Weekend Update

August is literally days away and while I am super excited for all the activities and events that will be coming up in the month ahead, I savored this past weekend as much as I could. Why you might ask? Well, it was the last weekend for many to come that was not completely full of plans and things to do.  

Ryan and I spent a lot of quality time with rocco which felt so good after our scare last week. We lingered on our back patio, went on walks, soaked up the sun and just enjoyed being at home as a family of three. The weekend also brought together ryan's family for a bbq in honor of my brother-in-law luke who's birthday was earlier in the week. It was a relaxing and fun-filled evening that I hope he enjoyed as much as I did. My weekend wrapped up with treating myself to a pedicure and also some time at the pool before dinner on the patio. The weather was ideal and the company made the evening complete. 

I will not have another leasurely weekend again until late august and by then I will probably be the size of a house and extremely uncomfortable as my pregnancy comes to an end so I am glad I made the most of the past couple of days. Here is to hoping you did the same! 

Weekend Update

Welcome back from your weekend. Hopefully it was another good one. Mine was crazy busy but in the best of ways. It truly feels like summer has settled in when every day of your weekend is packed with activities, get togethers and lots of go-go-go. My pregnant feet are feeling the pains today but I would not take back any of it because the weekend was just so wonderful and fun. 

Friday night we decided to walk over to fermaentra brewery because the weather was so gorgeous. Ryan had a sampler of beers and I had a tasty izze. Our friend brian came and met us and the evening wrapped up with some live music and lots of laughing and story telling between the 3 of us.

Saturday I spent some time with my parents at their house and suckered my dad into joining me at the pool for a couple of hours. It was nice to have some time with just my dad... we talked the whole time about nothing and everything. Saturday evening ryan + I went to dinner with our favs, matt + lindy for a belated birthday celebration for matt. We all wanted to try a restaurant that none of us had been to so we dined at lena which is in the sobo (south broadway) area of denver. We had a tasty dinner of modern mexican small plates and I would highly recommend trying this place out (get this short rib tacos and the chilaquiles). So yummy! 

Sunday was another celebratory day... ryan + I headed to lyons, co to attend the wedding of our high school friend heather, to her now-husband adrian. The wedding was at the most gorgeous setting and the ceremony and reception were stunning. Heather of course looked flawless and there was so much love in the air. 

I went to bed on sunday night feeling tired but blessed to have had such a fulfilling and fun weekend. Happy monday everyone; have a great week ahead! 

4th of July // Weekend Update

The fourth of july weekend was americana from beginning to end... bbq's, red, white and blue, family, friends and of course fireworks. It had all my favorite things combined into 3 days which in my world, made for a weekend of near perfection. 

Ryan and I hosted our annual 4th of july party and we had about 20 of our family and friends over to our house. I made some fun diy's from my inspiration board to decorate, whipped up a batch of patriotic jell-o shots with my sister-in-law peyton (which were a huge hit... even though I couldn't partake myself) and ryan had the backyard in pristine shape for yard games and hanging out. The evening ended with fireworks at sports authority field as we have done for the past several years and it was an awesome show. 

Sunday was also a very special day in my book... ryan and I were able to have lunch with my grandma and catch up with her about our trip to sweden. I so value the time and relationship I have with my grandma which was why our get together was such a highlight of my weekend. I also had 2 of my besties in town from fargo and steamboat so our bookclub got together for an afternoon picnic in wash park. The afternoon was exactly what I needed... hours of laughing and story telling with the women I adore more than anything in the world. I think I could have sat out in the park with them until the stars came out but sadly the rain wrapped up our fun. 

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and made the most of our independence day. 

Weekend Update

I am blessed to have both my family and ryan's family living in the denver-metro area. We typically do not have a weekend that goes by without spending time with at least one side of our families too. This past weekend was the best of both worlds; a little mix of both our families... making memories that will last a lifetime.

My sweet little niece kamryn celebrated her 5th birthday with a bbq on friday night. We sat outside in the warm summer air telling stories, laughing and watching the kids play on the trampoline. Kamryn was so proud that it was her birthday and she was the cutest to watch as we all sang 'happy birthday' in her honor.

Sunday my parents, ryan and I had a belated father's day celebration which included a trip to the farmers market and then brunch at jax fish house. We wandered through the endless booths, talked with the purveyors and sampled our way up and down pearl street in the mid-morning sun. Followed by bloody marys (I had strawberry lemonade, for the record) and brunch, it was the perfect way to celebrate the extremely good men in my life. 

