Kayla Fuller

RV Trip - Leadville

After leaving the Sand Dunes we decided to head towards our next destination instead of staying at our reserved site in Hooper. The pool was closed for the day for cleaning and there was not much of anything nearby. Our next stop would be Leadville. Daddy would be running in the Leadville 100 training camp for the weekend. We booked a site at the Mayqueen campground directly on Turquoise Lake. This would be a new one for us. We normally camp on the other side of the lake. But, given this was to be a trip about new adventures we decided to give it a try. And lucky for us we did because it was great. Not as woodsy at Silver Dollar campground. But you had lake views and easy water access.

The first day we ate in Leadville and took Daddy to his training camp sign up. We took it easy the rest of the day. The big girls rode their bikes around the campground and played with some neighboring new friends. Kayla and I took a walk down to the lake to check things out. It was getting fairly cold already so we didn’t stay too long. We’d be back tomorrow.

Later that night we decided to start up another fire for our last chance at s’mores. Kayla was having a blast testing out her legs. She had been making huge strides over the RV trip with pulling herself up to a stand. This is something she had been too nervous to attempt before. So while Mommy sat on the picnic blanket Kayla would pull herself up over and over again on Mommy’s legs. This was always answered with big cheers from her big sisters which made her even more excited to stand.

The next day Dad was off to his camp most of the day. Mommy and the girls spent a few hours playing at the lake. The water was freezing but the big girls seem to be immune to the temps. Kayla on the other hand didn’t like the cold water. Mommy and Kayla watched the girls play from our picnic blanket on the shore. She made her own fun eating rocks, climbing up on Mommy, and taking a long well deserved nap. All and all a very peaceful day.

We then headed back to the RV for lunch. Afterwards, the girls spent more time riding bikes and scooters while Kayla and I watched from our blanket. The big girls would come by now and then to say hi to their baby sister. Which Kayla always loved. According to her she has the coolest and funniest big sisters ever.

The next morning Dad would be running around the Twin Lakes area. So we opted to have him drive us all there and we would hang out in Twin Lakes. So we plopped the kids all in Mom and Dad’s bed and Dad drove us to Twin Lakes. All while the kids were sound asleep. We were running low on milk and breakfast supplies so we hoped to buy more at a local store. But, nothing was open. One woman who rented out cabins must have felt bad for us because she invited us in to eat with her customers. Very nice.

Other then that there wasn’t much to do. So we hung out in the RV and played games. Kayla had a blast crawling around the RV floor and standing up on anything she could reach. Then Dad came running up and we packed up and headed out for our final destination, Home!

So what did we think of RV’ing. The kids loved it. The parents loved it. Never a complaint. It was great having all your stuff within your constant reach. Easy to pull off into any parking lot and eat, go to the bathroom, or just relax. We will definitely be doing this again. Probably even next summer. Not ready to buy one as you can only use them a few months a year. The rental is definitely the way to go.

Video from our time in Leadville.

RV Trip - Great Sand Dunes National Park

The next stop on the Fuller 2010 RV vacation would be to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. We decided to stay at the Sand Dunes Swimming Pool & RV Park in Hooper which was about 20 minutes from the National Park. They had their own huge 100+ degree hot spring pool which we figured the kids would enjoy. Kayla once again loved the pool and the taste of the spring water. But, the water was so warm that she could only handle small doses at a time before she would start turning pink. The actual RV park mounted up to a glorified parking lot but the pool was our main purpose for the stay. We swam in the pool for a good 4 hours and then cooked a nice dinner in the RV and called it a night.

The next morning we packed up our home on wheels and made the short drive over to the Sand Dunes. These things were much larger then I had expected. You could see them for miles.

The low water flow turned out to be perfect for Kayla. It was just enough that she could crawl around and not worry about getting dunked. But still enough that she could splash around. We would plunk her down in an area with a good flow going and she was a happy baby.

Sydney would let Kayla cover her in sand and then wash it away to give her a new canvas. Syd was also in charge of making sure Kayla didn’t eat the sand but as you can see that was soon a lost cause. Sometimes you just gotta let babies be babies.

I don’t think she ate too much??

