Santa Fe Vacation

This summer, we took a vacation to Santa Fe for a two-night stay at a bed and breakfast there. We had planned the vacation in the spring, as we knew that we wanted to use a weekend to do something special for the two of us. We did not get much of a vacation over Christmas, as my exam schedule was interrupted when my father passed away on December 10 (I had to come back after Christmas and take an exam, and then classes started almost immediately thereafter). Also, our anniversary falls right after school starts in the fall, so we decided to celebrate that a bit early as well (three years on September 2!).

Originally, we had planned on trying to make it back to Durango, Colorado, which is about four hours northwest of Albuquerque. We honeymooned in Durango and also went back for our first anniversary. Both times, we stayed at a bed and breakfast outside of town called Blue Lake Ranch, which we thoroughly enjoyed and recommend to anyone! However, with our work schedules, it was going to be a bit tough getting up there early enough on a Friday to enjoy a full two evenings out of town, so we decided to keep it a bit closer to home. We also knew that the owners of Blue Lake Ranch own a bed and breakfast in Santa Fe, so we decided to try it out. We stayed two blocks from the New Mexico state capitol building at the Don Gaspar Inn.

During our visit to Santa Fe, we patronized the luxurious mountain resort spa Ten Thousand Waves. We were quite impressed with the place. It is modeled after Japanese spa houses, and the design was truly impressive. The grounds were very pleasant.







During our time there (four hours in all), we enjoyed an hour-long soak in a private outdoor soak tub (just us and the mountain butterflies). Clothing was optional (and we enjoyed the opt-out, if you know what we mean). We also enjoyed an hour-long massage, which was great. The remainder of the time, we walked around in our kimonos, viewed the koi pond, soaked our feet in a hot foot bath, and spent an hour in the spa's relaxation room where we sat against the wall on floor chairs and listened through headsets to soothing music and almost fell asleep (several times). We did not take pictures, so alas, you are stuck with pics of the beautiful paths leading to the main facility.







Our first night there, we found an excellent little Italian food place called Pranzo Italian Grill in the district near the railyard. The food was excellent. The entertainment for the evening was a pianist named David Geist who had played something like 600 shows on Broadway -- he was excellent. For dessert, we shared tiramisu -- it was excellent.

Me looking very boy-like and happy. Because I was.



Beautiful Stephany, putting the lovely tiramisu to shame.



We also spent some time walking around the square. The big Spanish Market was going on, and all kinds of artisans were out with their crafts -- some cool, some cheesy -- all Southwestern. It was pretty fun.

Here we were at the Santa Fe Convention Center. These were some cool light fixtures beneath an outdoor walkway.



Stephany near the Convention Center's courtyard.







This was a truly bizarre public art piece near the Convention Center. We could not figure out why there would be huge fish coming out of the ground in such a desert-like place. Go fish.



So we decided to play with them.









And here we are during breakfast at Don Gaspar Inn. The food, as anticipated, based upon our experience at Blue Lake Ranch, was fantastic: yogurt, granola, breads, fresh fruit, green chile stew, stuffed french toast, fresh orange juice, and good coffee.







And this was outside of our room, which was accessed by entering a wooden gate through a courtyard/private garden.



We stayed in the "Territorial Suite." And we enjoyed it.



Me enjoying my morning coffee, reflecting upon the simplicities and complexities of life.



Stephany laughing at me. Okay, not really. She's just a super-happy and very pleasant person 101% of the time.



Us sharing a camera moment on our front-porch-for-the-weekend.



One of my personal favorites. You wouldn't even believe all the silly pictures we take of ourselves and each other when given the opportunity. I'm just slipping one of many in here, because of the sheer awesomeness of this one.



And finally, some pics of our room. It was really nice. And really Southwestern. But, honestly, with a name like "the Territorial Suite," we were prepared.











The bathroom was very cool. We decided that if we ever own our own sink, we want to own one like this.



We enjoyed Santa Fe. We had taken lots of day trips there before, but it was nice getting a better feel for the city and what it has to offer. Since we were there on a weekend, we did not get to visit the state capitol or the state supreme court building, which we hope to do another time.

All in all, it was a great vacation, and we really enjoyed spending some good time together doing some fun things.

Nathan

Stephen's Residency Reception

Earlier this summer, my brother finished his five-year urological residency program. The past five years have been such an amazing and challenging time for him and Jamie. During that time, he has worked insane hours (they limit (sort of) the time residents work to 80 hours a week). Also, he and Jamie have had three children during that time. They have also managed to be somewhat involved with church and social groups. Stephany and I were so glad to be able to be there that night for his reception. He and another resident were being honored for completing the program.

I am so proud of my brother. Seeing what he has endured during these past five years has given me much encouragement for facing difficult times in the future. He would be the first to say that it has not been pretty at times, and that he has sometimes failed. However, even though the flesh has been weak, and even though the spirit has been pressed, he has made it through a very demanding chapter of life - even if God had to drag him through some of it. The picture above is of the head doctor of the urology department honoring Stephen. I say this in a very selfish way, but it was so rewarding to finally hear the praise that was due to him.

The pictures below capture Stephen speaking about his experiences during the program and how certain people there (doctors, staff, etc.) had contributed to it. The pictures are a bit blurry, as I was in the back of the room and the lighting is not great.





One thing I really appreciated hearing was Stephen honoring my father during his speech. He said that something he had learned from our dad was that you should treat patients like they are your family. Anyone who knew my dad would readily agree that that was how Stewart Stimson treated people, especially his patients. I hope to apply that to my own career, to approach those I serve in my profession (and beyond my profession, in my law-related personal interests and in my love for people in general) with empathy and understanding - in a way that communicates they are my brother and sister.



