The last day of our Colorado Family Vacation, day 5, was far from a lackluster day. Usually, the trip back from vacation entails lots of sitting, waiting, and sulking from having to get back to reality. But since we had a late afternoon flight, that meant there was more fun to be had!
I started with my final morning walk before anyone else was up to fit in my much needed daily workout. Seriously, my mental state depends on it! I wound up making the walk from Nana and Papa’s house down to the neighborhood entrance for a playground workout routine.
The walk down was one mile (warm-up), then I did…
7 rounds of:
- 5 monkey bar pull-ups
- 10 push-ups
- 15 Squats
And then briskly walked a mile back up the steep road to the house. I came back to everyone awake and having breakfast. After she was finished eating, Kelley and I planned on walking the 2.5 miles back to the Red Buffalo Cafe for coffee and temporary freedom thanks to Nana agreeing to keep Avery.
With my post-workout feel good endorphins on high, Going Mom and I set off for that beloved cup of coffee. We made sure to soak up the scenery on the way.
The views all around beat the views of traffic and large buildings back home, so no view was taken for granted. Even the Blue River, which we saw the first time we walked for coffee, had picked up the pace of its current since it just rained.
Seeing the increase flow of the water might deter others with the same plan I had set since the first day we arrived, but I’m not one to back down from a challenge; even if I’m my own challenger. Our first day there, as Steve drove by the Blue River to their home, I claimed I wanted to jump into the clear, cold water while visiting. Well, I hadn’t done it yet, so this was my final chance.
Kelley and I completed our trip for coffee first, and then searched for the best jumping spot as we made the walk back to the house. We passed several “potentials”, but finally settled on a fairly calm area for me to check off my vacation bucket list item.
I slowly emptied my pockets as I ran what I was about to do through my head.
Free plug for Zevia here. I love the shirt and all of their drinks! Then off with my trusty Soft Star Shoes and socks.
Last to go was my shirt and I was already cold ready to go!
Thanks to my awesome wife, I got it on Instagram and then she followed up with several pictures.
Holy crap, it was cold! I mean, I expected cold, but this was COLD! Hence the look on my face….
By the time she finished, I was going numb. It was hard enough to keep my grip against the current, and losing my feeling helped not a bit! Needless to say, it was nice once I finally got out.
Well, out and dry. But I did it, and boy did it feel good! I dried rather quickly as we walked back, and we even ran into Nana and Avery just about to leave the playground I had walked to that morning.
Avery had blessed her with a nice poop, and we showed up just in time for her to finish changing her diaper. Perfect timing! Thanks, Kathy! 🙂
We finished our walk home to eat and pack for our return. The drive to the Denver Airport was sluggish with traffic clogging the roads. Apparently it’s common around there….bleh. Finally, we made it to the airport where we said goodbye to Papa and waited for our flight.
I thought the first flight wasn’t as bad as expected, so how bad could Avery’s second time flying be? Never should’ve asked! For one thing, it was right around her bedtime which is when her super crazy side comes out. On top of that, she just wasn’t eating much and was obviously hungry. It was even trouble feeding her a banana, one of her favorites!
So, for the entire flight, our beautiful little demon was all over the place, which meant all of us and our floor space. And she might’ve kicked the guy in front of Kelley 1 2 1,000,000 times.
Luckily, we survived, but not without more fussiness all the way home. We only unpacked what we needed as I prepared a quick meal for my hungry girls. Then it was right to bed (after bath and book, of course) for Avery.
And there you have it, our first official Family Vacation is in the books! We don’t have another trip involving planes planned for the near future, but hopefully Avery will be a little easier to communicate with when we do.
Have you ever jumped into cold water? On purpose or by accident?
What do you think is the best age to start flying with your kids? If you had a choice.