Labor day

Exploring Oklahoma over Labor Day Weekend-Fairview

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Who’ve thunk that there are exciting things to do in Oklahoma? Me, apparently. I didn’t want this weekend to go by without exploring some part of our adopted home for the next two years. And you’re not supposed to work on Labor Day so I decided to have some fun.

At least that’s what I was hoping to do. Instead we had a rude awakening.

Let me start off by saying that I thought I was a genius when I discovered the TravelOK app. Friends and I were discussing that there isn’t much to do in Oklahoma so I decided to do some research. I found the app and there were a TON of things to do this weekend.

Mural in Fairview

I decided to forego the Native American festivals and decided on something that would please both myself and hubby. The Gloss Mountain festival in Fairview sounded like just the thing. The name sounded inviting and it promised both a car show and a craft show.

So hubby and I hopped in the car and headed two hours away to Fairview, OK. We exited at the Cherokee Trading Post and made a pit stop. It promised a live buffalo as well as the store.

Tatonka

We got back in the car to complete the rest of the trip. The scenery we passed for the next hour was uneventful. It was stereotypical flat land. We passed few trucks but fewer cars. I was beginning to question my decision.

We finally arrived and noted that it wasn’t difficult to find parking. Not a good sign. We walked past the Community Center and I wondered if that was where the craft show was but we needed to find the car show first.

Our arrival at the festival

Not a promising sight.

We continued to the intersection and found some better options. After less than 5 minutes of wandering, we made our way back to the community center and hoped for a better greeting there.

No such luck. There were about 10 tables inside and nothing that I had to have. So we headed back to the car to start our trip home.

I was hoping for a different path home but Waze had us go the same way back. The shining star was that we’d see the Cherokee trading post again.

We stopped and went into the Trading Post and explored the grounds. It was a great respite to the long drive we’d undertaken.

Needless to say, I was mocked the entire drive back home by Alain. And I deserved it. But in my defense, the photos of the festival looked extremely promising. Besides, what else did we have planned?

Until next trip!

Labor Day Fun in Colorado Springs

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What an amazing Labor Day weekend in Colorado Springs. It was our last Parent’s Weekend at the Air Force Academy so we spent time both in Colorado Springs as well as Denver. After all, there’s no reason to stick around C-Springs anymore!

We flew in on Thursday and spent the day not with our cadet, but looking at homes to rent for her graduation in May. We have a whole slew of people coming out and renting hotel rooms is slightly more cost prohibitive then renting a whole house. After that fun, we spent the day exploring Manitou Springs. I’m surprised we’ve never been there before. It is a quaint little town with lots of shops to explore.

Friday is the usual stuff-a parade, walk around campus, squadron tailgating. So we dutifully did it all. This time, though, we were able to reconnect with one of hubby’s AF friends who is teaching there.

Once we were done with the on-campus stuff, we headed off for some great desserts at Boonzaaijer‘s. Let me tell you, if you can make it there, do! Madeleine had introduced me to the place back in February and we were able to bring hubby this time. It looks and smells delicious. I had a slice of cake while my cohorts had the mountain peaks.

For dinner, we left the Netherlands and headed to Germany. We stopped at Edelweiss for some good food. (I’m here to tell you know that this trip was a food fest.) The portions were HUGE and the beer was good too. It was surprising how big the restaurant actually was since there is also a beer garden.

On Saturday, we continued the food fest with a stop at a popcorn shop named City Pop. My daughter and hubby go nuts for popcorn so we had to taste their wares and then decide what to buy.

We walked the city after that. The 16th Street Mall is a happening area as is Larimer Square. That place is so lovely and many people were out in the middle of the street taking pics. I didn’t follow suit but I should have. We hiked down to my favorite bookstore over there, The Tattered Cover and hunkered down for a while. When we were ready to go again, we retreated back to Larimer Sq. for some dinner.

On Sunday, we reconvened the walking and eating. The Taste of Colorado was happening so we strolled around there for awhile. In our wanderings afterwards, we found a beautiful bridge and a park. The bridge is called the Millennium Bridge and it looks like a ship’s mast. We had walked so much that we took the elevator back up to the top of the stairs. That wasn’t fun. The elevator went up a foot, and went back down. Then it started up again. I don’t know about anyone else, but I was picturing Tower of Terror. We only went up two stories but you understand.

We found a place called the Denver Milk Market. It is a cafeteria style place with lots of food options.

I got ice cream to calm my nerves.

Monday was our final day with Madeleine. We hit EscapeWorks Denver and tried to solve the riddles to make it into the speakeasy. The clues were difficult for us. It was only us three and I felt like we needed a few more people. Jared, our host, helped us a ton. Madeleine and I laughed at how bad we were. We failed but had fun.

All in all, I’d say it was a great Labor Day. We didn’t work but we ate and played. What more can you ask for?