Welcome to Boulder!

We made it! It was almost surreal to wake up in our hotel and know we were just a few short miles from our new home. We were excited and nervous and ready to get on with the unpacking. Thankfully my Dad and Julia had offered to meet us in Boulder and help unpack. I CANNOT imagine doing all of it without them, looking back now.

We arrived at the apartment complex to try and figure out where our unit was and where we could park the truck to unload. Paul left Lucia and I to play on the playground while he went to go sign the lease and get the key.

Pretty cool having a playground right out our door! Lucia approves.

We got the keys, my Dad and Julia arrived, and we got right to work. The apartment is spartan but clean and not as run down as we were preparing ourselves for, so in that regard we felt pleasantly surprised. It has new laminate faux wood floors in the main living/kitchen areas and industrial-grade carpet in the bedrooms.

Living Room w/ built in desk space

The kitchen is not a foodie's dream, but we'll make it work.

Lucia's bedroom. It is nice to have real closets and storage space. 

From Lucia's room looking into the "middle" bedroom which is my office/Lucia's playroom

Overwhelmed!

Unpacking in process

Obviously not a lot of photos from actual move-in day. It was all hands on deck all day long until the truck was empty. In short: it was hot, we had to go up and down stairs, we are at 5,300 elevation and we were exhausted and sweaty.

We spent the following day unpacking, making trips to Home Depot and Target. On day three we decided we all deserved to get out and explore. I mean, the mountains are practically on top of us, how could we not? Dad and Julia had already scoped out the trails at Chautauqua, so that's where we went. There is a huge network of Boulder Open Space trails that start at Chautauqua and take up right up and all around the iconic Flatirons. You start out going uphill through a meadow and the trails eventually take you into the forest. You can wind your way any which direction you choose to make your hike as long or short as you want. We saw lots of trail runners too. And judging from the jam packed parking lot, this is a very popular destination. We did a relatively short loop but you still get the amazing views and thigh workout. We took the Bluebell Road, a nice wide gravel/dirt road up along the meadow and looped back down the McClintock trail.

The City of Boulder preserves and manages 45,000 acres of land and 145 miles of trails. More about Open Space & Mountain Parks here.

The Flatirons!

Thanks for meeting us in Boulder and helping unpack Grandpa Rich & Grandma Julia!