Ski Trippin'

For all of you who have been clamoring to find out about my ski trip (that would be Tina and Janice), here's the update, with photos:
Since it was a church organized group, our fearless organizer Brenda insisted that we switch vehicles at every stop.

We had four women in each of the three vehicles, so we had plenty of room and no limit to good conversation. And when we saw a Starbucks in the Oasis truck stop, we stopped.

When we got to Boulder, we treated ourselves to Beau Joes Pizza. It was as yummy as it looks.

On Friday we were geared up to go skiing. We rode the shuttle bus for $5 from Boulder to the slopes at Eldora.

Finally we got our gear and we were ready to go! This is Sandy.

I was excited to ski, but also nervous since I hadn't been for about seven years. I wasn't sure I'd remember how to get off the lift.

Plus, I was concerned about re-injuring my knee that I'd hyperextended this past summer. On the first slope we went down (rated green), I wasn't sure I'd be able to do it. Then we did an unusually hard blue, and I about freaked out. Eventually, I got down that run, and after that everything else was easier. We all met at the lodge for a well-deserved lunch.

 We heard that one of our group, D.D., had fallen and injured her shoulder. She was in first aid until Brenda could get her back to Boulder.

After lunch, the die-hard skiers were ready to go again. (That's me on the left).

This is Stacy, who celebrated her birthday skiing down the mountain.

When the extra-diehard skiers decided to do a black run, Hannah and I took the opportunity to stand back and enjoy the view.

And this is what we saw.

Incredible. That was my favorite moment. Thanks, Hannah.
We ate at The Cheesecake Factory that night, telling ourselves that we could splurge because we'd burned off all those calories skiing. We really overused that line.
We were seated at adjoining booths, so I sent my camera over the wall for them to take pictures. Here are all of the lovely ladies.

Brenda, Patty, and Hannah

Christy, Karen (me), and Renee

Karen, Joy, and Jimi

Brenda, Heidi, Sandy, and Stacy

And here's the cheesecake I shared with Christy:

One more day of skiing for the diehards. Getting our gear on.

The weather on Saturday wasn't quite as good--a little colder, more wind.

Brenda skied with us.

We enjoyed the view. We also tried a couple of black slopes. I did the Corona and another one. Stacy's pole lesson helped give me a little more control and confidence. Thanks, Stacy!

After lunch, the snow was getting icy and the wind had picked up, so a few of us quit early. When I got to the lodge after our last run, I had a tremendous sense of relief that I'd done the whole trip without blowing out my knee. That's the not-so-fun part of being a grown-up: becoming chicken.
We had an extra-long drive back to Boulder because we got caught in the traffic for Nederland's Frozen Dead Guy Festival. It looked like an interesting little mountain town.

 I saw a few places I wanted to check out. But the bus wasn't stopping. Maybe next time.

In the evening we celebrated Stacy's birthday at the award-winning Dushanbe Tea House because they serve her favorite, Indian food.

I enjoyed the ginger peach tea.

The unique ceilings,

And the great company.