Hope you had a great weekend too... maybe you spent it with your family too! 

Weekend Update

Can we all agree to let me go back and relive this weekend one more time? It was nearly perfection and I want it to happen ten times over if at all possible. Why you might ask? Well here are a few reasons...

- my bff beth came into town for the entire weekend and stayed with me

- my bestest of bestest friends all got together for bachlorette fun, happy hours and late night drinking games

- one of my most favorite couples ever got married this weekend and it was stunningly beautiful

- the weather (for the most part) was sunny and beautiful

- I stuffed my face with delicious food all weekend

From beginning to end, there was not a moment of down time, an hour that went by without hysterically laughing, a second spent without people I love and it was everything I could have wanted and more. Honestly, when there is so much positivity around you, it is hard not to feel overwhelmingly full on so many levels. 

This weekend was one for the record-books, I hope your's was too!

Weekend Update

Wow... a weekend full of sunshine and weather over 60 degrees; I almost did not know what to do when denver was blessed with multiple consecutive hours of sunshine. Don't you fret, just like riding a bike, it all came back to me and my weekend was full of activity and soaking in the vitamin d.

The weekend kicked off with pizza at proto's followed by drinks at fermaentra with our close friend brian. Saturday morning ryan and I started tackling some landscaping projects that we have been planning on since we bought our house last november; we (and I really should say ryan beccause I was pretty close to helpless) planted 10 new shrubs/trees in our yard. I cannot wait to see our hard work grow and bloom in the coming months and years.

Sunday was my favorite day of the weekend... ryan and I hit up the pearl street farmers market to gorg on street food and to pick up some awesome produce and artisan products. I snuck in a pedicure and then spent the rest of the day relaxing at home. 

I could not be happier to have the sunshine on my side to get some projects completed and to feel like may ended with warmth and clear skies.

Memorial Day // Weekend Update

A long weekend has me feeling refreshed and grateful. I slept in (which never happens), spent time with some family + friends, finally had a few hours in the beautiful sun before the clouds rolled back in but more than anything, really just relaxed with ryan at home. Somehow the weekend escaped me a bit and my iphone never seemed near enough to capture the highs over the past 3 days. However, the memories are rolling through my brain right now and making my heart feel very full.

Memorial day is always a time of gratitude and reflection for me. I think about the members of my family who so selflessly served and/or are currently serving our country and I am grateful for the thousands of people I don't know, who are sacrificing their lives to protect all of ours. I also cannot help but think of my grandpa who was a tanker in the us army; I have shared about him a few times (here and here) over the past couple of years and I feel patriotic holidays will forever be synonymous with him. 

My hope is all of you had fabulous weekends as well. Maybe you were crazy and frantically busy or had a slow and relaxing weekend like me. Whatever you did, I hope you also took a moment to reflect and say thanks for the freedoms we all share on a daily basis.

Weekend Update

It's tuesday... and I want to be at home in my pj's snuggled up with rocco on the couch. We would watch the rain drizzle all afternoon while sipping on tea and watching trash tv. Sadly, like most of you, I am at work, longing for the weekend I just had.

It was not a particularly busy or standout weekend either which is maybe why I am missing it so much already. In typical fashion, ryan and I spent quite a bit of time at home, popped into a couple of our favorite spots around town and spent time with family. It was one of those weekends that just felt easy and things fell into place naturally, without any rushing, planning or overly-complicated decisions.

It's weekends like these that make me truly grateful for taking things a bit slower and enjoying every minute as it comes. If it is running errands hand-in-hand with the love of your life, baking pancakes in the early morning hours or sitting down with people you love for a nice easy meal together, I just love it all. 

I hope you had a weekend worth remembering, one you will take a few minutes to acknowledge now and it brings a smile to your face. 

Weekend Update

Just when the beautiful spring weather felt like it was sticking around... denver gets hit with a crazy snow storm that my household is still feeling the effects from. It had been raining for a week in denver but the temps dropped and saturday night turned into a full blown mess. Ryan and I woke up to multiple 30-foot trees snapped and broken in our yard. We had the city come out and remove the branches which were lying on our power lines but now the damage is all over our yard to clean up. #funtimes.

