My New Favorite Product!

Here it is, my new miracle product: Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion.  I have never found any trick or any product that keeps my eye shadow and/or liner from creasing half an hour after I put it on. So I eventually resorted to just mascara or some eyeliner when I knew I wouldn't be wearing it for too long. But this stuff really works! I've worn it two different times now and have had absolutely no creasing. Yay! I got mine at Sephora (inside our JCPenney store), but I think most major department stores carry it.

Colorful Colorado

Yesterday Steven had a rare weekend day off and we went for a drive in the mountains to see the leaves changing. We went at just the right time; everything was beautiful! Sometimes we wouldn't see anything for a few miles and then we would turn a corner to find the most amazing display of color. Sadly, there has been a huge problem this past year with a particular (harmful) beetle that likes our ski area evergreens and there are many dead pine trees mixed in. We took an excessive amount of photos as usual, but I'm sharing the best with you. (I also got to get up close and personal with a new friend. :-) If you've ever watched South Park, you'll recognize him right away; and yes, it's the real South Park that the show is based on.) We even got to do a little 4WDing in the car, at a little lake that was so still you could hardly tell where the mountain stopped and the water began. Steven loved the off-roading, of course, and the Audi performed like a champ! Along the way we stopped at our favorite French restaurant (with actual French owners) in Breckenridge, where you pay $11.00 for a sandwich but it's beyond worth it.; they also have a lemon and sugar crepe which is fabulous and I get it for breakfast anytime I get the chance. While we were driving up the road some crazy mountain boarders went zooming by. Even though they had full-face helmets on, I still wouldn't feel safe trying it myself.

Fall in the city

A collection of random photos from the garden and about town. As much as I hate to see summer go, there is a beauty to fall that is unmatched in any other season.

A Creative Fence

It's official, I love this fence! Possibly even more than the one made of doors. What a creative idea and a sustainable use of something that obviously still has "life" left. I wonder how many projects I can start and then not finish? This might be one that I could actually get done! :-)

Foo Fighters at Red Rocks

On Monday we went to a Foo Fighters concert at Red Rocks, near Denver. They had been scheduled to come in July but had to cancel because the lead singer was sick. It was definitely worth the wait! The weather was pretty chilly but it didn't rain, and the band played for over 2 hours. They played all the songs we were hoping they would and many more. Red Rocks is by far the best place to see a concert, with the beautiful view and the amazing natural acoustics. I definitely recommend it if you come to Colorado.

Vacation part 5 (Grand Junction)

The last part of our vacation was a stop in Grand Junction, on the western side of Colorado. There's a bed and breakfast there that I've always wanted to try, plus it's peach season so we wanted to be sure to get some to take home. The bed and breakfast turned out to be okay but we probably won't stay there again. They did have this really amazing wall in their garden, made completely out of old doors. I want to do that at our house someday! We drove the Colorado National Monument at sunset (beautiful) and ate at a wonderful French restaurant, and the next day headed home. We were so glad to be back to temperatures in the 80s and our own bed. The peaches have been wonderful; I'm grilling the last two today, with butter and brown sugar (yum!).

Vacation part 4 (St. George)

After San Francisco we decided to head to St. George to see more family. We wound up staying 3 nights, had a really relaxing time and got to see lots of people. Although we didn't love the 100+º temperatures, we had a great time. Playing with Tammi and Jerry's new dog Windsor was a blast! Everyone was fascinated with Steven's iPhone and now they all want one, too.

Vacation part 3 (San Francisco)

After our visit to Oceanside, we had tentatively planned to drive south to San Diego (1 hour away), but we decided we were done with the beach and would rather go to San Francisco (10 hours away!). Since we didn't have anything reserved in San Diego, we were able to come up with an alternate plan and just be able to do it. That's the best kind of vacation, when you can do whatever you want to. We spent two nights in Castro Valley, about 45 minutes east of San Francisco, and used BART and all the other wonderful forms of public transportation available in SF to go see Fisherman's Wharf (where we ate our first real crab; very tasty but a lot of work for not much reward), Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park and downtown (where Steven got to go to his favorite store, the Apple Store, and I got to go to one of my favorites, H&M). It was definitely worth it and absolutely one of my favorite days of our whole vacation.