Aspen

I like to ski. The boyfriend likes to ski. It is a win-win in my opinion. I think it falls along those lines of "Happy Wife, Happy Life".

Another pitfall of DC...skiing isn't exactly a lifestyle option. Even if it is, can we even really say that something like Wisp is really a "mountain". I don't think so.

So two people who love to ski, a(nother) shitty thing about DC, a boyfriend who generously shares frequent flier miles = a lot of West coast skiing adventures.

This year we got back to DC after a long Christmas back West with our families, only to spend a whopping four days in DC before getting on a plane again. To make it extra fun, I had no idea where I was going. I packed, got to the airport and only knew we were going skiing. He printed our boarding passes, and then we went through security. I was finally tipped off to the fact that we were headed for Denver, so I just assumed we were headed to Copper or Winter Park.

Once we arrived in Denver, the BF recommended we get food. My thoughts quickly went to "Is he REALLY going to make us eat in the airport to try to throw me off?! Of course we are at the destination!"

Oh. How. Wrong. Was. I.

After eating we started walking. We were on one of those moving conveyor belts when I looked up and could just barely make out the words on one of the gate signs for "Aspen/Snowmass"!!!!

Aspen!!!

A quick flight later, there we were at the Aspen airport surrounded by more fur and multi-thousand dollar ski coats than I have ever seen in my life! People were popping champagne in the airport and Bogner was a casual as a pair of jeans.

Skis for days, and Aspen print carpet in the airport

We stayed slope-side at Snowmass and were able to walk to the lifts our first day skiing. Saturday was glorious. Sunny, warm, and some perfectly manicure groomers to tear it up on. The scenery was unbelievable. And they aren't kidding when they named the place Aspen. You can smell those Aspens as you ski through beautiful glades. The lodges were modest, to my surprise, but boasted some really outstanding food.

We skied for as long as they would let us on the lifts, then popped our skis off and walked less than a block back to the hotel. It was heaven.

That night we headed in to town and went to an Italian restaurant that a friend had recommended. While the pasta was outstanding, it was the creme brulee topped with fresh bananas that really won our hearts.

As usual after a day of skiing, we were sound asleep before 10:30pm.

The next morning we woke up to socked in skies, but with determination to get some more Aspen experience in. We took a shuttle bus (which was outstanding and quick and free!) into Aspen and decided to ski Ajax (as the locals call it). It. was. cold.

And. snowy.

And windy.

And did I mention FRIGID?

Our first 4 or so runs were through almost untouched powder that was soft and fluffy. The gondola had been closed in the morning and when they finally opened it we decided to take it up to the top. It might have been the most terrifying lift experience of my life. The gondola had to run at about 1/4 speed, and was swinging and swaying in the wind. Some of the cars almost hit each other. It was a rather silent trip to the top as we both gripped the bench in fear. We ended up warming up in the lodge at top, then finally braving the increasingly windy and cold conditions to get some runs it. The snow was great and the runs were fun, but we had ice caked on our faces and hanging from our noses. We took a verrrrrry long lunch, and then called it a day.

While it wasn't the best day of skiing, it was still an amazing experience. There is nothing better than skiing down into the main street of town when you are done at the end of the day.

That night we browsed the shops, gawked at the crazy ski shops and the ski clothes that cost more than my yearly salary and then had dinner at the White House Tavern. 

It was again an early night followed by a long mournful day where we had to leave to go back to real life.

My overall verdict: Aspen is the whole package.  I am sucker for resorts that have good snow, good terrain, and a cool town to top it off. Aspen's beauty is second to none, and the people watching alone is worth the trip. Even if you can't afford the expensive clothes, you can at least browse and feel just that much closer to being a billionaire. Overall, make it a bucket list trip, it is worth every penny. 

I am Thankful for Snow, Peanut Butter, Family and Lattes

(Not in that order, and not and not an all encompassing statement)

Like last year, the BF and I skipped out of DC for Thanksgiving and opted for some early season skiing, peanut butter pie, and a potato product for our Thanksgiving meal. It is like a tradition of sorts. We went to Utah last Thanksgiving and decided to do a repeat this year.

