October 2, 2022 – Darais Days

Today We got out at a decent time (8:30?) and we drove to Great Sand Dines Naitonal Park. We continued to enjoy the Hobbit on the way as well as some children’s audio books for Ammon and Clarissa.

When we arrived it was cold and rainy. We checked the forecast and knew that it might be that way. Unfortunately, Lily did not pack anything other than nice sandals and she was also in shorts so she stayed in the car while I went and had fun with the kids on the dunes. Even though it was cold and raining on and off, we still had a ton of fun.

On the way there, we had to cross a stream that formed on the sand from the rain. Also, Lydia and Mary were trying different ways to move their bodies (running backwards, side-stepping, straight-leg stepping) and rating how much they liked each method and they had me try a few methods and rate them as well. It was great fun and I captured it here in this video:

After walking on the flat sand for a while, we climbed a small dune hill and the kids played on it. It was really interesting to see how stepping in the sand would break the wet crust (from the rain) and expose the dry sand underneath:

https://youtube.com/shorts/rXg2vrsoDao

Ammon had fun running down the hill:

And I had fun jumping down the hill:

The kids followed suit:

https://youtube.com/shorts/fh5KCjVdYFU

On the way back, we charged the hill as though we were the riders of Rohan:

And we also pretended to be characters from The Hobbit

And of course, Clarissa was obsessed with water.

On the way out, I did a quick 8 minute jog to see a trail that I wanted to see (Montville Nature Trail). It was a very short .5 mile loop and very pretty.

Then we drove the three hours back to Colorado Springs and went to tour Air Force Academy. The whole experience was a treasure. The campus is in an incredible forest right on the base of beautiful Colorado mountains. The movie we watched talked all about how cadets are broken down their first week (Day 2 they are woken with bangs and screams at their doors) and the built up throughout the rest of the year to understand principles of integrity, honor and team first. It is a special school and it was clear that people really value their time there (from the video). After watching the movie, we went on the trail to take us to the famous church (intended for both faith-based and non-faith-based moral centers). The church was closed for renovations (and completely enclosed) so we didn’t get to see it, but the trail was beautiful and the weather was nice. I’ll post a picture of the chapel from online to show what it looks like when it’s not covered up.

We weren’t able to see this because it was covered.

Below is a video of the trail to and from the church:

https://youtube.com/shorts/O0dLLOEFLpM?feature=share

After our amazing trip to Air Force Academy, we went to Old Colorado in Coloradoo Springs and ate at a cantina service Mexican food (Westside Cantina). It had a Mexican Wrestler theme (luchador and had very interesting pictures on the walls.

We were a bit nonplussed by Old Colorado and Lily had the idea to go to Manitou Springs for desert so we headed there.

We were SO charmed by Manitou Springs! Our family LOVES carbonated water and there are naturally carbonated spring water taps all around Manitou Springs! The weather was gorgeous and we all went to a candy shop (Lily went to a donut shop) and we all got sweets. Then we just walked all around that charming town and we bumped into 4 of the Spring taps and tried the water from each of them. We all felt merry and just chatted the whole time feeling happy. Lily was feeling blue and stressed today, but I think Manitou Springs was a highlight for her as well. It was my favorite part of the whole day. Here are some pictures!