Colorado

Snowy majestic mountains are such a spectacular sight, one of my favorites. So when John suggested a trip to Telluride, Colorado, I was right on board.

I should say, “you had me at mountains.” Durango Telluride 2014-80

Eh eh, ok, moving on…

John’s uncle Tom, his wife Teena, and their daughter Hailey live near Telluride, in Ridgway, so we were anxious to visit them and hit the hot springs and slopes.

Now, we have flown with Ivy to many places so far, such as Arizona, Oregon, Wyoming, South Carolina, and now Colorado, so we could say she is an experienced jetsetter so far, but each of our trips we have been able to eliminate a necessity (stroller, pack-n-play, and/or car seat) since a friend or hotel had one. But this time, we had to haul so much s*** that John even said, “we are never traveling again.” I don’t dare hold him to that, but indeed, the thought crossed my mind for a mere millisecond. Ya ya, it ~~is hard~~ sucked. BUT, we like to bring her and it was the holidays with family for pete’s sake. And with another baby on the way in June (see more here)… welllllll, let’s just get our travels in now. EEEK. Thank god the airport checks all that baby stuff for free!

We flew into Durango and I was pumped to see this old historic town. It had a ton of restaurants, bars (I would have loved to belly up to a bar and have 10 craft brews, ugh), and unique shops, all surrounded by huge mountains.

We stayed at the General Palmer Hotel and it was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Old woodwork, vintage wallpaper, gorgeous stained glass windows, glamorous chandeliers, and an original elevator that we could barely squeeze in to.

General Palmer Hotel

We ate at the Jean Pierre Bakery and had mouth-watering food and mmmm their baked goods were to die for. I could have had 5 of those croissants.

What I was REALLY looking forward to in Durango, was the historic train! They turn it into a Polar Express over the holidays and I could hardly WAIT to ride the train and pick up Santa at the North Pole. We put Ivy in her pjs and brought her blankie, just like in the book, and headed off to the train!

The train was SO COOL. I mean, I’ve never ridden on a train, a subway in New York City is about the closest I’ve come, so minus the sewer rats and the hoards of people, I knew it would be spectacular. AND, the POLAR EXPRESS, HELLO

The train ride was just like the book. The big train came in with all the whistles and horns and the conductor stepped out to pick up the boy who no longer adores Christmas. We rode the train to the North Pole to pick up Santa, all the while Christmas carolers were singing jolly songs, we sipped on hot cocoa and nibbled on chocolate chip cookies, the conductor stamped our yellow tickets, they gave us a jingle bell, and they even showed The Polar Express book and told the story along the way. A LOT of action! Ivy LOVED it! She could hardly contain herself (me either) trying to take everything in. And she did MUCH better with Santa this time! :)

The next morning, we packed up and headed towards Ridgway. Named the “Million Dollar Highway,” or U.S. 550, it’s one of the nation’s most spectacular drives. The road climbs up 3 very high mountain passes and takes you from Durango, through Silverton and Ouray, to Ridgway. It was MAGNIFICENT. I was in mountain heaven. But holding on for dear life around some of those curves!

The rest of the trip we enjoyed the snow, the outdoors, and stayed cozy by the fire. Ivy loved to be in the sled! We also went to the Orvis Hot Springs in Ouray and I WISH we had pictures because Ivy was so damn cute in her little swimsuit and stocking hat playing in the water, buuuut, trust me, you wouldn’t want pics, well, because it’s a NUDE hot spring resort. Swimsuits are optional. Sooo, ya. That’s that.

And lots of wood for those wood-burning fires!

The last day of our visit, lucky John and his uncle Tom and cousin Hailey, got to go skiing in Telluride! I stayed back being preggo and all so I was pretty jealous.