Shanti and Aimee: July 2013

Heritage Square

I took the girls to an amusement park last week, with rides, go-karts, paddle boats, & mini golf! We also went to the Miner's Maze Adventure Land, with bungee jumping & other fun things.

Camping at Twin Lakes

We spent 2 nights camping outside Buena Vista, at a campground near Twin Lakes. What a great time with family & friends! We also went on a great hike up to another lake.

We spent 2 nights camping outside Buena Vista, at a campground near Twin Lakes. What a great time with family & friends!

This former Victorian-era resort was moved to higher ground in the 1970's when flooding threatened its structure. Hikers of the Colorado Trail, which runs right by here, can walk around inside (notice our group of kids in the upper window).

Serena's Birthday Party

What an amazing experience for our girls! Serena requested an owl-themed party, so we rallied the family to contribute to a one hour demo featuring 5 birds of prey (2 owls), from the organization Hawk Quest. All proceeds go to help the birds! Beyond our expectations, with memories of a birthday party that will last a lifetime for Serena! Thank you so much to our family for helping to make this possible!

This is a Harris Hawk, from the southwest U.S. deserts. It's the only bird of prey to hunt in packs, and they are known to stack on top of each other on a cactus to get greater height to search for prey. Cool!

Barn Owl

Great Horned Owl

Kestrel Hawk

This bald eagle was just majestic... took our breaths away! She had to have blinders on occasionally since she scares easily. Bald eagles were endangered for 30 years due to the pesticide DDTwhich was found in the egg shells that cracked too easily. DDT was banned eventually and bald eagles are back!

Wow. This particular 14 year old female eagle was abandoned in her nest after her father was shot. Eaglets are raised by both parents, so after the dad didn't return, the mother flew away. She is now thriving and is known as the "queen" of Hawk Quest!