Some things I like and some things I don't...

Given that life is back to "normal" now, I thought I would take some time to unload some of my current likes and dislikes for your reading enjoyment and likely mockery.

Things I currently like:
+ Brad Paisley's new cd: Fifth Gear
+ The CBS show, Criminal Minds
+ Books written by the author, Richard Mouw
+ Bass, the original pale ale
+ Smoking a mixture of Sunset and Vanilla blends from Tinderbox in my pipe
+ Reese's Crispy Crunch Bar
+ Broccoli
+ My Oakley sandals
+ Chipmunks
+ Crystal Light Rasberry Lemonade

Things I currently dislike:
- Traffic in Charlotte
- Sesame seeds
- Books by C.S. Lewis (minus The Chronicles, of course)
- Humidity
- "Family Friendly" radio
- The media
- The idea that Christian = Republican
- Evangelicals are now a targeted "voting group"
- Post-its that have lost their stickiness
- Seven simple yet profound action steps that will help readers discover the better things they were born for...

~Dan

There is no place like home...

Well, it's Friday evening and we have made it home safely. The flights were a little delayed but we still arrived when we were supposed to. Many thanks to Josh for picking us up at the airport!

Gracie is so happy we are home and we are glad to be with her. We're all being lazy tonight: enjoying some Brooklyn Pizza and watching CSI.

It feels really good to be home...

How do we get there from here?

After Tuesday's day of activities, Wednesday was a much quieter day - filled with business and shopping. Shopping: Meg with Dan's family. Business: Dan typing his Ethics paper due on Friday. One would think Meg had the better day, but as the picture below demonstrates, Dan's wasn't so bad either. In the evening, we did cut out some time to walk along the Blue River in Breckenridge and enjoy a great family dinner.

This morning, we awoke early and took a hike with Dan's dad at Hoosier Pass. Our hike got off to a great start but within no time (literally seconds) we were out of breath due to the altitude and struggling to keep going. We did make it up about a mile up the mountain trail and got some awesome pictures. In the end, the mountain won and we headed back home hungrier than when we began. Dan had hoped to be able to wrestle a bear, but instead almost hit a beaver on the way home.

This afternoon Dan's parents drove us to Denver where we now sit in our hotel room with bellies full of hamburger (from Ted's none the less) and getting ready to enjoy an in-room movie (not that kind of movie...actually, "Reign Over Me") and a later dinner. Our flight back to Charlotte (via Chi-town) leaves early in the morning and we are excited to get back home and see our little Gracie. It's been a great week but there really is no place like home (and we don't mean Kansas!). Here are yet some more pics...

Giraffes like special crackers...

After a very relaxing day on Monday spent exploring Breckenridge and enjoying time with family, we headed off for our day trip to Colorado Springs on Tuesday morning. After filling up on Breckenridge's best breakfast at The Blue Moose, we were on our way. We stopped for some shopping and ice cream in Manitou Springs and then made our way to the Garden of the Gods. That place was just downright cool. It was awesome to see what "the God" has made!

Next, we enjoyed lunch in downtown Colorado Springs at The Phantom Canyon Brewery (Dan recommends the Copperhead - a bit hoppy but still sweet; Megan, on the other hand, thought it must be what Elk urine tastes like!).

We followed that joyous meal up with a trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo where we got to feed the Giraffes. Yes! We got to feed the giraffes! You had to buy these special crackers but it was worth it. One even tried to kiss Dan or maybe Dan tried to kiss it. Either way, it was definitely the highlight of the afternoon. The rest of the zoo was cool and the Will Rogers memorial located at the top of the mountain offered breathtaking views that we enjoyed for quite a while.

After we made it back to the condo in Breckenridge, Dan schooled Megan on "Double Shot" (the arcade style basketball game) and they discovered that neither were any good at ping pong (and the RTS bretheren are now sad after reading that). Once cleaned up we made our way to our dinner reservation at The Cellar wine bar and restaurant where we enjoyed a flavorful, eclectic, tapas-style dinner. We skipped dessert, but we did go to Wal-Mart for some aloe lotion to care for the sunburns we acquired today. Anyway, below are some pictures. Enjoy!

Van-o-fun...

What do you get when you mix a van full of five people, a fourteen hour road trip, and the entire length of the state of Kansas? Nothing other than a "van-o-fun". Seriously, we have made it to Breckenridge on Sunday and it was all worth it. We love being in the mountains and we absolutely love spending so much time outside. We have big plans for tomorrow that include a trip to Colorado Springs and giraffe. We'll keep you posted.




This is a pic of us when we started the drive at 6:15 AM CDT!










This is Dan driving somewhere in the middle of Kansas...











Megan especially loves the wheat and the corn and the cattle and the flat land in Kansas...she wishes it could have taken longer to drive through. Can't you see it in her eyes?! She is so sad that we are flying home!








And this is the view we were rewarded with when we finally arrived at 8:30 PM MT.

Another great day...

We had another great day on Saturday! We got up early, went for a walk, and then met Meg's Dad and Grandparents at Cracker Barrel for breakfast. It sure was good to see them again. Later in the day, after hanging out with Meg's Dad, we had a cookout with our friends and their kids. When that was all over, we met our friend Nathan for a drink and some good reminiscing. It really is a blessing to see so many people in such a short time! Here are some pictures!

Swings, trains, and budweiser...

It's day two and we've survived the train ride to Centralia and made it safe to Dan's parents' house. The train ride was definitely most interesting - a unique combination of rednecks, beer, and cut-off shorts. We need not say anything more...except, apparently Amtrak allows you to carry your own cooler on board. We love southern Illinois!

Meg had a lot of fun today playing at the park with her niece and nephew. She's never felt so young and so old at the same time before! :-) We also had a great visit with her Grandma, and Meg was really excited to be given a copy of her grandparents' wedding picture taken in Germany. Here are a few pics from day two. Enjoy!