The weather has been horrible in CO lately. The 320+ days of sunshine has not been the case and we were in need of a break. We chose Sante Fe because it was close enough to drive and a place we had never explored before. We researched a bit ahead of time, but for the most part were just looking for a place to relax just the 3 of us...before we are soon a family of four!
We arrived at Garrett's Desert Inn Thursday afternoon. The location was perfect and for the price our room was great. It was cozy, but there was still enough room for Ian to have his own sleeping space separate from ours. We were in the heart of downtown so we didn't have to drive anywhere if we didn't want to. The weather was nice and we enjoyed taking it all in.
Thursday night we were pretty beat after a long day on the road. We took a stroll downtown and hit up the Zia Diner for dinner. I had some fabulous enchiladas with a delish green chili. It was a nice little joint - my only disappoint was the fried pickles on their online menu only to find them absent from the menu upon my arrival. A girl can't have it all I guess!
Friday we were up and at 'em - headed out the door a little after 9 AM. We brought a lot of snacks and food with us so we would not have to eat out 3 times a day. I think that helped us manage not only our wallet, but our time better too. We decided to start off the morning with a drive down the Turquoise Trail - heading to the ghost town of Golden. We saw the 1830's San Francisco church (unfortunately it was gated so we could not walk around) and the ruins of an old saloon/brothel. We also passed through the town of Madrid, which made me think of what Nederland was probably like 20 years ago.
After Ian woke up from his nap on Friday, we were off to stroll through downtown again - window shopping mostly. I couldn't believe it, but I made it out of Sante Fe with a book and toy for Ian and 3 postcards (all for under $10). I really wanted a pair of cowboy boots, but when I saw the price I decided I could wait on that purchase! While I was snagging some postcards, Ian and Casey spotted a fire truck hanging out on the plaza and Ian got so excited, but the best was when they offered him the wheel. He couldn't get out of his stroller fast enough - it was adorable! He got to roam around the whole truck and they showed him all of their "toys". I forgot to mention he started his "What's that?" phase in the car on Thursday so he had a blast getting to ask them that question over and over!
Once we got back to the hotel, we headed to the pool for a quick dip of the feet. It was a bit too chilly to actually get in, but he didn't seem to mind. We promised him we would hit the pool on Saturday. He loved splashing his feet off the side and throwing the ball in. Fortunately, it was windy enough that he got a boomerang effect and it kept him entertained until dinner time:)
Friday night we decided to check out a local tapas restaurant, El Mason. We knew it probably wouldn't compare to our great love for Cafe Iberico in Chicago, but we had to give it a shot! We called ahead to make sure it was kid friendly and to check to see if we needed reservations. We were going to walk, but it seemed like there was some weather on the way so we decided to drive. We arrived at the restaurant and were blown away by the company we found...there was only one other table full at the time we arrived and we were shocked to discover it was occupied by my stepsister and her husband, Ann & Tim Gagen - who live in Breckenridge!! It was unbelievable! We have seen them a couple of times since we have lived here, as they try to make it to Longmont when Mom and Bob are visiting, but we haven't been able to connect in Breckenridge so to think we would run into them in Sante Fe was just unreal! Even the waitress was blown away by the odds of our encounter. They were in town for a bike race that they attend annually and it was their first time at this restaurant as well. Too funny! We joined them for dinner and it was so great to catch up. Ian did a great job considering the dinner lasted a bit over 2 hours! We called Mom and Bob at the end of our dinner to share in our discovery. Casey and I joked the rest of the night that running into them was our chance to win the lottery. Ha!
Saturday AM we woke up and headed out for a walk to the Farmer's Market. It was a nice stroll, but I find myself rather impatient at Farmer's Markets. They always seem to crowded for me to actually enjoy myself so I end up just breezing by it all in anticipation of the next thing. We did check out a local artist's fair across from the market. They had a lot of nice jewelry, but somehow I was able to restrain myself. There was a playground across from the market too - a great place to take Ian and let him burn off some energy. He loved it! We started to head back to the hotel and stumbled upon a festival on the plaza. It was fun to just walk around and check out the offerings of the local community.
We headed back to the hotel so Ian could take his nap and we could relax a bit too. I was exhausted from the morning walk! Plus, I was starting to feel the effects from the queen size hotel bed...longing for the return to my king size bed at home. When Ian woke up from his nap we kept our promise and headed to the pool. It was okay, but cloudy. A promise is a promise, right? Casey dove right in, while I preferred to sit on the edge and just get my feet wet. Ian went in for a couple of minutes, but was quick to get out and play with the noodles and balls. We had fun, but I was disappointed that I didn't get to spend hours poolside working on my tan. Wishful thinking on my part I guess.
Saturday afternoon we went for a drive - I just couldn't walk anymore. I was fearful I might go into labor right there if I kept walking. We decided to explore Sante Fe a bit more. We got into the more residential areas and back roads. It was pretty cool to see and nice to just relax. Hard to believe we were heading home the next day. We ate a late lunch at Harry's Roadhouse and that just threw the rest of our day off, so it was pizza from the place next door to our hotel, Upper Crust Pizzeria (very tasty actually) and an early night to bed. I tried to pack up most of our stuff that night so we could hit breakfast at The Guadelupe Cafe and then the road, leaving us a bit of time to recover once we got home Sunday night.
By Monday, it was back into the swing of things. The week went fairly fast considering it was a full 5 days. On Friday night, we took Ian to ArtLink in downtown Longmont. We figured it was another way for him to run around and burn off some energy. The shops are open later and there are street vendors to check out. It is small little gathering, but nice nonetheless. There was a young kid who came up to Ian and offered him his froggy balloon hat (I think his girlfriend had it made for him and he was eager to get rid of it - ha!). Ian couldn't resist and before we left we paid it forward by passing it onto another little boy!
It was a gorgeous weekend here...finally! I was ready for some warmth and sunshine. We headed to our last music class on Saturday. There is one more class, but we will miss it since we will be in IN for the weekend. It was fun to see all of our music friends one last time. Once Ian woke up from his nap, we headed to the park. He loved going down the slides and swinging. We were able to lure him away from the park by offering ice cream. Yummy! It was great exercise for us all. We have been talking about getting Ian a pool for the summer and they had some out front at Ace. We told Ian he could get one but he had to carry it home. JK - but he did hold onto it for most of the walk back home:)
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