Lessons Learned

Today, we learned many things about ourselves and life in Colorado.
Lesson 1: Be on the lookout for wildlife.
Dave and Mary left this morning for a trip but before leaving made sure to warn us that we would be seeing a lot of animals around the neighborhood. They began telling us that we would see a lot of deer and fox, which we were all about. Then, very casually, they told us to keep an eye out for the Black Bear (mother and cubs) that like to come onto their deck and the Mountain Lion recently spotted in broad daylight devouring a full grown Buck. Neither one of us has ever felt more like a "City Girl" in our lives, screaming with excitement over a deer spotting and looking over our shoulders every couple of seconds for a man-eating Mountain Lion.
Lesson 2: NEVER underestimate the altitude difference.
After eating some breakfast, we realized that without a car(Mom and Dad a rental is needed ASAP), we had 1 option for afternoon activities: checking out the Broadmoor. The Broadmoor is where I (Elkie) will be doing my internship and is only about a mile from the Carlson's house and has restaurants, shopping, a zoo etc. We were so excited and felt so outdoorsey as we rode our bikes DOWN the mountain to the Broadmoor. We arrived and ate lunch at the Busy Bee, an English pub style restaurant, took some pictures around the resort, and checked out some of the boutiques. Once we were ready to head home, we hopped on our bikes and started riding. About 5 minutes later, we were barely breathing, surviving the worst burning calves ever, and in need of some serious hydration. Needless to say, we walked our bikes the rest of the way UP the mountain.
Lesson 3: Sweet Tea is a Southern thing and a Panino is a grilled tortilla stuffed with anything.
After cooling down and regaining our strength from our traumatic mountain climb, we were able to relax around the house, read, talk to some family and friends and get some sun on the front porch. Around 7:00, Hunter and Davis Saltzgiver were nice enough to offer to show us around a little and take us to dinner. They picked us up and showed us some great views of Colorado Springs and took us to a local Italian restaurant where we learned the contents of Lesson 3's title. It was so fun to catch up with old friends while getting a better feel for the place we will be living for the next couple of months!