Fall Trip to Colorado

Last weekend, Houston and I made a quick trip up to Colorado. We just needed to get away for a few days and we wanted to go somewhere to see some Fall colors. If you have never been up to the Durango/Silverton/Telluride area in October, it is just breathtaking. Coming from the desert, you don't get to see vibrant colors like the ones you'll find up there. The drive is not bad at all once you pass the Indian Reservation. I've been going up to this area since I was a kid but you just don't appreciate it like you do when you're older. Now I know why my mom and all of her family loved coming up here every summer so much. My uncle and aunt live in this area and although we did not get a chance to see them on this trip, we will be coming up again to visit soon I'm sure. This was Houston's first time up here and I can imagine that it will be very easy to convince him to head back up. As we made our way into Telluride, we drove through the cute little towns of Dolores, CO and Rico, CO, I love this ranch...

Here is Houston in Telluride...we headed into a small brewery for some Colorado beer and to watch some Sunday football. When we finished here, we went up the Gondola to Mountain Village (aka Little Switzerland).

From the top of the mountain in Telluride is the cutest town...Mountain Village, CO. The views from the Gondola are just beautiful...

One of my favorite spots up there to take photos...my mom and I have a picture right here from our trip in June, except for it was bright green behind us.
The view from the road leaving Telluride...we finished driving on the "million dollar road" through Ridgway, Ouray, Silverton until we got to our hotel, the Durango Mountain Resort at Purgatory in Durango, CO. Our room was so adorable! It's actually someone's townhome that they rent out so it had a little kitchen and the most amazing view you could ask for. The air was crisp, clean and so refreshing. The weather on the entire trip was exactly what we needed after a summer that wouldn't quite in the hot AZ desert. The next morning we woke up and got on the Durango/Silverton Train which took us to places I had never seen before. Through canyons along the Animas river...it truly was amazing! We were on an open air train, so it was chilly but so worth it. Here are some pics along the way...

Loved this canyon...

Fall leaves everywhere! Loved this pic! Here we are below at the Silverton depot, we stopped and walked to a few different restaurants/bars for a few cocktails :)

The two pictures above are from the balcony of our room...I think I could get used to waking up to this every morning...

This was on the road out to downtown Durango...looks like it should be on a calendar, minus the power lines. It was a wonderful trip with my hubby and so glad we squeezed it into our schedules.

Erica's Bachelorette Party

My beautiful friend Erica is getting married in a few weeks, so we went out to celebrate a little bit before she ties the knot. We had a really nice dinner at Aunt Chilladas, then put on some crazy wigs for a night on the town. Here are a few pics from the night. Congratulations Erica and we are all so happy for you and Brandon. You deserve this! Wedding pics to come soon...

Celebrating Kristen's 27th Birthday

I was able to celebrate with my best friend Kristen and her family on her 27th birthday a few weeks ago. Her husband, Brian, did a great job planning the event! Thanks for an awesome night of bowling, laughs and catching up. Love you guys!

Why I Love My Job

This brides wedding was back in February of this year but I just can't stop looking at the photos. Her photographer was Pangburn Photography, who are absolutely incredible! Keith Perry Photography also came out to take a few shots of the property to showcase the little details of the reception and did a great job as well. Her name is Nicole Turner and she was the 2007 Miss Arizona. Obviously she is gorgeous but she is probably one of the sweetest individuals you will ever meet. She put a lot of time and energy into every detail of her wedding and truly captured the beauty of Blackstone. Nicole, it was such a pleasure working with you to plan your very special day. I hope my future brides are just as much fun to work with as you were! I hope you and Jake are loving married life together.

Birthdays Last Month

Houston and I both celebrated birthdays last month, Houston's being the BIG 30!! Luckily, we both got to celebrate a few times. I started off my birthday at breakfast with my family and a few friends. Then we spent most of the 4th up in Prescott walking in the downtown area...and then finished off the day with my mom, cousin Nicole and Houston watching fireworks in Peoria. Definitely had a great birthday, hard to believe I'm another year older. Seems like I'm approaching 30 way too fast. At least I know I will always be a few years younger than my husband :) Houston then surprised me with a birthday dinner with my family and a bunch of our friends, which was awesome! I was completely surprised. Thank you to all of you who shared it with me. For Houston's birthday, I took him to the Bass Pro Shop for dinner. The food was amazing and the restaurant was so cool inside, it reminds me of how I want my cabin in the woods built! Then I surprised him with a big group of us going down to the Diamondbacks game sitting up on the balcony of the TGI Fridays for dinner and to watch the game. Good times! I would highly recommend this if you've never done it. We also went out to Tempe for dinner at the Four Peaks Brewing Co and a comedy show with our friends Dan and Ellie. Comedy shows are so much fun to go to and I always leave there saying that I wasn't expecting it to be as funny as it was. Thanks Dan and Ellie! We love you guys!