This year we arrived a bit earlier in the day, and while we still had some hashbrowns at the hotel bar, we were able to have a restaurant Thanksgiving meal at Faustina. We also were able to have my parents come join us the day after Thanksgiving which made the trip really special for me.

The day my parents were driving to Utah to meet us, we skied Alta so we could get our ski legs under us. We had some amazing weather, decent early season snow and ended up running into people who were on our same flight!

That evening we met up with my parents for dinner at Squatters, where they have the most delicious peanut butter pie! We knew we were going to have to back back after having it last year! (Their beer is really good to, but man oh man, that pie!).

The next day we decided to ski Solitude, which I really enjoyed last year. In turned out to be sunny, warm, and the perfect terrain for all of us to warm up our legs!

That evening we checked out a local pizza place, Davanza's, and they had the most amazing walls covered in cans.

The boys were into watching the football games and recaps, while my mom and I were intrigued by all the different can designs.

The final day of skiing out my legs to the test, and I can say I am happy I have been hitting the gym a lot recently!

The BF couldn't join us on our last ski day, so it was just my parents and I. After a lot of indecision we decided to go to Snowbird, which we had last skied at about 12 years ago! We lucked out with some sunshine, moderate temperatures and some great laps on the tram.

We skied until our legs fell off. Well, we stopped just before that, but we skied a full day and cheersed each other with some brews at the base.

With a snow storm rolling in, my parents got an early start the next morning to head home while we broke out the laptops for work.

I discovered a lovely bookstore/coffee shop that made my mornings. We got to do a bit more exploring:

Then to top off the food for the trip we went to an awesome pasta place that was just a hop skip from our apartment which was perfect since the snow had really started to pick up.

After dinner I braved the blizzard that had set in and went and picked up two more pieces of that peanut butter pie for us to enjoy in the warmth of our hotel.

Yes that is PB pie in bed while I read a novel on the iPad.

It was a great Thanksgiving and I was lucky to get to spend it with some of my family.

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Spokane, Idaho and Schweitzer

Last weekend we took a little cross country ski trip getaway to Schweitzer mountain in Sandpoint Idaho.

Many of my summers and holidays were spent in north Idaho so we could see my grandparents. It has been awhile since I have been in the Spokane/CDA area but I was excited to go back someplace that was almost as familiar to me as home.

I flew into Spokane and due to different flight schedules, I had some time to kill before the boyfriend flew in. I rented my first car!!! and drove into Spokane to entertain myself.

From the recommendation of a college friend I headed to Madeline's to camp out on my computer for a little while. I had an awesome paninni with a side of corn chowder and a latte served in a cozy oversized bowl.

 

 

After getting some personal and professional work done, I took a little walk over to the waterfront park area and poked around at some of the sights. Sadly, the carousel that my mom would take me on when I was little was closed so I just got a few pictures of the sights in the park.

 

 

 

 It was pretty cold so I sought out a place to warm up, and what better than to head over to the Davenport hotel and enjoy a cup of coffee in their beautiful lobby.

 

 



 

 

This hotel was something I heard about from my Grandparents growing up, and sitting in the lobby I could only day dream about long ago days where they probably attended amazing parties and witnessed the same lobby in its original state.

 

After getting some feeling back in my toes, I headed to wander around the mall before returning my rental car and meeting the bf at the airport. Once the bf landed and got in we checked out Gonzaga's campus and the site of his current project. Then we started the drive up to Sandpoint. The drive was really foggy, but not too bad overall considering the frigid temperatures.

 

The next morning we woke up, got all the ski gear on and drove up to find Schweitzer drenched in bright blue skies, sunny rays, and excellent snow conditions.

 

 

 

 

We got two really great days of skiing in. Using our ski tracks app that the bf and I are now addicted to when we go skiing, we pulled off over 30,000 vertical one day! Schweitzer has night skiing, so we were able to stay on the slopes until almost 5pm!

 

 

After our second day of skiing (and a little apres) we drove down to Coeur D'Alene to stay the night. We went to dinner at a great pizza place on Sherman Ave called Fire where we had some of the best pizza I have had in a long time!

