My dad had to have a cardiac procedure in May, and pretty much as soon as I knew he was okay, I booked a flight to Colorado for Father’s Day to see him and my family (and my BFF, Dan). I got in late Thursday night and Dan picked me up and took me to Ashley’s. Friday morning, Dan and I went to Denver Biscuit Co. and some shops on Broadway (my old ‘hood!), the new building for A Small Print Shop (the business Dan and his buddy started six or seven years ago, that is now a LEGIT operation), the super cute house in North City Park that Dan shares with two other guys, and then Lafayette and Boulder to surprise my dad, then my sister, then my mom. It went SO WELL. Dan took video of it all; it’s on Facebook. My mom had to work, but my dad and sister were going to a concert at Chataqua, so we all hung out there for a while before Dan and I headed back to Denver.

On Saturday, Dan took me to some of his hangouts (Port Side, Denver Central Market, his studio’s awesome space in RiNo) and then we spent several hours leisurely walking through the botanic gardens. We checked out some of my old spots (the art museum, the central library, Sweet Action) and then went back to Ashley’s, where Ian was waiting for us! When Ashley came home from work, the four of us went to my favorite restaurant ever, Tocabe. And then Ashley took me up to my parents’ in Lafayette, where we spent the night.

That’s only the first half of my trip! More soon. This weekend we are going to the Painted Hills for the Fourth 🎇