Luckily the entire weekend was not as sad as the weather; friday evening we met up with ryan's cousin brett and his fiance kara for drinks at fermaentra and snacks from the colorado pig rig food truck. It was such a blast catching up and trying out some new-to-us places together.

Saturday was all about mother's day and I could not have been happier to celebrate the women in my life who have set such great examples as mothers. I made a trip with my family to visit my grandma and aunt, followed by a get together with ryan's family. We had a tasty bbq spread followed by card games and tons of laughing + story telling. 

We took it easy on sunday just ryan and I. We made breakfast at home, got in a workout at the gym, ran a couple errands and had a nice lunch at cherry creek grill. In all, the experiences outweighed the weather, making this mother's day another great success. 

Weekend Update

Hello spring and hello busy weekend of activities. I feel exhausted today and looking back at all these photos, it makes sense why my energy is lacking. From friday to sunday, I was up and about getting things done, stuffing my face :) and making memories with friends and family.

Ryan's little sister came home from college to stay with us for the weekend. We had dinner on friday at pinche tacos followed by my first experience at denver's iconic, voodoo doughnuts. Dinner was fabulous and my grapefruit mock-tail from the bar made my night. 

Saturday we were up with the sun and stopped into my favorite juice bar, nekter for a pressed juice and acai bowl before heading to home depot. We have been in our house now for nearly 5 months and with the weather warming up, we are able to start tackling a couple of the outdoor projects on our list. After ryan spent a few grueling hours working away, we cleaned ourselves up to join my parents for dinner at one of our favorites, russell's smokehouse for an early mother's day celebration. We stuffed ourselves silly on low-n-slow cooked bbq, the most velvety mac-n-cheese, cornbread cooked in a cast-iron skillet and cheesy grits. (read my restaurant review here). The night was a true celebration in my mom's honor.

Sunday we were back in the yard wrapping up our paver project. Peyton was a huge help, especially because a lot of the manual labor was too difficult for me to join. We barely had time to relax and take-in our finished project before we headed to join ryan's parents for a tasty mexican dinner at patzcuro's. Our evening wrapped up with an impromptu visit to matt + lindy's house for laughs around their kitchen island and dessert. 

Wow... after writing all of this out, I am wondering if my lack of energy is from our busy activities or from my stomach being entirely too full from the endless eating I seemed to do for the past 3 days?

Weekend Update

Hello monday. After a weekend filled with hours logged in the sun, tons of cold-pressed juice, quality time with friends and lots of relaxation, I feel refreshed and ready for the week ahead. 

Friday was the home opener for the colorado rockies which is pretty much a state-wide holiday. The city was buzzing and the weather was gorgeous, making my company's home opening party a major success. 

Saturday morning ryan and I got some stuff done around the house while rocco 'supervised' from the patio. Our pup could not be happier that the weather was in the 70s so he could sunbathe for hours on the outdoor furniture. We met up with matt + lindy and their adorable sons in the afternoon at the pioneer for some patio drinks and snacks before we headed out to celebrate our friend nicki's birthday. The evening bbq followed by cards against humanity turned into a spout of endless laughing and story telling. 

Sunday was a bit more low-key for me. I finally got some artwork up in our bedroom. I am framing some of the cards ryan and I have exchange over the years into a gallery wall but need to get a couple more frames. Ryan and I lounged around before trying out this new gnocchi recipe (fyi... it was amazing and I will be making it again very soon). 

Oh... and the best part of sunday, game of thrones and silicon valley premiered! Could the weekend have ended more perfectly... I think not. 

Weekend Update

This past weekend really did feel like spring had sprung. Not only did the weekend include family easter celebrations (which always have a nice seasonal tone) but I also somehow found a way fill in nearly every hour of the day with some sort of productive activity. Needless to say, it is tuesday and I am completely run down of all energy. I guess that is what you get when you push yourself just a bit too much.

I cannot say I regret my busy weekend activities though because they made my heart full and put a smile on my face. We spent sunday morning dropping off easter flowers to a few of our family members, got our backyard dusted off and put together for enjoyment, saw nearly every member of ryan + I's immediate family and also finally organized our garage (we have been in our new home for over 4 months now!). Oh, and we also got to sneak in some time with our favorite neighbors for some sunshine and playing around.

