Another Boulder Christmas

With a late Thanksgiving and busy weekends between that holiday and Christmas, it seemed that this break took us totally unawares.  We don't normally decorate extravagantly at home, but we try to hang up ornaments and pull out a nativity scene or two (my favorite is our Andean influenced scene with llamas rather than sheep).  This year, we had NADA out and Michael commented that we were leaning pretty hard to being total atheists.  Even with the 25th rapidly approaching, we prepared minimally for our trip to Boulder, and for Christmas in general.  Fortunately, we had already planned on a low-key Christmas with few presents.  This was a bit less fun than the usual gift exchange, especially since we didn't even give any joke gifts, but it did streamline our preparations (meaning - we had almost zero).

My last week of school put me in a total Scrooge mood and I felt like I was holding on by my fingernails, just making it to Friday without losing my shit completely.  Once 12:30 pm on the 20th rolled around, I was at home, and it finally hit me that we would be leaving for Colorado on Saturday morning - woo hoo!  I felt a mix of relief and major excitement, especially since we started our holiday with margaritas with friends on Friday night.  The perfect way to celebrate a two-week break.

Our Christmas trips the past few years have followed a similar pattern so I can't say that they are exciting road trips - which is fine because "excitement" at Christmas might indicate a bit more stress than I would embrace.  We stick to the southern route via major interstates, but even that is an amazing trip through northern Arizona and New Mexico.  We always break up the trip in Flagstaff, AZ, grabbing a drink at Beaver Street Brewery when we roll into town and leaving bright and early after a morning cup of coffee at Macy's Coffee House (not related to the department store!).  While it's a long drive, we're both happy to truck across the Arizona and New Mexico landscape.  The trip doesn't ever feel long until we hit Colorado Springs and at that point the final two hours or so into Boulder seem to stretch on and on, especially after the previous ten hours or so.

Once in Boulder, we enjoy a bit too much good food and drink.  This time, our very first stop, even before seeing family, was the Southern Sun, to get a drink and fill up our growler.  Not a bad way for Boulder to welcome us - or vice versa!  We've migrated to a few other places this year, stopping by Salt for drinks on Christmas Eve afternoon.  To balance out such indulgences, I've stayed somewhat active, going for a morning or afternoon run several times, an early swim at the North Boulder Rec Center twice (once I packed two swimsuits and a towel, taking up valuable real estate in our packed car, I promised myself that I'd make good use of the gear!), and plenty of short walks with our dogs.  It's been relatively warm and we've regretted, somewhat, that we did not strap our bikes to the car.  But with skis already in tow, it seemed like overkill to bring bikes too.  

Warm temperatures are, of course, relative, and we have enjoyed a bit of snow in Boulder - on our first full day here and also this morning a nice dusting of snow greeted us.  Today, I managed to rouse Michael and we hit Chautauqua Park for an early morning walk with the doggies who were very excited about snow!

Not a great photo of me or the dogs, but the Flatirons are so pretty with the snow!

Meta photo - I'm taking a photo of Michael taking a photo; and Milo is grumpy because he just wants to GO, goddamnit!

These photos definitely do not do much justice to the morning which was gorgeous - but a bit cold!  With temperatures in the teens, I was ready for hot coffee after our walk.

Tomorrow, we plan to ski and then we'll soon pack the car to return to CA and 'real life'.  In the meantime, we have an exciting afternoon of football and I'm going to squeeze in a long, slow run.  While none of this is new to us at this point, the comfort of being here and spending time with friends and family is certainly one of the best presents that we could ever have at this time of the year.

A random week

I could very easily get used to my schedule this week which has included sitting around the house grading exams for a bit, then taking a short break (to snack, look at the dogs or let them out and maybe even play with them, waste 10 minutes or so on the interweb like I'm doing now, or do some light housekeeping, like fold laundry), then returning to grading, then taking a longer break to go for a bike ride or to make lunch, then grading more, and then taking another long break...
Maybe not the most productive lifestyle, but it really works.  Now, if only I could find a way to do this all the time!
Okay, that's an impossible dream, so I will bask in the fact that I have a break from my 'real life' this week which has allowed me to definitely switch around my usual schedule.  A few changes from the norm:
- Going out on a Sunday night!  That is something that almost never happens because Sunday is "crunch" time as I cram to prepare for the week, but I discovered that Sunday night is a great night to go out because it is such a low-key evening in most restaurants.

- Working out mid-morning or early afternoon is such a treat.  The pool is set up competition-length, so I can get a more exhausting workout.  Also, biking mid-day, mid-week is super fun and other cyclists seem nicer than the weekend riders.  Maybe that's my imagination?  Finally, I get to attend spin class with Rod, the most awesome spin instructor ever on Friday morning at 8:30 am!

- Along the same theme, trying out a new class.  Somehow, having more mental energy from putzing around all day means that I can push myself to try something new, like Pilates last night.  That was a great experience, and I hope to repeat it soon!

- Taking our dog Milo to the vet for his recent and unexplained weight loss.  Apparently we've had him on a starvation diet since his bloodwork is normal.  Don't I feel like a terrible pet owner?

- Brunch on a Friday morning followed by a pedicure - that plan is in the works for tomorrow.  Can't wait to be a "lady who brunches".  It might actually remind me why I *like* to work, but pretending to be a lady of leisure for a day isn't a bad thing.

The other major positive about the week is that, with the exception of Sunday's splurge (in every way possible), we have returned to a more "normalized" eating pattern.  The past 6 weeks or so have been filled with too many celebrations and vacations, so we ate out more than usual as we celebrated two birthdays and the holidays, traveled to places with good food, and enjoyed socializing with friends and family.  Now, we have no excuses about the lack of time or company or special events, so we are back to preparing meals en casa which is much easier on the pocket book and the waistline.  Hopefully this will not just be the product of a 'random' week but will become the norm again as I return to a more hectic routine starting Monday!

In the meantime, I'm back to grading essays.