October
October was super busy for us, but we got a lot of family time in which was so wonderful! My parents were here at the beginning of the month. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, so we spent an afternoon at Staunton State Park their first day here.
We followed that up with a day trip to Colorado Springs, where we had a VERY warm day at Garden of the Gods, plus we took a trip to the Air Force Academy since Billy could get us on base. After that whirlwind of the weekend, we spent the rest of the time hanging out around Denver.
Then, I headed home about a week later (poor planning on our part, huh?) for some time to recharge. I jokingly call my parents house the Spa at Ogden Road because coming home is always so relaxing. I was pretty exhausted after a busy start to my new job, so I went home and spent the entire long weekend either on my horse or on the couch. It was glorious.
Once I came home, our friend Leah (our wonderful Key West host!) was in Colorado visiting family, so we went back to Staunton to spend the day with her. I know we took a group photo, but I think Leah is holding it hostage so I'll have to get it from her!
Mia, Billy's little sister came to visit at the end of the month. She was here over fall break and got to spend the entire time with us, which was a blast. We had a really fun girls night and visited a ton of Colorado landmarks. Rocky Mountain National Park, Denver Botanic Gardens, plus Billy took her to Boulder for the day.
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| Goofing off in the I Heart Denver store |
Billy and I spent Thanksgiving in Denver because...well have you seen fares for flying around that holiday?! Good lord. We did Friendsgiving at a friend's house in Aurora and did some hiking.
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| Taking ourselves really seriously |
The highlight of the month, besides Christmas of course, was getting to petsit for a dog that I helped get adopted from the Denver Animal Shelter. He was a wonderful dog, but very fearful and shy so it took a long time to get him approved for adoption. That was all worth it though when the most wonderful family EVER decided to take him home, and then took me up on my petsitting offer!
Then, we started our Christmas travels! We went to Maryland first before going to Indiana for Christmas and Chicago for New Years, then back to Indiana. We ended up getting plenty of downtime (and by that I mean naptime), so it wasn't nearly as exhausting as it sounds. Plus, going to Chicago meant we got to finally meet Laura, Matt's now fiance! Matt is one of Billy's best friends from high school, and we hadn't seen him in so long that we had never even met Laura. They got engaged a few weeks later, and we couldn't be happier for them! I took no pictures this entire trip except for when I was at the barn. My bad.
January
In January, I met my cousin Morgan for the first time while he was visiting Denver with his business partner. He is Megan's brother, so another one of my Aunt Marty's grandchildren. The way we are actually related is a little convoluted and very boring, but it was so fun to get to meet more of my extended family!
A big part of January was finding Lizzie's new home in Colorado! That's right, this summer she will officially become a Colorado girl. I'll be leasing her to the Air Force Academy and am so excited to finally have her close by!!
February
Billy and I got to spend Valentine's Day together for the first time ever, which was really fun. We don't take Valentine's Day too seriously, but it was still great to be able to actually have a little mini celebration of the day instead of being on opposite sides of the country!
Billy's dad, Mia, and Uncle John and Aunt Lisa came to Colorado for a long weekend of skiing this month too. Again, I took no pictures but the trip was an absolute blast. I also now consider myself a Real Coloradoan since I drove back home from Breckenridge in the snow by myself!
March
Black Hawk is like a very small Coloradoan version of Las Vegas, so when I got a free hotel room there thanks to a work conference, I took Billy along for a night at the casinos. While it won't be something I'll be making a habit of, playing craps and the slot machines was a really fun night out. Plus, we got to stay at an awesome hotel!
A few weekends ago, we were trapped in a room with a zombie. This is a thing now haha I promise! You and a big group of friends are locked in a room that contains a series of riddles and puzzles to find the key that unlocks the door. You're timed, which usually adds enough pressure, but we went to a zombie edition that also has a zombie in the room with you that can get closer and closer to you every ten minutes. It turned out to be one of the most fun things I've ever done, so thank you Maggi for inviting me and Billy!
Whew I think that covers everything! We're still loving Denver and having a great time, so feel free to visit any time you want to. Hopefully we'll have a bigger place soon with a second bedroom :)
Besides apartment shopping, we'll also be hosting my Dad in April, welcoming Lizzie to Colorado in May, and going back East for Tony's (Billy's business partner) wedding this summer! Lots of exciting adventures coming up, as always!
