One glorious day

This past Saturday in Boulder was the most glorious weather day we have had in at least 3 months. Temperatures were in the low 70's, the sun was shining bright, and the breeze was moderate. As you know I've been complaining about the weather, and yearning for one of these days, for some time. And it didn't disappoint. It was the perfect day, and for more reasons than just the weather. Bear with me as I relive our entire Saturday.

We woke up early and decided to go to the Original Pancake House, a favorite of Kevin's and mine since our early days of dating. Delaney was a fabulous diner and was a pleasure to sit with (for nearly an hour) as she devoured her blueberry pancakes.

Part of the reason we chose that breakfast establishment was because Delaney was scheduled to get her first haircut at 9am in the same shopping complex. After breakfast we mosied over to the haircut place which Delaney took an immediate liking to due to the bright colors and huge animals you could sit on. I will try to post pictures of the event in a different post. She was adorable sitting on her little pink elephant and having the hairstylist treat her like a pretty princess. There was little to no fussing and she seemed perfectly content to sit there and let someone calmly cut her hair for 20 minutes. Other moms tell me this is a typicaly first-time experience and the resistance usually increases during every subsequent visit. But I enjoyed every minute of her first haircut, even knowing this was the case. The stylist put in some adorable "piggy tails" and fluffed up her natural wavy curls with some mousse. Kevin and I were all smiles.

Then we proceeded to go home and prepare for a family hike. Our house is very close proximity to some good hiking trails and it makes me so happy every time we can just roll out our front door and access open space so quickly. Delaney did great in the jogger and at a certain point during the hike up the trail she got out and helped us push the stroller. People were so plentiful they almost seemed like a swarm of ants on the trail. Dogs were romping everywhere, people were in shorts and t-shirts, and it felt amazing.

We came home and had lunch al fresco on our new backyard patio, which consisted mostly of cheese, crackers and fruit (which is typical for Delaney, but strange that we all decided to eat such ad hoc fare). I put Delaney down for her nap, Kevin jetted off on a bike ride with his friend Chris, and I smugly laid in my patio lounger and soaked in some amazing warmth and sun. I cranked through two Cooking Light magazines and a Real Simple. But mostly I just laid there and looked at the birds swooping through the air, the woodpeckers devouring our neighborhood telephone poles, and listened to flies and other insects come out of hibernation. I heard neighbors coming and going from their houses and kids riding their scooters and bikes around the block.

We regrouped as soon as Delaney woke up and decided to ride our bikes and the Burley down to Pearl Street for an early happy hour. One of our favorite happy hour establishments (Bacaro) sadly did not have their rooftop open for business, but they had a good front patio and we managed to squeeze into the last table available. Pearl Street was like a carnival it was so busy. It was strange because it almost felt like we lived in a remote, rural area where people migrate in from far away towns for some special faire or event. We ran into several people we knew and the ones we didn't run into we knew were out and about on the town as well. We ate like kings and queens for a total of $26 (risotto for Delaney, calamari and shrimp croquettes for an appetizer and two pizzas for dinner). For the quality of food and price I really don't think you can beat the Bacaro happy hour. The fact that neither of us were drinking only moderately detracted from the experience.

After filling our bellies we walked our bikes over to the Irish pub in town where we knew a young girl who would be doing an Irish dance performance. We knew other people who also came to watch and it was a nice social cap on a very fun outdoor day. Delaney was mesmerized by the dancing, stomping, curly hair bouncing in the air, and bright costumes. She was so enamored that it was hard to keep her from running on stage to try and join in with them.

Just about the only bad part of the day was getting a very reluctant toddler back into the Burley at the end of the evening. But the sun was going down and it was time to call it a night.

After coming home and getting Delaney tucked away, we decided to call it a night early and I ended up drifting off to sleep around 8:30. I haven't been sleeping very well and I was happy to fall asleep so quickly and soundly for the whole night.

When I awoke at 6am on Sunday I felt refreshed from my sleep, but extremly dismayed to see that snow was falling quickly and by 7am noticed we had about 3 inches of snow. Colorado is mean like that... it teases you with this wonderful weather and then slaps you upside the head the very next day.

But I'm still remembering the glory of Saturday. Hopefully it can get me through the week.