Colorado Adventure - Day Eight

After driving almost 9 hours, from Boulder to Devil's Tower, the Mothership and I are a little tired. So in lieu of a complete blog for the day, here's a little teaser:

Devil's Tower, looming over us!

(I know I'm falling woefully behind on my blogging, but I figure I'll have plenty of time to catch up once we're back in good old NY!)

Old Baby Pictures

I really, really miss my babies! And I couldn't even find a picture of my poor little Ruthie, but here are some of Henry, Emma, and Izzy that I just took a few weeks ago:

His Lordship of Seward Ave, Sir Heinrich

My un-photogenic little brown dog, Emma.

Izzy-dawg, who looks sad in this picture despite being the canine form of Prozac in real-life!

43Things.com

Since I've come to Colorado, I've been introduced to lots of my aunt's friends, including Jill, who I think is the only person that actually will read this :) She wondered if we had ever gone to 43Things.com and made a list of 43 goals. So I had to check it out! Apparently you list 43 goals and then it reminds you of them, hooks you up with others who have the same goals, and keeps track of what you've acheived. I'm definitely gonna work on this, since I think it's pretty awesome! But the first thing I did when I got to the site was take the personality quiz:

I took the 43 Things
Personality Quiz and
found out I'm a Creative
Extroverted Self-Knower

I am not really sure how accurate this is...since I wouldn't call myself creative, extroverted, or a self-knower. Actually, since I don't really know what a self-knower is, I guess I could be one. But I don't know...

Colorado Adventure - Day Five

Today began with no concrete plans for the day. Apparently my love for an agenda is not genetic, as no one else feels my anxiety when we have no schedule.

Our first stop for the day was Cost Plus World Market, which, in a nut shell, is a higher-quality version of The Christmas Tree Shoppe. So of course, I enjoyed it! I found some gifts for my girlies, and some tasty dried berry mix for myself.

Because of a break in the strangely-inclement-for-Boulder weather, we decided to seize the moment and wander around The Mall for a bit, since garage parking is free on Sundays. We forgot, however, to factor in the Boulder Creek Fest crowds, and made it to the top of the parking garage before finding a spot. I think, however, it was a bit serendipitous, as the view from the roof was amazing!

It started to pour immediately after parking the car, at exactly 2pm. So we sprinted (okay, more like walked quickly) to Old Chicago for some pizza, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I was a bit startled when watter started running in under the door, just a few minutes after we had been discussing the dangers of flash floods, and how one hadn't occurred in Boulder for as long as I had been alive. It would be just my luck to drown in a place known for it's perpetual sun and summer droughts!

We decided to make a mad dash to Boulder Bookstore, which was a perfect specimen of my kind of store. I think I like to buy books more than just about anything else, so I was in heaven!!!

At 4pm (yes, just two hours post-lunch) we headed over to the Gondolier for Paula's pre-Bolder Boulder carbo-loading pasta fest. I got to meet a bunch of Aunt Paula's friends. They're all so funny, and apparently have all worked with each other at one time or another. I guess pharmacy isn't the only profession where you know everyone who exists!

I finally got to go back to The Mall, which I had last gone to when I was eight and visiting Boulder. I loved it - all sorts of artsy stores mixed in with books, housewares, and my favorite clothing stores like Billabong. I was able to avoid entering Billabong, since I'm waiting until I'm skinny to spend any more money there, but I did waste $6 on some cute carved kitties:

Our day ended with a hike...it was so beautiful that I couldn't stop taking pictures - thank goodness I found that huge memory card for my camera!

***Pictures coming soon!!***

Colorado Adventure - Day Four

Our first full day in Colorado did not start out very promising, as the sky was incredibly menacing. Because Aunt Paula had to work today, the Mothership and I struck out on our own.

Our first stop was Best Buy, which fortunately had a charger for my Nikon...I was so excited because I love my new camera!!!

Then we set of towards Denver in search of a SuperTarget that we could enjoy in a more leisurely fashion than our first encounter in Des Moines.

I adore SuperTarget! I finally found my Seether cd that hasn't been in stock in Ithaca for months. I found a super cute watch, and a pretty necklace, too. But I think my favorite part of SuperTarget is the produce section...I really want to work where I could stop over for some fresh fruit at lunchtime.

Not much else happened today, except we went to Efrain's II, a little Mexican restaurant. My taco salad with chicken was delicious!

Colorado Adventure - Day Three

Day Three of our Adventure to Colorado started out with a free "hot" breakfast. As I am not very well traveled, I wasn't aware of the distinctions in hotel breakfasts: continental, buffet, and hot. Well, now I am informed!

I had the pancakes. Yum!

Since we had to wait until 9am to go to the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument, I took the opportunity to blog a bit on the hotel lobby computer, since Best Western Kearny's internet service basically sucks.

