1200 Miles West

Each year for Father’s Day, I design and build a birdhouse for my Dad.  This year in conjunction with the Denver Botanic Garden’s Birdhaus Bash I designed two birdhouses and one traveled back with us to Michigan.

The above picture shows the birdhouse after it was placed in the wooded area behind my parent’s house.

Here’s a look at their absolutely beautiful backyard.  Lots of time goes into keep the backyard in tip-top shape, but it’s worth it!

On Sunday, we headed out to the cottage and enjoyed a day in the sun.  The weather was wonderful and we were able to get the boat in the water. 

It was great to see my Grandma who was happy to have everyone together.  Mike also enjoyed riding the jet skis.  It’s funny how much you miss the water living in Colorado.  Don’t get me wrong as the mountains are beautiful, but there’s something about hanging out at the lake.

Dad’s birthday is June 13th, but we celebrated it early as we were in town.  He has to be one of the best dressed guys in town as Michael gave him a new Polo and hat and Mike and I got him a short-sleeve Columbia button down and a t-shirt.

We were in the Keys for a week and if you’re wondering what we did, here’s a sneak peek:

When we first arrived we met Mom and Dad at Wahoo’s Restaurant (and no this wasn’t a Wahoo’s Fish Taco like we have here in Denver.

After a late lunch/early dinner Mike and Dad headed to Outdoor Resorts to unload the car and relax a little, while I had to find a bathing suit. Can you believe it? I flew all the way to Florida without a bath suit. I guess that’s a good excuse for buying a new one, huh?

Thankfully we found one at the second store that we stopped at and it was even on sale! After our shopping was done, we headed back to Outdoor Resorts and relaxed for a little while before heading down to the south side of the resort to enjoy our first of many sunsets in the Keys during this trip. Here’s my favorite picture from that night:

The next day were headed down to Sombrero Beach which is at MM 50. The beach was relatively quiet and we didn’t spend too much time there as Mike and I arrived in the Keys with no recent exposure to the sun and we didn’t want to have a miserable trip by getting burned the second day.

After the beach we headed down to Burdine’s to enjoy a little lunch. After enjoying a couple of Corona’s we headed back to Outdoor Resorts and did a little sea kayaking.

Next we headed out on Bill & Peg’s sailboat to check the crab traps that they had purchased this year. We unfortunately forgot the bait to refill the traps, but thankfully there was still some in there. Here’s a picture of one of the crabs in the trap.

Per Wikipedia: When a claw is broken in the right place, the wound will quickly heal itself and very little blood is lost. If, however, the claw is broken in the wrong place, more blood is lost and the crab’s chances of survival are much lower. It only takes about one year for the claw to grow back to its normal size.

The next day we headed to Bahia Honda State Park at MM 37 to partake in some snorkeling, however due to the winds we were not able to head out. Unfortunately they also told us to watch for jellyfish on the beach as the wind was blowing in from the South, therefore increasing the chance that we might run into one. Thankfully we did not.

After spending some time at the State Park, we headed out for lunch and stopped in at Cabana Breezes to enjoy a couple of the better margaritas I’ve had. We also enjoyed some calamari and nachos which almost killed Mom due to the spicy nature of the sour cream they used.

We headed back to Outdoor resorts for yet another sunset, however due to the position of the clouds that day we didn’t get to see the actual sun go down, however we did have some fun hanging out with our Pelican friends on the pier.

The next morning Mike and I headed down to Key West for two nights of fun. (See the entries below for more details…)

Upon returning to Outdoor Resorts on Monday, March 17th we hung out at the pool for a while and then headed out for corned beef and cabbage at the Key Colony Inn. Unfortunately they don’t appear to have a Web site, but if the did it would picture a bunch of “old” people who arrive before 4pm to get corned beef at $6.95 instead of $10.95 after 4pm.

Here’s a tweet that Mike put in during our evening out:

The sorority girls of last night have been replaced by their mothers/grandmothers. I have been blinded.
04:55 PM March 17, 2008 from TinyTwitter

Next we headed out to Dockside Bar & Grill where we listened to a great band and Mom and Paula cut the rug.  We were drinking green beer, can you tell?

We made one last stop, although I can’t remember the name of the bar and that’s where the infamous Long Island Ice Tea was served.  I won’t go into detail, but when we got back to Outdoor Resorts Mom thought it would be a good idea to crash a party…

Overall we had a blast in the Keys and special thanks to Mom and Dad for letting us sleep on their pullout couch and to Bill and Peg for taking us out on the boat again this year!  Next year we’ll try to stay longer so that we can snorkel!

I can hardly believe that our first year of marriage is behind us already. Here’s a look back at one of my favorite pictures from our wedding day. This picture was actually taken before the ceremony on the steps of the Mango Tree Inn which is the B&B that we stayed at.

Here’s another one of my favorite pictures from March 16, 2007. This one was following the wedding and we were walking along the shoreline at Smather’s Beach near marker #10.

Last year after the wedding we dined at The Commodore in the harbor in Key West and it was possible the best piece of beef I’ve ever consumed. This year due to the fact that I’m no longer eating meat, we opted to enjoy a nice dinner at A & B Lobster House.

Mike enjoyed Sunset Surf & Turf while I had Wild Mushroom Fettuccine and we shared a delicious Vanilla Bean Creme Burlee for dessert. After dinner we headed back to Duval Street to see what was going on. Ultimately we ended up at Big Uns where Mike’s favorite performer in Key West, Matt Avery, was performing.

