Nothing beats good friends and family!

Reason #713 why I love summer....you get to catch up with great friends from far away places.  As soon as I got home from Crested Butte some friends from Florida came to visit Anastasia and I.

Audery (whom I had gotten to know really well at Anastasia's wedding and from a previous spring break trip) and her friend Kiana came to Steamboat!!! We were tourists, did some shopping, made pizzas and went out on the town.  What a fun couple of days to catch up with long distance friends!

As soon as the girls left Tamara and Leo showed up from Germany with twins in tow! This visit from one of my closest and most missed friends was such a treat. 

I actually had a lot of quality time with just Tamara as well as significant time with Leo and the kids to feel connected to their amazing new family additions.  Malina and Emmitt are as cute as can be, Emmitt being a little more willing to doll out his smiles and Malina making you work a little more to earn her precious smile. 

Tamara and I got to hike to the top of the gondola with just the two of us which allowed for so much quality girl talk time especially if you know the two of us...we could have done it twice and still had tons to talk about. 

We got to get lattes together with the twin nuggets!.....

 We went tubing on the Yampa with Tom and Becky and then of course hit Sun Pies to cap off a classic steamboat day with a hurricane!

And we even got to see the Drive By Truckers at the free concert with the whole family!!!

Oh boy...do I miss these people!  What a great Steamboat trip from the German Lutz's and we can't wait for the next!

Crested Butte trip; take 3.

My third trip to Crested Butte in less than 3 weeks....this valley is a bit of my home away from home. The reason for this final trip was to help inspire Howie (owner of Backcountry magazine) to consider the addition of a bike magazine which would allow all of the ski testers to go through a summer version of the ski test but with bikes.  I don't really imagine that would happen any time soon, but we really just wanted to get together and rekindle some friendships that have developed over the course of the past 4 years at gear testing.  

We have all become a bit of a family which looks forward to our winter family reunion in Powder mountain every year and were all really psyched to have the chance to spend some summer time together riding in Crested Butte and celebrating the 4th of July! Thanks to Jay and Crista for raising the bar as "hostess with the mostest".

 The girls on Reno/Flag/Bear/Deadmans for the 4th!

Pure comedy/"I am getting old" moment was when I was ordering a beer at the bar and noticed a motley crew of dudes calling my name.  I was slightly irritated and was concerned about how they might know my name; when I asked in a disconcerted voice they let out a good chuckle and had to point out that I was the teacher in high school.  They ran through their names and immediately the memories came flooding in...super fun to have those experiences and see your students growing into young adults!

3,2,1......Summer!

So much to write about and so little time...well maybe not so little time, just so little time that I want to dedicate to writing because summer is always tugging on your leg with something fun, active, and outdoors to do! First hilarious moment of the summer.....chainless downhill race in Crested Butte for bike week.  Kyra and I take on unicorn and chicken.  Me - self proclaimed female winner, Kyra second; Kyra - official winner of best individual costume!

At the start line...game faces on!

And then of course the follow up activity - big wheel triathlon.....

Step 1: drink beer out of an ice cube tray.

Step 2: ride beg wheel through very demanding course set up on the main street of CB

Step 3: bowling!!! I was so proud - I got a strike!! chickens are good bowlers.

Last step: high five your partner for their turn!!!

Kyra and I always tend to get into some hilarity together - she might be one of my favorite travel buddies and adventurous friends! We continued to have a blast that night trying food at her future wedding venue in Crested Butte and picking up a few boys that offered to buy us dinner and drinks.  

Next transition for the weekend was Becky and Dan's wedding!! Yay! Their wedding took place at Harmels - a classic CB/Gunni joint that is full of beauty, but maintains a laid back and relaxed feel.  

We had a local handmade pizza crew come in Saturday night for the welcoming dinner where I got to catch up with all my missed Gunnison friends....

 I had the honor of riding with the bride the day before her wedding which was such a treat.  I also got to spend the night in a cabin full of other single ladies and the bride the night before her wedding -we had so much fun spending such a special time with Becky.  Her wedding day ended up with beautiful weather and was absolutely perfect for the two of them!

May Becky and Dan live happily ever after!!

These two did a great job of spending some quality time on the dance floor, but of course, myself and the 5 year old nephew closed down the dance floor...ha! Thanks Becky and Dan for putting on such a meaningful celebration.