Friday Faves
Hi friends! Happy Friday! I hope you had a lovely week. I’m writing this post from Boulder, CO. We’re here for an outdoor family wedding, but came a couple of days early to enjoy some local eats and hiking. It’s my first real time in Boulder and it’s absolutely gorgeous. We flew in yesterday afternoon and hung out in Denver a bit before making the drive over here.
We had lunch at Vital Root, which was amaaaaazing. I wish I could eat there all of the time! Everything on the menu was gluten-free and easily customized to be vegan if you have vegan preferences. Whenever I try a new restaurant, I try to ask the server for their favorite menu option and order what they recommend. She said the falafel wrap was her favorite, so I couldn’t wait to give it a try.
It was on a housemade wrap with crunch chickpeas, beautifully spiced falafel patties, spinach, and dressing. It was everything.
We also shared some Korean BBQ veggie wings, the girls had grilled cheese (which came with housemade apple sauce and a ton of fruit) and the Pilot ordered the avocado toast with poached egg. I was expected it to be good because it had excellent reviews, but we were all blown away. I’d love to make it back one of these days!
We strolled down to High Point Creamery, which had flavors like Pineapple Upside Down Cake, Zucchini Bread, Brown Butter Pecan, Earl Grey and Shortbread, Brown Sugar Cinnamon, and Tin Cup Whiskey and Pistachio Brittle. (The vegan coconut creme brûlée was out of this world.) We took our ice creams to a nearby park, where the girls took bites of their ice cream in between chasing each other, sliding and swinging.
After ice cream, we went downtown to check out the Beautycounter store!!! I’ve been a consultant for 4 years now and it was my first time checking out one of our smaller popup stores. It was small and intimate, with all of our beloved products on the shelves. When you’re used to only having small collections of products at a time, it’s awe-inspiring to finally see everything together. I love our clean and classy branding, and am so passionate about out mission. I’m so proud of everything this company stands for, so it was exciting to see it front and center in downtown Denver. The girls each got a lipgloss and I grabbed an extra sunscreen stick for our hikes this weekend.
P promptly fell asleep in the car, holding her new lipgloss. <3
We checked into the hotel, took the girls to the pool, and then went to Niwot Children’s Park so they could run around. It was one of the coolest parks we’ve ever seen. They have multiple slides and climbing structures, a little cave, zipline, giant spiderweb, so many fun things for them to do. We chased them around the park for about an hour and then grabbed takeout from Longmont Public House to enjoy as a picnic in the hotel room.
+ cider for me, beer for the Pilot
(the nutmeg and cinnamon is STRONG in this, in the best way possible. It tastes like apple pie!)
We’re looking forward to the wedding festivities, and enjoying some low-key adventures while we’re here. If you have any dining suggestions or favorite hiking spots in Boulder, please leave them in the comments below!
Now it’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party. I always love hearing about your faves, so please shout out something you’re loving in the comments section below.
Read, watch, listen:
Speaking of Christmas movies, I’m SO PUMPED for this.
The ultimate TV guide if you’re looking for something great.
I was reading Super Life on the flight up here and am really enjoying it so far. It’s a good nudge to get “back to basics” with nutrition, and even 20% into the book, I’ve been reminded of old habits I’d like to bring back. (For example, sprouts are nutritional powerhouses and I rarely eat them now. Back in the day, I used to sprout things all the time! I’m going to bring it back and can definitely do a sprouting post if that’s something you may be interested in reading.) I’ll share a full book recap when I finish, but for now, I highly recommend it.
Fashion + beauty:
I’ve shouted out these undereye patches before but for travel (and mom life) they’re a game changer. They get rid of puffiness and bags within 15 minutes or so for me. A true miracle, I tell ya.
Still loving this dress from my last Trunk Club! It’s super stretchy, flattering, and looks cute with low-top sneakers. I wore this outfit for Taco Tuesday the other night.
(It’s only $49, too!)
This lipgloss trio. The wild berry is my very favorite out of the pack, but I love all of the colors!
My very fave denim jacket for chillier nights.
