Getting to Know CO

How did it get to be mid April already? These last few weeks have definitely been long, but it sure is crazy to think that I've been in Boulder for almost 8 months now! But, I'll go ahead and drop the bomb now for those who haven't heard-- I'm moving back to the east coast in July. I'm taking advantage of Mom and Dad's summer visit and wrangling them into helping me move back when they'll already be out here. There are lots of reasons for the return, but I will say that I am so glad I decided to make the move out here-- I think it has helped me grow up a LOT and it's always nice to have a fresh perspective of the world after living in a new place. Boulder will always hold a special place in my heart : ) I'm so cheesy.

That said, I am trying to pack in everything that I've wanted to do in Colorado into these last few months. Luckily, my friends here Melanie and Heidi are totally game for tagging along, and we've already made a few fun trips around the state. A couple of weeks ago, we drove out to Idaho Springs, CO which was one of the first cities involved in the Gold Rush! Also, more the reason we went, the town houses some natural hot springs. Healing waters! We were in need. They had the springs feeding into an indoor swimming pool which, though festive, was not exactly relaxing with screaming children splashing us the whole time.























It was a fun experience though, and after about an hour of soaking in the minerals, we got to wandering the cute little downtown. And of course, we had to snap some pictures.
















































On the way back, we passed Golden, CO and couldn't resist exploring the hometown of Coors.


























And taking more pictures of ourselves. It was definitely a cute town with lots going on, we hope to come back and spend more time there since it's only 20 or 30 minutes out of Boulder. But the calendar is pretty full! So we'll have to see.

We checked another destination off the list last weekend when we drove down to Colorado Springs to see Garden of the Gods. I had been dying to see this place and it just so happens that Melanie's parents live about 45 minutes away so we had a place to crash AND they ever so graciously hosted us for Easter dinner. It was so nice to have a home-cooked meal and a welcoming place to be for Easter Sunday : )

Garden of the Gods, though, was quite a place. We had a blast climbing all over the rocks and trailblazing around the park.





















































































































That last one is Balanced Rock. 700 tons of sandstone precariously balanced for hundreds of thousands of years! Pretty cool. I bet I could push it over.

Anyway, next up in my travels is Seattle! I'm leaving Thursday for a long weekend with my cousins Vicki and Mike. I've never been to the West Coast before so I'm super excited, and I've got my rain boots so bring it on Seattle!

Enjoy the spring time. Colorado is getting there, slowly.