Sweet Escape

This is the view from our balcony in our room. It's quiet. It's secluded. It's perfect.



And what am I doing? Thinking about the kids. Not that I don't love being here with my best friend in the whole world. Because I do! But I also consider this a jump start when I get home to giving my kids all the love and attention that they can possibly handle. All the time. Should work, right?

Right now we're watching the Rockie's game. Relaxing.

Today we enjoyed some put-put golfing (Craig won, humbly), walking downtown, dodging lightning downtown, ducking in Penelope's burger place to get out of the rain...and then staying for lunch, getting lost trying to find Chipper's Lanes, then finding it and bowling three games (total of the three games for me, a whopping 214, for Craig, a more manly 350...beforewhich I was bragging to Craig at how decent of a bowler I was...yeah, I'm not), playing a couple of games of pool, walking around Safeway to waste time (and waste time we certainly did), walk around the shops near Safeway and talk to crazy lady in an art gallery, spending an inordinate amount of time at a wannabe Stanley Hotel Museum, but also being impressed with Chansonetta Stanley....something or other's photography, getting movie tickets to Thor 45 min. early and watching the same 12 Estes Park commercials over and over again until the movie started, stayed until the end of the credits after the movie was over to watch the "secret" clip at the end and not really understanding it (that's the point of secret clips, though, right?), hitting the pizza place beneath the theatre for dinner and talking about how annoying we think Natalie Portman is and watching the beginning of the Rockies game. I wanted to take my camera to most of the above said activities, but Craig wouldn't let me. Some things are probably better enjoyed when I'm not mentally thinking about how to blog each picture later. :-) And now we're back at the hotel, already ate our complimentary cookies, and I'm thinking about jumping in the jacuzzi here in a bit.
Estes is really a pretty place! The mountains are all beautifully dusted with snow and then everything below is green and lush. Seen about a bazillion Elk around town...and even though they're everywhere I keep gasping and pointing them out each time I see them.
Tomorrow I think I'm going to be brave and go to the actual Stanley Hotel's ghost tour (me and spooky things don't mix so well, but I think it would be interesting), go back downtown, maybe see Pirates (just because we can!), take some walks if it's not raining again, take some more pictures of pretty things, and eat at our all time favorite Italian restaurant, Mama Rosa's.
...Wonder how the kids are doing...missing Odell's little cherub cheeks and Chloe and Linus's giggles...