chef

bowling and casa bonita

The girls spent the morning with Yaya while B and I worked. She took them on the Celestial Seasonings tour and they had tea and treats and each came home with their own tea pot. We’re big fans of tea around here so this was a very special treat. It also made me feel so appreciative of my mom and her help with the girls. We will really miss Yaya when she heads home tomorrow.
Tonight we went bowling. My mom loves being able to cross off things on our summer bucket list.
Annabelle is a fierce competitor and tries so hard to win. Gwyneth is a goof ball and seems to do everything really well without even trying. Bowling is a perfect example of this phenomenon. She wobbles up like a baby giraffes throws the ball like a crazy person and ends up with a spare. 
These pictures sum up my daughters so eloquently: 
Annabelle ended up beating her sister at bowling and Gwyneth could have cared less so all was right in the world. 
We made YaYa’s trip complete by heading to Casa Bonita. We put it on our bucket list every year, the girls love it,  and it makes me so very sick. 
Crossed off for the year. We can put the Tums away until next year. 
Missi was a newbie this year. It’s a Colorado must-do, but it’s a painful Colorado experience. 
We arrived home in time for a beautiful sunset. 
Gwyneth hopped out of the shower and  joined me outside with my camera. I don’t know. This girl. I have no words. I just think she’s fabulous. Goofy. And fabulous. 

fathers day

Oh my! Father’s Day was a hot one! 
This is the second year in a row that we were burning up. Last year we went to the baseball game and melted. This year I planned a trip to the Greek Festival because B loves Greek food and I had read that it was both inside and outside, so there would be some reprieve from the heat. Well, it was registering 104 degrees in my car when we arrived so again, this year we were melting! 
We checked out the art and statues and beautiful decor in the sanctuary. The church is truly stunning and since I was in high school I have wanted to see what was inside that mysterious gold dome. B and I drank cold beers while sharing a gyro and the girls shared Greek fries. Everyone had red cheeks and were quite sweaty. The heat wore us out and we were ready to move inside permanently.  We grabbed some tacos in Cherry Creek and then went home to cool off!
My moms visits every year for the dance recital which is the same weekend as Father’s Day. It has become her gift that she watches the girls in the evening so we can have a night out. We don’t do that very often and every time we do I swear we need to make it a priority. B and I grabbed dinner and drinks and just talked and talked. He is my absolute favorite person and I’m so lucky to have married him and created this gorgeous, whacky, precious family with him. I’m also extremely grateful to have a young, vibrant mom who hops on airplanes and flies all over the country to spend time with all her granddaughters. Feeling extremely grateful today…..extremely hot….and extremely grateful. 
Lookin’ a little pink in the cheeks
When you tossed a coin in the fountain the “statues” blew you a kiss. 
Annabelle was intrigued. Gwyneth; not so much. 
Happy Father’s Day to this guy! He sure set the bar awfully high.
tacos at Machetes in Cherry Creek

keystone

We had absolutely nothing planned for our Saturday and decided as a family (through many votes and a blind ballot) how we should spend our day. We all finally agreed that we should head up to Keystone and ride the gondola. We had talked about the adventure park in Breck and a hike, but I didn’t pack great shoes which I think may have been my passive aggressive way of getting a lazy, relaxing weekend. 
We rode the gondola, took in the gorgeous view, played ladder ball, practiced walking the “tight rope”, played games and had lunch at the resort and then headed back to Breck. We spent the rest of our day playing shuffleboard, hot tubbing, watching the foxes and even on vacation B made us a delicious lasagna for dinner. I couldn’t have asked for a better day! 
Not quite sure where they think they are going?
Annabelle, the photographer snapped this one. 
My, how things have changed…

mothers day

I was truly spoiled today. I have a wonderful family and they pulled out all the stops for me. We had a lazy morning around the house which was perfect. We snuggled up together on the couch and they brought me my absolute favorite breakfast: bagel with lox, capers, tomato and cream cheese. 
The girls gave me hand massages, back massages, foot massages, and brushed my hair. I received a bread maker, which I have always wanted and can’t wait to use. Gwyneth told me I could make her as much bread as I wanted. She’s such a giver! The girls each made me several gifts and I also received a plant that I truly hope I can keep alive. 
We spent the day at the opening of our friend’s photography studio. They had snacks and beverages and he took some lovely photos of the girls. We’ve been friends for years and years and years and we’re so thankful to still have opportunities to get together and play. 
The new studio is near B’s mom’s resting place which now has a new plaque. We stopped by to see it and wish her a happy mother’s day. 
The girls were so, so kind and offered to take me to Dave and Busters so I could “have a beer with daddy and watch them play games”. I tell ya, GIVERS! They certainly know the way to my heart. B tried to convince them that a Morton’s night was a better choice, but they were certain I would have more fun drinking beer and watching them play. 
We finally made it home after a long, fun-filled day just in time for dessert. B and Gwyneth had picked out a deliciously perfect, key lime pie for me. They know me so well. 
So thankful for this wonderful little family of mine…
Me and my lovely ladies.

We are a family of tricksters. We asked Annabelle how the pie smelled and when she leaned in we may have given her a little push. This girl loves a practical joke and she has the best laugh. When something tickles her she laughs with her whole body. Her face turns bright red and her whole body shakes. It’s contagious and you have to laugh with her. She laughs loud, and long, and it’s over the top. I adore her and her laugh!

