butterflies

I love adding little details to my house to make it feel more like my home. In my guest room, I recently added some 3-D butterflies to the wall. I originally got this idea from the Young House Love book #134. They used pages from an old book for their art, but I chose to use maps. My family loves the outdoors and adventures and the hubs makes maps, so it was a no-brainer. Here is all you need: a butterfly cookie cutter, a pencil, a map of the area you have travelled, a pair of scissors and some little pins. I used little red map pins.

Needed supplies

No detailed instructions are needed. I simply opened the map and folded it in the area I wanted to use, traced half of the butterfly on the fold, and cut it out. When you cut it out, you will have a complete butterfly. I cut out multiple butterflies in some of the areas we have travelled, and then pinned them to the wall above the bed. This is a small way to keep track of our adventures. You can see another way we track our adventures by clicking here.

3-D Adventure Butterflies

Here is a close-up.

Map 3-D Butterfly

If you noticed in the above picture, I paired these little beauties with a Katie Daisy print that displays words my family and I live by: The World is a Playground. I chose butterflies because they mimicked the butterflies in the print. However, you can choose any shape you like. Every time I look at these little butterflies I know they depict some of our many adventures, and I smile. I hope my guests enjoy looking at them. Sometimes, it is just the little things.

Have you repurposed old book pages or maps to make something for your wall? How do you track your adventures or travels? Please share.

Here is one way my family sees the world as a playground.