Our Favorite Food, Coffee, + Sights in Denver, Colorado

I've recently received multiple emails requesting food/coffee/things-to-do-in-Denver suggestions and after responding to them I though heck, why not share this information with everyone! So voila, here it is. 

Denver will always be one of our favorite places. Although our time there was short-lived, we enjoyed it so much. When we first moved there we tried to do any and everything that we possibly could. Not because we weren't certain how long we would be there, (we thought it was for the long-haul), but because we couldn't contain our excitement. Every moment we had available was dedicated to exploring this new city of ours, so I assure you, this guide, although only based on living there for 6-months, is well researched and our favorites were not chosen lightly. I might have went a little overboard and added a few too many coffee suggestions, but there were too many too choose from and can you really ever have too much coffee? #priorities (Also, it's a super cheap way to get yourself to explore the neighborhoods in a city, $2 for a cup of coffee + 2 hours exploring the surrounding area = travel hack). 

This guide should keep you busy, but ff you need more suggestions I would be more than happy to send them your way. Happy travels! 

Food

Tacos, Tequila, and Whiskey (a.k.a Pinche Tacos) - Street tacos that you'll probably be left dreaming about. The Pollo Agave is my favorite! Go between 3-6pm to hit up happy hour and you can snag some nachos and Pinche Soda for $5 each. 

Kaos Pizza - Amazing woodfire pizzas on the cutest patio!  

Avanti - a food court style restaurant that has everything from pizza to sushi. 

Cherry Cricket - Seriously the best burger I think I've ever had! Go with any of them and you are set. 

Modern Market - A fresh, Panera-esque fast casual place that Josiah and I frequented often. We lived less than a block from one and always used it as our oops-I-forgot-to-make-dinner alternative. Their pizzas are fantastic and their salads are to-die-for! 

North - Some of the best Italian I have ever had! It's the perfect place for a date night. Fancy, but not TOO fancy. 

City O' City - An innovative vegetarian restaurant that serves up some amazing waffles, salads, pastas, and cocktails. So a little bit of everything, but trust me, it's good. 

Denver Biscuit Company - If you're a biscuit fan, like seriously who isn't, this is a must. The Dahlia is my favorite! But be warned, the wait on the weekends is generally an hour and a half plus. 

Snooze - The place to go for brunch. Know you'll likely have to wait at least an hour for a table unless you get there before 8AM. But I promise, it's totally worth it! If you can swing a weekday we've always had good luck going around 1pm. I highly recommend the huevos rancheros, breakfast tacos, and any and every pancake! 

Voodoo - Located on Colfax, it's more than doughnuts, it's an experience. As hipster-grunge as it gets when it comes to donuts! They have one doughnut that is topped with Oreos that is amaaaaazing and another one that has a maple glaze that I still dream about. 

Sweet Cow - The best chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, EVER! Get it in a pretzel cone and your life will be complete. 

Stowaway Coffee + Kitchen - If you like light fares that are innovative, fresh, and delicious -- this is your place. It's such a bright space and everything I've eaten here is delicious! It's the perfect brunch, light lunch, or coffee meet-up location. Ashlae introduced me to it and I fell head over heels immediately.   

Coffee

Aviano - A swanky coffee bar located in the Cherry Creek neighborhood. Stop by the Cherry Creek Mall, walk around the Cherry Creek North shopping district, and then grab yourself a pour over at this must-see shop. Continue walking north on Detroit and you can enjoy dreaming of owning one of the many gorgeous homes in the surrounding residential area. 

Steam Espresso Bar -  My favorite coffee shop in all of Denver. They have a super cute patio where you can enjoy a cold brew (with cream + honey, please!) during a hot summer day, but it's just as great a place to relax with a latte or cup of tea during the winter. 

Novo - My favorite cold brew, ever! Go to their Highlands location and walk up and down 32nd to see some cute shops. 

Allegro - I love the vibe that this place has. It's super minimalistic and Scandinavian. And their coffee is pretty fantastic too. 

