Colorado Trip: Day One

At a gas stop. The Colorado River is behind us, and it was FAST!

The Wasden's came in to town June 18th, when we were in our Hypnobabies class. We finished up at 9:30pm, and went straight over to see them in Salem. It was so good to see them, even if we were a little out of it from our birthing class (we were so relaxed!). In fact, I was so relaxed that I hit Grandma Hardy's water right out of her hand as we were hugging each other good night. I think I am destined to create memories in whatever form they come in.

Monday we were off to Colorado to see Nate's mission. My favorite part of the drive was driving through Aspen. We'll just establish the fact right now: Colorado is absolutely beautiful.

We couldn't help but stop along the road and admire the sights

We drove on crazy windy roads that overlooked quaint little towns amidst wetlands and passed sheer mountainsides with massive boulders. The pinnacle was reaching the Continental Divide.

Continental Divide. Courtesy of Ben

The only downside to this incredible part of the trip was I came out of the canyon feeling terrible. When we had been towards the top, it felt like the line down the middle of my stomach was on fire, and as we descended, it felt like i was having Braxton Hicks, but only on the right side. It was a little nerve-wracking. Mama W. pointed out that it may have to do with the elevation in the mountains, which made a lot of sense. In my mind I was already deducing what we would do if things got more serious because it felt so weird and I was worried. Thankfully, everything normalized once we reached Colorado Springs.

We made it to the Black Forest that evening to see a family Nate had stayed with as a missionary. He had lived in what the missionaries called 'the barn'- a little dwelling in the expansive backyard. The house was very nice and the forested backyard was enticing (especially after driving all day), but the best part of that night was the family. They welcomed us in immediately, and were especially excited to see Nate again, this time as a returned missionary.

They LOVE Nate! ...and Uno!

They fed us dinner, then we ended up dispersing through the house, pairing off into individual conversations. The father made sure to show a group the theater room, the grandpa entertained Ben with aerospace engineering facts, Nate was constantly requested to follow the children to all the things they wanted him to see, and I talked to the mother about childbirth (are you surprised?).  Towards the end, we gathered up most of the children to watch Ram's Horn for entertainment, which they thoroughly enjoyed. When it was getting late and we knew it was about time to go, it was requested that Nate say a closing prayer. It was the perfect ending to that night. His sincere prayer vocalized the feelings of love between family and missionary that I had been sensing all night. It instantly took me back to my mission and the indescribable feelings I had for those I had come to love with all my heart.