When we got there, the kids decided that they wanted to play some first before eating ice cream. They all had SO much fun together. They hit the slide first, coming down one right after the other.
Then the boys paired up and came down together. Beckham always has a BLAST with William!
Soon the kids started racing each other, seeing who could make it down the slide the fastest.
Then they decided to play a little "hide-n-seek" and sent each other "searching" for them one by one. Ella was the first one to be "it."
Brenner quickly realized how much fun the other kids seemed to be having on this slide, and he wanted in on the fun too.
He tried his best to climb up the slide, but he never made it very far.
Berkley, being the wonderful big sister that she is, noticed Brenner having trouble and came to the rescue. She showed him where he needed to climb up to get to the slide. He got a little side-tracked on the way up, but he was having so much fun. He LOVED playing with the big kids.
He finally made it to the top and Berkley helped him right back down to the bottom!
After a while of playing hard, everyone decided it was time for ice cream. We all got a cone (except for Brenner... he shared with mommy) and enjoyed our treat together. I had a great time hanging out with them and listening to all of the funny things they were talking about. William and Ella are such sweet kids, and we had a great time with them. We are so fortunate to have such wonderful neighbors. Thanks William and Ella for taking care of Maddie. We truly appreciate your help.
Berkley was excited to watch some of the new movies we got for the trip too, but she did get bored after a while. Good thing she enjoys art! She stayed busy for a long time coloring pictures. It was also a good thing that she had packed her purse with such thought. As soon as the sun began shining in her eyes, she simply whipped out her sunglasses and she was good to go!!!
Matt kept on trucking without any complaints. (I wasn't behind the wheel for a single second on our trip!)
We drove through what seemed like days of flat lands all around us. It was exciting when Matt pointed out the "baby mountains" up in the distance. Knowing we were still no where close to our final destination, the sight still seemed to give me a glimpse of hope.
The kids truly were incredible on the trip. We pushed on into Pueblo, New Mexico for a late dinner. (The only stop we had between lunch and dinner was a very quick pit stop on the side of the road for Beckham.) Seriously, Berkley and Beckham couldn't have been better. However, by this time they were growing pretty tired of their car seats. I didn't blame them one bit, because I was tired of my seat too. We decided we needed to stop for a nice, long dinner to give ourselves a break. Beckham wasn't feeling very good by this point, and he really hadn't eaten much all day, so we asked him what he wanted to eat. His answer was not surprising at all. He wanted pizza. We spotted a Carino's and decided that it would be perfect. (Especially since Berkley would be delighted to have salad and bread!) 
By the time we finished with dinner, it was already way past the kid's normal bedtime. We put them in their jammies, got them situated with their pillows and blankets, and wished them good night. They were both able to sleep the rest of the way to Keystone. 
The kids were in absolute amazement. They truly couldn't believe how mighty the mountains were and all of the snow that surrounded us. 
Matt was just about as excited to be in the mountains as the kids were. I truly wish that I could have the same enthusiasm as he does for the snow and mountains, and even for the skiing. It is beautiful. The problem is I want to enjoy the beauty by a fire sipping on some hot chocolate, not flying down a mountain feeling helpless. There is no rush that I get from that except a rush of pure fear!!! Fortunately for me we would have no time to hit the slopes this trip, but Matt assured me that we would be back sooner than later.
After seeing the excitement on the kid's faces, I definitely think Matt is right. And that is fine. I know they need to experience things like that. But at that moment, I was just grateful that we had reached our destination and were ready to have some fun. We were in Keystone.
And skiing or not this trip, my Bs were still excited; which made the trip worth it all.
The kids would make their way back up the hill each time growing a little more tired and moving just a little bit slower.
But their spirits were lifted once they made it back to the top!
And of course, once they made it to the top they knew it was downhill once again!
And that alone made it worth all of the work to climb back up!!!
The old-fashioned tubing turned out to be great. Berkley and Beckham had so much fun, which in turn made the adventure worth while for Matt and I as well.
The snow was pretty deep too. Berkley kept getting stuck and losing her boots in the snow. (Probably since she was wearing rain boots instead of snow boots... we had to make due with what we had!) Owen came to her rescue!
Although Matt and I probably used poor parental judgement allowing Beckham to play in the snow while he was fighting off a pretty nasty cold, we decided it was worth it. Beckham had a blast in the snow.
After a lot of fun tumbling in the snow, we convinced the kids it was time to go. It was lunchtime, and luckily the kids were hungry enough to decide that eating was a pretty good idea! We found a pizza place at our resort and knew this would be a big hit for everyone...
And it was except for Beckham. By this time Beckham was really worn out. His fever was slowly coming back too. (Thanks to the wise decision his parents made to let him be out in the cold and snow for several hours!!!) He actually passed out in my arms before our pizza ever arrived. But he did a great job of hanging in there and not complaining a bit, which shows how much fun he must have had despite feeling so lousy.
After lunch, we all headed back to our rooms for a nap. That night we would all be going to the rehearsal dinner, and we knew we needed to be rested for a night full of fun!
Kimberly decided that she was going to wear her cowboy boots with her wedding dress, and she wanted her bridesmaids to do the same. So, since Berkley was Kimmie's "little twin" she got to wear her boots too. However, Berkley had recently outgrown her cowboy boots that JT had given her. Not to worry though... JT came to the rescue and took Berkley to the boot store to pick out some new ones. She took her decision very seriously, and she simply wasn't satisfied with the selection at the first store. JT took her to another store, and Berkley found the perfect pair of boots. (They did look really cute on her! Thanks JT!)
All smiles and ready to go...
Of course, we must not forget a last minute touch-up!
After several shots, Beckham let me know that our photo session was finished! What is that face?
I quickly realized that they were both ready to get on the dance floor and bust some moves!!! Berkley danced a short time with McKay, but his little brother Owen cut in quick.
By the end of the night they actually looked pretty good dancing together!
Beckham hit the dance floor with enthusiasm and had no plans of dancing with anyone else. He even said no to an offer from the beautiful bride! He wanted to dance solo.
He flashed his smile everywhere he went.