Stephen also took some time to thank Jamie in particular (first and most of all), for all her love and support throughout these years. It was really sweet.





Stephany and I were there partly to babysit Macy, their youngest, in the back. We love that little girl, and it was fun being there with her at our own table.





Stephen, Jamie, and Macy.



And other pictures of all of us.











On a final note, I would account, for anyone who did not know, that Stephen's residency is what brought me out to Albuquerque back in 2005. He had matched through his residency applications at the University of New Mexico, and I followed him and Jamie out here about six months after they moved here, because I was inbetween jobs and wanted to get out of Texas for a while. A year after I moved here was when Stephany and I met. Also, a lot of really significant life growth happened for me during that first year here - a lot of really trying times and personal difficulties - and I am thankful for coming out on the other side of a lot of those things, with a deeper, more abiding, more solemn and honest faith.

So for me, it was especially meaningful to be there that night. I was fortunate to be there at the beginning of Stephen and Jamie's New Mexico journey, and I was fortunate to be there at the end. It's all quite amazing to me.

They are now moving on to Waco, where Stephen will enter private practice with a urology group there, and Stephany and I will be back to Dallas in a week to finish up my third and last year of law school at SMU. Lots of good things.

Nathan

Late-Night Frontier

Earlier this summer, Malory came out to Albuquerque for a visit. Our friend Jessica, who Malory met at Dallas Theological Seminary, is also staying with Bob & Diane this summer. We enjoyed having Malory with us for a while, and to capitalize on the fortunate opportunity, we decided to go out one evening. We ended up doing late-night dining at Frontier, a self-described "Albuquerque tradition" (they're right about that).

Here are some pics we took that evening - we were definitely enjoying ourselves.



Steph and me, apparently debating something about tortillas.



The slightly suspicious, but oh-so-cute look...





A small bit of the completely random decore inside Frontier (especially the John Wayne collection), as well as us and our food (and my Nalgene water bottle - I'll take a moment to encourage everyone to switch to reusable water bottles - it can be a serious encouragement to drink more water and also avoid terrible landfill trash).



One of the many moments of hilarity that evening...



...continued.



Yes, we had fun. That was definitely a memorable evening for this summer for us.

Nathan

Albuquerque Isotopes Game

A couple of weeks ago, our law firm went to see an Albuquerque Isotopes baseball game! They bought tickets for the attorneys and law clerks and their families. Bob and Stephany and I went and saw the 'Topes play the Omaha Royals. Both are minor league teams.









It was a fantastic evening, and we had a good view of the clouds in the sunset. Albuquerque has a really nice stadium, and the turnout was pretty good.





The 'Topes won that night 9-1. We didn't stay much past the sixth inning, because Stephany had to be at work early the next morning. We had a really great time.





Here's a pic of the mascots, red and green chiles, a pack of tortillas, and a jar of salsa. They have definitely captured the essence of the town. Although, maybe they should also have a little mountain named "Sandia" running around out there. That would really complete it.


Nathan

Corrales, NM

We recently took a drive through Corrales, a small village just north of Albuquerque. It's a pretty neat place - lots of older houses, newer houses, dirt roads, large yards, and horses. Stephany used to spend some time there with a weekly church group. It's a nice place to take a drive and see more of the country-living side of the Albuquerque area.

These were by far our favorite scenes. No explanation needed. Absolutely fantastic.





Here was the post office, which is not too far into Corrales from Albuquerque. We actually went there to mail something that day. It's much less crowded than the one near our neighborhood.



LOTS of horses around. Made me feel kinda like home in East Texas in a way. We had horses when I was growing up. I've always thought they're sort of majestic creatures. A lot of the homes we saw had corrals.



And here are just some random pics we took from the car.









Notice the giant yard art (in front of a local business) of animal crackers parading out of a huge animal cracker box. Pretty fun.



We enjoy getting out and seeing places around town. There's a whole lot of different scenes within a short drive from where we are. It's a good way to spend part of a day together (with a camera).

Nathan

Hail in Albuquerque

Well, just to show that we weren't kidding on our last posting about all the precipitation in Albuquerque recently, we thought we'd add some pics we took during a recent hail storm. The storms here come in strong and pass through quickly. Last weekend, it started raining, and shortly thereafter it hailed pretty strongly for about five minutes or so - and all the while, it was completely sunny outside. We were blessed with another amazing rainbow, our wondrous reminder of God's promise to us of His grace.

Here, you can seen the hail coming down with the rain.



Another rainbow, almost identical to the previous one we posted.





And a close-up of the hail. It's a bit startling when it comes on so fast. Two thoughts when it happens: 1) man, what is this going to do to the car, since there's no way I can move it anywhere; 2) I'm really glad to have a sturdy roof over my head (thanks, Bob & Diane).



Nathan

Rain in Albuquerque

It's been really wet in Albuquerque lately. I mean, not a whole lot, but enough to say that it's been wet lately (for Albuquerque). It's been rainy or thunderstorming in the afternoons. It's really strange to wake up to overcast weather here - this town usually gets something like 300+ days of sunshine a year. This could be the beginning of the "monsoon season." I read in the local newspaper that El Nino is shaping up to make it a wet season through the rest of the year. It's nice when the desert gets rain - there are such vibrant colors in the plants and trees around here, and they just seem to become even more so when it rains.

Stephany took this picture from her parents' back patio on the day that we got back from Colorado. Pretty awesome.

Nathan