Here, there and everywhere

We’re back from a whirlwind tour of Colorado’s front range, where we celebrated two nearly simultaneous weddings; reunited with college friends and extended family; and visited Denver, Fort Collins and Boulder all in the space of five days.

We went to a Friday night meet-and-greet and a Sunday brunch for the wedding of an old college friend, Travis, and enjoyed my cousin Molly’s beautiful outdoor wedding in Boulder Canyon on Saturday. Her younger brother Adam’s bluegrass band Head for the Hills turned the late-night celebration into a fun fast-paced dance festival that only totally exhausted Owen managed to sleep through (as we danced him around on our shoulders).

After the wedding will enjoyed a couple days on his own with Grammy and Grandpa. Highlights included a trip to the zoo where Will decided he is brave enough to observe lions, tigers and gorillas after all. (He went on the condition that he would not have to lay eyes on those scary beasts.) And the lowlight was a touch of stomach bug that hit this morning, perhaps ingested with some Glenwood Springs pool water yesterday. He was mostly recovered after one minor bout of vomiting and a few morning complaints from Will (As in: “Something’s wrong with my body” and “Something inside me is wiggling.”)

Meanwhile Rob and I dragged Owen all across the front range as we visited with old friends and spent a night on our own in Fort Collins. We’ve made a new bedroom for Owen on each of the past five nights and I’m beginning to wonder if this vagabond lifestyle is making him question whether he’ll ever get back home to his crib and a regular nap schedule. The poor sleep-deprived kid has been a real trooper despite the fact that he’s sporting a bright red beard of dry-air-induced eczema that makes me itch just to look at it. And Rob and I have realized that it’s plenty fun bringing along a generally amenable non-talking baby for a weekend “away.” But we're also looking forward to next summer’s Colorado trip, when we’re already scheming about leaving a weaned Owen with the grandparents alongside his big brother while we pull off a full escape, just the two of us.

Tomorrow, assuming Will’s little stomach bug is really long since departed, we’re meeting up with cousins from my dad’s side of the family, including a new arrival, my cousin Emily’s 2-month-old son Teagan; and my cousin April’s family, who were also bold and crazy enough to do a long road trip to Colorado from their home in Seattle.

Then Thursday marks the launch of the ominous road trip home. So it may be Sunday before I squeeze in an update. My apologies for the infrequent posts as we traipse across the country.