fall favorites // GABF + Denver!

Through Hunter's brewery we were able to snag Great American Beer Festival tickets before they were opened up to the public which is a big whoo hoo! as they typically sell out in 15 minutes or less.  So crazy!  We bought the max tickets we could, 4, the day they were opened up to us and decided the Who What Where When Why would just figure itself out later.

Hunter, his dad, their friend Dean and myself { the Who of the weekend } met up downtown Denver Saturday morning and the GABF { the What } festivities began!  Hunter's dad has the hookup with a 21st floor condo in downtown Denver { the Where } so we stayed in the heart of Denver all weekend.  We extended our trip through Monday to make a long weekend out of it. { the When }.  And the Why?....well because, craft beer that's why.

I'd been to two GABF's in the past { back before it got to be such a huge event GABF would donate tickets to my old work in exchange for production time to promote the event } and I'm not ashamed to admit my main goal in attending those Festivals was simple: Drink as much beer as possible.  This time around, it was a far different { better! } experience going with 3 beer aficionados.  GABF had rolled out a new mobile app since I'd been, so the 3 men had spent a lot of time mapping out which booths we needed to hit up. It was far more organized going with them than my other 2 visits and this time I felt like I got so much more out of the evening!  We saw tons of breweries that we'd been to on our travels, spent some time with the Steamboat breweries that were represented at the Festival, ran into some friends and all around really enjoyed the evening and experience.  When we left GABF for the night, we went to Wazee Supper Club for some grub { a fool proof Denver favorite! } and when it came time to order drinks, the 3 of us in unplanned unison said WHAT DO YOU HAVE THAT ISN'T BEER?!  Ha!  Needless to say, we'd beer'ed ourselves out for the day.

It was a stunning fall weekend in Denver and it felt good to be city dwellers again for a few days!  Before/after our GABF Saturday night session, we enjoyed a few tried and true favorites { Wynkoop Brewery + City o' City + Wazee Supper Club + Brooklyn's + Scratch } and indulged in some new-to-me dinning { Jelly }.  All weekend long we walked blocks and blocks and I soaked up all the sights that hold countless Denver memories for me.  Sunday morning, Ashley + Sara + Jaime and I met up at Jelly for brunch.  Those truly were some of the best 5 hours of the weekend.  The 4 of us hold an  astounding amount of memories, inside jokes, respect for one another, love and laughter.  We were coined The 20 Something's when we all worked together and were { and still are! } thick as thieves.  A morning with these ladies was exactly what I needed.  I'm still riding out the pure bliss that comes from calling them my best friends.

Jaime also got Hunter, Bob and I on the list for the bitchin' tailgate that my old employer/her current employer hosts for each home Broncos game.  The tailgates are always thrown with such flair and there is a general buzz of excitement/anticipation in the air with all the Broncos fans in attendance.  The tailgate was a double whammy because not only do we love Broncos, we love tailgates { read: free beer + food }, but we love Jaime and Ryan and we love the opportunity to spend as much time with them while in Denver as we can.  At the tailgate, I was also able to catch up with several old coworkers whom I've known for 7+ years which is always a kick in the pants.  Somehow we found ourselves hidden in a storage shed with an old friend taking Jagger shots and it felt just like the old days.  After the tailgate we hopped a pedicab to a nearby bar for game time.

Hunter and I were able to pick up a few boxes of storage/items that were still at Sara's house from when we on/off lived with her over the past few years and made a trip to went crazy at Target for items we would need for our new house.  { it's amazing what seeing the inside of a Target does to a girl who had to quit the Target habit it cold turkey. }

The weekend was perfectly perfect.

fall favorites // my james!

We had a vvvvvvery special guest come visit us at the beginning of September - my best friend Jaime took  made the trek up from Denver to Steamboat for the weekend!  

James got to Steamboat lickity split on Friday and pulled up at the house just a few minutes before I got home from work.  As I was rounding the corner and saw their familiar vehicle in the driveway, I instantly teared up.  When I saw her beaming beautiful smiling face behind the steering wheel, the tears started flowing.  I always feel incredibly thankful when dear friends take the time to come up to our neck of the woods for a visit and quite simply, I had been missing my James.