The King of the Tricksters and his little protegee. 

birthday parties and baby showers

Another busy weekend that flew by way too fast. 
Annabelle and B had a table at the Anthem Home and Garden show. There was lots of interest in our weekly meal service and we would love to see that grow. Hopefully we’ll get some orders from the show. 
Annabelle found this little gem and begged to bring him home. It was tough to say no, but we are in no place to be adding more mayhem to our lives right now. Perhaps sooner than later, but it’s going to take some serious persuasion. 

While B and Annabelle worked the booth, Gwyneth and I hosted a cupcake wars party at the kitchen. Our girls are amazing. They do so much with our business. It is truly family owned and operated. I often worry that they are spending too much time working with us, but they never complain. They are truly valued and get to eat lots of cupcakes.

After the party Gwyneth and I attended Amy’s baby shower. She is expecting a little girl in just a few weeks. Gwyneth had a lovely time making headbands and drinking root beer floats with friends from Girl Scouts. I sat and talked and talked and talked with my dear friend Sheila who I don’t get to see nearly enough.

Congrats to the Conleys! 

entrepreneurial innovation award

It was a pretty big night for our family and Blue Mountain Kitchen. We were nominated for the Entrepreneurial Spirit Award….and we won! We were invited to an awards dinner and the guest speaker was Ed McCaffrey. 
My very kind friend Pam offered to watch the girls for the evening so we could get dolled up and accept our award. It was an amazing night and such an honor. We’re going to be riding this high for a while…

book report in a bag

The girls have standardized testing for 2 + hours each morning this week at school. I don’t make a big deal of such things because 1.) My girls are super competitive and  B.) tests stress Gwyneth out! One of the benefits of the testing is that they don’t have any homework this week. No spelling tests, no math, even the evening reading is optional. 
There’s no dancing school this week or girl scouts. Everyone else is on spring break. We have so much time in the evenings! I love it. 
Annabelle has been working on a book report in a bag. She had to read a Newbury winner or nominee and she chose The Great Gilly Hopkins. It was a challenging book for her. She read a lot on her own and we read a little together. There were deep story lines about race, anger, and abandonment. I’m proud of her for tackling a difficult book and for pulling together her book report. 
The book report in the bag was very detailed. She had instructions on what needed to go where and then picked 5 significant items to carry in the bag. She needed a little help with formatting and cutting, but she did it!

After dinner we took advantage of a beautiful evening and went mini golfing.
Annabelle takes her games very seriously!
Miss Gwyneth is a bit more silly

Miss Annabelle even managed to get a hole in one!

blizzard

Colorado weather is bipolar! 
There is no other explanation for this crazy spring weather. Tuesday we enjoyed 70 degrees and sunshine and Wednesday we played in two feet of snow. It put a swift end to our plans for the day. I was expecting a few inches, but we were snowed in! 

B decided to head in to the Kitchen which was absolutely bonkers. The entire city was shutting down and the snow projections were coming in with high winds and inches and inches of snow. I texted and texted and texted him begging him to come home so he didn’t get stuck at the kitchen for the night. And then we waited…

And we decided to decorate Easter eggs. I didn’t stock up for much at the store the previous day because they weren’t projecting this much snow. I did manage to pick up “eggs” and dyes and the girls each picked out their own perfect kit. 
Gwyneth went with glitter eggs which is not at all surprising. 
I bought fake eggs to decorate because I wanted to take them to the hotel with us. They weren’t quite heavy enough though and floated on top of the dye. The girls had to keep spinning them and pushing them down and they ended up with stained finger tips but didn’t seem to mind at all. I’m not sure I would recommend it, but they did make for good travel. 

Our view dying eggs. 

B left the Kitchen at 1:00 and finally made in to our garage around 3:00 p.m. Keep in mind he works about 10 minutes from our house. He made it to our street before getting stuck. Our neighbors (who you can see behind Annabelle below) got stuck on the street also. The dads had to shovel the cars off the street and made a path down the road with their snowblowers for the rest of the neighbors.

We were so thankful that B made it home in this weather and we were able to enjoy the beautiful snowfall together.

Annabelle decorated snazzy mustache and top hat eggs. Very dapper. 
Glitter eggs

I use to think I was the only one who enjoyed all this Colorado snowfall, but my little ladies love it too. I don’t think B dislikes it — at least not as much since he got a snowblower!

happy birthday: B

Oh Lordy, look who’s forty!
I was lucky enough to meet this guy when I was 16 and he’s been making me so happy ever since. I really wanted to celebrate B’s 40th birthday in a big way, but in his typical fashion he wasn’t having it. He didn’t want a big party or for anyone to make a fuss. He requested dinner with just me and the girls and a stay downtown. 
Naturally the girls and I got a hold of that plan and tried to make it a little more fabulous for him. (He agreed to all of it before hand — he hates surprises!)  
We booked a limo to pick B and I up at the house and enjoyed a glass of bubbly on the way to pick the girls up from school. B looked so happy to pick the girls up from school in a limo. Even on HIS birthday he cares more about others and is such an amazing dad. 

We stopped at Dairy Queen for a special treat for the girls to enjoy on our way downtown.

The limo took us to the Ritz where we all got dolled up for dinner.

Our final stop was Morton’s. We had a delicious dinner and desserts and a wonderful time celebrating this amazing guy!
We stayed both Friday and Saturday downtown and took B to a Globetrotters game. None of us had ever been before and we had a blast! 

It was a wonderful weekend to celebrate an amazing husband and dad. We are quite lucky to have this guy and love him so much.