Fitness + good eats:
Jacked-o-lantern workout is perfect for October!
If you haven’t made the pumpkin dump cake yet, you need this in your life.
Loved these Buddha bowls from Fed and Fit (even though Liv sat down and promptly asked, “Where’s the meat?” LOL)
(Rice, chickpeas, edamame, carrots, cabbage, bell pepper, and a yogurt curry sauce on the side)
Congrats to the winner of the surprise giveaway, Pamela T., who will be getting an overnight peel! Stay tuned for more giveaways coming up. 🙂
Happy Friday, friends!
What’s the best thing you ate, wore, read, or watched this week?
xo
Gina
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Holla! I won!!! How exciting!!!!
Also, welcome to my hood, I should make a few Boulder reccos. 🙂 Mt Sanitas is a great hike, not that long but a good bang for your buck and great views. Also Shanahan Ridge is really fun too!
Downtown Longmont is lovely. Definitely check it out! There’s fun street performers out on the walking mall in Boulder too, depending on Covid.
Also lots of vegan spots! Most are really great
Wow. Flights, restaurants, weddings, not a mask in sight. Would never know we are in the middle of a pandemic.
Yeah, I’m with you. I’ve been a loyal follower for several years, but I think in these times, it is really difficult to separate lifestyle content from the reality of what we’re going through. Gina, I’ve loved you for a long time, but it’s just a little tone deaf in my view.
thank you so much for following for so long. i apologize that i wasn’t more detailed in why we’re here and our procedures for staying safe during this time. i’ll add a little note to the post when i have some time this afternoon. we’re following all of the protocols to keep ourselves and others safe. it’s our first airline trip since this all began but thankfully tom has a lot of smart procedures from traveling so often for work.
the event is entirely outside and properly distanced. we all have masks that we wear on the plane, hotel, walking through restaurants, etc. we take them off when away from others outside for pictures. it was really important for us to be here for this event, and we’re being as safe as possible. thankfully, tom travels a lot for work and he really has an awesome system down for being smart while traveling.
Wow. Not everyone enjoys posting pictures of themselves in masks. People can take necessary precautions and still live their lives. Relax.
Hope the wedding is awesome and that everyone stays healthy! If it weren’t for COVID and my lungs being trashed from the wildfire smoke (just got home from admit #3…) I’d offer to meet up and buy y’all some tasty beverages at Avery Brewing. <3
I’m so jealous, I love Boulder! Hope you get some good hiking in. My favorite thing about that place is all of the breweries, holy cow. It would be awesome if you could write a post about sprouting!
Also…why am I not surprised that the covid police would jump on you right away? If you’re taking the proper precautions and not traveling while feeling sick, there’s no reason to be a shut-in. I’m tired of explaining myself to people every time I step outside, so I stopped; they can judge if they want to. Anyway, rant over. Enjoy the wedding!
I second this! Congrats on gettin outta dodge! Mental heath for the win!!!
I hope you all have a great time in Colorado! I’ve never been (I want to go soon!) so I don’t have any recommendations. Just wanted to say ‘hi’ and I hope you have a great family wedding weekend 🙂 So glad you’re able to be there and celebrate – looking forward to seeing more of your adventures there!
Also, thanks for the links…..I always look forward to them and the ‘If drinks could talk’ was a fun watch and a great pick me up for my Friday afternoon!
Welcome!! It’s such a great town for kids. Pearl street is a must do and I recommend Chautauqua for a hike. Lyons or Nederland are both a short drive. I assumed you were following the proper precautions so the snarky feels unnecessary but you were very gracious in your response.
One of your recent Friday faves featured a very pretty and affordable bag from Nordstrom. I can’t seem to find it now. Do you perchance recall which one it was? It was sort of a mauve color. Thanks in advance!
hmmm do you remember if it was a tote or a crossbody?
A tote! Thanks so much!
hmmm! was it this one?? https://rstyle.me/+1COl6PKTuANl0w0ntAIILA i posted it in the capsule wardrobe post
i need a new denim jacket! what size do you wear (if you dont mind) and how’s the fit?
i wear a small! it’s very true to size