After we got the hugs and tears out of the way, we settled in for some champagne { Sofia - our very favorite! }, cheese + crackers + girl talk.  After talking, talking and more talking - we eventually headed downtown for First Friday ArtWalk which was so special to me.  Jaime, Ryan and I along with her sister Gina and my mom have quite the history of amazing memories held at ArtWalks.  I was over the moon when I realized that Jaime would be in Steamboat for First Friday!  We all went when my mom was in Denver nearly 4 years ago, and no joke at least once a months my mom still brings up how much fun we all had.  Plus, the hilarity of a trip to ArtWalk I went on with Jaime, Gina and Ryan are still some of the greatest inside jokes we reference to this day.  Anyway - James and I had the most fun moseying around downtown Steamboat, drinks in hand among the crisp air and setting sun.  We ended up at Aurum for a shared dinner around the outdoor fireplace with delicious mixed drinks flowing.  The night ended with a long soak in the hot tub, still talking each other's ears off.  It was one of those nights that was a beautiful reminder of it doesn't matter how many days, weeks or months that pass, the bond between best friends never fades - rather grows quite a bit stronger.

We woke up the next morning and set off to Freshie's which isn't just a favorite of Hunter and I's, but also happens to be Jaime's favorite breakfast joint in town!  After we dinned, we changed and jumped into the truck for a short drive out of town to show Jaime some Steamboat hikes that you just don't know about unless you are with a local.  The timing of the hike was right as the aspens were starting to turn yellows and oranges, so the views were incredible.  The trail was ours and ours alone { save for a group of 3 we bumped into while hiking }.  We talked, we laughed, we enjoyed the comfort of quiet that really can only be found between dear friends.  

Another reason I was extra thrilled that James was in Steamboat that particular weekend was because one of Hunter and I's favorite breweries, was hosting a Farm to Table Dinner!  I knew it was right up our alley and bought tickets without giving it a second thought.  Sadly, Jaime's husband couldn't make it due to a last minute work commitment.  This was the part of the trip where he was missed the most as I just know he would have loved drinking round after round { after round after round } of local beer and hearing about the local produce + meats that were prepared for us.  We thought it was hilarious to keep talking as if Ryan was with us - He just ran to the bathroom!  He took a little longer nap.  He'll  be right back!  We got the smallest { seriously....the smallest } table available and laughed our way through the 3+ hour long meal.  Things started to get a little weird towards the end when every.single.volunteer.worker.there. reminded us time and time and timeandtimeandtime again that we could take our drinking glasses home with us but! it wasn't until they announced the table settings were also available to take home that I got out of control.  THE FLOWERS WERE IN MASON JARS and screw the flowers, I wanted those jars.  I may have gotten so worked up on this fact that it wasn't until we jumped in a cab and were a good 5 minutes from the brewery that I realized I had completely abandoned my cell phone at the bar where I picked up said free flower arrangements { and one really weird candle holder that I still am perplexed by to this day }.  We then took Jaime to another local favorite - The Laundry, where we enjoyed more beautifully mixed drinks { and talked more about how much Ryan would have loved the restaurant }.  We hoped around town to Carl's { too much DJ and unsunsunsunsuns jams, less leisure vibe } then ended at The BARley { which had zero unsunsunsuns jams and wonderful leisure } before a quick walk home.  

Our time with James was short on Sunday as she had to be back in Denver for a work commitment.  We got up and I served up my favorite breakfast potato scramble along with a fresh green juice and we sent her on her pretty little way.  Even typing this out almost 2 months later, I still feel the strong love and thankfulness that I felt that very weekend.  This is a woman whom I adore and have adored since the day we met 7+ years ago.  Her in her pinstripe pants and polka dot shirt, me { nervous and sweating } in my tweed skirt and black button down shirt that was missing buttons.  Jaime and I hit it off in a really beautiful way my first day of work at my past job and have quite literally been inseparable since.  We stay up to date on each other's lives with weekly emails, FaceTime calls, phone calls and text messages.  We never fail to leave out even the smallest detail that might not matter to anyone else, but it matters to us.  

See Jaime's trip recap here!  Though mine is quite a bit late in publishing, it is one of those memories and trips that I wanted on this blog to reflect back on in the years to come.  I am simply giddy as we are already planning her and Ryan's return trip to Steamboat in a few short weeks!  Eeepppp!  

Cheers to the very best of friends!