Steamboat Recap, Part 2

Saturday morning we took the recommendation from a ton of people and drove to Strawberry Hot Springs.

The area has tons of hot and cold springs, and was absolutely beautiful. I am so glad that we made it there, because it's truly an experience that I won't forget and have always wanted to try butttttt it's a little pricey ($20/p) ((kids under 3 are free) to do with kids. The pools are really hot or pretty cold, and so my kids weren't super comfortable in any of the springs, which meant we only lasted for about 45 minutes. And the drive is a little hairy!

Regardless, I'm glad we can cross it off our list, and it really was spectacularly beautiful.

After the springs, we drove back into town and had lunch at Mountain Tap Brewery.

We got home, everyone rested a bit, and then Joel and I got ready for Lauren and Max's wedding. The shuttle picked us up at 4:10pm and before we knew it we were transported to an Aspen Farm. It was beyond beautiful and I knew we were in for a treat of a night.

Lauren and Max's wedding was beyond special, they each wrote their own vows, and there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd.

We had a great dinner, danced all night, and just had the best time celebrating our dear, dear friends with our dear, dear friends.

 

It was so nice having another day of vacation in front of us - Leo was thrilled too! I'm so used to running out the door Sunday morning, so it felt like a special treat.  

  

Sunday morning we took it easy, made breakfast at home, started running loads of laundry and then stopped at the brides parents house for a cup of coffee before we all headed out on another hike. 

 

It actually proved to be our steepest and hardest hike of the trip. At one point, both Hannah and I were pushing the double stroller up (and then down). 

 

 

We hiked for a little more than an hour, and then stayed at the base of the mountain for lunch. 

 

We got the kids home for naps, and after packing up our suitcases, Hannah and I both headed to the pool to relax and read a bit while Joel and Leo watched the cubs game.

 

And then, after the game, everyone joined us for an hour to swim at the beautiful pool on the property.

 

We decided to go to an early dinner in downtown Steamboat, and explore Salt and Lime - a restaurant we had heard really good things about. 

Luckily we got there early (5:30ish), and only had a 30 minute wait. Joel, Drew, and I hung out at the bar, while Hannah and Leo walked around a bit to kill some time.

 

 

The spot was worth the wait. They had amazing spicy margaritas, spectacular views, and were really kid friendly. 

 

 

We had a perfect dinner, got the kids home and to bed, and snuck over for one last glass of wine with some of our friends who were still in town. 

We hit the ground early on Monday - leaving Steamboat around 7:30am. We got into the Denver airport before 11am, had a quick lunch and mimosa, and walked to our gate. Weather wasn't great in Chicago, so I wasn't surprised to see a 2 hour delay. That 2 hour delay, quickly became 3, and then 4 hours, and then finally....cancelled. 

I pretty much panicked, called a few friends that live in Denver giving them the heads up that we may be staying with them, sad that our perfect trip was going to end on such a chaotic, bummer note, when Joel pulled off a miracle and got all 5 of us on a flight leaving in 2.5 minutes. 

We sprinted with all of our bags, the stroller, the kids - it was a circus - but we made it home before midnight and we were SO beyond thankful to be sleeping in our own beds that night.

The trip was over the top amazing - a vacation none of us (except probably Drewbie) will ever forget.