But back to our easter fun... my parents came over for a super filling easter brunch on saturday morning. It had all my favorite things... my family (well, most of them), honey-baked ham, my mom's homemade cinnamon rolls and cooking with my dad in the kitchen. The morning was nearly perfect and I loved every minute of it. Sunday we got together with my inlaws for more easter fun. My nieces had an easter egg hunt, we soaked in the sun on their back patio and I ate my way through 2 huge ham + croissant sandwiches. 

I hope you all had a wonderful easter that you are reliving in your head like me now. 

Weekend Update

I am back from a weekend of celebrations and feeling very grateful for the amazing friends + family in my life. There is nothing more important that family and putting your priorities first to create lasting memories with those you love. I will look back on this weekend for a long time to come, wishing to relive it over again.

On friday night we celebrated lindy's birthday with a wonderful dinner at spuntino. We had so much fun telling stories, laughing endlessly and enjoying a tasty meal together. We contemplated ordering dessert at the restaurant but decided instead to stop by dairy queen on the way home (#piggywantsome). Luckily the amazing staff at spuntino would not let us leave without a little bday fun which was very kind of them. 

Saturday was yet another birthday celebration... this time honoring my grandma who was turning 80. Nearly all of my family came together for this once-in-a-lifetime-celebration... aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and significant others came from all over the state to celebrate the matriarch of our family. Since my grandpa's passing in september 2013, our entire family has not all been together so, to have us all in one room for a positive family experience was even more special to everyone in attendance. It was a wonderful night full of smiles and stories... it truly brought me back to my childhood when we all spent so much time together.

The weekend rounded out with more quality time with family... sunday dinner at my inlaws' house. My sister-in-law krista made one of my favorite dishes, her family's german goulash. It was of course so good and I stuffed myself to the brim! Ryan and our nieces put together a beautiful and colorful salad that was so fun to watch them prepare. The evening dwindled away around the dining room table, telling stories and connecting as a family.

Our Weekend in Vail

This past weekend we packed up our coziest of layers and high-tailed it out of the winter-wonderland-of-denver (there was a big storm that came in dropping over a foot of snow in 36 hours) and made our way to vail, colorado. Ryan and I joined our friends shannon + toby for a a weekend of fun at the beautiful ritz carlton residences.

The weather was quite nice all weekend; a dusting of snow but plenty of sunshine to get out and play in. We hit up the beautiful outdoor hot tub as the sun was setting, listened to live music at tavern  on the square, played cards for hours each day and even spent an afternoon on vail mountain tubing at adventure ridge. This was one of my favorite parts of the weekend; flying down the steep hills of the mountain in our inner-tubes, laughing and screaming the entire time. There were multiple lanes to go down and one of them was a photo lane; ryan and I had the cutest picture that I would have loved to share but it was $20 so, obviously, we didn't buy it. #overpricedkeepsake

We had some fabulous dinners at russel's and mountain standard along with a low-key but crazy delicious bbq lunch at moe's bbq after tubing. The conversation and laughs were never-ending and I could not have asked for better company to make such lasting memories with. This weekend came at such a perfect time and I could not be more grateful.

Weekend Update

Holy cow... it is tuesday and I am just now settling in to recap my weekend. Time really does just fly right on by when you are having fun and this weekend was fun. Between spending time with family, getting a couple projects completed around the house and then cuddling with my favorite 3lb pup... I also was able to spend some quality time with my husband to celebrate valentine's. 

Valentine's day was everything I could have ever wanted... a lingering pancake breakfast with ryan at home, going to the grocery store to pick out ingredients for a nice dinner together and spending time at home. Ryan also surprised me with a bouquet of  roses which are still looking beautiful in our living room 4 days later. 

I hope everyone had a good weekend too; here is to a hopefully quick work-week ahead!

Weekend Update

This weekend felt like july, not february here in denver. The weather was in the 60s and 70s... there was not a cloud in the sky and I think everyone dropped their plans to play in the sunshine. I had intentions of cleaning the house and getting a couple projects completed but when you are handed a summer day in the middle of winter, you drop everything... which is exactly what I did.

Friday night ryan and I headed up north to visit my seester peyton who has nearly completed her first year of college. We hung out in her dorm, went to dinner at rio and just enjoyed reliving the glory days of college. 

