Blizzard Gettaway

It's hard to believe that another weekend has passed. It seems like I spend all week counting down to the weekend, especially nowadays since its when I get to spend any substantial time with Matt. We had planned to camp one last time for the season because most campsites close at the end of October. Of course the weather promised rain, snow and cold temperatures which NEVER happens unless I want the weather to be nice (example, Jake's visit in August). So we nixed our camping plans and did what anyone would do in the snow...headed up the tallest peak on the front range, Pikes's Peak!

That's right! We put our lives in the hands of the cog railway conductor and headed to an elevation of 14,110 feet! I thought the storm had blown over because we were less than 3 miles from the top and no snow in sight! Then it started. When we left the train, winds were blowing at a constant 40 mph and gusting at 70. Snow was pounding into our jeans. This was the view:

This was the view from the window of the train car. ICE.

We were at the top just long enough to get some homemade donuts, a cappucino to warm us up, a bottle of water to keep us hydrated and two squares of Pike's Peak fudge. Mmmm. A nice healthy snack. :)

This is a horrible picture but I had to try to take it out the opposite window from where we were. It is the storm after it passed over us and decended into Colorado Springs. It was just rain down there, but we obviously got to see a different side of it at the top which was amazing. It was fabulous to see how huge the storm was from above.

Things cleared up again on the way down so we still got some amazing views.

I need to get this picture to Brett and Kelly (Matt's cousins.) The yellow trees are Aspen trees and they are so beautiful, just like their daughter Aspen. We have also really enjoyed seeing pictures via email of their new daughter, Cheyenne. Anyway, the Aspen trees just made us think of them.

I should backtrack a little but I really wanted to get the pictures up of our trip. So back to Friday...I finally had a chance to hang out with my new co-workers outside of work. It was really fun to see a different and relaxed side to everybody as well as meeting spouses and even a baby! We went out to celebrate the going-away of the one and only other Jayhawk in the Denver branch at and Irish pub called Lansdowne Arms. He is moving to North Carolina! Tarheel Country...that's got to be hard for a Jayhawk!

I still don't know everyone super well, especially if they work in the other "wing" of the office, but I still had a great time. I really enjoyed scaring Mike (in the survey department) into thinking I was out of work because of him. He has to get the airports through survey before I can work on them, so it's fun to make him think that they are slacking. I wish we did more social things like that sometimes. I really enjoyed getting to know people outside the office setting. It also gave me something to do instead of hanging out at home by myself on Friday, for which I was grateful. Pongo was not quite as appreciative. He had to be in his crate a little longer than he is used to.

I hate this, but with the weather the way it was this weekend, we HAD to turn on the heat in our house. I thought we could tough it out, but it got down into the 50's inside the house, so we caved in. We still only set the thermostat for the low 60's though, so our bill shouldn't be horrible. It tooks like things are going to warm up for a while. It's a good thing because my friend Amanda is coming out this weekend and we are planning a trip up to Estes Park for some shopping and who knows what else. I think the last time we were in Colorado together, we were stuck in the blizzard of 2003 (it was like Pike's Peak except worse and were driving home in it). Matt is working, so it will truly be a gals weekend. I love having visitors!