 

The next morning we did a quick tour of CDA and I got to show the bf all the places I remember from my childhood and things related to my grandparents. It was a mjor trip down memory lane and I am already planning a summer vacation to get up there  so I can enjoy the lake!

 

After our CDA tour, we had a Cabella's shopping trip, and then I got dropped off to fly back to good ol' DC.

 

It was such an awesome trip. Writing about it makes me want to do it all over again. It was awesome to be somewhere that was a part of my childhood and experience it as an adult.

 







Utah Ski Vacation

To back track a bit, lets focus on Thanksgiving for a moment before we talk Christmas.

I was all set for a East Coast Thanksgiving, a few days out of DC meeting some more of the bf's family, some food, relaxation, you get the idea. I've kind of become immune to being away from my family on Thanksgiving as it is a very rare occasion that I can be in Idaho for Thanksgiving and then come back a month later for Christmas. (Particularly when I take three week Christmas Vacations ;)!) So needless to say, while I would love to be home with my family having a traditional Thanksgiving, I have certainly learned to adapt and have a non-traditional thanksgiving without much pause.

So we are all set for Mass. when the bf comes over one evening and says:

"I have a question."

Gulp. Internal monologue kicks in "oh myyyy gooood. What did I doooo? Oh wait, is this? Does he have a small box? Nope. No box. Ok. Was I mean lately? No. Well I don't think so. Oh my. Am I getting disinvited from Thanksgiving?!? Is he going home without me?!? Ok. ok now. Calm down.

I mean....how funny would that have been! You know. If I thought like that, or anything. But I don't think like that. Or at least I tell myself so. Ha!

Anyways, I respond with a " yea?"

Which I got a question and response that was far from what I expected!

The bf had figured out a way for us to stay in Park City over Thanksgiving and hit up the open ski resorts. BUT only If I wanted to go...

I don't think it was any surprise that I jumped on that plan pretty quickly.

So we spent Thanksgiving in Utah. Just the two of us. Or maybe I should say the four of us.

Oh yes...it gets better this surprise the bf put together.

He put skis on it!

With new skis, boots, and the whole kit and kaboodle I was excited to get on the snow! Our trip started out with a Thanksgiving morning brunch with some good friends and their adorable daughter, who was born around Thanksgiving last year. We cooked up a frittata, holiday rolls, a fruit platter and some mimosas. Since we were going to miss the bebe's birthday party we got to give her our gift early which was fun.

We packed up and headed to the airport where we dined on some fast food for a pre-flight meal.

After a painless flight we picked up our rental car and headed into Salt Lake to stay the night before driving up to Park City.

Slightly hungry, we ended up eating some baked potatoes and drinking a night cap of beer at the hotel.

The next morning we headed up to Solitude for the inaugural voyage for the skis. It was beautifully sunny, warm, and complete with a pretty empty mountain.

We did pretty well. Only stopping for a morning break and lunch and then skiing until about 3.

We then headed to our hotel in Park City, which was really a timeshare resort, which came complete with families of 13 and an event schedule that was similar to a Ledo deck on a cruise ship. We were exhausted and naturally took awhile to relax before heading out to dinner.

We also got to spend a day walking around Park City and stumbling upon a perfect Saturday date night activity....

The PBR was in the next town and we knew we had to go!

We had a romantic date watching some bull riding, drinking cheap beer and munching on hot dogs and red vines. It was perfect.

The next day we headed to Alta. Skied our legs off again. Finished the day off with some awesome beer and a peanut butter mouse (errr...did I say mouse? Let's try mousse) pie and a neighboring room full of loud women drinking far too much red wine. (Needless to say we opted to switch rooms to ensure some sound sleep.

Due to an awesome deal on Liftopia we decided to squeak in a final day of skiing before catching our flight and checked out Brighton.

After skiing to the point of barely being able to walk, we packed up the skis and headed for some food before the airport.

This is where things got a teensy bit rough. Our flight out of Salt Lake was delayed and we were going miss our connection in Chicago. The bf needed to get back so we flew a red eye that dropped us into DC right about the time I would be waking up to get to work. It was an ugly day at work. However, we survived and that night I was asleep by 6.

Phew that was a novel of a story!