So far on this trip, I think the Archway is the coolest thing we've encountered. The museum is actually built across Interstate 80. When you go in, you're given headphones to wear, and you get to wander around learning about Manifest Destiny: first the fur traders, then the wagon trains, the transcontinental railroad, and finally interstate highways. Very interesting, but also very sad...17 out of 100 pioneers who traveled on the wagon trains died. It's amazing to think that anyone made it west!

I could probablyhandle camping out for a few days.

But walking through the prairie, mostly likely barefoot, day after day, probably would have killed me.

I bet this guy could have made it!

I probably could have made it when Interstate 80 opened!

After the Archway, we headed to the Golden Spike Tower in North Platte, which overlooks the largest train classification yard in the country.

Golden Spike Tower, and train yard.

Interesting, but I'm not sure it was worth the detour! However, finally having lunch at Sonic in North Platte was worth the stop. Not sure of the Sonic protocol, i had to text Tracy, who old us to order a Chili Cheese Coney, tots, and strawberry limeade. Mom decided to try out the Coney with a Reese's Sonic Blast. I opted for the Bacon Cheeseburger Toaster with tots, but panicked when the guy asked me what I wanted to drink, so I accidentally ordered a diet Coke instead.

I guess forgetting my strawberry limeade gives us another reason to return!

We hit Chimney Rock around 4pm. As a part of the landscape it was dramatic, but realizing what it meant to the wagon trains was pretty inspiring.

In the days of the wagon trains, it would have been a full day's ride once they saw this view.

It took us about 15 minutes to get there.

The visitor's center was pretty nice...we got to see a little movie about the pioneers, read the geological history of Chimney Rock, and look at lots of artifacts from the pioneers and Native Americans.

Oh, and rattlesnakes too!

Yep, apparently on the Nebraska prairie, rattlesnakes are prevalent, as the warning signs state. I figured we'd be fine, but then we stumbled across one on the way out. No pictures for posterity, as we scampered towards the car! Maybe another time, but probably not.

We left Chimney Rock around 5pm, and drove through the rest of Nebraska, a bit of Wyoming, and finally arrived in Boulder at 8pm, in the pouring rain! I hope that doesn't last. Paula, Punky, and Dylan were waiting for us when we got there. Super exciting!

And on a final note, we had dinner at Murphy's:

Fish and chips...very tasty!

It's so great to finally reach our destination after 3 days and 1830 miles of driving!

Colorado Adventure - Day Two

Today started out with a nice little continental breakfast courtesy of Best Western Annawan.

Not bad for a free breakfast!

We tried the raisin bread, bagels with cream cheese, and orange juice. The Mothership also tried a hardboiled egg. I was not so bold, as I didn't want to disrupt our trip with an episode of gastrointestinal distress. Our stomachs filled, we continued on toward Iowa, enjoying the beautiful weather! Our first excitement of the day was crossing the Mississippi into Iowa, followed closely by our first Cracker Barrel sighting of the day. Sadly, it was much to early to enjoy macaroni and cheese.

Iowa was especially notable for having awesome rest stops, and giving away free maps.

Me and the World's Best Rest Stop Ever!

Other than that, not too much happened until we hit Des Moines and I glimpsed a gleaming SuperTarget sign in the distance. Celeste, our handy navi system was not pleased by the sudden departure from our chose route, but how could I pass up the first SuperTarget I'd ever seen?

The Mothership, definitely expecting more!

Let me tell you, it did not disappoint. In fact, it has to be the best Target experience I've had:

there was fresh produce...

bulk Jelly Bellies...

and 24 checkouts!

I am desperate to work in a SuperTarget. I think I could actually live in SuperTarget with very little trouble! I wonder if the Targets in Hawaii are Super? On a side note, the people of Iowa are friendly, bright, and have great taste even at a very early age - a six-year-old girl complimented me on my cute green shoes!

She was so right...

After a bit of trial and error with Celeste, our trip continued with one specific destination in mind: Cracker Barrel. Celeste found one for us in Council Bluff, Iowa.

Chicken tenders, cole slaw, biscuts, macaroni and cheese, and cinnamon apples...Cracker Barrel feeds you really well...I couldn't finish it all!

A little jealous of the Mothership's BLT salad...

Once back on the road, the Missouri river was right there, and we crossed into Omaha, Nebraska. Two super nice gentlemen at the visitor center gave us another free map, and told us that if we were going to Chimney Rock, we should stop at the Archway Museum in Kearny first, so we changed our plans to stop in Kearny for the night.

Omaha was beautiful and friendly. I think I would enjoy staying there, especially to see the zoo/desert habitat/IMAX theater/butterfly compound. It looked pretty awesome from the road! I'm definitely adding Omaha to my list of potential homes. A plus over Hawaii is the ease of Izzy and Emma moving with me.

