Breckenridge Colorado - Zero Spend Mini Vacation!

 

We were gifted a two-night stay at the Hyatt Main Street Station in Breckenridge by our generous friends this past week. What a blessing it was! We just got back. We love visiting Breckenridge. I'm really glad that we live close by. Our friends have given us this well appreciated gift before. 

Have you ever gone on vacation without spending money? Even though we have not officially started our 31 Days of Living Well and Spending Zero Challenge, we did not spend any money on the trip itself, and we had a wonderful time. I want to share with you how we did it.   

It took some real quick planning to accomplish this feat. I only had two days' notice to prepare. I started with a pen and a notepad. My first goal was to plan and prepare our meals. We needed 12 meals more or less for the both of us and a couple of snacks. 

The condo that we stayed in had a fully equipped kitchen so to speak, so meal preparation was easy with our pre-made freezer meals. I only had to carry my reusable parchment paper and Silpat for baking. 

We had some frozen grilled hamburger patties in the freezer, but I was out of all types of bread. I also had frozen breakfast cookie dough in the freezer, so I only needed 6 more meals. I decided on pizza and oatmeal with cacao nibs. I added salad, cheddar popcorn and apples to the list for snacks and sides. I topped off the food list with all the condiments we needed to complete each meal, then I was ready to start pulling it all together.

I made six pizzas altogether. I froze them and then wrapped them individually. We took two pizzas with us in makeshift pizza boxes, so they would travel without being destroyed. I still have four pizzas left in the freezer for future meals. 

Like I said before, I was out of bread, so I made hamburger buns plus two loaves of bread. I used the same dough for both, so it was just as easy to bake what we needed instead of having to bake again when we got back home.

The second part of the list consisted of clothing, toiletries, and just in case items like band-aids and allergy medicine. Next and last on the list were things like books, candles, chargers and computers. Our plans for the trip were basic and simple. Eat well, hike, soak in the giant spa tub, read, rest and repeat. Once we got there, we never saw the car again until the morning we left. We walked and hiked everywhere we went using the nearby trails and paths. 

As soon as we arrived at the condo, I turned on the oven to bake our first meal. We were hungry and our Kodiak Power Cakes that we had for breakfast had worn off. Since the oven was on, I baked the breakfast cookies after the pizza.

The breakfast cookies are packed with oats, raisins, cherries, blueberries, cranberries and walnuts. These cookies pack a powerful nutritional punch along with long lasting energy. 

On our first hike, I harvested some dandelion leaves to add to our salad. After thoroughly washing, I soaked them in cold water until they revived their crispness. I drained the water off, wrapped the leaves in a paper towel and stored them in the refrigerator until I was ready to use them.

There were also chives growing along the pathways. These had not bloomed yet. I did not pick any, because they were obviously planted for the pleasure of viewing, and not eating. They are tasty and beautiful at the same time. 

The snow melt has the creeks and rivers flowing at record levels.

The paths around town were just beautiful and serene. I must say that there were not as many vacationers there. Normally, it is bumper to bumper, and the sidewalks are packed with families and dogs. We were pleasantly surprised, but also concerned about the state of the economy. Summer tourism is the backbone of the economy for the mountain towns.

Little businesses like this t-shirt shop dotted the back streets.

This was our last dinner. We did not take pictures of our burgers, snacks or our breakfast meals. We eat at least one meal together, but the rest of the time we have different eating habits. 

We have never ever slept with the windows open in Breckenridge.
It's always too cold at night.

We had our own porch that faced the creek.

This was the larger of the two bathrooms. We really enjoyed soaking in the spa tub. I brought detox and sleep aid bath salts with us. We both soaked several times. This tub came in handy when Number One Husband took a tumble on a hike and banged up his knee.  

My book bags. Maybe I need to carry a book basket instead. I brought 
my foraging book with me, but it was too early to harvest 
most things. 

I turned the fireplace on for about a minute to take this picture. It was too hot to use. Usually at night it is chilly, but not this time. A light fleece was all that was needed for us to be comfortable. We kept the windows open. We haven't even kept them open at home yet. The weather is changing. It is so weird.

I will blog about our wilderness hikes along with pictures on my next blog post. We met a Troll named Isak Heartstone. More on that later...

Blessings,

Mrs. Smith