Day 13*14*15*16*

This is when the days start to meld together. Steamboat has officially sucked us in and we might never leave. We were getting a hotel room one night at a time and quickly realized that was not going to work. We needed to just admit we are here for a while and we might as well enjoy it. The pictures below are a compilation of our week long stay.

Rocky and I on a walk through the mountains

Classic stance everywhere. This is just our hotel room.

Another afternoon at T Bar, playing Stump.

When in the Rockies, eat Rocky Mountain Oysters :)

Amazing brunch. Completely unique meals that keep bringing people back. I took pictures of our meals, but they never seem to turn out that great.

Bacon Bloddy Mary at Creekside Grill

Banana Pancakes

Rocky being teased by a bird up in the tree

Mid afternoon Mimosas.

This is brilliant! This milkshake board allows you to go in and buy a milkshake for your friend. Your name and your friends name goes on the board. And next time your friend comes in, they get your gifted milkshake. As a girl who drank way too many Strawberry Malt shakes last summer, this is genius.

Steamboat Sun. If it was at least 30 degrees and sunny, Steamboat was hot, almost too hot for even a coat.

More Stump at T Bar.

This video is almost embarrassing to post, but I just find it so entertaining. This is my first day on the mountain. APM had the heart to do a few runs with me, and low and behold, a video was made. 

Snowboarding day 2.

Day 12*

Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Steamboat has quite an amazing vibe. The atmosphere around here is great. Everything is very relaxed, and everyone is very friendly. It's almost intimidating at first. People ask how you are, and genuinely mean it, they really want to know how you feel today.
APM, Elias, and Ninja started the day early going up the mountain to go snowboarding. I needed a day to myself to run some errands and do some work for the store.

View of the mountains from town

My "errands"

Three musketeers on a serious trail. EX Double Black Brahhh!

When they were done shredding gnar (snowboarding) for the day, I met them at T Bar. This is a locals bar if I've ever seen one, and they are sure to let you know it. No other way to feel welcome then play a quick game of shuffle board, which Phil and I won by the way. Go yellow!

Day 11*

Cheyenne, Wyoming!
Coming from the east coast, I always hear stories of the wild wild west and all that it entails. It almost seemed like a distant fairytale until...we landed in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Cowboy lamp in the hotel

Western rug and a chair with tassels

Oh just The Wrangler

We woke up in Cheyenne and spent breakfast in town. Then made the short trip to Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Rockies in the distance

We are visiting friends in Colorado and couldn't be more excited to spend a few days here. 

We ended up getting to Steamboat somewhat late so we just had dinner at the Tap House and took it easy that night.

100oz of beer...necessary?

Day 9* and 10*

On the road again....
Another long day of driving. But random road trip stops are the best. And this might have been the best meal, or most hyped up meal of APM's life. Prepare yourself for the cuisine of choice...White Castle. Thats a Big Crave 10 meal. 10 burgers, 2 fries, 2 sodas. To his defense, I had three burgers and Rocky even had one! Rebellious parents we are.

*Iowa 80-Largest Truck Stop in America*

Quick stop at the largest truck stop in America. This place even had a food court, a more formal restaurant, plenty of shopping and a dentist! everything you could need on the highway.

Trucks IN the truck stop

We made it to Omaha, Nebraska for the night. And gladly went right to bed.

The next morning, we woke up to a rainy day. So we just stopped by Taste for a nice lunch and got back in the car and headed west.

We JUST missed the big storm in the midwest causing tornados and major damage. It's some what hard to see in this picture, but theres a flock of birds taking off and migrating together. Perhaps this was a sign of the storm to come. 

With rain does come rainbows :)

We then decided to stop in Cheyenne, Wyoming for the night. So close to Colorado but so far away...

Day 8*

Another great day in Chicago. 

Denise, Chris, APM and I went to the International Kennel Club of Chicago Dog Show. Denise and I could not stop saying that the show felt like we were celebrity spotting. It's not everyday you see a Komondor or a Afghan Hound.

Komondor

The Komondor was prepping for the show so we couldn't pet her, but this was one of the nicest owners at the show. Some were very protective of their dogs.

Afghan Hound

This day ended up being very gluttonous so I want to warn you before we continue. APM and I started with Chicago Style hotdogs at the dog show. How ironic. 

Denise and Chris

A boy, a girl and the Chicago Skyline

But our first stop was the Chicago Skyline. This must be one of the most beautiful views of the city. 

Then Chris and Denise took us to Garrett's Popcorn for the Chicago Mix. Half cheddar popcorn, have caramel popcorn. All heaven. I was seriously addicted to this stuff, and had to hand it off to someone else just to prove that I had any self control left. 

Next we made it over to the Bean. We took some classic self portraits and attempted some cool shots. 

Then was BBQ Ribs at Twin Anchor. Best in Chicago hands down. This place is famous for their ribs so there was no way we could pass. Four orders of ribs coming right up. I started with a nice Pyramid Apricot Ale, and continued with the best rack of ribs. Ever.

Post rib

And ended the day at Gayety's Ice Cream and Chocolate. Really a day surrounded around eating, but cuisine is usually the treasure in most cities. And we had the best tour guides to show us around. Thank you Denise and Chris for such a great Chicago visit. 

Day 7*

Chicago
We hit the town running. APM and I started the day with Denise and my new friend Hajar, at Lou Malnatis for traditional Chicago Deep Dish Pizza. I'm not usually a fan of incredibly thick crust, but this place changed my mind. The pizza was fantastic. We had the Malnati Chicago Classic with the butter crust, delicious and highly recommended for your next visit to Chi-town.
We continued on to Hipsterville-AKA Wicker Park. We started the adventure with a quick wine tasting at a wine store, which lead to us purchasing two bottles of wine, which meant we had to now go to a BYOB.

Which lead to an italian restaurant just for dessert. But we ended up working backwards, starting the course with cannoli's, tiramisu, and chocolate semifreddo, then ending the meal with fried calamari.

Crocodile Chicago Photo

Next was Crocodile Chicago. Where we had more pizza and a round of classic PBR with a lemon. (Thanks to my friend Lindsey's suggestion)

Which then lead to an improv comedy show downstairs. This was my first very intimate Improv show. I felt like I was watching the beginning of up and comers, getting their start in comedy town, Chicago.

Then we finished the night at Moonshine Wicker Park. It ended up being a very long and spontaneous day, which can only bring good things. I made a great friend and we got to see a great side of Chicago.

Day 6*

Niagara Falls!

We woke up to a rainy day in Niagara Falls, NY but that didn't stop us. APM, Rocky and I walked over to the falls from our hotel, and took a stroll around Goat Island. This is quite embarrassing to admit, but I thought Niagara Falls consisted of just one big waterfall. But come to find out, there are two! The American Falls and the Horseshoe Falls.

Horseshoe Falls

American Falls

After a tourist filled day, we hit the road again. This time to Chicago to visit my great friends Denise and Chris. This drive also consisted of a terrible snow storm that had zero visibility, but APM pulled us through and we made it safely to Chicago.