Summing Up the Week...Photographically

Happy Labor Day! The day we celebrate work by not doing any. Ironic, isn't it? Anyway, I've been everywhere, man, and I thought I'd let you in on the fun with some photos. 

First off, any week where I get to see all three of my siblings is the best week. The only thing that could have made it better is if Cody had been with me and we had all been in the same place at the same time. But hey. I'll take what I can get.

9/4/2015 - NC

8/29/2015 - CO

9/5/2015 - NC

So on Saturday, August 29th, my Mom, Dad, and I flew out to Denver, Colorado to see my brother Reagan off on his Grand European Adventure. But we're not the kind to sit around in a hotel room and twiddle our thumbs so we hiked to the top of Pike's Peak.

Kidding! We rode the Cog Railway. It took about an hour and a half to get to the top (and come back down) and the views were awesome.

After we finished our Pike's Peak adventure, we decided to hit up Garden of the Gods. As you can see in the following few photos, Reagan and I were right at home there what with our super-human strength, incredible good looks, and our obvious superiority to the laws of the land.

After Garden of the Gods, we'd decided that was about enough for one day, ordered an inordinate amount of pizza (which we could not possibly have finished) and crashed.

The next day, Mom flew back home while Dad, Reagan, and I went to see The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (I wasn't overly impressed, but we had fun.) We ate more ridiculous amounts of food at the local Village Inn, and then it was time to drop the boy off so he could fly to Paris.

We're all wearing sunglasses because it was sunny and absolutely not because we're emotional wrecks when it comes to goodbyes or anything of that sort. Obviously.

Then Dad and I hit the road for our own Ultimate Roadtripping Adventure Across the United States. From Sunday around 3:30 PM to Tuesday around 1:30 PM, we drove from Denver, CO to Brevard, NC which makes for a grand total of approximately 1,517 miles with one majorly important stop.

Can you guess?

How about now?

That's right! We stopped at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri. This has been on my Bucket List for a long time. That's me in the long-sleeve green shirt. Can you even see me? The arch is massive!

We took a 4 minute ride to the top in a space shuttle. Or at least that's what it seemed like. You got in this tiny, round, metal pod and prayed yourself the whole way up. I would not recommend this for anyone who is claustrophobic or has a fear of heights. But for the rest of you: put this on your bucket list. It was awesome. The view from 630 feet was amazing and the whole experience was a blast. Check that one off!

We made it to North Carolina where I spent the next couple days reading to my heart's content (three entire books and got started on a fourth--be checking back for some recaps!) until the rest of the family showed up (refer back to the pictures at the top of me with my other two siblings). 

The best part of my week though was definitely coming home yesterday to these two guys. I missed 'em something fierce, and I couldn't wait to get back to my little family.

To sum it up, we live in a beautiful country and my family is the best. The End.

What's something on your Bucket List? What's something you've done that I should add to mine? What's the best thing you've ever seen in the U S of A?