Day 256b

Before leaving the Hotel Jacquard, Jamie and Lynn paid a visit to the rooftop pool and bar area. The pool was available for use, but like all the other food and drink services, the bar was shut down. They stopped at the Castle Rock Outlets on the way home and accomplished quite a bit of Christmas shopping. Then bee-lined to Paravicini's, a favorite Italian restaurant in Manitou Springs where we had a great dine-in lunch. Sadly, we also got word today that our county is also "going red" and all dine-in would cease this Friday. Such BS. The damage we are doing to ourselves is mind-numbingly stupid. But back to happy stuff, Jamie had a wonderful Old Fashioned (we often use Triple Sec instead of sugar and water) made from a local whiskey, Axe and the Oak; we'll have to visit them some day. The theater room still has some kinks to work out. And finally, Lynn got to arrange her birthday bouquet from Nipomo: one in the bathroom and one on the kitchen table (see below). All the Denver photos are here.

Hotel Jacquard's rooftop pool and bar

Paravicini's in Manitou Springs

Day 256a

Found an email promo for our upcoming show, It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Show, in my inbox this morning. See a few rehearsal pics below. Purchase tickets here (airs December 17-26).

Day 255

The temporary Denverites did carry out from Crepes & Crepes this morning (too cold to be outside). The Petit Dejeuner Crepes were great as was the Crepe Avec Jus de Citron Frais (with fresh lemon juice). That and the bubbly (Jaillance's Crémant de Bordeaux) to go with it made a superb breakfast. The Denverites watched the TimberCreek message (which actually helped me with my Torah fixation lately) before heading out for the Denver Zoo. We got back and wandered around our neck of Cherry Creek for a while, checked out the Yeti store, and looked for a potential outdoor dining venue. There were a number of great looking restaurants but none that looked warm enough on the outside, so we're doing carry out from North Italia. BTW, I've been enjoying the hotel's soda water with the Block Distilling Co's gin, made here in Denver. And Milo cabernet sauvignon 2016 from Alexander Valley is quite good. And I could not find it online! Foxgrove from Paso sucked. The black rooster solved that issue. All the Denver-trip photos are here.

New and old Brio stuff at work...

Marriott's Jacquard

 

North Italia dinner.

Crepes & Crepes breakfast.

Our car reproduced while we were in the Zoo.

Day 254

Off on a day of adventure in Cherry Creek (Denver area) for Lynn and Jamie. First some great crepes at Crepes & Crepes which specializes in, guess what, crepes. The roasted leek crepes were great. The Cherry Creek Mall was also just a block away and where we spent the rest of the morning and much of the afternoon. We went to Kona Grill for lunch where we stayed surprisingly warm in the 40-something degree air. We got to hit many favorites, including Pandora, L'Occitane, and Williams Sonoma. There was one street cutoff from traffic that had "container stores," stores set up in containers that could be locked over night. One store was The House of Stewart, a marvelous chocolates and shortbread store. They had "tablets" of candies, a block of sugar, flour, and chocolate melt-in-your-mouth goodness about the size of a 3x5 index card and maybe an inch thick. Dinner was a couple appetizers from Bad Daddy's Burgers (take out) right next door to the hotel. We watched Last Christmas tonight, quite good and with an interesting twist. Back at the ranch in the Springs, the new foster twins arrived, some flowers arrived for Lynn's birthday, a photo of cousin Megan having put together a 3000-piece puzzle, and someone comes up with a picture of Lynn, her Mom, and her sister from the very early 1970s, maybe late 60s. All the Denver pics are here.

Half a block up from the hotel. Those prisms rotate on
their bases and colored light dances in the fountain area.

That's not an ice cream stand at upper left;
it's edible cookie dough. Pass.

Happy Birthday Lynn from Nipomo!

One of the new twins to the family.

Lynn (right), her Mom, and her sister.

Tracy sent her her first 3000-piece puzzle.

Day 253

Lexi made Nana a birthday artwork! The kids went to town on a Brio catalog (Christmas is in the air). We got a remote-controlled Brio locomotive (and that catalog came with it). We're gonna try the Brio approach to trains in Jamie's office for the kids. Jamie and Lynn headed to Denver for a little getaway. First stop, Castle Rock, where we re-visited The Barn for a little shopping and also re-visited our favorite Italian restaurant in town, Scileppi's at the Old Stone Church. Jamie managed to catch a shot of a coal train going through town with the actual Castle Rock in the background. We visited the Denver Botanic Gardens (York Street) this afternoon. Be careful, they have more than one location. Pretty cool, even in winter. I loved it because it was a conifer show! At 5pm today, all the restaurants in Denver's county had to close all indoor dining (COVID nonsense). There is zero food service in our (very nice) hotel, not even room service. But no problem, we found a liquor store (see below). Dinner? Take-out from Kobe An. All the day's photos are here.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Colorado's first In-n-Out opened today not ten minutes from our house. They're now in seven western states. The line was four hours long, 150 cars stretched out along Voyager Parkway!

In-n-Out Burger in the distance...
Intersection of Voyager and Interquest.

The Barn

Scileppi's at the Old Stone Church

Very likely the structure to which we took Trevor and Tracy
as small kids years ago when visiting Robob in Denver.
Cheesman Park, right next to the Denver Botanical
Gardens (where we were today).

Denver Botanical Gardens

View from our room.

Day 252

Bittersweet day today. Our foster baby (since before COVID) left today to be with his forever family. Two new foster babies will be with us soon (that are within six days of the same age as our first). Matteo and Fina continue studies at home while the others at DCC get today and tomorrow in-person then e-learning through Christmas (at least). Lynn had a 4-hour hair appointment today; she became part of a filmed hair dressing lesson. The Screening Room folks got things pretty wrapped up today in the theater room except for some calibration work that'll happen tomorrow. The Lego Christmas catalog arrived today; OMG!

My friend joined me for Torah study this morning.

For the new foster babies.

Study partners.

Hard to believe it'll be all done tomorrow.

That long box on the floor is the screen.
The other three are bass speakers.

Lunch at the Club for Matt, Jamie, Fina, and Matteo.

All packed up.

Lego Christmas catalog!

Day 251

First full day of e-learning for Matteo. Went quite well, it seems. Tracy started a new puzzle. I took Matteo and AJ to Fox Run Park to mountain bike. It's a new love for both of them! Sorry, no pics of the biking; I was too busy worrying about giving them instructions, etc., particularly since dark was only about 30 minutes away and I couldn't go with them (no bike for me). The DCC kids came home with laptops that they just opened up and went to town. I guess they've been learning how to use them during these last couple days of at-school class. The Screening Room installation guys were here all day and say they will finish up tomorrow.

Theater equipment room.
The theater is on the other side of the wall with the hole.