3____2____1 HAPPY NEW…..

July 31, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Year…
Um…New Month.
Yup folks, it’s August. 7 months since the last new year and 5 months till the the next one. Wish I was in Europe where it’s typically vacation month. I generally don’t make New Year’s Resolutions, but the fresh start of the year is usually enough to motivate me to get “back on track” with everything from eating to working out to finances.
These past few months since the wedding have been a whirlwind that mostly resulted in a downward spiral at increasing speeds towards becoming as lazy as Zoe. No new recipes to try cooking. Fewer and fewer runs. I’m sure the gym wouldn’t recognize me. Nothing scheduled….. So today- the first day of August, I’m getting my act together and I’ll be on my best behavior for the next 31 days =)

Today officially kicks off my training for the Houston Marathon today, and I will be doing some fun runs this fall. H has even agreed to do a half marathon with me. (If I blog about it, I’m hoping he won’t back out on me!) I’m also committing to exercise everyday. Hopefully at least a short run, but I’d like to re-introduce pilates and swimming back into the mix.

I also enrolled in an online photo class for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. I downloaded the free trial version last night, so hopefully it will speed up my workflow and get me some decent post-processing skills. I’ve done tons of research on looking at what else I need to really get jamming on my photos and I’m hoping this is the key.
Finally- we’ve started scheduling our fall. I need to figure out when my long runs will be and when we can go camping! It’s been over a year since we’ve camped and I really miss it. Zoe also thinks it’s pretty freaking awesome.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Each day is a chance to start new and recommit.
Filed Under: camping, fitness, Zoe

TRAIL RIDGE ROAD

July 31, 2007 By Leave a Comment

Perhaps the most specatcular drive in the country! Only open a few months out of the year, Trail Ridge Road is the highest paved road in the country and the only way to get from the west side of RMNP to the east side. The road crosses the Continental Divide at Milner Pass and continues to climb to over 12,000 ft.

We stopped breifly at the visitor’s center but wanted to keep on moving from all the munchkins and screaming banchies. The park has a nice “snow area” set aside with a walkway, and sensing my husband was close to another panic attack from the elvation, we pulled over. It was only then he confessed to having never seen real snow before. I picked up my jaw off the pavement just quick enough to dodge the snowballs he immediately began throwing at me. ~boys~

The rest of the drive down East face was spectacular, but we were on a mission.

Keep going.
Must hike.
Must see waterfalls.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: My husband doesn’t know how to throw snowballs.
Filed Under: Colorado, Travels ->

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

July 31, 2007 By Leave a Comment
At last!!! We finally make it to the crown jewel of our vacation. We’d had fun in Breck and WP was alright, but this was IT! I was so excited to show H the park. I made him wake up early and we skipped breakfast to head straight for the park. We compromised by getting a breakfast/lunch make-your-own combo from a cute country grocery store.


The visit to RMNP started out with a bang! or at least quite a few Elk! Animal spottings are easy there- just look for all the tourists pulled over on the road and people chasing the poor animals with cameras. Since I wasn’t trusting my beloved new camera to H yet, I had to pull off the road and snap a few quick pics.

Eager to see something- anything, we stopped off at one of the first trailheads we drove by on the West side of the park. The Colorado River trailhead appeared interesting enough, and why not catch a glimpse of the might headwaters. Luckily the stream is pretty tame here and only a short hike it. We came, we saw, we conquered. We headed for greener pastures, taller mountains and better vistas on the famous Trail Ridge Road.

As we climbed higher and higher in the mountains, my dear husband’s voice grew higher, his breathing more rapid and the color was slowly draining from his face. He wouldn’t let me drive any faster than 20 mph (I could sneak up to 30 if he wasn’t paying attention). We’d pull over at ever scenic overlook to regroup and refocus before continuing our way up the mountain.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: We are so lucky to have such a great national/state/local park system preserves great places like these.
Filed Under: Colorado, Travels ->

UM- WHERE’S THE A/C????

