Colorado Weekend

Back in March, I began planning for Brandon's birthday in April. I wanted to surprise him with something fun and different. I knew that he loved Lincoln Brewster (who wouldn't?) and thought it would be so much fun if I could take him to a concert. I looked online, and the closest city was Denver. Denver was definitely doable! I called his sister Sarena and asked if we could crash with her, and if she wanted to babysit. She was thrilled, so I got the tickets. Several months later, and away we went!
The first week of school, and I ruined Analise's chance for perfect attendance. Her teacher was very gracious in letting me pick her up early. Brandon's boss was also gracious and let Brandon leave at lunch. We packed up and hit the road at 1:30. Let the long drive begin...I drove the first half so Brandon could get some work done in the van. After a couple of quick stops, and feeding the girls dinner in the van, we made it 7:30 our time. Sarena and her friend D had dinner ready for us. The girls unwound while we ate. It was great to be there!
Saturday morning was Maisie's 3rd birthday! Sarena had decorated things so nicely and had a fun gift for her:

Brandon and I wanted to take the girls for donuts (Maisie calls them nunuts), since that's always a favorite. Being in CO, those donut shops are kind of scarce. We finally settled for some from a grocery store. We then went to Focus on the Family to play down in Whit's End. Here is Analise with Whit:

They also have a really fun, tall slide that Analise loved:

The girls enjoyed playing around....all for free! :)

Maisie with her decorations:

After we left FOTF we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch...one of my faves! The girls ate and played. We went back to Sarena's house for a few more gifts and cake. It was definitely nap time, but the girls pulled through and enjoyed it.

Brandon and I helped put the girls down for naps, and then we took off. We were meeting friends in Denver for supper. We decided to take a more scenic route through the mountains. It was a beautiful drive, and nice and quiet in the van. Ahhh...

We met N and J at their place for a yummy, adult meal. Then it was concert time! I went in expecting a big mega church with a big concert feel. We got to the church, and I knew that my mindset was going to have to change. It was a smaller church (with no AC!). We were in pews and only nine rows back. I bet there was only ~400 people there. Once I got over the fact it wasn't what I expected, I loved every minute of it! He was so down to earth and real with the audience. And what a great worship time. LOVED IT! When he finished the concert, he hadn't sang my two favorite songs: God You Reign and Everlasting God. I figured one would be the encore. Sure enough Lincoln came back out. A lady from the audience yelled out, "God You Reign!" Lincoln, "Really? I haven't done that song in a long time. But sure, I'll take a request." So, he ended up singing both songs! :) I will admit I got teary eyed singing Everlasting God. We sung that at Rachel's funeral, and the basis of that song is from Isaiah, one of Rachel's favorite verses. I remember the pain of singing that at her funeral, but I also got hope when I imagined her worshiping her Savior in Heaven. Thank you, Jesus...

Sunday morning came too quickly, but we were able to go to church with Sarena. We really enjoyed it! We went back to her place for lunch, packed up and hit the road for the long drive home. We got home at 10:20. We enjoyed the whole weekend and crammed as much as we could in such a short time. Just being near the mountains was wonderful. Add the family, friends and worship times, and it was extra wonderful.