While we only spent two nights in Key West, it was enough for us to get our fix for the year and we look forward to celebrating anniversary #2 down there next year.

If you’re game…let us know as we’d love to have friends and family join us!  How could you not enjoy yourself in a place that looks like this?

After eight years of trips to Northern California to visit with the kids, finding new things to do can be challenging particularly when you factor the age differences of the kids. One place we had not yet been to and they agreed would be fun is Alcatraz. It was truly a picture perfect San Francisco day and a perfect day for a short trip across the bay. After lunch at Wipeout on the oh so commercial Pier 39 with its $7 an hour parking in which Meghan was served a beer instead of an Ice Tea. Only when she added sugar and it exploded did dear old dad realize that the Ice Tea was in a huge Pilsner glass and had no ice or lemons. Must have been jet lag. I messed up the lighting, but here are the very excited children on the boat.

It is quite a climb from the dock to the cell house which led to the requisite but short lived whining. Later when asked Meghan to grade the trip she rated it an 8. She said the hills were the only thing that kept it from being a nine. Compared to the 2 she gives the Train Museum, that is a resounding endorsement.

Once up at the cell house they had a very nice self guided audio tour. Rarely is the kids attention held for so long. We got to learn and see about the various escape attempts including the cells with the broken vents as immortalized in the Clint Eastwood movie, Escape From Alcatraz. We also got to see the Recreation Yard, Dining Area, Library and many other areas. The National Park Service has put together an excellent exhibit and it is easy to understand why over one million people visit Alcatraz every year.

Many things were destroyed by fire in 1970 including the Warden’s House and the Officer Club. This time frame coincided with the Indian occupation of Alcatraz that began in 1969 and ran for 19 months.

Walking around the island made me want to go home and watch The Rock and Escape From Alcatraz immediately. We all had a great time and I highly recommend the trip to anyone. Hopefully you’ll have as nice of day as we did to visit.

Other activities during the visit included a touch football game and a trip to Scandia Family Fun center where Meghan won the jackpot on the spinning light game yet AGAIN. It must be the hours of Guitar Hero because it is uncanny how every time we run into that machine she takes the Jackpot. Ryan and I played several rousing games of air hockey also. All in all it was a good visit. It is really nice being only one time zone and a two hour flight away so that weekend trips are much more feasible.

Since everyone is going to ask what Mike got me for my birthday…here’s a picture.

We decided last year that since birthdays are your “own” special day, it only makes sense to go to the store and pick out what YOU want. Last year I picked out a light brown Michael Kors purse and this year I decided on Coach’s Madeline Large Signature Tote. A special thank you goes out to Mike for going into each and every story at Cherry Creek Mall that carried purses.

Also, we had a nice dinner at Ling and Louie’s up in Stapleton. It wasn’t my first choice, but unfortunately we didn’t realize that Vesta Dipping Grill required reservations more than a couple days ahead of time. Plus, now that I’m not longer eating meat, it was tough to find a restaurant to carried more than one vegetarian based dishes.

I also enjoyed the bottle of wine that Mike picked out. I’m a fan of red wines, especially zinfandels, so 7 Deadly Zins was a perfect choice.

All in all, I had a great birthday.

I can’t believe that my little brother turned 30 today! I think this is the first birthday that we’ve spent apart, which doesn’t seem like a big deal, but when you share back-to-back birthday’s (Feb 2nd and Feb 3rd) it is!

Growing up, Michael was always jealous that my birthday came before his. The good news is that our parents always made it a point to celebrate our special days separately. Thist involved two special birthday dinners (I typically picked fondue and Michael in recent years picked surf and turf) and of course two cakes, which worked out well for me as Michael always picked chocolate cake which everyone knows is NOT my favorite.

Michael - I hope that you had a wonderful birthday and that we are able to share many more together no matter how near or far we are from each other. Happy 30th!

I worked during the day, but was able to head home around 3:30pm in the afternoon. Mike had done some investigating and figured out that Amazing Jake’s would be a good options for the kids and it might even keep us occupied. The package that we purchased included unlimited food and five hours for “play” time for $19.99 each.

Highlights from the night included bumper cars and go carts. Here’s a picture of Marina and I before we took our spin.

We also enjoyed the rock wall. Mike was the only one to make it to the top of the wall, although I got close. Really close!

After multiple games of laser tag, video games and cashing in the tickets, we headed home around 10pm. While the food wasn’t anything fantastic, they did have soft serve ice cream!

The kids had no problem staying up until midnight, but they had to wake me a couple of minutes before the ball dropped. Maybe next year I’ll take the day off and sleep in so that I can make it to midnight without a nap.

I just had to share this picture with everyone.

This is our nephew Jayden and he makes an adorable snowman, don’t you think? Thanks for sending the pictures Amy…keep them coming!

A question often asked by men everywhere. My father-in-law, Jim, has attempted to answer the question once and for all with his witty gift this Christmas. Absolutely hilarious and it is huge. The normally large Comcast remote is in the picture for comparison. I have managed to program it to control the TV but the Motorola cable box has not cooperated yet. It was accompanied by a note that read “big TV’s need big remotes”.

There is actually two, one for each large screen TV. It was a fun surprise and yet another great gift this holiday season.