Our Anniversary Trip

Well, we ended up having to postpone of trip until the next weekend because of a chemical spill that they had in a town near-by. Joshua and I were able to get away the weekend after that. We were both very excited to be able to spend some time together without interruptions. Joshua had to work until Thursday because he was going to be taking Thursday, Friday, and Saturday off. I was very excited as I packed for our trip. I was busy until we left on Thursday packing and getting everything ready. My mom came home early from the shop to watch the kids so that we could leave at a good time. Joshua and I had a couple of errands to run before heading out of town to Monument. Its about 10 to 15 mins away from home, but it was still nice to be able to get away for awhile. Joshua and I drove around a couple of lakes around there and stopped at an ice cream shop before eating lunch and heading to Castlerock. We have lived here for about 3 year (in July), but we have never been able to go exploring. So part of this trip was for us to look for some fun places to take the kids. We went to the outlet malls at Castlerock and looked around for awhile before heading back to Monument and checking into our hotel. Joshua and I were able to stay at Sundance Mountain Lodge. It was a nice hotel and was not crowded at all. We ate dinner at the lodge and then just relaxed in our room before heading for bed.
The second day found us heading out for Pueblo right after breakfast. We did get to sleep in this morning (very uncommon) and had a late start getting out, but it was so nice not being on a schedule. The drive to Pueblo reminded us so much of California and the deserts out there that we were so glad that we did not move there. It was hot too. Our first stop was the Pueblo air museum. This place is worth the drive there and Joshua had a great time. At first we were looking by ourselves as they were getting ready for a special event taking place the next night. Then we asked how to get into the next hanger and this older guy offered to show us. He was tired from the navy and Joshua had a great time talking to him. We spent most of our time there, which was fine with me. He also told us of a restaurant right next door that was built right by the runway. Of course we had to go there. We enjoyed ourselves and it made us miss the times in California when we went to the place there that was right by the airport. After eating, we drove by the Pueblo zoo and park. That is also a great place to take kids. We will definitely be back to Pueblo. We decided to head back to Monument and headed to our room where we rested and waited for the traffic to calm down by the springs before heading to the springs for dinner. For a special treat, I took Joshua to Olive Garden for our anniversary dinner. He had never been there before. We had a great time, although we were both stuffed from our filling breakfast and lunch. Then we headed back to the hotel.

The next day we were up early as Joshua had to get ready for a school event to advertise for the violin shop. When we got home and ate breakfast, Joshua had to rush to the shop to pack up his violins and other supplies in our car and headed out with my parents to the place the concert was held. I was able to meet up later with Joshua to watch the concert and later to go out to eat. My sister and her friend watched the kids for us. We did not make that many sales, but we passed out alot of cards. The main reason was that we are still "new" in town and not alot of people knew about us. Joshua and I ate at 3 Margaritas. The food was really good. We had a blessed anniversary and it was great to be able to spend time together- just the two of us.

Happy Anniversary, Daddy and Mommy!

Joshua and I are celebrating 5 years of marriage! I can't believe that it has been 5 years! Time has flown by so fast, especially when you have kids. My mom paid for us to go to a lodge not far from here in Castlerock. We will be staying 3 days and 2 nights (the longest we have ever been away from the kids). The kids won't miss us that much seeing that they have Grandpa and Grandma to take care of them. Joshua and I are looking forward to spending time together- just the two of us- no distractions. Thank you God for my husband and for the years we have together and the years to come.

35 Weeks

I am doing good health wise. I can't believe that this baby is going to be coming very, very soon. We are so excited!!! I am tiring very easily and don't have much energy, but that is to be expected for being 8 months pregnant. I am starting to feel big as well. Please pray that I will continue to have the health and energy to take care of my family and my two active little boys.


I know that I look big and I feel really big. I am measuring about 2 to 3 inches more than how many weeks I am. I am 35 weeks so I should be measuring around 35 to 36 inches. The midwife does not think that I am going to go to my due date (June 5) because the baby is low and how big my stomach is measuring. I could have the baby in 2 1/2 weeks!!!! We are so excited and can't wait for the arrival of our new little one. We will keep you posted as time goes on.

Mommy & Daddy's 4th Anniversary

Today is Joshua and mine 4th anniversary. We did not plan on going away as we already had a small trip that the two of us took when we went to Chicago. On Tuesday, Joshua and I had the opportunity to go out to eat together as our midwife appointment got canceled (she had a birth to go to). We decided to go out to eat at one of Joshua's favorite restaurant, The Airplane Restaurant (formally known as Solo's). We had a wonderful time together just the two of us. We don't get to spend much time together alone with having kids. Sorry I don't have any pictures. Today was my day to go into the shop and I did go for alittle while. I have been tired lately as I am nearing the end of my pregnancy. It sure does make it hard to do things and get things done. I helped awhile in the shop and it was nice to be near Joshua even though he was busy. Then I came home and took care of the boys. Joshua and I got to spend alittle more time together when he got home from work. I can't believe that it has been 4 years since we were married. How fast time flies. Some many memories. God has surly blessed us.

