Wishing You Blissful Holidays!

Happy Holidays from Miami Beach!

Your Best Holiday Yet: Colorado Getaway Update

Nederland, Colorado

"Ned" with snow-capped mountains peeking over...


Wintery "Ned"

After some snowy days, crisp blue skies...

we took this at the road by our "getaway"...

Pearl Street in downtown Boulder, CO on Christmas Eve


The "Flatirons"--Boulder's gorgeous daily backdrop...


snow-dusted...



We love it... it does remind this Miami girl of "Northern Exposure" this time of year!


Barefoot in the snow! Tulips proliferate here on Pearl Street in springtime...


Another Boulder tradition, and the cigar bar serves hot chocolate to the kids
after they skate...

A view from our canyon hideaway...

Mr. Wonderful picked this place out for us for our holiday... our 3rd Christmas.

The steps to our home away from home...

Perfect!

We are in Boulder, Colorado, and we are blissfully, joyfully, happy. The minute we began our descent into Colorado, we saw white-capped mountains, larger than your memory can hold, and pink glowing skies. Mr. Wonderful was even happier than I could remember, so happy to breathe in Colorado air. This 37 year old man was giddy with joy: our journey was just beginning. We boarded the bus, with no wait, from the airport, and road out among the mountains near the Denver airport, and the christmas lights, twinkling blue lights lining the road we both had traveled back and forth so many times, only 18 months earlier. Suddenly we were in the college town of Boulder, on Broadway, as if we had never been away. The Mac Shack…the fraternity houses, the Wild Oats-turned-Whole Foods.

Snow started the minute we arrived in the center of Boulder, and began our journey to the mountain lodge. The flakes thickened, and we walked from the canyon road down toward our home for the next week. The snow fell, over already snow-whitened road and ground, the skies pouring onto our world, something very dreamlike to our tropical sensibilities. As if in our own little snowglobe, we walked, forward into the dark road; the snow fell, illuminating our lodge and the path--the bridge lead us to our holiday hideaway. It seemed we were the only ones for miles; all we could hear was a creek, babbling away against its icy "roof". The snow kept falling all night and the next day,

a gentle coating of cold white beauty.

We had Christmas Eve in Boulder, and Christmas here in the Four Mile Canyon…Mr. W. made me lovely meals for which he had shopped and carried home to us only by bus and backpack…no rental car on this trip! Colorado’s public transportation is too good.

The 26th, we rode up to beautiful Nederland, surrounded by snow covered rocks and canyon walls that seemed to touch the Colorado blue sky. Layers of sunny blue sky froze at ice-coated rock, and the shadows protected snow down to the road.

In Nederland, we saw the frozen lake, and I remembered the first time I saw the expanse of Nederland at sunset--it was something beyond imagination. The glassy dark blue lake, the sky: its purples and pinks blending over the spring green, white-topped mountains. That day changed me…I learned life had beauty that could shock you, and heal you at the same time.

Here is a little background on our love story... enjoy!

More to come…trip in progress!

pic 1: from this awesome album

pic 2 and 3, google images

all the rest are ours from the last few days ;)

My Favorite Christmas Tree: Just Beachy's

Just Beachy's tree is like snowflakes! The decorations just pop against the white, and I love the unexpected white in place of the usual green....and such sweet decorations.

Lovely... so visually pleasing!

If you did not see the video on this earlier post, don't miss it.

One of the most meaningful blog posts I have ever seen... the humanity of these teen boys and the kindness of strangers is a beautiful thing.

Vacating the "Vacation" Home...Off to Colorado!

Breakfast at the airport...on our way to Colorado!!!

my holiday shirt!

Our breakfast view


Hello, Lovely Friends!


Mr. Wonderful and I are blogging from the Miami International Airport this morning... what a beautiful place for breakfast: Illy coffee with whipped cream and Valhrona cocoa in Terminal H/J and we are enjoying a wall of palm-treed windows onto the world... TAM Brasil plane with signatures all over the plane body, Air France, Air Canada... I love airports!


Miami traffic speeds along the highway in the backdrop; in front of us the airport employees are driving the luggage trucks and vans and walking around the runway...we are all waking up.


Classical holiday music plays in the background and planes lift off...


We are in high spirits after LAST NIGHT: our bartender/angel on earth at the Blue Moon made us buttery nipples, (good holiday drink... just like the butterscotch candies!) margaritas, and finally, chocolate covered grasshoppers to send us on to our holidays and travel this morning...our friend who was with us also drove us to the airport, and texted for coffee please on his way to get us... ; )


Mr. Wonderful is tres excited for the winter storm on a "collision course" with Colorado... we are going to get there just in time!


How are your holiday adventures so far???

xoxo,
Miss Bliss

P.S. Here's the trip update!

Surprise: Sock Monkey Ornament!

Today Mr. Wonderful and I checked our mail, and found a delightful surprise--my mom sent us a sock monkey ornament! It is our third holiday season together as a married couple...wow time flies. I am so excited about our latest ornament... we were both so surprised and it is so cute! Sock monkeys were big at one point in our family with my younger sisters, so it's more than cute--- it even has sentimental value...

Sock monkeys would make a great holiday gift for kids, and they are so fun to make. On the sock monkey subject, did you see this...? It was in a Food Network Cake Challenge--- the sock monkey cake with sparklers... so funny!

Do you have a special ornament?

Muffins for your holiday guests...and you, of course!

Chocolate, shoes, coffee.... this recipe hits two of three :) They will power you up for some shoe shopping. I've been doing my research for holiday delights... make a batch and enjoy!

BANANA MOCHA MUFFINS

1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. instant coffee granules
1 tbsp. hot water
1 1/3 c. mashed ripe bananas, about 3
3/4 c. vegetable oil
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 c. chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 2 1/2 inch muffin pan cups. Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Reserve. Dissolve instant coffee in hot water. Stir into mashed bananas. Reserve.

Beat together oil and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Mix in banana mixture. Stir in flour mixture until well blended. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon into muffin cups. Bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

pic: here

How was your holiday?

image from here

Hope you enjoyed! What was your favorite moment? favorite moments???

Mine included having time to walk the beach and see the surfers ride their boards...

and watching movies with Mr. Wonderful

and a few night swims with a margarita or mojito...

and having Mr. Wonderful outdo himself with the holiday menu... I think a cooking tornado occurred in Miami Beach this Thursday... I made a pecan-topped pumpkin pie and some dark chocolate macadamia fudge, but the rest, the rest of the holiday extravaganza was in his hands and he delivered above and beyond!

My favorites were his oyster stuffing and the four cheese macaroni... and the Provence-spiced roasted potatoes, but the vegetables he used to hold up the turkey while it cooked were incredibly yummy, and so were the mashed potatoes... not to mention the french bread and brie and gouda with grapes on the side...

Fortunately we had the weather for walking the beach a lot and jumping in the pool a lot...

What moments did you enjoy most?

Men who cook for you on Thanksgiving...

Mr. Wonderful is grocery shoppping with a list and his friend, our South Beach neighbor, while I am home relaxing. They are like men on a mission.

This is his second shopping trip of the day.

Apparently, he has many things planned.

These are more reasons why he is Mr. Wonderful.

Pictures to follow!

How are your holiday plans coming???

They're back.... "Boys with Food!" he is announcing...

What are YOU doing for the holidays?

shiny?

bubbly?

bird-watching?

wet-suit testing?

or.... where will you be?

what will you be doing?

hope you are looking forward to it.

We are almost there!

-Miss Bliss