When a Summer Ends….
The kids are back to school. Mornings and evenings are cooler. I had some mixed emotions about the summer ending. I think the routine is good for Emma. She enjoys learning, her teachers and classmates. I’m enjoying time to workout, get in some writing and finish home projects. But, we also had so much fun visiting family, riding bikes and hanging with friends.
We ended summer with a bang. Starting in Scottsdale, AZ, we traveled for eight days with 11 members of my family (and about 25 more strangers) on a guided tour visiting three national parks and a few national monuments.
We recently created a thank you book for my parents for the trip (that I haven’t mailed yet- fail on my part). I was interested to see what Emma remembered about the trip being that it was a few weeks ago already. She remembered details but mostly she remembered the time she had with her cousins. It’s tough not having family around. I am blessed that despite the age differences (all her cousins on my side are in high school or college), they all just love spending time with her.
Here are some fun summer stats.
Flights: 3 roundtrip flights
Days Spent With Family: 20 (not enough)
National Parks and National Monuments Visited: 8
Birthday Parties (some we missed): 8
Summer Camp Days: 11
Nights Camping: 5
Mosquito Bites Between the Three of us (approximate): 50
Days at the Beach/Lake: 8
Some of my favorite photos of the summer and the start of the school year!
I finished my first piece for parksandpoints.com about our July trip to Great Sand Dunes National Park. I just finished up four pieces for ironman.com and am working on two additional pieces for the website. I am also continuing to work on run guides for motivrunning.com. I also finished some last minute proof reading work for Mountain Flyer.
Click these live links for my latest pieces for ironman.com.
Triathlete Affected by Hurricane Harvey Finds Hope
Paulo Figueiredo: Losing Weight and Finding Fitness
In Santa Cruz, Two New Knees and a Will to Finish
We spent Labor Day weekend in Utah visiting AJ’s sister and family. I love seeing the cousins interact. We went hiking, spent a day playing at the adventure park in Park City and hung out with family and friends. Thanks for always bringing such gracious hosts Kimball family!
Fall is coming, and I am so excited. It’s no secret its my favorite time of year. We were able to complete our summer bucket list and now are planning our fall one. Here’s to cooler temperatures, falling leaves and pumpkin carving!
Adventure On,
Courtney
adventureswithmylittleray 
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