Monday, February 1, 2016

January.

The first month of the new year has come and gone.
And I would have to say, it was quite successful.
If this past month is any indication of the coming year, 
I think 2016 is really going to be a good one! 

To start the year and this month off, 
a few of my college roommates and I headed to Granby for a girls weekend.
We rented a little (and I mean little) hotel room and let the good times roll.
Just like old times, we spent most of our time eating way too much food,
playing all the board games possible, and laughing
until the wee hours of the morning! 

Our girls weekend consisted of three days of reconnecting and exploring.
When the weather was nice, we found ourselves on a snowshoeing adventure.
We snowshoed a three mile loop around the beautiful Grand Lake - where 
we were  able to enjoy the bluebird skies, warm (for January) weather,
and each others company. 


Snowshoeing group! 

After our hiking day, we headed off to the hot sulphur springs.
We enjoyed soaking in just about every pool they offered,
even a magnesium pool, which was reportedly supposed
to remove toxins from our skin and to calm our nerves!
Although it was a bitter -10 degrees while we were there, and
our hair and towels were frozen solid as we soaked in 
the 110 degree pools, it
was an excellent end to our girls weekend. 




Time spent with my girls is always precious.
And it was definitely a great way to welcome in 2016!


Part of the Crew (not pictured: Paige, Abbi or Ryan)

The rest of the month seemed to fly by.
I am waiting to begin my microbiology class, so my days have
mainly been filled with making ice cream and crossfit! 

Front Squats (Photo Credit: Kelli Blue)

To wrap up this month, I got to spend some much needed time
with my sweet best friend, Kristi.
I was fortunate enough to spend some time in her classroom, and 
experience first-hand what an amazing teacher she is.
Kristi teaches 5th grade in Greeley, and works with a very difficult 
population of children; however, you could feel the love
and passion she has for her class.
It was amazing to see her in action and to see her using her talents
to help improve the lives of the children in her class.

Kristi's official teacher desk!

To enjoy a rare sunny day in Colorado (before a huge storm moved in),
we decided to tackle the ever elusive "Manitou Incline."
The Incline was originally created as a railway to carry supplies to Pikes Peak.
It later became a tourist attraction, where people could climb to the top.
The Incline is about a mile long and climbs over 2,000 vertical feet.
Essentially, it sucks (but it's also great)! 


View from halfway up the incline. 

I thought I was going to pass out and wanted to turn around once or twice.
But with every step I took, I felt myself getting a little stronger.
Both physically and mentally. 
I was tired and sore and couldn't breath, but making it to the summit
was one of the greatest feelings of my life. 
And the view from the top didn't hurt thing either. 
I even think once I regain use of my quads and calf muscles, 
I might plan another trip to the top of that little incline! 


Summit of The Incline!
Looking forward to the coming months! 


Interested in climbing The Incline?...Check out this link