The hotel we stayed in had a wonderful breakfast included in the price of the room.  With 6 of us, that was a great savings and each morning we were able to leave the hotel with full tummies, ready to tackle our day.

On this particular day, we were taking a drive.  We headed south to Colorado Springs.  No offense to Denver, but IMO Colorado Springs is absolutely breathtaking.  The views are spectacular and it is less congested than Denver.

After a drive thru Colorado Springs we headed east into the country.  We were on our way to visit a special friend and to see her little farm.

With our desire to homestead growing stronger, I began searching out other blogs to hear about others homesteading experiences and to hopefully learn from them.  I became very interested in one particular blog.  As I continued to read I continued to learn more and discovered new interests.  One day, the writer invited her readers to go back to a time when having a pen pal was the thing to do.  Having had a pen pal in my younger years, I accepted the offer and we began writing letters back and forth.  Pen on paper.  We shared stories of our childhood, learned about our families and became good friends.

I also learned that the writer is a master herbalist and began learning more about herbal medicine and shopping on-line at her store.

Now we were on our way to have lunch with her, her husband, and some of their friends.

It was about an 1 1/2 hour drive from our hotel in Denver.  We were able to see the countryside, although our view of the mountains disappeared in the clouds.  I have absolute confidence it’s a beautiful view on a sunny day.

We finally arrived at the little farm and were greeted by other guests and our host, Katie.

We had a wonderful meal of soup, made from homegrown ingredients, and bread baked in the wood-heated oven.  The kids played while the adults chatted.  Lili wanted to see the chickens, Katie took Lili and me out to the coop.  For the first time ever, Lili and I were able to hold a chicken.  Lili fed the chickens.  She learned how to pick them up on her own.  She was in heaven and once again, I wished I had carried my camera out with us.

That afternoon was filled with smiles and laughter and I was thrilled to finally meet the woman I only knew from letters, pictures and blog posts.  It was a fantastic afternoon and one that remains high on my list of wonderful memories on our trip to Colorado.