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Surprises

I love a good surprise. I don't need them all the time, and they hold a level of specialness if they are kind of rare.
 
There are some marked moments in my life where someone really knocked my socks off and here they are with my latest surprise that is beyond exciting.

The first surprise that makes some of my top lists was an Easter morning when I was maybe 6/7 (maybe younger?). A week or two before Easter I had been at the Albertson's (Boise's main grocery store when I was a wee little one) and up near the cash registers there were stuffed animals hanging from poles where they had the magazines, gum and all that good stuff. There was a GIANT yellow bunny, that was holding a bright orange carrot. For whatever reason I was enamoured with this fluffy monstrosity of a rabbit. Sadly, despite my pleading, bargaining and possible tantrum (mom I hope I wasn't that bad!) we left with only groceries and no bunny. Pretty sure I would never see him again, I moved on.

Easter morning came around and in my family we get some pretty elaborate Easter baskets. Candy and a few gifts from the "Easter Bunny". My sister had gotten a pretty awesome gift (maybe shoes? maybe a sweatshirt?) and I had finished opening my basket so I headed off to the TV room. I came around the corner to sit in the chair I always curled up in annnddddd..... THERE WAS THE GIANT YELLOW BUNNY!!

I grabbed that giant bunny, trucked on out to the dining room with a huge smile and felt like my little child heart would just burst with love and delight!

Now I still have the giant bunny, so clearly this surprise really stuck with me!

Much later down the road I was gearing up for that epic birthday where you cross the threshold into complete freedom and become a legal, card carrying, alcohol purchasing 21 year old. Originally my sister and I had talked about her flying to Seattle to possibly celebrate with me and for whatever reason, plans kind of fell through and I planned a big shindig with 20ish of my sorority sisters, friends, and business school peeps. I was kind of sad Nicole wasn't going to be there, but I also knew I had tons of great friends to celebrate with.

A huge group of people came (which was horribly flattering!) and we started to take seats around the various tables that had been reserved just for us. There was a chair in the middle of the table that I decided to take, and when a friend asked if they could sit next to me, my sorority sister, Carly, practically jumped out of her chair with a "NO! We are...umm...putting gifts there". I was like " Say whhhhaaatttt?". Regardless, I just started to get settled in for a yummy dinner and while finding a place for my purse I caught a glimpse of someone familiar walking into the room. Then it hit me! It was NICOLE!

Carly had contacted my sister after I had told her I was bummed that I wouldn't get to have Nicole celebrate with me and they crafted a very sneaky surprise to have Nicole surprise me. It has gone down as by far one of my favorite birthdays.

Now these have both been some of the best surprises, for various reasons, but lately someone else added to my list of great surprises people have done for me.

It was a few Saturdays ago, and I was in the mood to just be kind of alone and opted to camp out at my favorite coffee shop for the morning. N had mentioned heading to REI that day, and I was dragging my feet as I was just enjoying some of that quiet time and feeling a little homesick by myself. After a sufficient amount of time sipping coffee, reading blogs, devouring a cupcake and people watching, I finally let him know I was headed home and would be up to go to REI if he wanted. He said he was and that I should come over and meet him at his apartment.

When I arrived, he let me get down the hallway from his entrance and then says "I have a surprise for you, but you have to close your eyes". So I squeeze my eyes tight, and he steers me into his room, for me to open my eyes to feast on these beauties:

 
 EEEEK! I still can't get over it! I love them so much! When we went to Colorado last year to ski together (btw...huge step in a relationship :) ) I got to demo these for a day and I loved them. For months I had tried to find a pair I could afford, and sadly just couldn't squeeze them into my budget. Lucky for me, I have a very very very thoughtful, and loving guy in my life who even wrapped them in a big red ribbon and bow. Oh! Did I mention he had my family ship my new ski boots out and he put my favorite candy (nerds ropes!) in each boot! Ah-mazing! Talk about a Merry Christmas for me!

What have been some of your favorite surprises? Do you like surprises? I can say that some people reallllly don't like them.

If you want to read about a blog friend's post on surprises today you can check out Newlymeds and her experience with a surprise party for her sister!

ps. When I am home I will try to take a picture of the bunny. He is REALLY epic.