Did I tell you we went camping?

We decided to try the camping thing again with Cayle. Last time we went camping, Cayle was 5 weeks old and we ended up at Children's Hospital in Denver and Cayle had his pyloric stenosis surgery. This time, Cayle was 12 weeks old and very happy and healthy! He was a real trooper - didn't cry hardly ever (which is nothing new for him!), slept all through the night, and made do with what we had just like an experienced camper! Camping was in the Green Mountain Reservoir about 30 miles north of Silverthorne. Cayle took naps in the hammock (pretty sure Grandpa Brummer taught him that skill) and used his backpack for the first time.


He's getting so big! We have had such an awesome summer at home with him :)

A very merry unbirthday!

Thursday, August 19: Nick had planned this day for a few weeks. All I knew is we were going to celebrate my birthday, Alana would be watching Cayle, and I should wear something decent (which is really code for "please don't wear the stretchy shorts you have worn almost every single day since you gave birth to Cayle.")

Turns out we had two stops on our unbirthday celebration: the New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins and the Melting Pot in Louisville.

New Belgium brews Fat Tire - the beer they are best known for - and some other really tasty beverages. We had a 2 pm tour reserved and got plenty of samples along the tour. Crazy fact about New Belgium...the company was started in a guy's basement less than 20 years ago. They went from nothing to a huge brewery in less than 20 years...pretty awesome! Also, they have a guy whose job title is "director of fun." Seriously. I'm pretty sure I could handle being part-owner of New Belgium Brewery and making up fun things for the staff to do!
The above picture is me on the tour...kinda cool mirror!


After the tour, they had a bike you could pose on and this lovely poster to stand behind...
Ranger is the beer we got a growler of to bring home!
After the tour, we drove to Louisville (just outside of Boulder) and had dinner at the Melting Pot. Apparently Ronnie and Michelle frequent this place, but I had never been. I had actually never been out for fondue ever. It was amazing! First course was cheese (we selected a Swiss blend) with bread, apples and vegetables to dip. Then we had salads. After salads was the main course, which is what you see in front of me...chicken, shrimp, salmon, terriyaki steak and filet. Just when you thought it couldn't get any better, dessert arrived. Nick and I selected something called Yin and Yang...dark chocolate and white chocolate, which of course came with fruits, breads, brownies, etc. The whole meal was so good, fun to prepare and eat!

Things with Cayle went well while we were gone. Alana did an awesome job taking care of him. It was lots of fun to have a date with my hubby :)

Last Week

Tuesday: Mt. Evans - I met with the Lister Bros. from Springfield, IL (Andy and Trevor) and Ferguson in Idaho Springs, CO. The plan was to Ride to the top of Mt. Evans. Mt. Evans is a 14er with a road going to about 150 feet from the top. It's not that steep of climb, but is 28 miles long... That's a looooong climb!!! I believe it averages about 6% gradient over that distance. However it's a little difficult to breathe and get oxygen to your muscles at anything over 9-10,000 ft.... Idaho Springs is located at 7500 ft elevation, and you just keep going up till you get to 14,000 ft.

I felt pretty good for about the first 20 miles, then started to fall apart. I ran out of food, and then ran out of energy. I burned about 4000 calories, and only took in about 600 ish... You can do the math. Andy and Trevor got to the top first, in about 3 hours, then me, then Ferg not far behind.
After reaching the top we noticed a massive cloud rolling in. No time to lounge around, or gaze at the mountain goats, or take in the sights. We HAD TO GET DOWN and FAST!!! There is no protection from lightning or any elements, for a cyclist at that altitude. Lucky for us there was an aide station at the top for a bike tour going on and they provided us with some much needed fluids and snacks. Then it was donning the wind jacket and arm warmers and heading for the treeline.

The Descent: In two words...... DAMN SCARY..... At the top of Mt. Evans it was in the mid 30's and cloudy. We were not at all dressed for that kind of weather. As if the weather wasn't a bad enough problem, we had to deal with the line of cars heading for the bottom. Descending a mountain, a bike can move much faster than a car. Trevor, Ferg, and I took off, passing car after car and flying down the mountain as fast as safely possible... Not only were there lots of cars, and it was cold, but it was so cloudy, you couldn't see more than about 10 feet in front of you. This can be an issue when you have couple hundred feet cliffs to your right.... Luckily we made it down to tree line, and whatdya' know... It was sunny and warm! It felt great! All of our fingers were numb. But somewhere along the way we had lost Andy... Then we found out Andy doesn't like going downhill anyway, never mind the terrible conditions. After regrouping we took off again for the bottom of the mountain. Pretty soon it was Trevor and I leading the way with Ferg not far behind. Trevor and I hit sleet twice! This was at about 30 mph, it started raining with a mix of sleet! It freaking hurt! Not favorable conditions for going downhill. Luckily we mad it down with no mishaps.

Everyone was wasted, and completely spent! It was a great ride with good friends, and a good experience. Everyone should have the chance to do this climb if possible. 60 some miles and 4000 calories later I was on my way home for some food and much needed recovery.

Wednesday: Boneyard Brawl - The day after Mt. Evans.... I was not expecting much, and sure enough, on the first climb I felt like I was falling apart. There was carnage on the down hill with a lot of rocks. TONS of flat tires! The downhill was slow going, a line of about 30 people each time, I could only go as fast as they would move.... I expected to finish toward the back of my race, but somehow finished 15th.... I was really pleased with this result considering climbing Mt. Evans the day before, and how tired my legs were... Excited about how I will be able to do at the Beav race at the end of August when I am fresh.

Sunday: Tubing the Eagle - This was our first experience tubing on the river since we moved to Colorado. It's a pretty popular activity, but we just hadn't done it. It was a blast! Very relaxing, had a few drinks (Cayle was at home with the sitter), and got some sun. Good time with friends and Natalie. She did an awesome job considering it was one of the few times she had been tubing on a river. I think we may have forgotten sunscreen in a few places..... (my stomach, her legs... :)