Roxborough State Park - Fountain Valley Trail

Yesterday I was trying to get back into the job search mode when one of my friends from school called and asked me to go on a hike.  I told her about how we tried to get into Roxborough State Park last year and was turned away because the park was at "Full Capacity".  

Only 12 miles from my front door, I was so excited to see how beautiful this park was as we drove in.  Since it was already noon and about 80 degrees we decided to take a moderate 2 mile trail named Fountain Valley.  We were so exited to find Mule Deer at the head of the trail just hanging out about 10 feet in front of us.  They let us step closer and take pictures!

According to the visitor center each trail has a different type of scenery because this park sits "Where the Plains meet the Mountains".  I am so excited to go back with Scott over the next couple of weeks and hike the other trails.  Scott was so disappointed he could not go yesterday, he was back at work for the first day after 12 days off to visit family in AZ.

Happy Mother's Day

To all the mothers in our lives, our sisters, aunts, daughters, friends, my grandmother and of coarse our dear mothers, Happy Mother's Day!  Thank you to my mom for being a good role model and thanks to my kids for making motherhood so wonderful!

These are a couple of pictures I took on our walk with the dogs on this beautiful day.  Actually this picture was taken less than 100 yards from our front door.

Yes, another one

I could not stop myself from posting another sunrise picture.  To some a beautiful sunrise or sunset may not be something they find special but for me it is absolutely serene.  Every morning I wake to a piece of artwork in the sky with a unique color pallet including azure and amber.

Three years ago as we contemplated leaving the the warm desert of Arizona to head to the cooler desert of Colorado we worried about surviving the cruel winters.  Now I am not saying winter can't be cruel, but the cruel days are few and spaced between numerous beautiful ones (seriously less than 15 cruel days in a winter).  Colorado winter's really aren't so bad after all.   Colorado I Love YOU!

Good Morning!

This morning's sunrise!

When I woke up this morning and stepped outside to take the dogs out, I was greeted with the peace and beauty of the Colorado sunrise.  I stopped to count my blessings.  No matter how many hard times I have experience, I have never had to worry about eating, medical care or having a place to live for my family.  More so, I have never had to deal with a tragedy like Haiti is going through right now.  My life is good and I thank God for that.  God bless those in Haiti and the family and friends of those who have been lost.

Thawing Out

The sun came out today and melted more than half of the snow away.  I was really hoping it would stick around until Sean comes home from Arizona tomorrow, so we could build a snowman. The kids in our neighborhood were having the time of their lives as they did not have to go to school for the third snow day in a row.  I tried hard to get back into the groove of housecleaning and laundry after spending two days distracted and entertained by the weather.  Today was the first time since moving to Colorado I took our walk after a snowy day for various reasons.  The first winter I was too busy with my job to do anything but work.  Last winter I was just starting to get out, the winter was pretty warm and hardly snowed, and I was a too "wimpy" on the cold days to walk.    I really hope when I start working again I can continue to enjoy the little things. 

What a Beautiful Surprise!

So like I said in an earlier post, Scott and I decided on a whim to take highway 9 to the 285 home from the mountains not really knowing what to expect. Boy were we in for a special treat! Soon after we drove through Breckenridge we hit construction that left only one lane for both directions of traffic. I worried we made a huge mistake, but as we passed that mess and headed towards Fairplay Scott said we have to pull over, I can't believe what I just saw.

Scott was amazed that there was a lake down there (must be freezing) and mountain ranges with no trees near the top suggesting the mountains were well above 11, 000 ft elevation. Even right behind where we were standing the tree line was obvious. (See picture below) In an attempt to capture the beauty you could only realize in person, I snapped a few pictures of these at the time unknown beautiful mountains. Driving away signs informed us we were near Hoosier Pass and over 11,000 ft. As any curious person with the Internet I walked in the door and straight to Google our sitings. Come to find out I captured a few of Colorado's popular 14ers that reside in the area of the continental divide. Mt. Bross 14172 ft
Mt. Lincoln 14286 ft
Quandary Peak 14265 feet

Cool! According to the Colorado Rocky Mountain roads website the area we were near today is where water melting from the Rockies separates and flows towards either the Atlantic Ocean via the Platte River or the Pacific Ocean via the Colorado River. We learned some Colorado geography on our detour today. Obviously we need to get out more and explore the beauty of the state we live in. I'm sure Scott would love to climb one of these mountains.

The Backyard is Blooming!

I spent some time in the backyard today enjoying the beautiful weather and chirping birds. I was surprised to see the roses are coming back. So far a few of these cream colored ones have started to bloom and a few pink. The red is yet to bloom.
The garden is looking really good as well. I see a few peppers and strawberries developing as well as cilantro and oregano ready to use. I think we will be able to make Salsa soon! Yum!!
There are always bunnies in the backyard drooling at our garden and today when I went outside this bunny did not run from me. I kept stepping closer and snapping his picture and he did not care.

Spring Flowers are Blooming in my Front Yard

When we moved into our house we wanted to plant some bulbs in this area but never actually did. However last spring flowers began to pop up and display their beauty, without any effort on our part. Sadly, they do not last long as I discovered as well last year. So this year I made sure to take a few pictures before they disappeared.
I am really enjoying spring this year in Colorado, it would be nice to have the comfort of a job, but as long as I am unemployed I might as well enjoy the beautiful weather and scenery.