Jackson, WY Here We Come! (1/7/2015)

I arrived in Denver Tuesday night and Rodney and I left before the crack of dawn Wednesday morning to make the 8+ hour drive to Jackson, WY. We left around 6:45am in some pretty yucky weather. Fortunately, the weather got better, but we were pretty bleary-eyed by the time we got here at 1:00pm and we aren't even in Jackson yet. But we can see a beautiful mountain range on the horizon and we're hoping those are Tetons and that we are getting closer.

After a quick stop at Sports Authority, by 4:00 we were checked into the Wyoming Inn. What a nice hotel!!! It's always nerve-wracking to pick a hotel based on a few photos and reviews on the Internet. But we picked this one out in September when we finalized this trip and we did good! The beds were incredibly comfortable (BeautyRest Recharger mattress...I looked) and snuggly with great sheets and a fabulous feathery comforter. We found out that they had just replaced all their beds and bed linens only a month earlier. That makes this an especially good pick!

 And then we were headed downtown before 5pm.  "Antler arches have been gates to the Jackson Town Square since 1960. The antlers are from elk that winter on the National Elk Refuge. About 7,500 elk spend each winter on the refuge. The bulls shed their antlers each spring. Antlers are picked up by local Boy Scouts and sold by public auction in this square each May. All four arches were built by the Jackson Hole Rotary Club."

We parked near the square and then walked a few blocks to this great local place. The brews were good (I had a pale, Rodney had a dark) as was the food (I had Idaho trout over a "hash" of brussel sprouts, red potatoes, cherry tomatoes, et.al.--oooooh yummy).

 

After dinner, we walked back through downtown (it's getting colder!! good practice for tomorrow and beyond) and then headed back to the Wyoming Inn.

Daddy's Quilts (1/6/2015)

Today was my last day in Albuquerque. Wowser. it was hard. It was such a great visit with my mom...19 days of fun and precious time together. I had an evening flight so we stopped at Musical Theatre Southwest on our way out of town and I got to see the quilts. For most every show this group has put on, the cast and crew got a t-shirt with the logo and dates of the show on it. The group had a big pile of t-shirts and didn't know what to do with them and they came up with this quilt idea. When our family's dear friend Mr. Thompson passed in November of 2013, we inquired as to a specific item we could donate in his honor and they said the money to make one of the quilts. So we did. And when Daddy passed in February of 2014, a group of friends did the same thing. Between the two sets of donations, there was enough money to pay for three quilts and to have plaques made honoring these two men who were such good friends with each other and friends of the theatre. I'm glad I got to see them and with my mom.

Great Boarding Pass (1/5/2015)

I love Southwest, especially the customer service. But I do have a hard time getting a good boarding pass...I'm just not always in a place where exactly 24 hours before my departure, I can be poised and ready to log in. But I was tonight and it was kind of fun. Felt more like a lottery winning than a dreaded wait to see how far down the line I could be. And it paid off! A-33 is a great place to be! Woohooo! And it was during a Games Night at my mom's house where everyone there had been through the lottery before and could appreciate and celebrate my good fortune.

Happy 80th Birthday, Shirley! (1/5/2015)

One of the "Walking Group," (among many other affiliations), Shirley, had her 80th birthday while I was in town and I got included in the surprise birthday party. :-) About 30 friends were in the back room of a local restaurant. A friend picked her up to take her out to brunch on her birthday but when they got to the restaurant and were taken to the back of the restaurant for their table, we surprised her real good.

We had a menu to choose from....I got something with green chiles in it, no surprise. The breakfast burrito was quite yummy.

Bob Fosse Presentation and Lunch at The Frontier (1/3/2015)

The Theatre Lovers Community (TLC) had a cool event today: The show Chicago is coming to town and so they had "a special program on the Broadway hit Chicago. Prominent choreographer Donna Scheer and Popejoy’s Terry Davis discussed Bob Fosse’s choreography style, and Donna offered a demonstration involving the audience that helped us to understand how meticulous Fosse’s choreography was." It was held on the UNM campus (I liked their display on dance...not related to the presentation we attended but still cool).

I went with Mother and our good friend Sylvia. Afterwards, we went to the Frontier Restaurant, a classic Albuquerque eatery across the street from UNM's campus. If you have to miss brunch at Millie's, eating at the Frontier is a good backup plan. I had a Fiesta Burger...yes, there were green chiles involved. 
 

Happy Birthday 2015!

I wish everyone had parents as cool as mine were/are. Birthdays may be a day for celebrating all the years you've had to live so far, but I love to celebrate my amazing parents that made it all possible. What a giant blessing for me!!

For my birthday this year, my mom took me to El Patron, one of my favorite restaurants in Albuquerque. And, of course, I celebrated with green chile chicken lasagna...a house specialty. Oh you should taste the serrano cream sauce.

Here's to another great year of life, love, laughter, and travel.

serrano cream sauce

Rock & Brews Albuquerque (1/1/2015)

I gave Mother a gift certificate to a restaurant of her choice. This new Rock and Brews just opened in the neighborhood. Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of KISS are two of the partners. There are only 8 locations, but one of them is less than 2 miles from the house. We had to check it out.

Fun atmosphere and yummy food. Mother ordered a burger that she said was delicious.

Whoever heard of a brussel sprouts appetizer??!!! I ordered it for my dinner and it was excellent...

...and then had cheesecake for dessert.