Downside: six lane highway. Ugh.

We arrived in Kearny at about 6:30pm. Our internet didn't work, which makes me sad. But we get free breakfast tomorrow, which makes Mom happy.

Dinner was average at Long John Silvers.

Unless you count getting a hush puppy that looks like Arthur the Aardvark as more than average...I think it's just kind of weird.

Because I mistook the size of Kearny, we didn't find a Sonic until we were heading for Target.

Darn it.

But fear not, I will have some Chili Tot things that Tracy told me to try, along with her favorite strawberry lemonade, even if it means developing an ulcer!

Our day ended on a sour note, when I realized that I forgot to pack the charger for my Nikon. Looks like it might just be me and my little Cybershot for the duration. Unless we can find a Best Buy...

Colorado Adventure - Day One

Our Great Colorado Adventure started out at approximately 4:30am, which I have to say, was not that pleasant. I have a bit of trouble getting up at 7:45am for work, and I'm not sure I've seen 4:30am in many years, if ever. Regardless, the Mothership and I packed up the car, and were on the road by 6am. She kindly let me nap until Buffalo, but as I was excited for my first vacation in 6 years, I was unable to sleep.

We hit Buffalo around 8:30am...well, not really Buffalo, but we did get to stop at that killer reststop where you walk through the tunnel over the Thruway. I did take some pictures, but left that camera in the car by accident, and I'm too lazy to go get it! Of note, apparently the parts of New York and Pennsylvania that border Lake Ontario and Lake Erie grow a lot of grapes. I've never seen so many vineyards, and I grew up in the Finger Lakes!

Seriously, vineyards were on both sides of the road for miles...I was amazed!

Additionally of note, we always joke that New Yorkers only go to Pennsylvania for fireworks, and that may be true, but apparently you can also go there for other things, as the second we crossed the NY/PA border, we drove by this:

Mom wouldn't stop there for some reason :(

Pennsylvania went by so quick that I completely missed the border, and we were halfway through Ohio when the Mothership woke up and demanded to know why we hadn't gotten a picture of the "Welcome to Ohio" sign. My excuse was the oddly marked speed limit signs...60mph for cars and 55 for trucks/buses. Weird. I really missed the 65mph free-for-all on the Great NYS Thruway, but I guess we all make sacrifices to get to where we need to be, like Colorado!

Ohio's oddly marked roadsigns continued through the entire state, but fortunately only caused a slight incident in Cleveland, where we got lost. In the ghetto. I think I drove around in a circle three times before remembering that I have navigation in my little CR-V. Celeste was awesome, directing us back to Route 90, and we were saved!

We made it safely to the border of Ohio and Indiana, when the Mothership realized that she had left Indiana out of our time/mileage calculations completely. She was stunned, I was amused. There wasn't much to report from Indiana, except there is a city there named Gary, and the people there REALLY don't know how to drive. Well, actually the guy who almost killed us was from California, so I guess I can't blame the poor citizens of Gary.

Illinois thus far has been rather uneventful. Despite being on Route 80, we ran into an hour long traffic jam south of Chicago, which was distinctly unpleasant. We missed out on three Cracker Barrel opportunities. And we ended up in Annawan, which is more in the middle of nowhere than I have ever been. Our Best Western is gorgeous, but I am starving!!! And the only restaurant in town is the Quik-E Mart across the road, with a real, live Abu. He was super nice, and our pizza was delish. I'll try to get some quick pics before we leave in the morning. I think I should rest after 14 hours of driving 800 miles!

Old Navy's Modelquins

Am I the only person who thinks that Old Navy's "modelquins" are super creepy? I mean, if it wasn't the only store that I can get the right length khaki pants, I think they would keep me from shopping there. As it is, I really need to delete the Old Navy page from my Facebook account, because these little gems are always popping up on my homepage:

Baby Modelquins, from Old Navy's website

Rihanna-lookalike modelquin, with eerily pale blond modelquin, from Old Navy's website

For further pics of the Old Navy Modelquins, just hop on over to Old Navy, but don't go too close to bedtime, or you might have some nightmares!

Extra Baby Pictures!

I just thought I'd share a few more pictures that I found on my camera today!

Ruthie, with an angry-looking Henry.

Very serious Izzy...kind of unusual, since she's generally the clown of the family!

Henry, making it known that he is NOT in the mood for a belly rub.

My little brown dog Emma, smiling because she probably just snuck upstairs for a cat food snack!

Henry's Girlfriend

A few months ago, I noticed that Henry had made friends with a cat that lives across the street...and they visit with each other every day through the window. That's right, Henry has a girlfriend! The Mothership was able to catch them during one of their visits:

Henry's girlfriend, who I think looks like a "Mona"

Mona is really quite cute...they make an adorable couple :)

Henry, getting a little annoyed that his date has been interrupted for a photo session!