Happy Monday! How was your weekend?

I spent this past weekend in Denver with Chris’ family celebrating his grandma’s 90th birthday.

Chris and I shared the “retirement village” model apartment with Chris’ sister and her fiance. We had a little too much fun laughing at all the  little touches of quaintness.

Fake Bread

Chris, decorating the "kitchen window"

And the weird assortment of long-expired food.

It was really nice to just relax and hang out. I got to meet a few family members I had only heard about before, and it was so cool to meet Chris’ grandma. It’s so crazy when you have three generations of people in one room who all look and/or act alike in subtle and not-so-subtle ways!

Saturday brunch with the birthday girl

Both mornings I did yoga while I waited for everyone to wake up and then just spent the rest of the day going with the flow.

Minivan tour of Denver

Eating in an unfamiliar place is always an adventure, and this weekend was no exception.

When he flew out of NYC, the food court offerings and JFK actually did not suck, so we got off on a good foot.

Then there was Saturday brunch at the Village Inn…

"Garden Skillet" with poached eggs and a side of pancakes—they don't mess around here

Pie Rush

For some reason, we found the pie menu hilarious

I can pecan?

and a lovely (un-photographed) dinner at Chris’ aunt and uncle’s house. I want the family recipe for that German chocolate cake.

Sunday’s All-You-Can-Eat Champagne Brunch at Fresh Fish Company was quite the experience. We’d been promised an abundance of waffles, eggs, and, uh…crab legs, and we were not let down.

To be honest, the idea of seafood in a land-locked city seemed a bit strange to me, despite the fact that fish is flown in pretty much no matter what city you’re in. I rolled with it and tried a little of the smoked salmon eggs florentine, a ton of fruit, steamed veggies, and a few mini sweets. There was also free champagne.

After brunch, we walked over to the nearby Whole Foods and picked up dinner to bring on the place. I got a hummus, veggie & avocado sandwich on whole wheat and a V8 juice to drink. It was the perfect pre-flight meal. 

Naturally, there was a 2-hour delay heading back to NYC, so Chris and I got a jump on Monday’s work and ate our food while sitting outside the gate rather than trying to balance on the plane.

Wow, what a week that was. Sleeping in my own bed last night was ahhh-mazing. I’m looking forward to not traveling until the weekend of the 26th, when I go up to Boston for my aunt’s bridal shower. It’s been a super-busy August so far, but I can’t complain! There are still weddings coming up this September and October in Chicago, New Jersey and Boston again, so I definitely plan to appreciate the downtime while I have it!

What did you do over the weekend? When you travel, do you buy food ahead of time or just “wing it” at the airport or on the plane?