Midway Airport

We got up early and packed the rest of our bags then took them out to load them into the car. Jay and Ann got up at the same time so that they could see us off. We ate breakfast together and packed the car to go. It was a nice trip, but we were both ready to get home. We were going to miss Jay and Ann though. We hit alittle bit of traffic going into Chicago, but we made good time. Joshua and I took the rental car in and went up to the check-in counter. We learned that they were not going to be open for another hour, which was a bummer because we had nothing to do but sit around and wait. Before we knew it, we were checked in and at our gate waiting. We ate lunch before we boarded the plane and we did not have to wait long in boarding for our flight. We were able to upgrade for free and were sitting in the front row of the plane. We were able to see everything that was going on. As people were boarding the plane, two guys came on, not at the same time, to audit the pilots. It was very interesting and a nice smooth flight. The best I have ever had :)! We landed in Colorado and soon got our car and headed towards home. It started to rain and then as we got to Colorado Springs it started to snow. We arrived home and were so glad to get home. It continued to snow after we got home and ended up being quite a storm.Here are some pictures of the Chicago airport.

Our Last Few Days

The next day Joshua went by himself to Chicago. We got up early to beat the traffic in Chicago and ate breakfast together. Then I sent him on his way. Joshua made good time getting to Chicago. The first stop was Michael Darton's, a fellow violin maker, shop. Unfortunately Michael was sick with the stomach flu so Joshua could not see him, but was able to take pictures and have a look at the shop. Then Joshua traveled to the CPR shops. He spent a majority of the day at the two shops, partly because Jay and Ann wanted to do something with us the next day since Ann had the day off. Joshua ended up coming home late that night and we soon headed for bed. What did I do? I relaxed, went on a short walk, took a nap, and worked on some crafts.
Our last full day in Indiana was spent sleeping in and then eating breakfast with Jay and Ann. They wanted to take us to a violin shop that they found in a nearby town, so we headed down that way. Joshua had a good conversation with the maker there and Jay and Ann learned alot. After we left the shop, we headed towards Jay and Ann's sons house to see a violin that belonged to Ann's mom. Joshua played it and they all enjoyed that. It was getting late and we all needed to eat lunch so we soon headed home. We did not eat much since we were going to go out to eat for dinner. Joshua and I started to pack our suitcase and get ready for our trip home. We were so excited and ready to go home, especially since the kids had gotten sick while we were gone. Then we went out to eat and looked around at the gift shop. I bought two shirts for the boys. We did not stay up late since we had to get up early to head on our way to the airport.

P.S. Sorry I did not take any pictures during this time.

Navy Pier

I have been checking the weather before we went and the only nice day was Tuesday, all the other days were suppose to get rain. So I talked to Joshua about us going around sight seeing and spending time together for our anniversary. We decided to go to the Indiana Sand Dunes and Navy Pier (in Chicago). I have pictures of the dunes, but you are going to have to wait until I get them developed. I used a cheap camera so that I did not ruin my good camera. We were one of the only ones at the dunes which made it nice. We walked along the beach and enjoyed each others company. Then we headed towards Chicago. The pier was nice and we had a great time walking around. We went into some of the shops and even rode the Ferris wheel they have there. They also had alot of stain glass out for show and had some beautiful pieces. It was a nice, relaxing time and the weather could not have been more perfect. It was warm with a light breeze, and the sun was shining. We did not really enjoy Chicago because of all the traffic and how busy it was. Soon it was time to eat and we decided to eat at California Pizza Kitchen. The traffic was so crazy and you had to pay for parking to go anywhere. We finally made it and enjoyed a nice dinner. Then we headed back to the house.

Our Trip

We started our trip on Monday by getting up early, packing, and driving out to the airport. It was a hard time for me emotionally leaving the boys. The first time I have left them for 5 days. We eventually got to the airport parked the car and took a shuttle to the airport. Arriving early, we walked around the airport before going over to our gate and sitting down. I have not been on an airplane since I was pregnant with Paul, but was very excited about taking this trip with Joshua. When we got to Chicago, we were both tired and ready to get to Indiana where we would be staying with relatives. Soon after getting our bags and finding our rental car, we headed out in traffic with our car. It took us awhile to get to Indiana and then we had to stop by a store and buy some food to eat while we were there. Finally we made it and got settled in. Jay and Ann, my cousins, wanted to take us out to eat for dinner and we enjoyed visiting with them. Then we were more than ready to get to bed.

Joshua and I with our cousins Jay and Ann Nichols

We're Back

Just wanted you all to know that we made it back safely. We had one day of warm weather and then it turned cold. When we arrived back in Colorado, it started to rain and then snow. I will try to post pictures of our trip later, the boys ended up getting sick while we were gone.

Blevins Family Pictures 2009

Focus On The Family

This last Wednesday that Joshua had off, we decided to do something different. Since the weather has been alot colder and the boys are fighting colds, we decided to do something indoor. We decided to go to Focus On The Family. I did not realize how close it was to our house, it feels like its right in our backyard. Focus has a welcome center and a bookstore, as well as an area for kids to play in called Whit's End from the Adventures in Odyssey radio series. Its a pretty cool place. It has an airplane that the kids can go through and a play area as well as a big slide for the bigger kids. It even has a secret tunnel that leads to another play area where there is a stage, puppet stage, and an reading area. You can even dress like the characters and put on a show!! They also have an area where you can stick your face through and have your picture taken as one of the characters. We spent some time in the bookstore and play area. Then we walked around some more. They had some different rooms for birthday parties and a small area for toddlers to play in. That's where we spent the rest of our time. Then we decided to go home and put the boys down for their nap. We had a great day. Here is the website for the welcome center. If you ever go to Colorado, you should visit Focus On The Family (besides seeing us of course!!!:)).

Fall Family Pictures

The weather has been so nice around here- cool at night, warm in the day, a breeze, and leaves falling all around. I could not resist asking the family to take pictures outside. I had to wait for the boys to get up from their naps though :). We decided this year that we would take pictures in our beautiful, big backyard. I hope that you enjoy them.