Going on a date with my husband...

Not many married couples do it... But we do it often and we enjoy it SO MUCH, that we cannot imagine going a long time without it...

We go on dates.
Just the way we did when we were dating.

We choose a nice place to have a dinner, a charming hotel to spend the night, and an activity to do during the day, that we love.
We may go to museums, to an art exhibition, on a cycling day trip, or a hike somewhere...

In the past three days we went on an such extended date.
We left home with an overnight bag, and went to have fun and romance.

We live in such a remote and isolated place in the middle of the mountains, and we both work from home.
That means that we have stretches of days in which we stay home working, cleaning, cooking and relaxing.
We only go out for shopping or for exercise and fun.
In the summers we go cycling, go to concerts in Aspen and have more fun outdoors.
But in the winter most of our outing is either to run errands or to ski.

Our dates also give us an opportunity to dress up once in awhile, and we both enjoyed dressing up in stylish clothing which during the course of our daily life, we never get to wear.

We started our multi day date, by spending some time in the Bookworm bookstore-cafe, where we bought a new book about the true saga of a Tibetan family's escape from oppression into freedom.

After the bookstore, we drove to the wonderful mountain resort of Beaver Creek, where we checked into the Pine Lodge.
We got a wonderful room overlooking the valley where the snow is beginning to accumulate on the high peaks, and the Aspen trees have the most white bark color.

We took long showers, got into our fluffy robs, made sweet love and fell asleep on the comfortable high bed for a few hours.

We went to dinner at the Terra Bistro in Vail resort, where we ate a fabulous dinner.
We tasted three appetizers.
One was homemade pumpkin raviolis with butter, another appetizer was a salad of roasted beet with organic greens, goat cheese and balsamic vinaigrette.
The third appetizer was a terrine of roasted artichokes with parmesan cheese.

The main course were two kinds of sustainable fish, roasted and served with an asparagus soufflé, roasted vegetables, spinach, sweet potatoes purée and caramelized lime zest.
Sustainable fish, for those of you who do not know, is fish that is caught in a restricted and regulated area, to ensure the continuation and sustainability of the species.

The following day we went skiing in Vail for the first time this year.
It is too early in the season and only a few runs were open, but the mountains was incredibly busy.
There were people who came to ski and vacation here for Thanksgiving, from all over the world and the USA.

We only skied a couple of runs, because we had to wait in long lines for the lifts, but it was still lovely to be outdoors in the snow.
Besides, we already paid for a season pass, and it does not cost us anything to come for short days of skiing.

We loved being outdoors, enjoyed looking at people and we also had a lovely lunch by the base of the Gondola.

After a nap, we went to La Tour restaurant in Vail Village, where we had another wonderful and delicious dinner.
Much like in Terra Bistro, (the restaurant we ate at the night before,) La Tour restaurant was pleasantly decorated with large spacious tables overflowing with white tablecloths, beautiful glasses, art on the walls, bronze sculptures on each table and romantic lighting.

At night I read in the Huffington Post online newspaper, an article by a woman who reflected how to bring romance back into your long term relationship.
She suggested going on dates with your partner...
She called them "Mini Moons" in allegory reference to "Honeymoons."

I agreed with what she said in the article, that you can do it on any budget.
You can go on a picnic in a lovely place, stay in an inexpensive yet romantic Bed and Breakfast or a country inn, go pick apples in an orchard, or if you live in Canada, go to visit a "Maple Sugar Shack."

It is a beloved winter activity in Canada, when the harsh winters usually keep people indoors.
Going to the countryside to dine in one of tha many fabulous inns and later paying a visit to one of these Canadian Maple Sugar Shacks.

Sugar Shacks are usually located in the thick maple forests.
They have a long snow belt in the middle of the store, and they drip on the snow small amounts of hot maple caramel sugar.
They give people small wooden sticks which they roll into the maple and into the ice to cool it, making a yummy Popsicle candy to eat right there on the spot.

Today we plan to shop for our Thanksgiving dinner and go back home.
I love winters in Colorado and love staying home with Jules.
We have a calm and very loving home life, that nourishes both of us very much.
And when we feel the need for excitement and stimulation, we make sure to listen to the inner call of the wild in us....