After awhile we noticed that Kayla was moving a bit slower. She had been so excited about the water that we just plunked her down in her clothes and regular diaper. Forgetting that regular diapers soak up ALL the liquid. While swim diapers only contain the solids while letting the liquids pass by. So as you can see she was getting quite the diaper butt.

Once we thought she had ingested enough sand we let her dry off baby style. Nothing like being all natural in nature. We popped up the sport umbrella and watched the two bigger girls run around and play. Kayla was in heaven getting to spend the day with her best bud Wyatt. She is enchanted by doggies right now. So its quite fitting that Doggie was her first real word.

We ate lunch under our umbrella and then Kayla, Wyatt, and I walked upstream a bit for some more water play. And that was pretty much our day. The sands dunes were a hit for even the smallest of babies.

It is probably worth noting that the hills above us were being consumed by a three week long forest fire. The day before the sky was completely blanketed with smoke as we swam in the hot springs pool. Fortunately the winds had died down for our day at the Dunes. But you were constantly reminded by the fire every time you looked up. It was cool to be so close yet be so safe.

Our video at Great Sand Dunes National Park.

RV Trip - Durango and Mesa Verde National Park

Our next stop would be in the town of Durango. We picked this location because it was within a few miles of Mesa Verde which is one of Colorado’s four National Parks. We also found a great campground in Durango called the Durango Riverside Resort. It would turn out to be our favorite camp of the trip. As we pulled into new campsites it was always a challenge to keep Kayla safe as we set up camp again. The girls would be in charge of Kayla and soon found it was fun to play in the RV front window. Kayla loved standing against the glass and the two big girls turned it into a make believe adventure.

Our RV site was directly riverside so the big kids were able to climb down the little hill to go play in the river. We were lucky to be located at a point in the river with a shallow wading area for fun and safe play. However, the hill was just challenging enough that it was too hard to maneuver with Kayla in hand. No problem. We just strapped her in at the top of the hill with some snacks and she had the best view in the house.

The event for the next morning would be Mesa Verde National Park. We bought tickets to see the Cliff House. It is one of the larger and more popular cliff dwellings in the park. We got to our scheduled tour a bit early so we parked the RV and made lunch. One of the perks of Rv’ing.

As we waited for the park ranger Sydney asked to take a few pictures with our camera. Here is one she took of the family. I think it turned out pretty good for her first try.

Kayla had the best seat in the house for the tours. As she was strapped up high on Dad’s back complete with her very own shade umbrella. As we passed by people they all had to say something to the fact of how nifty our back pack was and how they had never seen anything like that before. Which was funny to us because where we live these things are a must and owned by everyone. It must be a Front Range Colorado thing. I can imagine they wouldn’t be as handy without the nearby trails. Nevertheless, Kayla was the envy of the entire crowd.

As the ranger arrived we headed down the rocked pathway to the Cliff House. There were lots of stops as the ranger gave us information about the dwellings and answered questions. This is when we realized Kayla is only happy in her backpack when moving. So we unstrapped baby as we toured the actual ruins. At one point we noticed no people were behind us so we grabbed a quick photo of Kayla with the Cliff House as her background.

The ancient pueblos who lived here would farm and hunt on the mesa top above the homes which meant they had to climb up and down the slick sandstone with their hands and feet. Lucky for us the park system installed a set of sandstone stairs and ladders for our ascent. For safety we strapped Kayla back into her backpack so Daddy could have his hands free for the climb. Here is Dad and Kayla near the top of the last ladder. I think Dad was milking how heavy Kayla was just a bit.

Next we went over to one of the smaller dwellings for a quick self guided tour. A nice lady offered to take a family photo for us.

After this dwelling we decided to call it quits and head back to the campground. Once there we decided to let the kids chill out at the playground and swimming pool for a bit. Kayla wanted nothing to do with the actual playground. But she did have a blast on this picnic table and a bottle of Vitamin Water. Ah, the little things in life.

After dinner Daddy set up a campfire so the girls could roast marshmallows. Babies and fire and dirt and rocks don’t mix well so we confined Kayla to her play pen and all relaxed by the fire.

