L--O--V--E
S U M M E R

Ballet Recital

Addison and Olivia had a ballet recital this weekend.
Their performance was in Boulder on Saturday afternoon- it was fantastic!
The girls both love being on stage- they did such a great job.
They have really enjoyed being in the same ballet classes this year.
They are best friends. D-A-R-L-I-N-G.

S-W-E-E-T-I-E-S

We were not allowed to take pictures during the performance or dress rehearsal.
I was able to take a picture of the final bow after the performance.
They are in the front row, far right.
Loved it.

Addison's Tennis Lessons- She's a Pro.

Memorial Day Weekend

School is out and it's time to play!

We kicked off summer vacation at
E-l-i-t-c-h G-a-r-d-e-n-s.
Brad surprised us with season passes!
Our family loves amusement parks.
It was a blast.
So excited for summer!

Addison, Ella and Olivia
-Loved it.

Sweet Baby Ava- LOVE HER!

Addie's favorite ride-

They just made it through a HUGE wave.
They were soaked :)

Monday was the Bolder Boulder 10K.
It was a really great race.
Can't wait to run it next year.

Ella, Ava, Addison and Olivia

Ava- 9 months

Ella- 4 years

Olivia- 6 years

Addison- 8 years

Our Sweeties.

We had a "vintage photo shoot" earlier this week.

Ava had a lot of fun shots...sweet baby.

Springtime

Spring is here and we are loving it.

The weather has been fabulous- so warm.

We love tulips and each year we look for tulip gardens.

Our favorite- the lovely tulip gardens in downtown Boulder.

Over 15,000 tulips adorn Pearl Street.

The colors are vibrant and beautiful.

We have been frequent visitors this year-

the flowers are s-t-u-n-n-i-n-g.

We attended Boulder's annual Tulip Festival.

It began with a Tulip Fairy parade.

Tulip Fairies led the kids down Pearl Street "waking the tulips for spring".

After the parade, the fairies gave special gifts to each of the participants.

It was a delight. Our girls had such a great time(especially Ella).

D-a-r-l-i-n-g!

Mother's Day weekend was so great.

Brad and I went biking in Boulder Canyon on Saturday(my request for Mother's Day).

It was f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c.

My girls gave me a new North Face jacket, running shoes and guitar lessons.

I am so excited about guitar lessons!

We ended the weekend with a few crazy photos on our iMac. haha

I adore being a mom. We have a lot of energy in our home. :)

Life couldn't be better.

My new favorite salad dressing recipe-tastes like Springtime. :)

*Olive Oil

*Agave Nectar

*Lemon Juice

*Ground Coriander

*Ground Cayenne Red Pepper

*Salt and Pepper

Put it on a bed of Kale and other favorite veggies....DELISH.

WORK WITH DAD

Addison and Olivia had an opportunity to go to work with
Brad this week (school project).
They were both able to miss a full day of school and
spend that time learning all about being a lawyer.
They have an amazing dad.
He worked very long hours throughout
the week to make this day possible.
The girls loved their day together- so did he.

First stop was the Jefferson County Courthouse.
They took a tour, looked inside the courtrooms
and became sheriff's deputies for the day.
They were fascinated.

They finished their day at Brad's office at Interlocken.
They felt very important acting as his "legal assistants" for a while.
The highlight of the day- the y-u-m-m-o hot chocolate
from the break room (they are still talking about it).
It was a great experience for them. Thanks Brad! So fun.

Ava- 8 months old

This little lady is the center
of attention at our house.

She is already 8 months old!
She is a sweetie- so cheerful-so easy.
We absolutely adore her!

Enough said.

BEFORE
(I need a new hiding spot for my scissors)

AFTER

Colorado Springs

This weekend we took a trip to Colorado Springs.

We spent the weekend hiking, swimming and exploring with the kiddos. The trip was fabulous-so sunny, relaxing and beautiful! Loved it.

Manitou Cliff Dwellings

Seven Falls
Our Favorite

Bolder Boulder

The Bolder Boulder is in less than 8 weeks!
Brad and I are really excited to run in this race!!
We will be running with 12 other couples.
It is going to be a blast!
The Bolder Boulder is a 10k race in Boulder, Colorado
with over 50,000 runners.
The race is lined with over 30 entertainers-
bands, circus acts, weddings, impersonators, dancers, etc.
It is a party. Can't wait.

We started training on Monday. :)
My good friend gave me a great idea for a
"power breakfast" before my morning run-
a breakfast smoothie loaded with fruits and veggies.
I absolutely LOVE this smoothie.
It keeps me going all morning and my family loves it too!
RECIPE
1 C Water
1 C Kale
1/2 of an apple
1/2 of a cucumber
1 ripe banana
1/4 C frozen blueberries
1/4 C frozen raspberries
D-E-L-I-S-H

Happy Birthday Ella!

