Bed & Breakfast in Estes Park, Colorado

Our tea party season concludes

I buy what I enjoy and I pay what I’m willing to pay. It’s 1:30 in the wee hours of the morning so I don’t want to wake my guests up by creeping about my kitchen to read backs of plates. I sell most all my china. I price it based on two factors: my cost plus how much I would be willing to buy it for. I’m sure that’s as clear as milk-glass.

I combine, melted butter, flour, curry and chopped pecans for my sauce. The sauce is pured over chopped-up oven roasted chicken breast.

I snapped all the pictures while I was cooking. I used a kitchen gadget to prop up the sauce pan while I snapped the picture.

This is the texture of my scone flour mix before I add my silk soy milk and thawed raspberries.

Scones before they go into the oven.

The party is on! Here Eric tells the Boyd Family history. We are dear friends with Ed Boyd, son of James and Fannie Belle Boyd. The Boyd family built this home in 1905. Ed is now an healthy and active 89 year old man whom we keep in constant email contact with. His laughter and gracious nature keeps the Boyd family legacy current to us.

I’m becoming fuzzy and have forgotten which photos you can click for more info.

Look close you can see my snack plates. They where a birthday gift to me from Eric. This is the first time I’ve let guest used them.

Now the party is starting to get crazy and loose. Eric the innkeeper has dropped to his knees which means he’s on a story telling roll!

Devonshire clotted cream is served on a butter patty plate or salt cellar.

Three ladies enjoying my birthday snack plates on the front porch.

Salt cellars make a great dish for serving clotted cream in. The salt cellars were given to me by a friend in Iowa. Two beautiful people we came to know when they stayed with us last summer. Her husband’s grandmother gave them to her.

Eric was teasing me for taking pictures of our dirty dishes, “YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME “! says he. “The blog is called, An Innkeepers Life in The Rockies”. Say’s I. This innkeeper sees dirty dishes not fine china, I’ve no urge to turn them over and study the stamps and markings at this moment.

We hope you enjoyed seeing so many faces. The ladies were guests of New Frontier Bank.

We dedicate this page to them all. They gave us hugs, waives, and smiles. We have so much fun while entertaining people.

I’m pretty sure thy have decided I’m nuts. I yell, “YOU”VE JUST BEEN BLOGGED, WAIVE”

May our love and hopes stay with you, Eric, Caprissa and Maggie

Sweet-Maggie crawls in for love.

I love living in Estes Park a small alpine-like resort town in the Rockies. I TRULY DO! The winters are cold- enough, windy-enough, long-enough, and snowy-enough to keep away the thin-blooded. Consequently, we locals get the town to ourselves–for the most part. To keep busy and, to keep change in our pocket Eric and I officiate and photograph weddings. He–officiate, I–take photos.

…and this is how we spent our day yesterday.

Click photo to go to the Floral Design of Erurope’s website

Mark and Lindy became friends of ours after staying at our inn summer 2007.

Eric the innkeeper and wedding officiator. By the way he loves officiating weddings and takes it all to heart. (Eric is the one in back, Armando is the grooms best-friend).

This is me.

This morning at breakfast our guest Joan spotted ma and pa blue bird outside the breakfast window. I had brought my camera out earlier in the morning, bless my lucky shutter.

Todd and Joan were kind enough to let me take a picture of them while they consumed a strawberry and banana breakfast parfait.

An fellow innkeeper, Gary Mansfield of Romantic Riversong, had suggested I take this shot.  He and I had an early morning meeting at this table a few weeks prior.

Now and then when a guest is leaving I’ve a strong urge to plead with them–write me, call me, contact me. SOME HOW let me know how your life turns out. As innkeepers, of a small two room and charming cottage, we get to meet people who are willing to share a part of themselves with us. They leave behind a lasting footprint, not literately. But, you know what I mean.

I find myself hoping for them. It’s enriching. I wonder, maybe it’s the not knowing that makes it magic. (As I was shooting this photo Eric was calling out, ‘it’s for her blog’).

If you are wondering what it feels like to share your home with strangers, here’s one explanation that comes from an old saying. “My so-and-so never knew a stranger”. As an innkeeper it’s sort of like that, at least for me it is. Most people seem familiar to me. I should, maybe, perhaps, greet people with, “I thought you would never get here”!

Tea parties at Gilded Pine Meadows B&B are always an adventure for us. We spend about 2 hours setting up the room and setting the tables. I spend 4 or more hours prepping and cooking.

We hold about a dozen or so a year. As per request we’ve had birthday parties, employee parties and lady’s clubs. This however was the first time we accommodated a Grey hound…

BUS! The view from the front porch

The view outside our parlor window.

The parties last 2 or 3 hours.

Eric with ladies. The ladies invited Maggie in at end of party.

Ladies, scones, tea and…bus! Farewell tea ladies!

This party was for 21 ladies which is our max. After the party it takes us two or more hours to clean and reorganize the home. We first sit, eat scones and clotted cream, and guzzle iced water.

Mike and Kathy took a soak before breakfast.

Eric keeps the hot tub clean, fresh and ready to go. All you need to do is bring a suite, grab a fresh robe from your room, and SPLASH!

We bought our hot tub in Fort Collins and we love it. The tub has been an added bonus for our own enjoyment five years running.

If you are looking for a good hot tub brand or dealer, please drop us a note and we’ll get you the information.

I took this picture of a fenced in wolf-dog in New Mexico’s, Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary. It’s important to get the word out: Wolves are not to be domesticated. Wolves are meant to live free in the wild. This sanctuary rescues wolves that are abandoned or mistreated.

Click photo or see home page for a link to the wolf sanctuary.

The wolf has a different body language than domestic dogs. This makes it easy to put one self in a dangerous situation. Unfortunately, the wolf-dog takes the blame for the misunderstanding–and ends up behind bars.

The front door of the gift shop. We bought real cool mugs here.

Wolf on his back playing.

Wolf-puppy

A great stop! If you call 2 weeks in advance it is possible to set reservations for a camera tour which takes you behind the fences with the wolves.

I love this store. All my lace comes from here. I also buy tiny, silver tea-spoons from this store. Please know we do not sell advertisement on this blog. Granny Gingham’s is on Elkhorn Ave. down town Estes Park. I hope you get a chance to stop in and see Joyce the owner.

During our evening drive through the YMCA of the Rockies we made a few friends.

We had two couples with us this weekend. They were a fun, interesting and warm hearted people. We are blessed to be in a business where we get a chance to meet people who provoke thoughtfulness and reflection.

“YMCA”! Clicking this photo takes you to the artists web site.

We started the morning off at the gym. I fast-walked 20 minutes on the tread machine while Eric did a full work out with weights and other apparatuses of torture. The afternoon was spent cleaning the yard, washing windows and, an occasional Maggie distraction.

Royal Crown Cola

With temperatures in the mid 70s spraying Maggie was a pleasure.

Click for window washing solution

I raked pine needles and Maggie opportunity watched. We’ll add a canopy to this rustic gazebo mid-May, once the snowy weather is behind us. I’ll hang baskets of herbs around gazebo the first of June.