It’s the first day of spring!
-Sofija
Travel
Frost Gelato
Have you had God’s gift to the world, also known as Gelato? The owners of Frost Gelato had in on their trip to Italy, fell in love with it, went to Gelato University (yes there is such a thing!), opened up wildly successful stores in Arizona, and now in our city. We had some fine samples when my husband’s co-worker brought some over on super bowl Sunday. He brought about 8 different flavors one better than the other. Yesterday the husband and I finally made to the store.
Goodness, look at that presentation!! I just wanted to eat my way through the whole store…and you kind of can; they let you sample the flavors. I know one thing for sure, I’ll be back soon!
Have a great weekend!
-Sofija
Tent Rocks: Family Hike
Friends,
Tent Rocks is one of our family’s favorite places. It has all the right elements to make it a fun family outing: a 1.2 mile hike through a beautiful, otherworldly canyon, a challenging climb, and rewarding views at the top. We have gone with our kids ranging from baby to teenager and it was always very doable. For instance I typically carry the baby or toddler (whatever we had at the time) on my back, and my husband would assist/carry the second youngest. I would say kids aged 4 and older can pretty much most of the hike with some assistance. Be sure to bring lots of water especially between May and October (it gets hot once you are out of the canyon).
Here are some pictures I took when we went with friends last year.
We went in March. It was cool at the bottom of the trail, but once we were in the canyon it got warmer. So we left some of our jackets and hid them behind some trees. Below is our friend Jenna at the beginning of the trail. You don’t need special shoes, comfortable walking shoes will do.
Our older children typically run ahead and get to the top way ahead of us. The trail is pretty easy to follow, not many opportunities to get lost. However the last part is steep, so I suggest having kids 10 years or younger with an adult or a teenager.
My two oldest making a rare appearance on the blog…
The canyon is pretty narrow in places, so strollers don’t work.
Here is the top with miles and miles of views…
Our friends, Craig and Jenna. Love the pose…
David with Tasha on his back hiking down. I’m not sure if there is a loop. We always come back down the same way we go up.
Lucille was 4 years old when we did this hike. She needed some assistance at times but did pretty well overall.
Tent Rocks is about 40 miles southwest of Santa Fe. You can find updated weather conditions and more info here.
Have a great day,
Sofija
Lincoln, New Mexico
One of my favorite field trips we have done in the past is visiting the little town of Lincoln, New Mexico.
Lincoln is a small ghost town in southeast New Mexico, with one main street, and lots of little houses. The whole town is like a walk through museum, nobody lives there. There is a court house and prison, where Billy the Kid escaped from pretty spectacularly. There is the town store, a church, a doctor’s office, a hotel, little gift shops and places to eat for the tourists. It is really fun to walk through and see what life was like back in the 1800’s. What people could buy at the store, what a typical kitchen looked like, the sizes of beds… The doctor’s office’s instruments looked pretty scary.
Here is the my son Shane (about 2 years old at the time, how cute is he!!) in the court house.
My kids with their cousin (left) in front of the courthouse.
Houses like this are lining the street, you can wander in and out of stores.
Next the museum telling of Billy the Kid’s history and the Lincoln County War, he was in the middle of.
4-6 Museums are open 7 days a week, depending on the season. To plan your visit go here.
Have a lovely day,
Sofija
This Morning
He has made everything beautiful…
Have a lovely day,
Sofija
Georgetown Cupcakes
Friends,
Look what my husband brought me from his last trip to D.C..He braved a single digits winter storm and went one hour out of his way to get me Georgetown cupcakes.
They got a little smashed at the airport, but are still oh so good! They have a light cream cheese frosting, but what stood out to my family was the quality of the cake. My favorite was the lime, and my family loved the peanut butter (last picture) cup cakes. Have you tried them?
Ever since my daughter had me watch the DC cupcake show I have been wanting to try them. It was worth the wait. Now I am counting the weeks until my husband’s next trip….
Have a lovely day,
Sofija
Madrid, New Mexico
Between Santa Fe and Albuquerque (when you take Highway 14 through the mountains) there is a fun little mining town called Madrid. It seems to be populated with Hippies and artists. There are galleries, coffee shops, little trinket stores, and boutiques. The perfect little town to stop, stretch your legs, and get a beverage for the road. Here are some pictures from our recent stop with our friends right after the holidays.
First up, our friends the Hollands, with David and Tasha in the middle. You can see the main road behind them, where most of the shops are.
The whole town still decked out in Christmas lights.
This painting is outside of the Tavern where we stopped and ate.
Found this sign inside the Tavern. Luckily Tasha was attended to. 
Always a delight when cute little Tasha tags along.
If you ever make your way from Santa Fe to Albuquerque, and you are not prone to car sickness, I highly recommend stopping in Madrid.
Have a lovely weekend,
Sofija
Church in Golden, New Mexico
Over the holidays we visited a favorite church of mine. If you have been reading this blog for a while, you might know that I am a little obsessed with the Catholic churches in New Mexico. I love how they blend the Spanish with the Adobe, very different from the California Mission style (which I also love).
We went right after Christmas, so the Christmas lights were still on. You can find pictures of the church covered in snow here and from last summer here. We went on a double date with our friends, the Hollands and our 3 year old (she likes to tag along on our dates). Next stop was a little quirky town called Madrid, pictures coming soon.
Have lovely weekend,
Sofija
Santa Fe
Friends,
Remember I told you about driving up to Santa Fe for our anniversary a week ago? Well, we did and we took our three year old with us. Here are some pics from that day.
The first picture is San Miguel Mission, the oldest church in the US.
Here we grabbed some fish tacos at a rooftop cantina. Little miss shades was styling and cute, always fun to have her.
Here she is in her boyfriend jeans and Converse shoes.
I have been watching this man pushing strollers for 15 years, never gets old.
This is where we always get our dessert. French pastries deliciousness!!
Lots of beautiful Catholic churches in Santa Fe.
On the way home.
I’d say put Santa Fe on your list of places to go…
Have a great day!
-Sofija
My Favorite Time of the Year
I still remember my first October in New Mexico. My sister was visiting me from Germany and the two of us planned a day trip to Santa Fe. Albuquerque was half way between the small town where we lived and Santa Fe. Imagine our surprise when we were driving through Albuquerque and we saw this:
Balloons everywhere, right above the road. Really close. We had no idea that we were driving through the biggest balloon event in the world…
I found out later all about it and made sure we were there the following year. Here are some of my favorite pictures from past years.
We are not planning on going this year, but here is my recap from last year.
This morning I took the girls for a drive to get some close up views of the balloons. I never get tired of it.
Have a lovely day!
-Sofija
Teach Where You Live 