Black Eye Coffee - The Cap Hill location is swanky and the perfect place to work for the afternoon. Their cortado is on point! And their regular coffee is also pure perfection! I probably would have to say that it's my favorite cup in the whole city. So it's a must visit, for sure! 

Corvus Coffee - I love visiting this one because you can watch them roast and package their coffee in the back! And their coffee is pretty amazing too. 

Crema - As hipster grunge as it gets, but we love, love, love it. 

Sights

Red Rocks Amphitheater - If you get a chance to see a show here, do it! We saw Brandi Carlisle here and it was seriously one of the best shows. The sun sets right behind the stage and the views are gorgeous! If you can't get here for a show at least go by and see the stage. During the day it's open to the public, but check their website before you go because sometimes it closes in the early afternoon to allow time to prep for shows. 

Celestial Seasonings Tea Tour - Call me dorky, but I absolutely love this tea tour! I've gone on it twice and find it super interesting. It's free and just a quick drive from Denver. 

Botanic Gardens - a fun way to spend the afternoon. 

Washington Park - We lived super close to this park and it quickly became our go-to for running, walking, or lounging next to one of the ponds. 

Rocky Mountain National Park - If hiking and mountains are your thing and you have the time to make the 2-hour drive north, this place is totally worth the look. 

Lookout Mountain - If you want to see some views, but don't have time to make the drive to Rocky Mountain this is the place to go. 

Manitou Incline - A mile-hike essentially into the sky. It's a physical challenge that is so difficult to describe, but if you're up for it, this place is so worth it. 

Rockies Game - The Rockies aren't known for being super great, but if you're a fan of spending the day at the ballpark you can snag tickets for cheap. 

Antique Row - Possibly one of my favorite ways to spend a Saturday afternoon. You can spend anywhere from 30 minutes to 6 hours browsing through a variety of antique shops.  

South Pearl Street Farmer's Market - If you have the pleasure of being in Denver when the Farmer's Market season is still on, GO. It's the best! The quality is phenomenal and the selections are many! It's the place to be on a Sunday morning/early afternoon. Bonus: The last Sunday of every month it's also a flea market. 

10 Things I am Thankful For This Year

Happy Tuesday before Thanksgiving, babes! 

As a kid, Thanksgiving Day meant watching the Macy's Day parade while my mom cooked away in the kitchen, rearranging our furniture and adding in card tables and chairs to fit 20+ people, pretending to care about football, and eating to our hearts content and then some. There was always strawberry-pretzel salad, more pies than we could possibly consume, mashed potatoes and gravy (Josiah's favorite), and of course turkey. 

It was always such a special time, but now that I've grown up (or at least in theory), I've come to appreciate the actual meaning and importance of Thanksgiving. With each passing year it has become less and less about the turkey or pumpkin pie and more about contentment and gratitude that is often overlooked in our everyday life. It's the time of year where we are supposed to change our mindset from I-WANT-MORE to I-AM-CONTENT-WITH-WHAT-I-HAVE. It's a time for us to be conscious about how fortunate we are to have the family and friends that we do and to make an effort to let them know we appreciate them. I'm sharing ten things that I am thankful for this year, but believe me, there are far more. Share with me what you're thankful for this year, because truly, there is always, always, always something to be thankful for. #blessed (I couldn't resist).

Love you guys and I hope that your Thanksgiving is full of lots of laughter, gratitude, pecan pie, and dad jokes.

1. MY HUSBAND -  No one supports my dreams, knows my heart, or cheers me on quite like he does.

2. OUR AMAZING FAMILIES - I'm continually reminded of how amazing both my family and Josiah's family are. Listen, if you can find a family that helps you move cross-country TWICE in one year, keep them. <3

3. MY JOB - Seriously, to wake up everyday and not dread going to work is a rare find. The clients that I get to work with fill my heart and keep me going. 

4. HOPE - In a world of darkness, it's the only thing we have to hold onto. 

5. COFFEE - Because without it the world might move in slow motion. And smile less. 

6. JOSIAH'S JOB - I am so glad that he has found a job that satisfies him and treats him well! 

7. ELEVATORS - Their existence made moving to and from a 6th-floor apartment in Denver a much more manageable feat. 

8. LEGGINGS - And I don't even freaking care that they're not pants. 

9. MY GIRLFRIENDS - The value of having a tribe that stands behind you no matter what and constantly cheers you on was never as apparent to me as it has become this year. Seriously girls, I wouldn't have kept pushing on in this creative girl boss journey without you.  

