April 14, 2016 - Roxborough, Morrison & Lakewood, CO

We were excited about going with Carmel to Roxborough State Park, about 20 miles south from where we were. The weather looked great and perfect for hiking and photo shooting.  On way to Erwin's great niece Carmel's house we stopped by to check on the Mama owl and her owlets at Bear Creek Lake Park.

We went in Carmel's car to go to Roxborough State Park.  The view going toward Roxborough was beautiful. We could see the Denver skyline (no idea how far it was from where we were).  There was a gated community with an awesome view of Roxborough Rocks and the homes there are worth much more than a million dollars.

Denver Skyline

The parking lot was almost full, but Carmel found an empty spot to park in.  We walked to the visitor center, went inside to look around.  There were lots of information on wildlife and the rocks.  There was a board on the wall that list the sightings of wildlife that visitors reported.  None of them were seen the last couple days and Edith was hoping to see some of them during the hike.

Carmel suggested that we take the Fountain Valley Trail (2.2 miles).  We were in awe of the beauty especially when the sun shone on the red rocks.  The path was hard-packed and wide enough.  We made stops for Carmel and Edith to take pictures of the rocks.  We went to the overlook, enjoyed and admired the beauty.  Our mouths were open almost all the way from lack of air, tiredness and altitude change, but we managed to keep up with Carmel (of course, we made some stops).

https://youtu.be/GxM7TqQyhHE

Happy Hikers!

Almost can see a hand forming in the rocks!

There were 3 buildings at the half-point of the trail.  One house was built in 1836.  From there the trail was steep uphill.  We stopped once in a while to catch our breaths, to rest a bit before catching up with Carmel.

The house that was built in 1836

We took the trail to Lyons Overlook where there is an overlook deck to allow visitors to get a good view of the rocks.  Gorgeous view!  

Carmel checking out photo spots

Lyons Overlook

Carmel checked her Fitbit and mentioned to us that we hiked about 3.5 miles and we were surprised that we made it in spite of the altitude.  It was past 1 pm when we finished the hike and were hungry.  Edith told Carmel she would rather eat at a local dining place and Carmel took us to Morrision, CO.

We had lunch at The Morrison Inn (Mexican) and we all enjoyed our meals. The atmosphere was very interesting.

After coming back home from Carmel’s house Erwin took a power nap while Edith edited photos she took this morning.  Then Edith had a power nap before we went over to Carmel’s house for dinner at 6 pm.

We had a lovely time with Carmel and her family and the dinner was very good.  We discussed with Carmel about hiking at Red Rocks in Morrison tomorrow morning. 

April 13, 2016 - Lakewood, CO

Even though Edith had a good night’s sleep she woke up with a nagging headcold and was feeling worse than she was yesterday.  She decided that she was not going to go out today, wanted to stay in bed to rest.  Erwin was feeling just fine (crossing fingers that he does not feel lousy later on)

After breakfast Erwin went out for a walk after discarding trash at the dumpster.  The sky was without clouds and the weather was just perfect for spending time outside.  

Magpies are birds of the Crow family
which is considered to be one of the most intelligent
animals in the world. Its average lifespan is 25 years.

Today’s plan was to go with Carmel, Erwin’s great niece, to Roxborough and Red Rocks for photo shooting and hiking, but since Edith was under the weather the plan is scrubbed until tomorrow.

Carmel and her dog, Jeter, took a walk from her house to the campground, which is about a mile or so.  She sat with Erwin outside catching up on news, then went inside to talk with Edith, who was resting on the sofa.  Carmel stayed for about an hour and had to leave to go pick up her kids. 

Erwin took Carmel home, but showed Carmel where the baby owls were. Carmel was thrilled to see three baby owls, one was out of the nest.  

After coming back to the campground from dropping Carmel off Erwin told Edith to go with him to see the owlets .  Edith was not feeling too good, but will do anything to go out if there is photo shooting opportunity.  

While we were watching and shooting the owlets a lady drove by, got out and checked through the binoculars. She found where the Mama was, showed Erwin where to find her.  The Mama was not too far from the tree where the owlets were, but there were too many branches in front that it was hard for Edith to capture a clear image of her.  We stayed there for about half an hour before the sun started to get in front of the camera.  **Photo tip: Always have the sun behind your back, not in front, when shooting pictures.

The clouds have been interesting this afternoon, changing colors, shapes, etc.  It was fun to check them out from time to time.

Timelapse Cloud Formations

Edith started to feel a tiny bit better, but was still sneezing a lot.  She thought she will be feeling good enough to go out with Carmel tomorrow. Let’s hope so!

A very quiet night after supper.  Cloud watching, surfing the net, checking emails, etc.

