Second half of our sabatical

We planned the first 3 weeks of our 8 week sabatical and now we needed to plan out the last 5 weeks. I really wanted to go to Southern Colorado to visit family and be there for Pioneer days. So thats what will be doing for weeks 4 & 5.

Believe it or not the tiny town of Sanford(where my mom was born and raised and my dad lived his teenage years) and Manassa have a weekend long celebration around the 24th of July for Mormon Pioneer days. Approximately half of Sanford and Manassa's residents are Hispanics, many are the descendants of early New Mexican settlers of colonial Spanish origin (that's me). Most of the other residents of Manassa and Sanford are the descendants of the Mormon pioneers who founded Manassa and Ephriam (aka Sanford). These two towns were named after the sons of the Israelite, Joseph. The community and people from all over the San Luis Valley and else where, still celebrate Manassa/Sanford Pioneer Days with a parade on two days, horse races, rodeo, demolition derby, fireworks, entertainment, barbecues, and 5K run. A carnival at Pioneer Days brings the Tilt-a-Whirl, bumper cars, a merry-go-round and other midway rides. Bandstand entertainment and vendor booths line Manassa’s city park on Main Street.
This is one of the oldest festivals in the state, the 129th annual celebration will be held this year. The weekend long affair is held on the weekend closest to July 24, in honor of the arrival of Brigham Young and fellow members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Utah's Great Salt Lake Valley on July 24th, 1847. Each year, attendance at Sanford/Manassa's Pioneer Days is estimated at close to 10,000 per day(combined there are only about 1,300 people living in these two towns) with people coming from many parts of the country to visit family and friends and to enjoy the festivities along the way. (Info. taken from wikipedia)

Our family as well as our extended family that live in Sanford are very excited that we will all be together for this great event. We will also be seeing the Grand Canyon, Four Corners, and Mesa Verde along the way. Did we mention that we will be taking it easy around our house the last 3 weeks. Yes, we decided that we should just hang out at home and recoupe from our travels. We can't wait to go on these journey's!