July 31, 2007 By Leave a Comment

After quickly playing in Winter Park before it closed, we headed to downtown WP. Normally, I’d say it’s not as exciting or kitchy as Breck. But today- there was a Jazz Festival going on dispite/through the rain. We arrived in time to grab a glass of wine and a tator twister, only to hear the last few songs of the set. I was a little puzzled that the party eneded at 6 or so, but I was so happy with my booze and fair food that I just continued polluting my body.

We walked around downtown in vain for a bit after the concert- trying to find something to do. Instead we headed to safeway to grab some wine/cheese/crackers/cookies and headed back to our room for dinner. Unfortunately, on our 2nd night in the mountains, we were in our second hotel without air conditioning.

Being from Texas, where the A/C runs almost year-round, I was shocked. During the days it was pretty warm, even if it would cool down at night. The rooms were *hot* when you would come in from a day of hiking or biking, and never cooled off as much as the outside, mountain temperature.

In Breckenridge, we stayed at a Marriott where the suggested to simply open the sliding porch door and use the fan in the closet. Again, being from the big city I wasn’t too keen on the idea of sleeping with a door unlocked- much less wide open (even if the screen did keep out the bugs). The hotel was literally on the mountain, with ski lifts in sight. The view was amazing and we listened to the birds and a running stream as we fell asleep.

The hotel in Winter Park was another story. The Winter Park Mountain Lodge looks pretty nice when you pull up and the lobby hides the “old part” of the hotel. Of course that’s where we got stuck- everything about the room screamed cheap, budget motel. Old, dated furniture & linens, shoddy workmanship & repairs around the room and many unusual noises from the bathroom. Again- no A/C and only a window for ventilation. Our window even had a nice view- if you can zoom in your mind past the parking lot. See our car??

We handled the window A/C until we drifted off into wine & chocolate cookie dreams, but around 3 and 4 and 5, there were an unusual number of drunk and loud people in the parking lot below. Slamming car doors, trying to start cars and generally being totally obnoxious until we could take it no more and “turned off” our window A/C. All we could do was hope and pray that our last and final hotel in Estes Park would have a real, genuine, blessing-of-God air conditioning.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: My next car WILL HAVE those fancy-schmancy seat air-conditioners to keep my booty cool.
Filed Under: Colorado, Travels ->

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY

July 30, 2007 By Leave a Comment

DESTINATION DAY 2: WINTER PARK

After a beautiful drive from Breckenridge to Winter Park, we were greeted in Winter Park with more afternoon showers. It was actually a very impressive lightening and thunder show in the mountains. In between showers, we grabbed a lift ticket and rode to the top of the mountain.

I particularly like to torture my poor husband who is deathly afraid of heights by dragging him to the top of everything in sight. To add to his anxiety and to my amusement, I like to photograph his panic. I think he cut his hand from his death grip on the chair lift ;)

A quick ride to the top, a few pictures and a ride back down to the bottom. Our main goal today was to ride the slides. Dozens of people whizzed down the mountain beneath our feet on the slide dual slides. Young faces filled with estatic glee, teenage faces filled with usual boredom and a slight curl of the lips and adult faces filled mostly with fear.

After getting our very over-priced tickets, we wait in line behind a line of giddy kids and a few fuddy-duddy parents. I decided to take the “fast track” on my first ride- hey, why not? The sled had a brake right? H opted for the slow line. I enjoyed the wind in my face, the slight threat of danger and the adrenaline rush provided by a brisk ride down the mountain.
I quickly hopped off my sled at the bottom and got ready to snap a photo of my husband coming down. I had an “oldie” behind me on the ride, who came stumbling off the slide and then I noticed he’d snagged his shirt on the slide somewhere. Well, he snagged his shirt and some skin, from which there was now blood adding to the dirt stain on his sleeve. I waited and waited for my husband, but nobody was coming down the slow track on the slides. Finally, down came my husband- tail gating some grandma with about 4 kids piled up behind him. Apparently, the lady decided to take a sunday stroll down the entire slide at about 5 mph- effectively forcing H to go for a leisure ride and causing quite the traffic jam on the slide. Before I could snap a photo, drunk man wanders on front of the slide.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: A slow ride is better than crashing and burning and bleeding.

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