Some of the activities we did today:

• Kaden pranked the shop keepers in downtown Brekenridge! This included asking if buying a cat mom box would make girls like him more and asking the lady at the register if a woman’s adult XXL pants would be a good gift for his girlfriend (she asked three times if he got the right size and when he said yes, she then just told Kaden he should check with her about her size first 🤣).
• Kaden dared Adam to prank the shopkeeper of the local honey store by asking if the sell jeans there. I will never forget her face as she stared at me like I had two heads and told me “Uh.. no.” She then muttered under her breath, “it’s just that age” while shaking her head. Leanne had to hold back her laughter and the knowledge that this was her husband.. in his 30s..
• Ice cream!!
• Arcade!!
• Shopping downtown
• Eating delicious fajitas

It’s morning, sunny, and we are ready to hit the slopes! We figured out where to get a good bunny slopes for for veterans to get their bearings again and the kiddos to get their ski legs.

The slopes were gorgeous, the views incredible, the air crisp, and skiing was a blast!

After skiing, we took some cool pics by the fireplaces near the slopes.

We ended the night by going out with Kaden and Dad and getting drinks at the local arcade. We had to refill the video game card for Kaden but how can you say no to such a cute face!?

It was time to say goodbye to Mount Princeton and explore some more! We first went to the fish hatchery nearby. This is where about 750,000 trout are raised every year so they can be fished throughout Colorado. The hatchery is paid for by angler fishing licenses and keeps the fish ecosystem fully sustainable in the state. This prevents overfishing and preserves an important American past time.

On the road we found this mountain range where all the mountains were named after Ivy Leage colleges.

Time to move on! We stopped by a cute little city called South Park city that looked like a preserved 1800s street with shops and bed and breakfasts. There we also found a library and got ourselves some used books we were allowed to “buy” with a donation.

Along the way we stopped by Alma, CO, which is the United State’s highest elevation town at 10,578 ft. It was very very small and has a town population of 296 per the 2020 census. To be honest, it was the high point of the trip. All the other towns and cities were all downhill from there.

As we got closer and closer to Brekenridge, we saw more and more beautiful snow. It is hard to best Colorado’s natural beauty.

That afternoon we made it to Brekenridge! We ended the night with some food, fun, and games at a restaurant that also had an arcade! Kaden cleaned out our wallets here 😆

We ended the night in our air bnb close by to downtown. Kaden, Leanne, and I hung out in the hot tub keeping us warm from the outdoor 20° weather while the rest of the gang stayed in and played Canasta. In the hot tub is where the “burrito” inside joke was born!

Hot Springs are amazing at night, but we had too many other things to enjoy during the day! First off was mountain biking! Leanne, Dad, Kaden and I all rented mountain bikes and hit the trails. The trails were exceptionally hard so to prevent massive head injuries and bodily harm we did have to walk some of it, but it was all worth it for the amazing views!

Afterword we took a break in the cabin. Mom made tons of food, enough to feed an army! Kaden and I built rock structures and played cards.

Next stop was horseback riding! Leanne, Kaden and I got saddled up and hit the trails with a local guide. Kaden’s horse was very well behaved. Aliya’s was great except her horse’s butt kept getting itchy! Every time we passed a stretchable tree, her horse went for it. Leanne’s horse was very naughty and took many snack attack breaks. My horse was excellent and I felt like was playing Red Dead Redemption the whole time. The experience was actually quite meditative.

We ended the night with more hot springs! Dad, Leanne and I did hot springs yoga. We also just passed the time in the hot springs right next to the cold creek. There is nothing quite like soaking in naturally hot water while the cold Colorado mountain air breezes along.

Dad and Kaden joined us and it was time to get iut of the Denver area! We headed toward Mount Princeton Hot Springs where we would stay for the next couple nights.

Once we got to the cabin near the hot springs, it was time to get in and enjoy. Some say that the water can heal many ailments and bring back youthful vigor.

After hours of soaking in the hot springs, we headed back to the cabin and just relaxed for a bit. It was a total surprise to find a deer on our front porch coming to welcome us!!

After checking out the Red Rocks Amphitheater and Park, we were ready for another adventure. We found Dinosaur Ridge on Google Maps nearby and figured we should check it out.

Dinosaur Ridge was incredible! This free park is home to actual dinosaur tracks and dinosaur bones. You can get close enough to them to actually touch them! Amazingly there is not even an entrance free to the park, it’s just openly there for people to enjoy.

All this hiking and exploring made us hungry. Now it was time to find a good dinner and nightcap. We found this at Maggiano’s walking distance from the hotel.

Time to get out of Denver! First stop was the Red Rocks Amphitheater! This is a naturally created amphitheater made of massive red rocks where many huge names have played shows. After checking out the amphitheater, we climbed and hiked around the park.

Every year, the Rawji’s and Kent’s try to do a family vacation and it’s always a blast. Normally we would go on a cruise, but with the pandemic still going on, this year it needed to be something more.. open. And what’s more open than the vast open landscapes in the mountains of Colorado!

We spent the first night walking around Denver, Colorado, going all around the city! Our hotel was close by all the action.

Our first stop was Larimer Square, the historic area where Denver was founded that is now filled with independent shops and restaurants. After some delicious macaroons and shopping, we settled down for a nice dinner to retire the evening.

Every year the Rawji’s celebrate Christmas on New Years. We leave the Christmas tree up just a bit longer and Santa gets us all our presents from after Christmas sales! Unfortunately Leanne couldn’t make it to be there with us to watch the ball drop in (an eerily empty) NYC or to open presents, but we were able to Zoom her in so she could be with us virtually!

I’m really hoping this year is better for everyone than 2020 was. Thankfully for Leanne and I, we really feel blessed to have had a great 2020 though. We both had jobs, neither of us caught COVID, we were able to get married (though we really dearly missed having friends and family there), and we had each other. Our families are also safe and doing well.

For the last 2 years, Leanne and I have been fortunate to be able to visit Leicester, NY to enjoy Christmas at the Chen’s. This year was especially fortunate as COVID-19 precautions have made travel very difficult.

Very soon after landing in NY, Leanne and I both got tested for COVID and we both thankfully tested negative.

Now it was time to have some fun! Well one thing we don’t get in sunny California where we live is snow, so we made the most of it! We built a snowman and went sledding. So fun!

But even more fun than the snowball fights, building gingerbread houses, having a private movie theater to watch Elf with just family, and sledding was playing with our brand new baby neice Aubrey Chen! She is about a month old and so precious! Tyler and Ashley are lucky, they’re parenting an amazing child! Aubrey mostly sleeps but we did enjoy tummy time with her when we got the chance!

• 

• 

• 

•