(Me and my new best friends on our last day of training)
Of course this doesn't mean I am through with my yoga education nor have I received my certificate yet. First I have to teach my six SEVA classes which are donation based for friends and family where I will be collecting items for a shelter for women and children called The Gathering Place. I feel so blessed with all that I have in life and so I am grateful to be given this opportunity to not only spread yoga throughout my community but to inspire giving in others as well. My first class is this Sunday and it already looks like I have about 10+ friends and family attending. I am nervous but also excited to show everyone what I've been working so hard on these past few weeks. If all goes as planned I will have my hours turned in before I leave for the Bahamas in May which means I'll have completed yet another bucket list item before my 30th Birthday. I feel so accomplished!
To welcome in spring and celebrate being through with teacher training (yay for having some of my weekends back...for now anyways!) my friend Sarah and I hung out for the Rockies opening day the first weekend in April. Opening day has always been a fun event for me but the past 4 years I was working it due to being a Miller Lite promo girl. Last year was the first time I got to experience actually enjoying the day and not watching everyone else lose their minds. The only downside to opening day is that it is on a Friday so as you can imagine most of my friends have to work. Sarah was able to come downtown early however and then Lyndee and Chad met up with us later in the afternoon. We hung out around downtown for a few hours, watched the game and of course, being the person I am, found a cupcake truck:
We left just before the game ended and downtown became an even bigger zoo than it already was. We all had to get up early anyways because we were headed to the mtns. in the morning.
It has become an annual tradition to visit the Sulphur Springs in the town of Hot Sulphur Springs. Chad and I went several years ago before we got married for my birthday because we couldn't afford to take a real vacation. Then I had told Lyndee about the place one night at dinner and we decided we had to go again so we all went last year. We had such a great time we decided to make it an annual tradition and so we left for the night the Saturday after opening day.
Every year the sulphur springs holds a surprise for us. The surprise is that you never know what you will find in town because businesses come and go there every year. The population is only about 625 but you won't even see half that many people in town. Of course some of the main attractions like the Dairy D-lite and The Glory Hole aren't open because it's the mud season, but this means a discounted rate on hotel stays which is why we pick April. Plus it's usually still a little cool out making for a relaxing all day soak in the outdoor springs. When we visit we always stay at the Canyon Motel
Mostly due to the fact it's pet friendly, they sell discounted hot springs tickets, you don't have to pay until you get there (except a small deposit) the staff is friendly and if you get desperate you can order a pizza (which is basically a Digorino's) to eat for dinner. There isn't much in town to eat so you really have to plan your food consumption wisely. When we checked in the guy at the front desk recommend a couple of new places in town that were now open to eat at which we hadn't tried before so we figured why not. One of these happened to be the restaurant at the
Stage coach country inn which, only after doing some researching I later found out was haunted.
The food was so decently priced we walked out of there feeling like we had robbed the place. Both couples split chicken fingers and fries and we got an appetizer and a desert all for $20. My only complaint was our fried cherry pie was frozen in the middle but we ate it anyways and it was delicious.
After lunch we spent the day doing of course, what we came there to do which was to soak:
I think this was the most crowded I have ever seen this place. Unlike last year we never found ourselves in a hot spring pool alone and there were even more unique people there than I'd ever seen (think Ukrainian coal miner and girls with legs so hairy they looked like men). Unfortunately some of the smaller pools were closed in order to bring heat into the others so that was a bit of a bummer. Hopefully we will make it back at the end of the year when more is open.
After a day of soaking and relaxing we wanted to find the nearest bar in town to hit up...but as luck would have it there really isn't a bar in the Sulphur Springs. In fact, the guy at the front desk said the only bar in town (which he did not recommend) served beer "and tequila if that's what the bartender is drinking." Well we know to bring our own libations (which we did consume don't get me wrong) but we felt like going out to eat so the only option was to drive 5 miles down the road to the next little town over called Parshall (population 588) to the aptly named Parshall Inn.
This place has everything on the menu from fried shrimp to sirloin and it's all pretty cheap. Mark and I tried the P.I. Burger which has boursin cheese and bacon and has to be one of my favorite burgers of all time. The only downside of the PI was the drink prices. While beer was cheap, the shots were not. It wasn't until we got our tab we realized we had been charged $8 a shot (red headed sluts) and not only that but they wouldn't give us the 10% that the hotel flyer promised they would. So my recommendation is to eat here, don't get the shots and certainly bring the flyer from your hotel so that they can't explain their way out of not giving you a discount.
The celebrations didn't end after the hot sulphur springs. Next came my mom coming into town and Lyndee and Mark's bachelor/bachelorette party. My mom just happened to get a new job so she had the time off to come and visit me and then go on to San Diego to visit my sister. While I planned to take her hiking and all sorts of things, our time was limited and so we couldn't accomplish everything on my, "want to take mom to-do" list. Highlights of her trip include me taking her to her first spin class at Qi Ryders , eating dinner at the Capitol Grill in Golden, getting pedicures and cupcakes and exercising everything off at Red Rocks. If you haven't been to Red Rocks to workout I highly recommend it. You can run the stairs, do push ups, planks or sit there and enjoy the view.
My mom really liked it and hopefully we can go to a concert there together one day.Lyndee was having her wedding shower and bachelorette party this same weekend so my mom was able to come to the shower and meet Sarah and some of Lyndee's family. We had a great time drinking mimosas and playing games and making toilet paper bridal gowns while the guys went out to Dave and Busters. That night was their joint bachelor party but my mom didn't feel like attending so while she stayed home we went out on the town
All the ladies with our pink mustaches.It's probably just as well my mother didn't attend to see the amount of alcohol consumed but it was great hanging out with some of my very best friends. We had a really good group of people out to celebrate and it was almost more fun having the guys there...especially when other guys would try to come up and talk to us and compliment our mustaches....
With all this whirlwind of activity you think we'd be slowing down now but we're actually just beginning the craziness that comes with summer. Chad's parents are in town this weekend for his dad's 60th birthday and then two weeks after that we will be heading to Gunnison for his brother's college graduation. Add in a few more yoga teaching classes then a trip to the Bahamas for Lyndee and Mark's wedding and we have a lot to look forward too....and the flying magee's will be back in the air again
