Beaver Creek and Vail Colorado Trip

*This post contains affiliate links. When you click a link, it is no cost to you and I make a small commission (pennies) from it. Thank you for supporting Sparkles and Lattes.  

I realized I never wrote about my Colorado trip. Sometimes life gets in the way and we forget things. But this was a very fun weekend that I definitely want to document. 

The reason we went to Avon/Beaver Creek, Colorado was for Rory's company holiday party. We left the girls and Walter with my in-laws and flew to Vail, Colorado on a Friday. After arriving in Vail, we drove to Avon, which is about 15 minutes away. We checked into the Westin (which takes you right up to the ski resort via the gondola in the back of the hotel), got settled, changed and went downstairs to meet some of Rory's co-workers.

We met at the hotel bar and met two co-workers and a spouse of one of theirs. These were co-workers from the Grand Junction office. Oh and I also want to mention really quick, if you need a home loan/mortgage or a refinance, my husband is licensed in Nevada, California, Colorado, Florida and soon-to-be in Arizona.

Anyways, we had some drinks down at the bar and were all trying to decide what to do for dinner. Some of Rory's Reno co-workers were doing dinner in a yurt and others we were waiting for them to arrive.

My boots, pants, blazer, shirt (old)

Once our Reno friends arrived, we all had another drink, more chats and then went to dinner at Maya (which is a modern Mexican restaurant in the hotel). The food was really good for dinner. I got the mole carnitas tacos and we all shared a fondue chorizo, table side guacamole and salsas.

After dinner, we all headed to a locals bar called Bob's which was open until 2 am. It was so much fun. We had about 10 of us there. Did I mention that it had been snowing when we arrived and we had to walk to the bar? Well, we walked in heels, booties and dress shoes in the snow, so that meant it took awhile to walk there and back even though it was only a 6 minute walk from the hotel.

We got back around 12:30 am and went to bed. I woke up feeling great but a few people had hangovers. Ha. We got ready and met downstairs at 10 am for breakfast and some sightseeing. 

We went to Load Joes for breakfast, then back to the hotel. We took the gondola up to the first Beaver Creek landing and then a free shuttle to the Beaver Creek village. This is where I bought those amazing Sorel boots which are still on sale for $149.

We shopped around and then headed back to the hotel to meet some of our friends and co-workers. We also facetimed the girls there out on the patio.

After our check-in with family and friends, we headed over to Vail. Now Vail has a way bigger village and we were sad that we didn't get as much time there, but we still made the most out of it. We did more shopping, ate a slice of pizza (since dinner wasn't until 6:30) and took a ton of photos.

Around 4:30, we headed back to our hotel since we had to get ready for the holiday party. While getting ready, we watched the rest of the Bengals versus Titans game which was really good. Then we headed downstairs around 5:30 to the downstairs ball room. 

We met up with friends and Rory's co-workers from all over the Western region and had appetizers and drinks before going into dinner. Now we started watching the Niners versus Packers game at 6 pm on mute, but it was on at our table...on three phones.

We had dinner, they did a raffle, there was a presentation for a local children's cancer ward (that everyone donated too), dancing, and watching the end of the game which was really intense and so much fun!

After dinner, we took some photos, went upstairs to change back into our clothes from earlier in the day and went back to Bob's to celebrate a Niners win and a fun evening out with Bay Equity. We brought 29 people with us back to Bob's that evening and had the best time. 

This is only a few people that we went with. Rory was talking to someone, and a few others who work with Rory day in and day out were missing from the photo too.

This was at Bob's celebrating a Niners win!

Rory and I left Bob's at midnight because we had a plane to catch the next day. Other's stayed out until 4 am and woke up with a major hangover again. Ha.

We woke up, got ready, packed our bags and then went downstairs to Maya for breakfast with some co-workers who were still around and either lived in Colorado or were flying home with us. And some co-workers had to have a few hair of the dog drinks to feel better. I will save those photos as to not embarrass them. Ha.

We drove back to the Vail airport, watched more playoff games, flew to Denver and then flew home! It was a very fun weekend with some great people.

Friday Favorites and Happenings

*This post contains affiliate links. When you click a link, it is no cost to you and I make a small commission (pennies) from it. Thank you for supporting Sparkles and Lattes.

Happy Friday all! I am soooo behind on blog reading, responding to my comments and just being on the internet this week. I plan to do that today.

Anyways, onto Friday favorites and Happenings.

ONE. So one reason I have been away this week is on the way home from work on Tuesday, I heard a loud bang in my car. I moved over to the middle lane of traffic and heard another bang but this time it sounded like something dropping. So I moved over to the far right and into the shoulder....of the freeway that has a drop of about 50 to 100 yards below it. 

I checked my car for any check engine lights, any car status updates, checked the oil gauge, checked the tire pressure and tire status and everything looked great. So what happened? I climbed over to the passenger side of my car, carefully got out and took a look at my car. And guess what? My tire blew apart. The tread came off the side wall. 

So I called Rory and then Volvo road side assistance...and waited. I sweated a lot in the two hours I spent on the side of the road as semis, cars and trucks flew by me at 70+ mph.

