Our little neighborhood sits right at the edge of Horsetooth Park and Lory State Park. Today our friend Nathan came over and we hiked to the top of Arthur's Rock. This is a natural rock outcropping in Lory State Park that we can see from our deck. It is a 3.5 mile round trip hike that is one of my favorites. The views from the top are amazing.

The four of us plus Hagrid made our way to the top of the hill stopping along the way to take pictures and catch our breath. At the top we found a boulder in the shade to rest on and eat apples. After about ten minutes we heard the unmistakable tat-tat-tat of a rattle snake. We all stopped and turned towards the sound not really expecting to see it. Turns out he was about 10 feet from us lounging in the shade of a tree. Thank goodness Hagrid was on leash and none of us had walked in that direction. He pretty much told us to get out of his yard and we gladly moved on.

After the hike we spent a couple hours swimming and relaxing down by the lake. I am pretty sure Hagrid was the happiest of all of us to get in the water. He loves to swim and role around on the shore.

Later in the evening our new roommate Becca and her Mom Val (who happens to be one of my BFF's) joined us for dinner on the deck. We enjoyed taco night accompanied by a bottle of our homemade Cabernet. We told stories and joked around and laughed a lot, laughed until we cried a couple of times. All in all it was a great day.