Bucket List Item #1

I recently checked an item off my life bucket list; the first of a few this summer. What was it you ask?

Attend a concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater.

I saw the Avett Brothers at Red Rocks on July 9, 2011 with my brother and his girlfriend, Rachel. It was amazing - the music, the talent, the atmosphere, the scenery. Everything about it was bliss. Except the rain that accompanied us on our walk towards the venue. But even that wasn't bad...because who doesn't love playing in rain!?!

{whoever thought it would be a good idea to make this place into an amphitheater was a genius}

{how neat is that with the city lights shining in the background?!}

Again I say, pure bliss!

I'm In Love

Meet the object of my affection.

This is my new car. Well this is actually a generic photo of a vehicle that is exactly like mine, color and all. It's a 2010 Subaru Forester, and I love it! I am still thinking of the perfect name for it, so let me know if you have any suggestions. Anyway, I got this car just over 2 months ago, and I only now got to really test this pretty lady out on the roads!

Denver has had an abnormally warm winter thus far. The mountains are getting plenty of snow and chilly weather, but it just isn't making its way to Denver...until today. Today is the first day of a full-fledged "winter storm;" snow, ice, wind, sub-zero/single digit temps and all. So today after work, as I said before, I finally got to test the new wheels in all their glory. I think the exact moment I fell in love was when I easily took off from a stop light at the front of traffic and quickly sped up to 25mph while everyone around and behind me was going 2 mph and struggling to move at all. I had no problems, slips, or slides at all. I felt so cool and proud of my new car. haha.

I also realized how amazing my new car was going to be when a covered pick-up truck in front of me was spinning his wheels on a patch of ice and I, yet again, had not a problem finding traction. Had I still been in the Bu (the Malibu that is) I would have definitely been in the same position as he. However, I would have known how to handle it and hopefully find a little bit of traction. And on that note, I've decided everyone who moves to Colorado, or gets their driver's license for the first time in Colorado, needs to be required to take a "how to drive on snow and ice" class. The man in the truck had no clue how to that very thing and he was not in the right place to be learning for the first time (because it was super icy!). When he couldn't find traction, instead of pumping the gas to try to find traction, or slowly moving onto snow to find traction, he pressed on the gas harder causing his wheels to spin faster and thus fishtailing all over the lane. I even saw his tires smoking at one point and I didn't realize that could happen due to spinning on ice. Of course I suppose it could have been snow "dust" he was kicking up, but it really looked like smoke.

Anyway, moral of the story: I have a new car that handles beautifully on snow and ice, and I am in love with it and the possibilities and adventures that will come with it! Yay!

Colors of Fall

Although fall in Colorado isn't quite the same as it is in the East and Midwest, it is still breathtakingly beautiful. There is about a 2-3 week window in which to catch the leaves in the prime of their color change and splendor, and it changes yearly depending on the temperature and amount of rainfall. This year, I think we hit it just right.

We were so thrilled we thought we should capture our joy by jumping for it.
(It took us a while to figure out the timing of the auto-timer.)

I hope you're finding joy in the beauty of the season as well. Again, happy Fall!

A Taste of Italy

In case you're wondering, no I did not go all the way to Italy to sample their foods like I did recently here in Denver at A Taste of Colorado. I wish I had though, and since I don't have the luxury of being able to travel there at the current time, I brought Italy to me.

Tonight I made Bruschetta, and it was phenomenal! I kid you not, this is a totally simple and delicious recipe. You must try it.

To begin, go to the store and bring home Italy (AKA the following ingredients):

{french bread, extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, 5 roma tomatoes, fresh basil, garlic, and fresh mozzarella; also be sure to have butter, salt and pepper at home.}

Next, boil a pan of water. Once boiling, remove from heat and place whole tomatoes in water for 1-2 minutes. Remove tomatoes from water (you may discard water) and chop the tomatoes into small pieces (careful not to burn your fingers if the tomatoes are still hot). You may choose to remove the skin or leave it on, and remove the seeds or leave them in. I did a combination of both, removing the skin when it peeled off on it's own, and leaving the seeds that didn't fall out on their own in. Place all tomato pieces in a medium bowl.

Add 2-3 fresh garlic cloves, minced, to the tomatoes. Measure 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar and add to the tomatoes and garlic. Chop basil into thin strips and add about 1/8 cup to tomato mixture (add more or less as preferred). Stir ingredients to mix well and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Finally, melt a small amount of butter in a frying pan (you may choose to use oil if you wish) and brown slices of french bread on both sides, much like you would a grilled cheese sandwich (I even put a small amount of butter on one side of the bread before browning to maximize the toasting and browning). Place pieces of toasted bread on a plate and top with tomato mixture. Serve immediately and enjoy the flavors of Summer and Italy. I recommend complimenting the bruschetta with a glass of wine. Mmmm, perfecto!

Option: you may add fresh mozzarella cubes to the tomato mixture, or serve on the side.

Fly Me Away

Ever since missing the Colorado Springs' Balloon Classic last Labor Day (2009), I have been looking forward to it for this year. Living in Denver, rather than the Springs, made it a little bit less desirable though, simply due to the fact that I had to be up at 4:45 am. That's right, I woke up at 4:45 am on my day off from work to drive down to Colorado Springs and watch some hot air balloons fly around. Maybe that sounds plain nuts to you, but hot air balloons are so pretty, and really, I think there was a sentimental piece too. The Balloon Classic was the first thing I did as a resident of Colorado two years ago. I arrived in town on a Friday night, and first thing Saturday morning I attended an awesome festival with hot air balloons. Nothing like that happens in Springfield, IL. So I wanted to relive it.

We were on the road by 5:30 and arrived in the Springs around 6:30. We includes only my boyfriend, Donnie, and myself (isn't he amazing for coming with me!? yes, is the answer). After finding a place to park, we wandered over to the park where the festival takes place and watched some crews inflate their balloons. There were many less balloons this year; I'm thinking that might have had something to do with the fact that it was the last morning of the event and some crews had already left to head back home. Either way, the balloons that were there were very pretty. It's so neat to watch them inflate the balloons and then raise them to vertical. I feel like I'm watching the erection or a monument or a barn raising or something. The announcer makes it a big deal and has the crowd clap and cheer. Pretty neat stuff. Anyway, about 45 minutes after we arrived they made an announcement that the pilots wouldn't fly because it was too windy, but they would leave the balloons inflated and we could ask questions and get an up-close view of the balloons. With than in mind, we wondered around a bit, got some breakfast, snapped some photos and then left. Take a look!

{The sun was rising behind the balloons and made them appear to glow!}

{The inside of a balloon}

Scared of Heights?

If you are, I would avoid activities along these lines (no pun intended)...

Rock climbing in Clear Creek Canyon just west of Golden, CO.