Our sweet little Ella is four years old!

After attending Disney On Ice a few weeks ago,
Ella has been set on having a "royal celebration" with a lot of pink!
This weekend we celebrated with 10 of Ella's cute little friends.
They were darling!
I love planning princess parties-
with a family full of girls we have had our share.
So much fun.
Happy Birthday Ella!

Our sweet little princess requested a birthday cake with a "sparkly crown" on top.
She was so excited to finally take the crown off of the cake.
She has been wearing it day and night. What a sweetheart!

Our little darlings are growing up!
Life is so good.

Redo #2

So, Saturday morning I told Brad that I thought our coffee table was boring-a little too country-needs some color.
He laughed and knew what was coming next...
another redo.
I painted it a greenish/greyish/bluish and glazed it with walnut. It is hard to see the actual color in the picture. I love the vintage knobs. I think I'll keep it like this for a while. Maybe :)

Furniture Redo

BEFORE

This week I found a storage coffee table on Craigslist.
So... I sent Brad on over to check it out.
He liked it, he paid for it and I painted it the next day.
I think it turned out great. $50.00

AFTER

Our favorite part and the selling point for Brad...
not only does it provide storage space, it folds out into a table.
H i l a r i o u s.
Can't wait to try it out this weekend:
dinner and a board game in front of a movie.
Love it.

Up next:
Craigslist $40
A stand for our television.
I am thinking...dark vintage knobs and a light
greenish/bluish/greyish paint-glazed with walnut stain.
Who knows!?! Can't wait.

This week I celebrated my birthday.
I love my birthday, Brad always makes the day so great. He is the best!
The minute I woke up in the morning, he put a
birthday crown on my head (with blinking lights) and I was the queen for the day.
It was w o n d e r f u l.
That night Brad took me to a great sushi restaurant. My favorite.
We topped the night off with a very delicious dark-chocolate cake with
ganache frosting and chocolate-dipped strawberries.
( my 3 sweet kitchen helpers assisted me in making my cake).
The day could not have been better.

On Thursday I celebrated with a group of amazing ladies!
My good friends took me out to dinner and surprised me
with a Charming Charlie gift card.
LOVE IT!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!


R E C I P E
Dark-Chocolate Cake with Ganache Frosting

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans

1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa (spooned and leveled), plus more for pans

2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar

2 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks, room temperature

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup low-fat buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans; dust with cocoa, tapping out excess. Line bottom of each pan with a round of parchment paper; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition; beat in chocolate and vanilla. With mixer on low, alternately add flour mixture in three parts and buttermilk in two, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
3. Divide batter between prepared pans; smooth tops. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in pans 15 minutes; run a knife around edge of each pan, and invert cakes onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Set a rimmed baking sheet upside down on a work surface. Place one cake on sheet, and spread top with 1/3 of ganache. Place second cake on top, and spread remaining ganache over top and sides of cake. Using two wide metal spatulas, carefully transfer frosted cake to a serving platter.

Ganache

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 pound bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, bring 2 cups heavy cream, 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, and 1/8 teaspoon salt to a boil. Remove from heat; add 1 pound bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped, and let stand, without stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk just until combined. Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until spreadable, about 1 hour.

Happy Birthday Olivia!

Our girls really love the American Girl dolls.
I do too. I enjoy reading about history and have really liked reading the American Girl books with my girls. We check out new books each week from the library. We are so excited to have a store here in Denver. Brad and I took Olivia on a date this weekend to visit the American Girl store and to pick out a doll for her birthday. She picked the Kit Kittredge doll, one of the historical characters in the books that we have been reading. We just finished the book titled, "Happy Birthday, Kit". Olivia has been counting down the days to her birthday and to her trip to the American Girl store. She treasures her new doll! Kit has not left her side.
Saturday we had Oliva's birthday party with her friends and family.
We have fun celebrating birthdays and decided to have a "Sweet Shoppe" this year.
Our little Olivia is SO SWEET. We could not think of a better theme to suit her. :)

Olivia requested a "pinkalicious" cake. When I asked her what she meant by pinkalicious, she said that she wanted a "pink and fluffy cake". I attempted Martha Stewart's pink ruffle cake. Hmm...not quite Martha, but Olivia loved it. We had twelve lovely guests and a plethora of candy. We played Sweet Shoppe Bingo, Candy Land, doughnut drop, colored a birthday cake and made candy necklaces. At the end of the party, everyone filled their gift bags with as many sweet treats as they possibly could! It was a S-W-E-E-T celebration. The kids were adorable.

Olivia and Kit in front of the Sweet Shoppe

A gift from Grandma- Olivia's new chalkboard

She has been busy playing school with her sisters! So fun.