Waldo Canyon Fire

We just wanted to offer an update on the wildfire you've likely heard about in the news. On Saturday, a forest fire started several miles west of Colorado Springs in Waldo Canyon. Because we live far north of the city, we've been quite a distance from the path of the fire and are safe. The fire was mostly in wilderness areas for the first several days. Below are some pictures (all photos taken from posts on Facebook).

 Garden of the Gods - Day 1

 Garden of the Gods - Night 2

 View over the City - Night 3

Still behind the ridge of the mountain.

Late this afternoon, the winds shifted with strong gusts up to 65 mph, and the fire jumped several canyons and came roaring down the mountain. As of tonight 6,200 acres have burned, and 32,000 people have been evacuated. Following are some photos.

 Day 4 Devastation - This view is from the north

overlooking the Air Force Academy (football

stadium is centered at the bottom of the photo.)

Flames quickly approaching.
Many homes were burned.

Smoke surrounds the Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel.
The fires have not hit the Academy yet,
but it is closed & evacuated.

This wildfire has been absolutely heart-breaking. Our thoughts & prayers go out to all. There is still a long road ahead for our fire crews & community, so please keep praying for our beloved Colorado Springs.

Lift Off in 3...2...1...

This week Luke has been in a Space & Rockets Camp through a program called Science Matters. Everyday he would come home sharing some new adventure relating to constructing water rockets, making their own planetarium, learning about constellations ... yes, we have a young Galileo on our hands! On the final day of camp, families were invited to a "rocket launch" to see the kids show off their water rocket creations. It's amazing how some H20, PVC pipe & a bike tire pump can send a duct-taped 2-liter bottle (AKA water rocket) hurling into the air! Below is a video of Luke's launch (with assistance from Dad, Reid & Luke's teacher.)

Monkey Bars

Go, Reid, Go!

Happy SuperDad Day!

Father's Day Backyard Wiffleball Game

Our dear Scott is SuperDad in many ways. On this Father's Day, let us share a few stories...

Scott has traveled a lot for work this past winter & spring. He's been gone for 2-3 weeks at a time on several occasions. The boys were troopers and braved the time with Dad gone, but it is obvious there's a big gap in our family when he's not here. These long work trips have made us really appreciate Dad even more and all he does for our family. Fingers crossed the next 6 months will bring fewer work travels and more "dad time" at home!

One Friday afternoon, Scott left work early and came home to surprise Luke & Reid with a trip to our new laser tag place. The boys had been talking non-stop about wanting to go. You know how excited kids are on Christmas? Bottle up that emotion, and that's exactly how excited the boys were on that afternoon! When the trio returned home, Reid exclaimed, "That was the best time ever!" 

Scott has always been a big fan of baseball, and it's wonderful to watch him share the love of the game with the boys. He's on his 3rd year of coaching Luke's baseball team and will coach Reid's team next year. One of our favorite summer activities is spending time outside playing catch or practicing batting with our little rookies!

And finally, I couldn't ask for a more amazing husband & father. He is always willing to fly solo with the boys if I have a meeting or evening plans. He is a force to be reckoned with in the world of laundry ... folding and putting away the mountains of clean clothes that can accumulate. It is wonderful to have an in-house I/T guy to help with my random computer questions & fiddle with our sometimes complicated TV system. He plays soccer every week, mountain bikes, runs a sub 6 minute mile, and is a pogo stick champ. Don't believe me on that last one? See for yourself.

Happy Father's Day!

Best $20 Ever Spent

When you are close to 7,000 feet and the weatherman calls for temps above 90, that means HOT weather on the horizon. We decided to gear up for the heat wave by purchasing a new slip-n-slide to replace our old one that bit the dust. Our dear friends at Walgreen's had several options, but we settled upon a super duper 20 ft. 2-lane slip-n-slide. We brought it home, hooked it up, and let the photos that follow confirm ... that was the best 20 bucks ever spent!

 Double the lanes. Double the fun! 

 Who is afraid of a little cold water? Not Luke!

 While he may not be able to slip nor 

to slide, Grant didn't let that stop him

from having a blast!

 He quickly learned that waiting at the end

means big brother will SPLASH you!

 This so perfectly frames what life in our family is like.

Constant motion. Constant laughs.

 "Let me get a little closer look..."

Best. Entertainment. EVER!

Boys of Summer

The LONG & Short of It

Want to know the best way to start off the summer? With a visit from good friends! We were treated to a fabulous few days with the Long family -- Will, Raegan, Harper & Quincy (& baby boy due soon!) Our 3 boys plus their 2 girls made for fun-on-the-run, tons of laughs, and many great memories.

3 Leahy Boys + 2 Long Girls = A Couchful of Cuteness!

When you visit us in Colorado in the summer,

there's a good chance we may talk you

into a canoe excursion on Monument lake.

Scott, Luke & Reid paddle about.

 Move over, mermaids ... 

Darling Quincy & Harper are here!

 Someone likes to (pretend) drive Papa's van.

Ahhh ... summer at the lake!

Time for a new canoe crew!

The Longs out for a sunset cruise.

Sunday's agenda ... off to the 

North Pole Amusement Park!

Who says you can't consult with Santa year round?!

Harper enjoys a chat with St. Nick.

(It is kind of funny to see 

Santa in short sleeves though...)

We will save this picture and give it to Luke 

when he turns 16.

 Reid is ready for the Indy 500!

 "I like to chauffeur my dad around."

 Look who got to drive ... but can't 

reach the steering wheel?! Hee, hee!

The first of many whirling, twirling rides.

Tilt-a-Whirl, anyone?

 Mama enjoys the Candy Cane Slide.

Grant, not so much.

 Clearly, no one wanted to sit together.

But Reid (in front) couldn't wait to see how

everyone else was doing!

 All Aboard!

Funny fellas on the train.

 Scott & Harper in the red pod.

Raegan & Quincy in the purple pod.

 Sweet Girl. Tough Ride.

Who's ready for the ferris wheel?

 The Mamas

This bucking bronco ride 

was a crack up.

 Not sure what's funnier...

The big ol' hats or the fact

that they are sitting on saddles!

 Dad & G

 Big brother Luke and his wingman Grant

 The Grand Finale Ride ... the Gondola!

Scott & the boys, then Will & Harper,

then Raegan & Quincy behind them.

 Quick pic as they pass by!

Christmas in June ... what a fun day for all!

Before & After

We've been in our home nearly 4 years (how did time fly by so quickly?!) Our interior paint was starting to show a little wear & tear. Time to freshen up the paint a bit! We wanted to change up the color palette slightly, so we decided on going a hue darker for the tan shades and changing the green to a grayish blue color. We are thrilled with the end result! For local blog readers who may be looking for a painter, we highly recommend Aaron Moore Painting!

Here are some before & after photos. We had to dig back in the vault for the before photos from 2008!

Living Room Before...

 Living Room After!

We had the accent pillows from our AZ house.

Love that we could use them again!

 Dining Room Before...

Dining Room After

Notice the high chair at the table.

Same chair. Different boy! 

Mueller State Park

Another day-camping excursion for our crew with a destination of Papa's campsite at Mueller State Park! This camping gem up in the mountains is only 1 hour away. We've heard rave reviews about this area, and it was beautiful with the campsites nestled in among the pines.

 A typical scene in our family.

Two are usually climbing.

One is watching carefully

and taking notes!

 He never met a steering wheel

he didn't like.

 Moving firewood requires teamwork.

 Dining al fresco!

 What's so funny?!

 The Boys of Summer

The campground featured this children's 

nature hike around a little lake. Great finale

to our day at Mueller State Park!