Eventually road side assistance got there, changed my tire and I drove to Volvo to drop off my car. And it wasn't until I drove for a bit that my TPMS system came on. Even after my tire was blown apart, there was no air in it, there was damage to my car, and it sat on for over an hour after this happened, that nothing came on until miles late. BS. That is what the TPMS is for. It alerts of a leak/decrease in tire pressure and for it to not go off when a tire was blown up is insane. 

So now I am dealing with Volvo, my car insurance and my tire manufacturer. Not the way I wanted to spend the last 3 days. Ugh.

Doesn't look like much but that is down to the base of the car and can't just be buffed out. Also, this photo and the next were taken the day after as I was stuck until 6:30 when it was dark out already.

TWO. And in the midst of all of this, I am trying to get ready for a charity event I have tomorrow night. If you remember, I said I was ordering from Rent the Runway for this event. Well I got my order in early, which I made sure that it didn't need to go back early because I need it for this weeks event.

And since I was having a rough few days, I tried on the dresses and hoped one fit and made me feel like a million bucks. And guess what, one did fit. The other size did fit, but I don't think I could have sat down in it. So remember to always read the reviews for sizing up or down and your correct size.

Here is a peak at what I will be wearing on Saturday night.

THREE. And I had to get my nails done for the event. Ok, it wasn't really for the event, but just time to get them done. I was going to go for something that matched my dress, but I went for something more ME and Valentine's like. I like pink everyday, so I went with a pink and heart theme.

FOUR. Last weekend I co-hosted a baby shower and we had the cutest cake. It is from the same baker that did my girls 7th birthday cake. Check out how cute these cakes are!

FIVE. Weekly funnies.

Have a great weekend. I am linking up with A Little Bit of Everything.  

Romantic Dinner Ideas

We are going to stay in for dinner on Valentine's Day. So I started searching around for dinner ideas. Something at home, but special. I thought I would share some of the ideas I came up with.

1. King Crab Legs with Roasted Carrots and Twice Baked Potatoes

Baked King Crab Legs

I have not used this King Crab Leg recipe, but it gets amazing reviews. I usually steam mine with beer, lemon, cajun seasoning, etc. But baking them would make things easier since I always have problems with not having a big enough pot.

Roasted Carrots

I have made these carrots many different times. The recipe has two recipes in it. One sweet and one savory. I have had both and love them both. And my girls love them too.

Cheesy Twice Baked Potatoes

I made these on NYE and we loved them. 

2. Reversed Seared Filet and Garlic Butter Shrimp

Reversed Seared Filet (Steak)

Filet is my favorite. And when one of our friends introduced us to the reverse sear method, I am hooked. If I have steak at home, this is how I want it. Now you can pair these two dishes with the above sides or add in some grilled/oven baked asparagus.

Garlic Butter Shrimp

Shrimp and steak go well together. And I am all about the garlic and butter. This would pair so well with the reverse seared steak.

3. Seafood Pasta with Roasted Veggies

Seafood Pasta with Roasted Veggies

I have never had this pasta but it sounds amazing. It has all the makings of a good seafood dish that I love. And it is pasta. Who doesn't love pasta? 

4. Brown Butter Scallops with Parmesan Risotto

Brown Butter Scallops with Parmesan Risotto

I love Pinch of Yum's recipes and there is a reason this one gets almost 5 stars from over 90 reviews. She always has the best risotto recipes and this one is killer!

5. Fig Ravioli with Brown Butter and Crispy Prosciutto

Fig Ravioli with Brown Butter and Crispy Prosciutto

I love raviolis and this combo sounds really good. I haven't tried it, but it has great reviews.

6. Nobu's Miso-Marinated Black Cod

Nobu's Miso-Marinated Black Cod

This dish is a favorite from Nobu and while I haven't tried the recreation, I sooo want too. Doesn't this sound amazing?

7. Carbone's Spicy Rigatoni Vodka

Carbone's Spicy Rigatoni Vodka

I have made this and it is everything. It definitely lives up to Carbone's original one. I added pancetta to it and we all devoured it. I also only had red pepper flakes instead of calabrian chilis, so I added red pepper flakes. And I added less to the sauce and then added more to Rory's and mine after it was done cooking.

What are your dinner plans for Valentine's Day? Are you staying in or going out?

Show Me Your Books - January

*This post contains affiliate links. When you click a link, it is no cost to you and I make a small commission (pennies) from it. Thank you for supporting Sparkles and Lattes. 

Today is one of my dearest friends birthday. Happy Birthday April!

I read one book last month. I don't know what it is, but I am slacking in the book reading department. I love reading and once I am sucked into a book, I read it quickly. But if I am busy, or have a good show that I want to watch, I don't pick up my book (or kindle) much.

So what did I read last month?

Pretty Little Wife - Darby Kane
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
Rating: 4 1/2 stars

Pretty Little Wife - Darby Kane

I was pretty excited to read this book after another blogger mentioned it. I don't remember who that was though. More than likely it was Dara.

