Andra & Steve's Journey: A 30-hour Adventure (Sunday, March 6th, 2016)

We all woke up yesterday morning, in a rush to get out of the house, but for a few different reasons. Our oldest daughter had a recruiting commitment at the University of Colorado, Boulder Engineering School, and Steve and I were on our way to Fort Collins to see our youngest daughter and her boyfriend for breakfast. It has been exactly a month since we have seen our youngest daughter, and much longer than that since we have seen her boyfriend, so it seemed like the perfect time to make a quick trip up there.

We picked both of them up at her apartment and headed into old town to the Silver Grill. They always have a huge line on Saturday mornings, but they have a cute patio out back with a free coffee bar, space heaters, blankets and a fire pit. So even if it is cold outside you can stay nice and warm on their back patio. We put our name on the list, and sat out by the fire pit drinking coffee until our name was called. Then we headed inside for a nice warm breakfast with two of our favorite people! It was so nice to see them and catch up on their lives and school. Once again, it did my heart a lot of good, just to see them and enjoy some quality time.

We left Fort Collins by 10:30, planning on being home around 11:30 or so. Our oldest daughter would be home from Boulder by then, and we would head out on our adventure.

Our oldest daughter's life has been very busy and stressful for the last few months. Her husband is in the military and has been gone for the last nine months, she is in the throws of her new "big girl job" after recently graduating from college, and she is still very engaged with the University of Colorado Engineering School, and Business Minor program. And in addition to those miniscule tasks, she and her husband are also in the process of building a house! So believe it or not, we felt that a small get away might be in order.

Throughout our married life, Steve and I have noticed that even the smallest of vacations can relieve a lot of stress, and make us ready to tackle the world again. It doesn't have to be long, or expensive to make the world seem like a much better place. So we made sure that she had a free weekend, and booked a night at the Holiday Inn Express in Colorado Springs.

We felt that before our daughter could really enjoy the weekend, she would need to take care of a little business first. So we headed over to her new house, and she met with the builders, and made sure that things are still moving along like they should be. Once she was happy with the way things looked, and the important decisions were all made, it was time to go enjoy ourselves and help her relax!

We headed out for Colorado Springs at noon, with hopes of checking into the hotel as early as possible. We are IHG members, (Intercontinental Hotel Group) which includes the Holiday Inn Express hotels worldwide. Our membership, and frequent use of the hotels, gives us a few nice perks, one of which is receiving the best room available when we check in. So since we got down there early, we were able to get a nice queen suite. Where we could all spread out and get comfortable!

On our way downtown, we drove by this great vintage McDonalds. It looked to us like a new building, but the vintage style was really fun to see. It reminded us of our past!

Steve and I have a little place in downtown Colorado Springs that we really enjoy, so we decided it would be fun to take our daughter there, and see what she thinks of it. It is called Sonterra Mexican Grill. They have a great happy hour from 3:00-7:00, with $3 wine, wells, drafts, and margaritas and a nice appetizer menu ranging from $3 to $6. We showed up fairly early, and got the last three seats at the bar. We all started out with a house margarita, and shared a ceviche.

Their Ceviche was great, with just the right amount of spice

We also split some of their appetizer tacos, and then we split their scallops with sweet corn risotto. Oh my! It was so good!

This speaks for itself!

As the sun sets outside of the restaurant, it also sets inside the restaurant.....very fun!

And at 6:00, they have an acoustic guitar player named John Stone that wanders the restaurant and plays traditional Spanish melodies. We have seen him there several times and really enjoy his music. His wife is from Barcelona and they spend quite a bit of time there so it is always fun to hear about their travels. Since he knows we really enjoy his music, he always comes to talk to us, and of course gives us a private performance. John is an absolutely amazing guitar player and a very genuine and real person. What a treat to get a chance to hear him again and to talk for a few minutes!

Steve has one of John's CD's that he likes to listen to in the car when he's driving. Our oldest daughter has heard it many times so it was fun for her to hear John play and get a chance to meet and interact with him. His website is www.johnstonemusic.net The website gives some info on John and very importantly when and where he will be playing. There's also some sample music. We encourage you to take a listen. If you ever get a chance to hear him we guarantee you will be blown away!

When we finally left Sonterra, we made our way over to another little place we had heard of called The Rabbit Hole. It's a trendy underground restaurant/bar with a small street entrance, and as it's name would suggest, it has the theme of Alice in Wonderland.

The entrance to The Rabbit Hole

The inside was very quaint, with tables in every corner. It was cozy and fun, and we thought the prices were fairly reasonable.

Butterscotch cheese cake for three!

Our oldest daughters first martini, but probably not her last!!!

We took the hotel shuttle back to the hotel, and when we got there, our daughter got a call from one of her friends who is also a military wife, so they enjoyed a nice conversation while Steve and I headed to the hot tub to soak for awhile. What a great evening!

This morning we slept in, and then enjoyed the complimentary breakfast in the dining room. Breakfast was served from 7:00 to 10:00, so we were in no rush. After breakfast, our daughter wanted to do a little shopping, so we headed out to At Home, to just look around and maybe enjoy their beautiful patio furniture for a moment.

Then back to the hotel to check out and change, and off to Garden of the Gods. One of the most beautiful places in Colorado.

View from the Visitor's Center

Pikes Peak and the Kissing Camels

And then at our daughter's suggestion, we headed over to the Glenn Eyrie Castle for lunch and a walk. And as we came through the gate, look who greeted us!