Marables Visit, New Job, Crested Butte

The same weekend Kris came to visit, the Marable family came to stay with us. They were in Colorado for an art show the following weekend and stayed a couple nights in the Springs. On Monday, I started orientation for my new job. I have been hired to work on the med/surg floor at Grandview Hospital, a small, freestanding hospital operated by UCHealth (University of Colorado Health). Justin had Monday off so he and the kids hung out with the Marables at Garden of the Gods and other places around town.

My orientation lasted all week and consisted of a general UCHealth orientation, general clinical orientation, and EPIC (computer charting program) training. Fortunately, I am already familiar with the equipment and charting program they utilize at UCHealth, so the orientation wasn't too stressful. The kids had a fun time at Mema's that week playing with their aunts and uncles.

That weekend, we headed up to Crested Butte to attend the art festival where Justin Marable had a booth. There were some really cool booths and lots of neat art. 

 The kids got to make their own art by shooting paint out of squirt guns.

 Crested Butte is a breathtakingly beautiful town situated in the mountains. We took a hike along some forest trails and were in awe of the natural scenery.

We had an awesome weekend in Crested Butte. Hoping to see the Marables there again next summer!

Summer Adventures, Water World

Here are some pictures from our summer adventures. 

Sweet sisters

Here are some pictures from the library's end of summer bash. The kids got their faces painted and played games at various booths.

 They also got to take turns sitting in a Life Flight helicopter from Memorial Hospital.

 We went to Water World with the Hamer family one cool and cloudy Saturday. The weather was overcast nearly all day, but we didn't get rained on too much. The silver lining in those clouds was that the park wasn't very crowded and we got to ride lots of waterslides.

 Aunt Kristy came out to visit from California that weekend, and since we were busy on Saturday, we all went out to lunch on Sunday. We love our Krispy! 

Swim Lessons, Glenwood

The kids took swim lessons for two weeks at the swim and tennis club nearby. The kiddos were in three different classes but were all in the pool at the same time, which was great. No one had to wait, either bored or cold and wet, for anyone else to be done with their lessons. Except Jane, that is, but of course she was an angel.

Emme with her teacher, Ally.

 Benjy taking a leap

 Eli working on his dives

That weekend, we drove up to Glenwood Springs. We had originally planned the trip because Justin was teaching training on Monday and Tuesday, so we planned to go up Friday night and stay with my uncle Stephen for a couple nights before heading to the hotel. Unfortunately, Justin's training got cancelled, but we decided to still go up and see my family and the town. My mom was up in Glenwood for the month of July teaching summer school, and Stephen graciously offered to take us all rafting when we came up. My aunt Robin came out from California for the trip, and Charlene came up from Denver, so it was a merry gathering.

 Ready to board the raft

 Emme the brave river girl

Pictures on the path by Stephen's neighborhood

Picture taken in the lobby of the historic Hotel Glenwood, which dates back to the 1800's and purportedly has ghost sightings.

This picture was taken on the drive home. We stopped briefly at the Continental Divide to use the bathrooms and I had to snap a photo. We took a longer but more scenic route home that took us through Aspen and over Independence Pass to get to the divide. The Pass was very narrow in parts and lacked a guardrail, so my anxiety was running high as Justin navigated the windy road. We made it home safely though, and got to see some incredibly beautiful views on the way.