Off to Colorado Springs!

Hey guys, this past week was our vacation week for this month and on Tuesday we ventured to Colorado Springs for a day trip!  The drive was absolutely beautiful as we chased the mountains the whole way.  It looks like a 3 hour trip on the map, but it feels much longer, definitely longer than the 3 hour trip from Aberdeen to Sioux Falls in SD...

The mountains pictured in the background stayed in front of us till the end of our journey and include Pike's Peak.

We planned our visit starting at the Garden of the Gods because both of us went there with our families as children and had very fond memories.  It's always fun to see how things from our childhoods look similar or different at this point in our lives!  For example, neither of us remembered the entrance sign above...maybe it's new...

Us with some of the magnificent rock formations in the background.  The day was so beautiful and clear you could see for miles.  It was "warm" at 50 degrees but you'll note that we both wore our jackets and rarely felt warm...something about "warm days" out here being different than in Alabama!

This is a view of Pike's Peak from the Gardens...it's amazing how close everything is in that part of Colorado.  As a child it didn't seem like such a small area as we travelled around.

Even though there were many signs saying not to climb or "scramble" on the rocks, we had to climb a few when no one was looking.  Jason had to do the thing that kept his mom so anxious when he was a child.  Don't worry though, we never got more than 8 feet off the ground this time!  Mandi looks like she's on top of the world in the same location.

Silly hi-jinks along the rocks!

Holding of "balancing rock."  Tough work but someone has to do it!

We headed from Garden of the Gods right to Downtown Colorado Springs to check out the area.  We wanted to go to Pike's Peak, but it was closed at the top due to snow...maybe next time.  Once we got to the downtown area we did what comes naturally, quickly found a great little place to eat lunch!  You can see Mandi in front of it...a little fresh, organic, slightly Mediterranean place where she got a fantastic burrito and Jason got an amazing sandwich called the Wizard with avocado, sprouts, tomato, turkey...

Mandi with her new Great Dane friend in the central park of downtown.  We loved how he was done with natural ears!  For now this will have to be her dog fix!

Another sculpture in the park...a license to be silly for the camera!

This picture snuck in because Mandi found her new favorite store in the world in Colorado Springs!  It was a hip boutique with everything she's ever loved in it...from candles to scarves to jewelry to amazing coats and everything in between...she hopes to return there one day with a fatter wallet!

A good portrait picture of us at Garden of the Gods.  We rarely get good pictures together but at least once each trip God sends someone with some picture skill to handle it.

Hope you all enjoyed this picture journey as much as we enjoyed the real thing.  Next we are off to Albuquerque again and will give you the scoop asap.  Love you all.

Mandi & Jason