Monday 20 July 2009

Greetings from Denver

Yep, you read that right... I am on "vacation" again. Nick was called to work in Denver. When he left, they said he would be out here for a week. Last Thursday, they asked him to stay for another. This was a little irksome since our anniversary is tomorrow. He convinced me (which wasn't easy) to drive and meet him somewhere in the middle and he would drive us back. He really wanted to see us and I think it is easier to come home to a hotel room, if you're wife and kid are in it.

Saturday, we explored downtown Denver and walked around the 16th Street Mall. We had a delightful breakfast at a little Cafe down there. They had the best pastry and fresh fruit bar. Yummy! I also had from scratch pancakes. I am not sure that I ever had from scratch before. They definitely taste different than a mix!

Sunday, we decided that we would hike the mountains around Denver. We looked up a place on the web called Maxwell falls. The sites said that it was 2 mile walk that was easy to moderate. It must have been 2 miles the way the crow flew not the way you climb. It must have also been a mountain climbers version of "easy". The trail ended up being around 4 miles long, one way. My calves are killing me from the steep hills that you had to take in most places. The worst thing about it all is that we weren't truly prepared for such a long hike and had to ration out our water. Luckily, the day was fairly cool and so we didn't have to fight the heat in addition to climb. When we got to the top, the falls were such a let down. For all that trouble, I'd hope to see something a little more awesome. We played in cold water from the Rockies and then headed down. It wasn't but 10 minutes into the walk that Jack conked out hard on Nick. Nick was a trooper and carried him down the entire way. We then went into the quaint town of Evergreen got some delightful fudge and some nastily overpriced "mexican" food in a Bistro. I think they sold more on location than on quality!

This morning was rough for me. Denver and I did not get along. I was trying to get batteries for my camera before we went to the zoo. So I had it in my head how I would get the store we had passed the day before. But, I turned the wrong way down a one-way. You can imagine how freaked I was. This was made much worse by being pulled over and issued $100 ticket and being told that I was forced to show up in court in September because I didn't have my most current insurance card with me! So we go the zoo and Jack falls asleep before we make it half way through. Since there was no waking him, I decided to leave. Well, I got the courthouse on the phone and they made it sound like I could get everything taken care of quickly if I went in. So I decided to go in. Well parking downtown is a bear. I find one spot that looks good, I pay the meter extra so I know that I won't get another ticket, and trek back to get it taken care of. The trip in there takes around 40 minutes. Just as I am walking back with a hot, cranky, and hungry kid--I see the meter maid putting a ticket on my car. Apparently, I was parked incorrectly (even though I had no other option when I parked there!) So there was another 25 ticket! I start freaking out, and the cop tells me I can go back a couple a blocks and they should waive it for me since I am a tourist and all. Jack is screaming his head off, but I really don't want to shell out another 25 dollars. The guy tells me that it is a valid ticket and that I should have driven to another spot. However, he was willing to waive it down to 5 if I paid it today. The paying was the worst part. I think that the city has something against central air as their buildings were extremely hot.

I was glad to return to the hotel in one piece. Jack had a huge lunch and late nap. I had two cans of coke and some strawberry shortcake and felt much better. We picked up Nick after work and the traffic was awful again. Too many people it too much of a hurry. However, we had a great dinner and a wonderful evening. Nick is over working from home and I had some time to blog. Who knows, I might even get pictures up too!

Tomorrow is 8 years for us. My goodness, how the time does fly. We are unsure of what we are doing with Jack in tow and Nick needing to work a full day. At least we are all together.