Lila and Aaron move to a college town, so Aaron could focus on his teaching career. Lila leaves behind her past and her career as an attorney to become a real estate agent. This town has secrets. College students are missing and now Lila's husband is missing. And now a famous podcaster wants to profile this town and the missing persons. Who will uncover what happened? What really did happen?

I enjoyed this book. It gets going quickly and I didn't call the ending. I did see one twist, but it wasn't the big twist. I didn't see the big twist coming at all and really enjoyed the ending of the book. I gave it 4 1/2 stars. I am not sure if I have ever given a book 5 stars.

Here is Amazon's synopsis:

Lila Ridgefield lives in an idyllic college town, but not everything is what it seems. Lila isn't what she seems.
A student vanished months ago. Now, Lila's husband, Aaron, is also missing. At first these cases are treated as horrible coincidences until it's discovered the student is really the third of three unexplained disappearances over the last few years. The police are desperate to find the connection, if there even is one. Little do they know they might be stumbling over only part of the truth....

With the small town in an uproar, everyone is worried about the whereabouts of their beloved high school teacher. Everyone except Lila, his wife. She's definitely confused about her missing husband but only because she was the last person to see his body, and now it's gone.

And that's it for this month. I started reading The Therapist by B.A. Paris, but didn't get through it before it had to be returned. And it isn't because it is a slow book, I just borrowed it while I was still finishing the above book. So now I have to wait to finish it and I just started For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing.

Friday Favorites and Happenings

*This post contains affiliate links. When you click a link, it is no cost to you and I make a small commission (pennies) from it. Thank you for supporting Sparkles and Lattes.

Happy Friday all! I have a very busy weekend ahead of me. Nothing really going on today, but tomorrow I am co-hosting a baby shower and Sunday we have a birthday party to attend. It is at the same place that the girls had their birthday party at. But this time I get to jump and enjoy the party rather than hosting it.

What are your weekend plans?

Onto Friday favorites and Happenings.

ONE. This weekend I am co-hosting a baby shower for a friend. She is having another little boy and some friends and I are throwing her a shower. The little ones theme is baby Star Wars. So in honor of her theme, I got baby Yoda bottle openers as a party favor. Check out how cute these are.

Baby Yoda Baby Shower Favors

TWO.  Next weekend I have a charity event for stopping sex trafficking/human and kids trafficking. I have never been to this event even though it has been going on for about 3 years minus last year due to Covid. 

I feel like I have gone to a ton of formal events lately and I keep buying dresses. Oh and this one wants you to have a fur something too. Luckily, my friend is lending me her fur coat (no it's not real) and I went searching for a dress. I found several cute ones, but the price just has me wanting to not pull the trigger.

I have always wanted to use Rent the Runway, and now worked out for me. I used the code GETDRESSED for 20% off my first rental.

So what did I rent? And how much did it cost? $42 and change and I got a free back-up size.

Blue Cutout Gown by Likely

THREE. So remember how I wanted some Kendra Scott items for Christmas and I got them? Well I got two pairs of the earrings, so I returned one pair (from Rory) and I waited FOREVER for the return to be accepted and get a gift card to buy something new. Well, after they received my return on the 5th, I got my gift card this week. So help me chose which necklace to get in exchange.

Beaded Elisa Gold Pendant

Beaded Ansley Heart Gold Necklace

FOUR. So I was all ready for the Niners game last weekend. We all wore our Niners gear. I even got my nails done in a Niners theme. And they lost. Such a sad day. But there is always next year. 

Here are some fun snaps from last weekend before our awful loss. Thanks Jimmy.

My boots are still on sale and even a better price now. Click here for 40% off.

The girls at their riding lesson wearing Niner dresses that are too small so now they are shirts.

FIVE. Weekly funnies.

This is definitely how I felt on Monday.

Have a great weekend. I am linking up with A Little Bit of Everything. 

Valentine's Day Inspired Clothes

*This post contains affiliate links. When you click a link, it is no cost to you and I make a small commission (pennies) from it. Thank you for supporting Sparkles and Lattes. 

Happy Groundhog's Day! Let's hope for a cloudy day today, so we get an early Spring! I am so over this cold. It is only supposed to be in the 30s here today.

And can you believe that Valentine's day is less than 2 weeks away? I feel like we just celebrated Christmas. We don't have any big plans this year. V-Day is on a Monday and maybe we will cook something exciting at home. Kind of like our at home New Year's Eve.

But I do have to work that day, so I went searching for some cute things to wear to work, at home, or out for date night.

Enjoy!

Heart Dress  |  Heart Sweater  |  Red/White Heart Sweater  |  Pink Blouse  |  Pink Faux Fur Sweater

Love Sweater  |  Heart Cardigan  |  Love T-Shirt  |  Love You More Shirt

The top row is from Loft and they are currently having a sale on all those items (and more). They are offering 30% off with the code BRRR.

The Love sweater is currently on sale for 30% off. No code needed.

The Love T-Shirt is also on clearance for $13.99. And you can get an extra 50% off with code SALETIME.

And the Love You More shirt is on sale for $12. No code needed.