Weekend in Durango

My cousin Molly was throwing a surprise birthday party for Uncle George's birthday so it became the perfect excuse to take a little weekend getaway, see some extended family, and have a fun adventure with the kids.  We love Durango and all there is to do there.

We also got some fun grandma and grandpa time there too.

Staying at a hotel is always so fun. The kids LOVED the swimming pool.  We spent a lot of time there.

This note was on the nightstand and I thought what Bentley wrote was really funny and random. How can we improve your next stay? "Many people have died."

Eden, grandma and I took a quick walk to a bookstore that was around the corner from the hotel.  The building was an old house which was converted into a shop and it was filled to capacity with books!  Every time we rounded a corner to a new room, it was just hundreds of books stacked very precariously.  The best part about it was that Eden thought it was the funniest thing.  She was so tickled and would laugh hysterically every time we entered a new room and carefully walked through the tiny passages in between stacks of books.  It looked like a book hoarders dream, and that shop owner had a system and knew exactly where different genres of books went.  It was really fun. I love these pictures because the pure joy is written all over Eden's face.

One afternoon we went to the fish hatchery and fed hundreds of fish.  We bought a cup of food for each kid and they quickly blew through that.  Fortunately, we were the only ones there and it was legit feeding time so the employee loaded the kids up with tons and tons of food and we walked up and down the rows feeding fish.  There were so many, and they would follow along with us so the surface of the water was a constant flipping and flopping of fish bodies.  The kids loved it.

We also went up to the top of the hill and saw the Veteran's Memorial with all our family names. It was neat to talk with the kids about all of the brave men from our family who have served in the military, all of them going to war at some point.

This awesome buck was laying there keeping an eye on things while all the ladies were eating in the trees behind him.  He didn't seem to care at all that we were getting pretty close to him.

George's birthday party was at the VFW.  This place has been the home to many Malarsie gatherings over the years - weddings, memorials, fundraisers, etc.  It's always fun gathering with this bunch.

Overall it was a great little getaway.  We loved our adventures and the opportunity to strengthen family bonds.  Until next time Durango!