life is good festival.

last weekend b and i headed down to massachusetts to go to the life is good festival. due to some work constraints, we couldn't stay for the sunday lineup, but the performers on saturday alone covered four of my very favorite artists: martin sexton, ingrid michaelson, michael franti & spearhead, and the avett brothers. seriously. it was a bit like listening to my ipod or my top played songs, but live. it was fabulous. the forecasted rain held off, the festival was good clean family fun, and it also took place on property that was once owned by my mom's family. as seems to always happen, i even had a random camp encounter! we had a wonderful time at the festival, and also enjoyed some beautiful foliage on our drive.  

franti's beach balls.

franti.

my man martin.

turned out to be a beautiful day and evening!

tread lightly.

source.

impromptu 3 (technically 2.75) day weekend-- started off with coffee, waffles and mumford & sons. next, a walk with b in the park, and then a flower delivery to the birthday girl.  now balancing a bit of work with a bit of life, and looking forward to celebrating my momma tonight!

mid-afternoon standby. except instead of lindt these days, it's my favorite chocolove bar-- sea salt and almonds in dark chocolate. seeing as it is a boulder company, i was highly concerned that i wouldn't have access to it in vermont. luckily, the natural foods store around the block from my office sells them! chocolate bar stashed in desk = perfect afternoon pick me up.

"one of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats."

mica basin.

i'm a little busy at the moment, so here's a photo to keep you comin' back. 

stunning pic of one of my favorite hikes in steamboat.

fall.

i'm wrapping up the first day of fall with a bit of work from my porch, and an iced coffee by my side. still feeling rather summer-like to me, but the color is definitely changing in the trees!

spruce hike photos, continued.

thursday night.

i've always had a thing for thursday nights. thursday night shows a hint of the weekend, but without some of the "do something fun" pressure that weekend evenings can contain. you feel like you can relax and unwind a bit, as there is just one little day called friday standing between you and two days to do exactly as you please.

this thursday, i'm enjoying a hip opener yoga session, a wolaver's pumpkin ale (hello, fall!), a new recipe- this tasty sweet corn pasta, and i'm finishing up last season's grey's anatomy. not too shabby.

tunbridge world fair photos, continued.

a few more snapshots from the tunbridge fair as well. pig races (little pigs and big ones too!), farm animals, merry-go-rounds and more. 

fleeting summer days.

it was a warm and blue-skied afternoon, so i snuck out to enjoy some of the final moments of summer with a little country ride on my bike. i've got a perfect loop on paved and dirt roads that takes about an hour door to door. miles and miles of uphill bring me out of montpelier, and then rolling dirt roads allow me to enjoy views like these. there is a satisfaction that comes with covering terrain and enjoying views that you just cannot find at the gym. i've got to get out and enjoy these afternoons while we've got them!

irene relief photos, continued.

here are a few more photos i wanted to share from friday's irene relief concert. we had a photo booth set up with vermont props-- enjoy these!

fall in vermont: one weekend in photos.

in the hustle and bustle of everyday living, it can be hard to find the time to enjoy some of the most unique and beautiful parts of vermont- a combination of absolutely spectacular september weather & knowing i needed a weekend of fun led to this lovely string of events. 

friday: gmcr-organized concert at higher ground. i ran the raffle table while simultaneously practicing my salsa dancing moves from zumba. ritmo masacote was a fabulous band, rubblebucket was fun, the benefit raised great money for the food bank and the waterbury good neighbor fund, the house was packed and my mom even came for support!

saturday: beautiful morning at the farmer's market, a kayak at curtis pond with mom, and then i was off to the tunbridge world's fair with a few girlies i've known forever.

 sunday: a morning of being productive (laundry, grocery shopping, etc) leading to an afternoon hiking spruce with jenna. we took od on his first hike and he was a champ! doing some scenic driving on our way to the trailhead gave us a late start, but we chatted our way up the trail, soaked in the view, and made it back down just as the sky was transforming. yesterday's pic was taken on our drive home. 

life is lovely.

"fear less, hope more.

eat less, chew more.

whine less, breathe more.

talk less, say more.

hate less, love more,

and all good things will be yours."

fall in vermont.

hello friends. sorry to be so absent. last week was a busy week at work, and my weekend was filled with squeezing every ounce out of the perfect fall days by packing them with vermont activities! i'll be back tonight with a more detailed report, but enjoy this very last image of my weekend. 

quote of the day.

"Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony.

In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity."

