One Month

It's been one month since we left Waco for our new home in Colorado. In that month, I've been compiling a list in my head of differences that I notice and things I've learned since moving. Here are just a few...

About the climate and weather, I knew it was going to be dry here, but wow! It's kind of amazing. I can hang up clothes straight out of a wash cycle and they will be completely dry in just a couple of hours. I also haven't had a good hair day since we moved. I've been wearing my hair curly for the last few years (mostly because it covers my gray better), but without the humidity, curly = frizzy mess. I'm going to have to start wearing it straight again, so time for a cut and color! 

Also, even though it is cooler here, the altitude can make it feel like the sun is just slapping you in the face. We have invested in sun hats, sunglasses, and rash guards all around, and are going though sunscreen like you wouldn't believe.

Swimming with our new friend, Michael. Isn't Gracie's suit the cutest? Marimekko for Target (on clearance!)--they have the same suit for women, too.

The other side of this is the incredible comfort of cool nights and open windows. Going camping in June and using extra blankets to stay warm at night. Sweatshirts and shorts. Ah, it's so wonderful!

This is my kind of camping!

Still on the weather--did you know that typical Denver summer weather means an afternoon thunderstorm/rain shower on most days? I had no idea, but it's been the norm so far. It's so enjoyable to watch these storms roll out over the Front Range and head east each afternoon. It makes for a nice cool down and some cloud cover (and also several tornado watches!). That said, we are about to get a streak of much higher temps and no rain over the next few weeks--I feel like we are already a bit spoiled, so we'll be gritting our teeth through it!

I've also found that the "fit and active" stereotype you hear about Coloradans definitely rings true. I was joking with my sisters that you know you're in Colorado when it seems like half your church congregation is sipping from their Nalgene water bottles throughout the services. Ha! I also feel like part of the fitness level must come from all the stairs in the homes here. That's been an adjustment for us ranch-style-home-dwelling/no-basement-having Texans! 

Finally, the mountains. The mountains! I know if I ever feel melancholy or homesick, it's just going to take a quick drive west to clear my head. When I came to look for a house in April, it was snowy (a blizzard, actually!) and overcast the whole weekend--no mountains in sight. Then when we moved last month, it was in the middle of a big storm front that also blocked any kind of mountain view. Two days after we arrived, though, I got up on a bright, clear morning to run an errand, turned the car out of my neighborhood, and literally gasped at the snow-peaked view before me. I seriously couldn't help but yell out loud, alone in the car, "YES!!! THAT's what I'm talking about, Colorado!" So gorgeous and so happy-making!

A picnic spot near our campsite in Redstone, in the White River National Forest.

One of the many beautiful views on our hike up to Hanging Lake last week.

There's more on my list to share, but that's probably quite enough for my first post back. Until next time--and I will be back!