Western Vacation - Day 1: Denver and Boulder

Well we are back from our vacation so of course I have to blog about the whole darn thing. Last Saturday Steve and I woke up before dawn (or, as my Auntie would say "the crack of screech") to catch our cab to the airport. The initial reason for this trip to the Denver area was our friend Elizabeth and Ben's wedding in Boulder. In order to make the most of our vacation days we decided to fly in on the day of the wedding, but everything had to go just right in order for us to make it to the wedding on time - fly in, get luggage and rental car, drive to Joe and Andrea's (where we were staying), 30 mins to change our clothes, then drive to the wedding.

This created a challenge with how I would do my hair. I didn't want wear my every day hair to the wedding. Plus I'm getting tired of my hair cut at the moment. I knew I wouldn't have time for washing and blow drying and curling and setting and whatnot after we arrived in Denver. So I opted for the pin curl! I washed my hair before the flight and it only took about 20 mins to put up in about 30 bobby pins. Yes, it did look kind of crazy all day walking around airports and such, but I didn't care. The other option was to tie my leopard handkerchief around my head in 40's-housewife/aunt-jemima style, but that didn't seem like the best idea.

It also created another problem - my hair pins went off in the metal detector! So I had my first pat down at the airport. It was a little bit scary, but the female security officer was very nice and I was happy to comply if it meant that our airports were safer. Just a few moments of discomfort for me. Okay, enough about my hair. It ended up looking okay. See photo on the left.

For some reason our flight to Denver was not direct. We had a 2 hour lay over in Oklahoma City - a place neither of us had been before. First of all the official name of the airport is WILL ROGERS WORLD. I'm not kidding. It is a smallish airport. But the people working there were so nice. They told us to "Come back and see me again, hon!" when we ordered our lunch. So I guess I have to fly back there for lunch again, someday...

Our connecting flight was slightly delayed, giving us even less time to get ready for the wedding. We arrived and left Joe and Andrea's place in a tornado of suitcases and hairpins and pulled up to the wedding location about 5 minutes after it was supposed to start. Luckily for us, things like that don't go as smoothly as planned and the ceremony didn't start until about 30 mins later. (I'm sure we will experience this next year at our own wedding!)

The ceremony was very simple and beautiful. We've been to quite a few weddings in the past couple of years and it's so great to see my friends making these commitments using so many different customs and things. Elizabeth and Ben's wedding started with all of the guests tying up colorful ribbons as a symbol of our wishes to them starting their new life together. Above is Anne and Jeff (left) and Elizabeth's stepdad, Eli (right). There were no attendants - just Elizabeth and Ben - and they were married by a yoga instructor. It seems like there would be a better word than instructor... master? teacher? Anyway, it was very spiritual. It was very serious, and then at the part of the ceremony where the couple drank wine out of the same cup, Ben pulled some silly straws out of his jacket! It was the perfect touch for them. They are both such fun-loving people. And then Ben broke the glass, which is an old Jewish tradition.

The weather was unseasonably cold for Boulder this time of year - chilly and wet and in the mid 50's! But during the ceremony the sun broke through the clouds and the picturesque mountain scenery came alive just for Elizabeth and Ben. And the rushing river in the background added the perfect touch for a beautiful union of my two beloved friends.

Not to mention it was a great opportunity for me to break out my purple velvet blazer and wear it with my new red shoes. And Steve looked great in his new blazer and the shirt I picked out for him :)

After that we all wandered over to a couple of heated tents in the yard, where we enjoyed great food and old friends! I got to visit and hug and laugh with some of my favorite Dean Hall girls (Sally, Anne, and Holly) and even one that I had heard a lot about, but had never met before (Sabrina!). This was the first wedding that I attended where quinoa was served.... so yummy.

Following the reception was an after party at a place in downtown Boulder. An open bar and plenty of dancing with Anne and Jane (Ben's mom!) So fun. Unfortunately, Steve and I were pretty exhausted from our journey so we headed back to Joe and Andrea's place, where they graciously put us up for the night, and we slept like boulders :)