Friends all over the floor

You may have heard Max or I talk lately about needing a garage with a studio apartment above.  All of this chatter about a garage is because we have had so many fun visitors over the winter months! We absolutely LOVE having people come and stay with us and we absolutely LOVE entertaining.  There is only one small problem...our house is small...very small! You can only get people to come and visit and stay for so long if all you have to offer is comforter and a single couch :(
Lucky for us Zach, Sara, and Liam Kittle didn't care about our small living quarters and they came for a long weekend visit anyway. 

It was so much fun wathcing Zach and Max play with Liam and Chance.  They boys played together so well.  Liam and Chance even had their first slumber party.  They had to share a room and they both did very well and slept all through the night. 

Liam loves playing with little power tools! So cute!

Zach and Sara had family in town so they headed up the mountains a few days early to be with their family in Breckenridge. 

Max, Chance, and I (as well as the rest of the gang) met back up with the Kittle's in Beaver Creek on Saturday for skiing.  Some people will tell you that this ski season has been a total bust.  You shouldn't believe them for second! Skiing in 45 degree weather when the sun is shining is the most fun of all. 

Bret and Cook were all smiles on the mountain and loved soaking in the sun!

Tom was in a playful mood too!

I had an amazing morning skiing with Lauren and Katie.  Skiing with these girls for a few hours is the perfect thing to help clear my head.  They help me talk out all of life's little complications.  All I need is 120 minutes with these girls and I am ready to take on the world again!  I love these two ladies. 

We decided to head in from skiing ealry so that We could play in the sun with Chance. 

I love my two little mountain boys!

We decided to apres ski at the base of Arrowhead at Beaver Creek.  I had never ended the day at this base before, but I definitely will again! This base is apparently where all of the locals hang out.  Everything is very low key and there are kids, dogs, drinks, music, and smiles everywhere you look.  Max and I have decided that this is our kind of place :)

Can you imagine a more perfect place to watch your baby turn into a toddler (how did this happen)? 

The live band was excellent and brought the perfect mood to the scene. 

Lauren and I decided to try out the famous bloody's! They were worth it. 

After some apres ski, we decided to meet back up with Nick and the Kittle's at Gore Range Brewery.  You've got to love sunny days in the mountains on the patio. 

We had a blast talking with old friends and watching our babies play. 

They LOVED crawling all over the patio cushions. 

Sara Kittle who is expecting her second child, even got to relax in the sun for a while. 

It's always nice to have friends in town.

We ended the night with the gang heading back to our condo to order pizza and watch some conference basketball games. 

I love all of our friends gathering in the mountains on the weekend. 

I guess ski days, friends, and pizza at home are a few things that never get old. 

Old Friends and New Faces

Max has a dear friend Peter Chase that he has been friends with for a very long time.   Max and Peter went to school together at MacArthur Elementary School in Fort Leavenworth and have kept in touch ever since. Peter recently emailed Max and said that he and his family were coming to the mountains for a week long ski vacation.  He wanted to get togehter for a while in Denver so that he could catch up with Max and introduce us to his daughter, Alice.  


Isn't she the cutest! We spent a few hours talking and catching up with the Chase family and watching the babies play on the floor.  I was very impressed with little Miss Alice.  She was so happy and content!! She played on the floor quietly insepcting every new toy and never made a peep.  Meanwhile, Chance ran laps around the house and babbled constantly.   

The Chase Family
Peter, Alice, and Jenny

We had so much fun visiting and catching up with Jenny and Peter that we decided to meet up with them in Avon at the end of the week and do it again. 

The following Friday we both snuck out of work a little early so that we could meet the Chase family in the mountains for dinner. 

The following day we all met up on the mountain at Beaver Creek.  Scott Seglie was also visiting from Atlanta and Jerad was in town from Wyoming.  It was an amazing day!