The next morning we took some more photos by the river as we packed up to say goodbye to Durango.

On the way out we saw this on the side of the road and decided we’d better stop for all the roadside attractions that Durango had to offer. This was just one more of many hot springs in the area.

Video of our time in Durango.

Video from Mesa Verde National Park.

The Durango activities scored a thumbs up for the kids. Mesa Verde was definitely a gotta see someday if you haven’t already. And I’m sure we’ll be back to tour more dwellings in the future. But, for now its pack up and move on!

RV Trip - Ouray

Next stop, Ouray! While living in California, Brandon and I once flew out to spend a few days in southern Colorado. One of our favorite spots during that trip was Ouray. It was and still is one of the most beautiful towns we have ever been.

Ouray is also home to its own natural hot springs so we took the opportunity to take the kids. They love being in the water. With having no body fat the warm spring water made for much happier kids. Kayla is already a water baby. This pool was especially nice because the water was spring water instead of chlorine. So Kayla was constantly seen dunking her head in for a quick drink. Mommy thought this was gross so she got banned from head dunking. But Kayla quickly figured out a work around. Just stick your hands in the water and lick them dry. Works great!

The RV Park in Ouray was right in the middle of town. Which made walking around much easier. The park itself also had great views so the girls took turns getting their pictures taken in front of the mountains. As you can see by her smile Kayla loves being one of the big girls.

We were parked alongside the river so I made the girls pose riverside. Turned out great.

Enjoy some video of our time in Ouray.

We only stayed in Ouray one night before we were onto our next destination. We had too many new places to see. But it was once again worth the stop.

RV Trip - Lake City

Daddy had a couple races within a week of each other this summer and he wanted the family to tag along for the ride. We thought about how horrible it would be to drive for hours with three kids smashed into the back of the Hummer. Then came the brilliant idea to rent a RV for the trip. The kids could stretch out in the RV while we drove. No packing and unpacking at hotels. Have our house at our disposal at all times. And get the chance to visit some new and old favorite Colorado locations.

The couch/pullout bed came with its own seatbelts so we strapped Kayla’s carseat in and away we went. Amazingly enough she slept during most of the time spent driving. And was once again an incredible traveler for such a little one. The few times she did cry Mommy could run over and nurse her while she was still strapped in. Or one of her sisters could run over to keep her entertained.

Sydney brought along her old favorite guy Ta Ta. His charm worked again on Miss Kayla. He quickly became the toy that could keep her happy and stop any tears that might be coming.

Once we pulled into the Lake City RV Park we were able to slide out the side of the RV for some extra walking space. We placed a gate over the stairs and Kayla had her own little play area. At one point the excitement became too much and she fell asleep right in the middle of the floor. We all thought this was hilarious and snapped a million pictures.

If you look closely enough you can see the cookie still grasped in her hands. I think she was saving it for a wake-up time snack.

We brought along Kayla’s little portable high chair. She and Wyatt became great pals while she was eating. She would hand Wyatt her food and he would eat it right out of her hands. Which she thought was hilarious. We often caught him trying to sneak some food off the tray as well. At least he was great at cleaning the floor off.

The reason we were in Lake City was because Daddy was running in the San Juan Solstice 50. During the race we hung out at the playground to cheer in the runners. We grabbed a nice spot under the big evergreens.

Kayla had the best time playing with Wyatt’s dog tags. He liked the attention and she liked the way they jingled.

Here is a picture of Daddy and his girls post race.

Enjoy some video the girls took while in Lake City.

The next morning we slid the RV side wall in and headed out to our next destination. More to come!

Blackberry Face

Super Yummy!!

Dirty Girl

Kayla Stands

Wow, look at me. I can stand! Well, for a few minutes at least. I’m not quite strong enough to pull myself up to a stand. But, you stand me up to something and I can hold on tight. I’m only getting stronger.

Here is some video of the big moment.

Big Girl Food

I have decided that baby food is well beneath me these days. I am all about the big girl food now. Here is an example of one of my meals. Chicken ravioli, green beans, and watermelon. So far my Mommy has been amazed at how much I can eat. I’ll be packing on the pounds in no time. Yum, more please!