Saturday we dog-sat for my mother-in-law which made rocco a very happy boy. Cooper and rocco played like crazy in the backyard and then had a nice little walk around the neighborhood in the afternoon. Ryan and I ended up snagging a seat at the chef's counter at cholon for dinner that night and had the most entertaining and tasty meal. After dinner we made our way over to matt + lindy's house for late-night beverages and an attempt to watch the interview... but we all were dozing off which just shows that #gettingoldersucks.

Sunday was again gorg so we made our way over to the pioneer for snacks + drinks on the patio with our friends cole + brian. As we sat in the sun telling stories and laughing, I had to remind myself that it is still 'winter' in colorado as it truly felt like a summer afternoon. The day wrapped up with a visit to ella bliss beauty bar as I scheduled a desperately-needed facial. To end the day with such relaxation was like putting a cherry on top of a perfect sundae. 

Weekend Update

I don't know why my weekend updates always include an obscene amount of food shots but what can I say, I am 'that girl' who loves to take pictures of beautiful and delicious food. #sorrynotsorry

So, speaking of food this weekend... I ate a lot. Pastries + coffee at steam on friday, brunch at linger on saturday for my dad's birthday, homemade pancakes + bacon for breakfast on sunday followed by my favorite, my dad's chile rellenos while watching the superbowl. My belly was happy which in turn, made me very happy too.

Ryan and I stayed home on saturday evening which was actually quite nice. We made a trip to ikea earlier in the day and came home with 6 boxes... which eventually turned into a new faux-denza media console for our living room. Major props to ryan; I don't have any research to support this claim but I would say my husband is part of a small percentage of men who have the patience to put together furniture from ikea with such patience and excitement. 

Then there was the superbowl. I can easily say I cared 0% who won but instead put my focus towards the real entertainment of the evening, the commercials and halftime show. My heart-strings were pulled this year by budweiser, always, the domestic violence psa and dove. I laughed over esurance and doritos. However, the highlight of the entire evening was missy elliott's surprise performance in the halftime show. #amazing

Weekend Update

Hi there lovely readers. I am bouncing back from a horrible migraine that had me down and out  for a good part of yesterday; I feel like I am only functioning now because of my incredible husband. That man, he is a good one and if I didn't know it before (which I did for the record, that's why I scooped him up 14 years ago) I do now.

Saturday morning I got out for a few hours for a very special mom + daughter date. My mom and I went shopping and grabbed lunch just the two of us which I had not done in a very long time. Ryan and I then joined our friends and family to celebrate our close friend shannon's birthday. 

Sunday was pretty slow-moving for me... lots of laziness on my part but we finally got out of the house for brunch at true food kitchen before running a couple errands. I came home afterward and took a nap with rocco and then dragged myself out of the house to meet sara + ashley to see interstellar. I am glad I did because those girls always have a way to lift me up and improve my mood. 

What did you do this weekend? Any big plans you are making for the week ahead? 

Weekend Update

If you saw my post on friday, I said I was going to try to stay home as much as possible this weekend. I can proudly say this was an accurate statement... I left the house minimally and that made me really happy. Now, I by no means had an uneventful weekend; somehow I found a way to fill up the days with things to do.

Ryan and I had a much-needed relaxing night at home on friday. We watched boyhood and played with rocco a lot. Saturday we got our new dining room table delivered... finally! It is honestly my new favorite piece of furniture and it sets the perfect tone for the dining room and conjoining living room. We decided to get out of the house saturday night to see american sniper which was amazing and then had burgers + fries at cherry cricket. 

Sunday was our laziest day of all; I made us my version of sausage egg mcmuffins, ryan did a little work and my parents came by for football and deep dish pizza in the afternoon. I ended up taking a nap after my parents headed home and then spent the rest of the evening watching dvr and playing with rocco.

Like I said, a lazy-ish weekend at home. 

I am in the middle of my attempting to make homemade pretzels right now and the dough is ready to be rolled out and twisted up so I gotta go. See you back here this week!

Weekend Update

Man oh man... the broncos hunt for super bowl glory came to an end this weekend. It was quite the season but after our bitter loss to the colts last night, us fans are just left with sour tastes in our mouths. 

The weekend was not a total loss though. Highlights included a super fun night out with our wonderful friends matt + lindy at cherry creek grill, a special send-off meal for peyton as she heads back to college, quality time with my amazing parents and rocco getting the cutest groom.

I hope you all had a nice weekend. Back to the grind today so pour yourself an extra cup of coffee and keep your chin up.