The view from the patio at Blue Moose Pizzeria

We headed in from skiing early becasue we needed to get cleaned up for Lauren's birthday dinner.  We made reservations at E-Town in Edwards because we knew we were going to have a big group (and I not so secretly didn't want to be a party pooper but I knew Chance had already had a big day and I wanted to get in and out of dinner quickly).

 
I love the vibe at E-Town.  Their food is always so spot on!

Lauren (the birthday girl) and Bret at E-Town

Doing our best to entertain Chance during dinner

Scott Seglie showed up right around the end of dinner and completely loved playing with Chance.  I am very grateful that Chance has so many positive amazing people in his life.  I guess Max and I are lucky in that way too!
Thanks to everyone who took time out of their busy schedules to come and visit! We are loving every minute of it. 

The Springer's in Colorado

*I realized the other day that I am about one month behind on the blog.  I guess I have just been having so much fun with all of our friends and visitors that I have forgotten to document what all we've been up to.  I'm sorry for slacking! I'll catch you up one weekend at a time for the next few days.


Last President's Day Weekend (approximately one month ago) our good friends Justin and Lindsey Springer came to Denver for a visit.  Justin and Lindsey are so special to us and we absolutely love every minute that they are with us! I think part of what is so special about the Springer's is that they are our oldest friends as a couple and we always have fun with them no matter what we are doing.

The Springer's arrived at DIA on Friday night.  Max, Chance, and I picked them up from the airport and then brought them back to our house for a little gathering of our old college pals.  Chance stayed up just long enough to give everyone a hug.  Nick, Cook and Danny Eakin all came over to visit with the Springer's.  I made a few appetizers and we all sat around laughing and reminiscing.  It was a great night at home.
 The next morning we were up and ready to charge the mountains.  Because Chance requires SO MUCH STUFF we ended up taking two cars.  We split up into guys and gals because...let's be honest...Lindsey and I needed to catch up on all of the good stuff :)
I'm pretty sure Lindsey and I solved all of life's little problems on the drive to the mountains.  Who knows if the guys car with Nick, Justin, and Max even spoke a word.  All I know is that there is nothing better than I talk with your bestie when you are driving through something as picturesque as this!

After about a two hour drive, we had arrived at our destination.  Max and I had so much fun at the Tennessee Cookhouse on our stay cation that we decided to try it out with the group for lunch.  

The best part was that this time we got to bring Chance!!

There was a little bit of a debate at the nordic center about whether or not we should snow shoe or cross country ski.  This group is so progressive...I should have known that snow shoeing was out of the question.  Go big or go home!
Justin and Lindsey are not even skier's so when they agreed to give the cross country skis a shot I knew Chance and I were all in :) 

Chance looks as scared as I felt! Do you remember my pictures from last time?  I had a few wipe outs :) 

Luckily, this day was totally different! The sun was shining and we were surrounded by amazing friends!

We all survived the ski to the top and our reward was this beautiful view from the cookhouse patio.  We didn't even get to see this when we were there for dinner.  WOW!

and WOW

Lunch at the cookhouse was more simple than dinner but just as delicious.
I even got a compliment from the wait staff about how well behaved Chance was...that was my first, and I have to admit it made me smile from ear to ear! I love my little guy :)

Marti had a great day too and loved the hike!

View from the patio.  Family photo!

Our lunch crew.
Megan Savage, Lindsay and Justin Springer, Us, Nick Seglie, and Ben Reser. 

Max and Chance playing on the patio after lunch. 

My BFF 

Miss Megan Savage and I

Lunch was an absolute blast and we could not have had more fun in a more relaxing atmosphere.  Max found the tubes were out when we returned to the nordic center and he decided to give Chance his first tubing experience.  The verdict is that Chance is still too young to enjoy this, but someday soon...this will be E.P.I.C

We ended our day full of fun at our condo in Avon with a pasta dinner for all! We were joined by the Westerman's and Josh Springer from Aspen.
I can not remember a night that I have laughed so much!
We are so lucky to have such wonderful friends.
We are truly blessed!