April 12, 2016 - Lakewood, CO

When Edith woke up she knew she was going to be exhausted and sick today.  She did not take care of herself when she was at Little Miss Colorado pageant event last weekend.  She did not eat properly or drink enough water for 3 days.  She did not think to slow down, take time-out to nourish herself.  That is the price one gets if not taking care of oneself.

Edith took Ibuprofen, drank a lot of water. She decided she was not going to do anything, but rest.  

Erwin went biking for 45 minutes, but found himself out of breath due to altitude.  The farthest he biked to was the Visitor’s Center. 

Even though she was still under the weather Edith was determined to drive to the kiosk to check on the owlets.  However, she was disappointed there were construction trucks parked there and the road was being repaved.  Edith managed to find a spot large enough for the Jeep, took out her tripod and camera with the zoom lens.  She was a bit worried about all the noise and distraction that may scare the owls away, but the Mama cannot move them, so has to stay where they were.  

The Mama was nowhere to be seen.  When we checked with the Visitor’s Center the other day we were told that there were 2 owlets, but Edith was surprised to see the third one in the back inside the hollow nest. 

ONE

TWO

And there are THREE!

The storm clouds started to roll in constantly, changing shapes and colors. It was fantastic to watch them.  We could see the rain clouds over the mountains.  

We did not go anywhere rest of the evening, so Edith can get some rest.  

April 11, 2016 - Lakewood, CO

It was a day of rest & relaxation for us after a busy weekend with Keri, Dustin and their children during Little Miss Colorado pageant in Thornton, CO.

After breakfast we got our Lil' Home (LH) ready for a trip to the campground nearby.  We could have stayed at Erwin's great niece, Carmel's residence a couple days more, but we needed electricity and water.

We stopped by the visitor's center at Bear Creek Lake Park in Lakewood, CO to see if there was a campsite available.  We wanted to stay there through the weekend, but there was no availability for Fri/Sat/Sun, so we reserved one site for 4 nights and the checkout is before noon Friday the 15th.  The park is less than 3 miles from Carmel's house.  

While we were at the visitor's center Edith asked if there were any wildlife that may be around.  She was advised about the owl and her three babies in a tree that can be seen from a spot near the kiosk after entering the park.

We were assigned to a site, but when we arrived there the site was already occupied. We had to go back to the visitor's center to get a different site.  It came with full hook-ups and perfect for big rigs like ours.  The view was good. $20 a night.

After getting the LH settled in and fixing lunch we went out to check on the mama owl and her three owlets.  The mama was not so far from the nest.  Two of the three owlets were seen peering out of the nest.  There was another photographer taking pictures of the owls.

Owlet inside the nest

Two owlets peering out to see what Edith was doing

Mama Owl giving a "Don't you dare" look at Edith

The afternoon was lovely, but we did not do much today.  Just being lazy... Sometimes it is good to be lazy to renourish oneself after a busy schedule.  There was a lot of driving back/forth Friday and Saturday, so we decided not to go out much except for Edith to go check on the owls.

The sunset was not spectacular, but it was nice to see the setting sun.  Sunset photography is one of Edith's favorite thing to do.  

April 10, 2016 - Thornton & Morrison, CO

We were up at 6:10 and left Morrision, CO at 6:30 am.  We made it to the Castle in Thornton, CO at 7:08 am.  

Today was the big day for Sasha, Nikkol, Zella and Hunter at Little Miss Colorado and Little Miss American pageant.

Hair & Makeup 

Look at these sparkling tiaras

Dustin tying Hunter's shoes

Keri was busy getting the kids ready for the pageant.  The girls had their hairs rolled up and Hunter got outfitted.

The pageant was supposed to begin at 8:30, but got delayed until after 9 am.  Hunter was the first one to get on the stage. 

Hunter's first routine in Beauty category

Dustin helping Hunter do his routine

Nikkol

 Zella & Sasha

Sasha signing "Roar" in talent category

Zella's Nerd routine

Nikkol in Glitz category

The pageant was supposed to be over at 3 pm, but continued until 5:30 pm.  The crowning was supposed to start at 5 pm, but got delayed.  It was 9:30 pm when the judges were finally done with the scoring and choosing the winners.  

Announcing and crowing winners took over an hour and half.

Results for the Traver kids:

• Hunter 
• Little Miss America - Divisional King
• Little Miss Colorado - Grand Supreme
• Zella 
• Little Miss America - Princess
• Little Miss Colorado - Personality Supreme
• Nikkol
• Little Miss America - Princess
• Little Miss Colorado - Mini Grand Supreme 6-9 years old
• Sasha 
• Little Miss America - Divisional Supreme
• Little Miss Colorado - Mini Grand Supreme 10+ years old