-Albert Einstein

for every season.

it may be in the 50s and pouring rain today in vermont, but it snowed last night in colorado. i know-- ski fanatics everywhere are psyched that the snow is on its way! but for this girl, it was just a good reminder that i made a good move. snow? no thank you.

happiness + ice cream.

to the mountains.

i have somehow let the summer slip by without spending any quality time in the mountains. returning to the green mountains was something i was looking forward for both hiking & skiing, but my days off this summer has been full of other activities and it just hasn't happened. yesterday was such a beautiful day, and i knew the warmer temps would only be around for a few more weekends. it was already mid-afternoon when i decided it was time for a mountain adventure, so i just went to stowe pinnacle for a little jaunt. the trail started gradual and wide, narrowed in the woods, and ended with rock staircases and scrambling. the trees got shorter, the rocks bigger, and the summit was glorious. i enjoyed some lake champlain chocolate as a reward and soaked in the vermont view. it was a lovely afternoon-- i always return from the mountains feeling refreshed and reassured. my two favorite moments of each hike are:  (1) reaching the summit,  and (2) returning to the car, taking off my boots/sneakers, slipping on flip flops, and driving down the road singing with the windows down.  pure contentment. 

who's your farmer?

today was a spectacular early fall day. the temperature was exactly 70 degrees for most of the day, and the sun shone splendidly. i headed to the farmer's market after the gym this morning, and my goodness- what a market it was! first there were alpacas and llamas there, and of course i stopped to visit with the familiar site of the alpacas. and then, there were four old ladies in costume dresses singing old traditional folk songs. having reached that point, i had my i-love-vermont grin on. from there, it only got better. the produce today was beautiful. perfect yellow and red tomatoes, shiny onions, leafy greens, glowing eggplants. even apples and cider creeping their way into the harvest. it was glorious, indeed. and yet, it was a bittersweet day as farmers across the state are struggling to regain their businesses after irene's damage wiped them out. the govermont has deemed all food contaminated by floodwater inedible- which is likely a safe and appropriate choice. but as we are in the midst of peak harvest, it's hard to fathom the impact it will have. so i hope that you all will take a minute to find a way to support your local farmers, whether they are suffering from irene damage not.

seasons changing.

moving the fan out of the bedroom window, low misty clouds through the valleys, a slight yellow tinge to the blankets of green trees, a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin baked by j, and a kid in a solons football jersey walking to school? must be the first hints of fall in vermont.

dove chocolate wisdom.

how did dove know how i had felt in chicago on sunday?
the message in my chocolate wrapper today--

"you are exactly where you are supposed to be."

the head & the heart.

loving this.

flying east.

my years in colorado averaged plane travel between at least three times per year. in 2010, i flew on 16 different airplanes. my last trip of the year was last september, for my mom's birthday surprise. between then & my march move, i didn't travel. since moving to vermont, my only travel outside of the state has been three weekend trips-- all in the car. yesterday i hopped on a plane (well, two) for the first time in 2011. talk about a big change in a year- that is 11 months without an airplane. 

over my years of heavier travel, i learned to love to fly. sure, i hate delays, the long lines, and the stress that travel can bring as much as the next person, but i've learned to love it just as much. you can start your day in one place, and end it across the country or world. i love to watch people in airports, create stories of their lives. i love the possibilities that being in an airport can hold. a walk through the gate or a look at the arrival/departure board can remind you of the many destinations there are, and be an inspiration to travel farther. i also love the anonymity in airports. no one knows who i am, what my story is, or if i'm headed home or off on a grand adventure. on the flip side, i also love the rare but beautiful unplanned reunion that can occur in an airport. 

i flew through chicago yesterday after attending a fun wedding (that's for another post!) in indiana. returning to o' hare felt like a reunion with an old friend. i've flown united through o'hare quite a lot and so the little bookstores, the neon lights underground between B and C, the Starbucks at the end of the B gate, the bagel shop that has the driest bagels across from B14, the blue seats and the hidden bar all felt so familiar. 

perhaps the most interesting thing that happened while in o'hare was my enormous desire to board a plane to denver. because i haven't flown at all since moving back here, the equivalent to "flying home" still means "flying to denver." of course, my trips to vermont have always been flying "home" but in the visit-my-roots sense rather than return-to-my-life. BTV doesn't feel like my home airport in the way that denver did, yet. i'm accustomed to getting into denver, finding my car in the pike's peak lot, and starting the 3 hours drive up 70 and into the mountains as the sun sets, returning to steamboat late at night and dropping my bags either to go to sleep or reunite with friends. on this occasion, landing in vermont meant getting picked up by two of my favorite ladies, and driving back to montpelier. last night was my first night in montpelier with both my parents & brett out of town, and i must admit-- this whole "flying east to go home" experience has left me more homesick for my colorado life than i have been in a long time. today has been a quiet day enjoying reading, coffee & laundry and for that i am grateful. but it's also given me too much time to think, and recall how it might have felt to go west to go home instead. 

working away the rain.

the only way to bring myself to read grant proposals on this rainy holiday afternoon: ben & jerry's chubby hubby ice cream with my favorite spoon, and the weepies playing on my computer.

campfires & bike gears.

remember when i left this mystery post?

here's where we went. our summer had so far been lacking any camping, so we took advantage of a rare weekend together to head out for camping and biking. the weather was looking questionable so i went ahead and found a shelter for us to stay in. we are talking car camping it all of its glory. it wasn't exactly the wilderness camping we did in steamboat, or the backpacking i've spent many days doing, but it was wonderful to sleep outdoors and cook over a fire. and in the morning after an early swim, we happened to find a great bike trail just past the campsite and embarked on a little adventure.