South Park City

In the town of Fairplay Colorado there is a museum of sorts. It is actually a replica of an olden days mining town and is called South Park City. Many of the buildings were purchased and moved in from neighboring areas. Mining was, and still is, a major part of the economics in the area, so South Park City has a lot of mining memorabilia. We took the evening and wandered through the little town. It was pretty neat to be able to see all the old toys, machines, and furniture and to learn a little more about the mining boom of the area!

The smokehouse~

A mining shaft pulley. They backed the carts in and filled them with the pulley, then they used the carts to fill the railroad cars.~
Mining carts~

A great "navigator"

Hannah is my navigator while I drive. She tells the other kids that she has to sit in the front so she can help me find the way. It's a good thing she does, I don't know if I could navigate without her. Evona usually sits up in front with her. Here is a picture of them doing their job...

Oh gee, whatever would I do if I had to navigate alone?

It's July...

...and yes, this is SNOW!! I guess that it can snow any time of year if when the elevation is 10,000 feet or above! This was taken just outside of Frisco, Colorado.

Sliding

At the event we are at there is a little park right behind the camper. Pyper loved that she could just go out and play since I could see and hear her through the window. She needed a "friend" to play with, so she took Evona out with her. She came running in and told me I needed to come see what her and Evona could do. Evona must have liked it, she ran around and waited to do it again, but I don't think I'd like to be pulled up the stairs like that!

Some Scenery on the Drive

We get to se some pretty country in all of our travels. The drive out to Colorado to meet David is no exception. These mountians were Hannah's favorite. Don't ask me where they were...all I can tell you is that they are somewhere on the Western Slope of Colorado!

Pyper's TALL Birthday cake

Pyper wanted a "tall cake" for her birthday. I found a fun idea and asked her what she thought. It was awesome! It had 6 layers, and each was a different color of the rainbow. I also used Em's trick with the instant pudding mix in the cake mix, and it was YUMMY! I should have taken a picture after we cut it, but my hands were goopy!

Happy Happy Birthday Pyper!

It's this fun little gal's birthday today.

She's 5.

She makes us all smile.

And she is loads of fun to be around.

She has a sparkly personality, and shoes to match!

(These may very well be my favorite part of her outfit, she said they were "Twinkle Toes".)

Some fun 5 year old facts about Pyper:

~Her favorite color is still purple.

~Fannie the elephant is her best friend.

~Her favorite foods are mac and cheese ("The kind Mom makes, NOT Easy Mac!"), broccoli, cereal, and chocolate.

~She is very caring and loves to give kisses and hugs.

~She has to snuggle when she wakes up in the mornings before she can start her day.

~She knows the value of sleep, and will often sleep in til 10 on Saturdays!

~She loves to cook, pumpkin cookies are her favorite thing to make. We usually end up making them on Fridays when she doesn't have school. We call that day "Stay Home With Mom Day."

Pyper, I love you very much and am so glad you are part of our family. You are my sunshine, you make everyday brighter just by being there! You are the BEST 5 year old ever!