Boulder, Colorado

A long weekend in Boulder is always great fun. Southwest Airlines has a direct flight from Pittsburgh to Denver that gets us there in less than 3 hours, then a 30 minute drive up to Boulder. This is my fourth trip, and each trip I was greeted by beautiful blue skies. It has been two months since I gave my son a goodbye hug at the dorms at CU-Boulder. I couldn't wait to see him and hear all about his freshman year of college.

Pearl Street

After stopping at his dorm, we did the usual shopping for necessities. Dinner that night, of course, was on picturesque Pearl Street.  If you have never been there, Pearl Street is the old Main Street in this former gold-mining town and it remains a center of activity in its present state as a pedestrian mall full of shops and restaurants.  We love all of the outdoor seating and dinner that night was at an Italian restaurant that we frequent often called Pasta Jay's.  The food is always good and we were happy to be joined by Lincoln's friend, Jake, who loved our "stack up your cellphone and don't touch  or you buy dinner" rule.

Dinner at Pasta Jay's

The next day we were joined by the Devlins and Casey's JCU friend, Taylor. While Lincoln was in class, the rest of us took a hike up into the Flatirons. You can park at the Chautauqua Park (of the same roots as the one in Chautauqua, NY) and stop at the rangers' cabin for maps. We were lucky that it was 80° and clear that day.  We may not have made it to the peak, but we were high enough for amazing views of downtown Boulder and the campus.

We all agreed the hike earned us an "eat whatever you want" meal.  Lunch was at the Dushanbe Tea House. It sits along Boulder Creek and has outdoor dining for these glorious sunny days. This place has more than tea, with an international menu with interesting entrées.

Saturday afternoon meant football. We hosted a tailgate party for Lincoln's friends and our old friend, Jacob Clinton aka "Jake the baseball player". It wouldn't be Colorado football without Ralphie the buffalo leading the charge. Colorado made a fourth quarter comeback, but lost in overtime.  Still, it was a wonderful weekend with family and special friends... and you never get tired of looking at those mountains!