10. ADVENTURES - Moving from Chicago ---> Denver and then Denver ---> Chicago again in 6 months was a gloriously, unforeseen, crazy adventure and I am so unbelievably thankful for it.  

via 

12 Holiday Gift Ideas under $40

If you've left your house at all in the last few weeks you've probably seen at least some Holiday things out and about. Starbucks Holiday drinks are officially available and Target's aisles are flooded with all things red and green and whether you're team, wait-until-Thanksgiving-is-over-to-think-about-Christmas or team Get-it-done, it is soon going to be time to at least start thinking about Christmas gifts. Where did the year go? I have no idea, but it's here and we better get ourselves together so we're not with the rest of the crazies on Christmas Eve settling on the unwanted, remaining gifts while trying to manage our social anxiety. Let's avoid that! 

My first piece of advice for you is to shop online! Typical introvert thing to say. Like, why do people even go to stores? With Anthropologie being a rare exception, because it's totally an experience to shop there and the online shipping cost is insane (seriously, like $11), I prefer to do all of my shopping online. I don't have to deal with parking, putting real-world clothes on, or leaving my cozy apartment when it's freezing! Who's with me? I've rounded up a few of my favorite items this year that I'm certain will be the perfect gifts that will have your loved ones feeling loved (and your bank account in tact). 

I would love to hear your favorites! Happy shopping, friends! 

1. Because organization is necessary, so why not do it in style. ($34)

2. If I could have a house filled with these gold mugs, I would. Grab a couple for your besties and wrap it with this. ($10)*

3. A little encouragement for that girl boss friend of yours. Just print it and put it in a cute frame! ($5)

4. For the friend with wanderlust. ($10-65)

5. A home decor trend that I am loving. ($29)

6. Take your friend's/sister's/mom's phone style up a notch (as long as she is still rocking the iphone6/6plus) ($36)*

7. For your friend who's loved the loveable losers through it all. ($28)

8. This coobook will have your friend starting off the new year right with healthy and simple plant based meals that are to-die for. It's seriously my current go-to for dinners! ($20)

9. No such thing as too many hats. ($20)

10. You should probably get this for your friend that's always cold. ($40)

11. The cutest calendar! ($26)

12. When in doubt, get a scarf. ($29)

*I recommend just going to the store if you can to avoid the insaneeeee shipping cost! 

Why we all think we have to have it together + 23 things I've learned about life

Last month I turned 23. What is it about this age that makes me cringe? Am I the only one? The thought of telling people that I am 23 somehow places this pressure of knowing my direction in life and it kind of stresses me out. 

I blame social media for a lot of things, but I definitely think that it has jeopardized society's view of what life SHOULD look like, especially at certain ages. We see so many people living their seemingly perfect, well-dressed, put-together lives poolside at 28 and feel as if we are failing. We should have impressive college degrees (with seemingly no college debt) by 23, be traveling all over Europe by 25, have established businesses by 26, and married and on our way to kids by 30.  It's this insane pressure to "keep up" and it's suffocating. 

We (preaching to the choir here!) need to wake up and realize that these people probably don't have it together! I am certain that there are rejections and emotional turmoil that go on behind-the-scenes. There are likely struggles that we don't see, but I am certain are there. The reality is, no one has it together. Even Kate Middleton probably has her issues and she's married to a freaking prince. 

Waiting for the day that I finally have it all together has held me back from putting myself out there. 

Not having it together is probably more than OKAY, friends -- it's normal. We need to cut ourselves some slack. The necessity to have it together all the time is so unrealistic and crippling. Let's just try to take a chill and focus on life now and the insane, messy, unorganized, beautiful, spontaneous, adventurous, and passionate thing that it is, because having it together is overrated. 

Below I wanted to share a few more of the things that I have learned in my 23 years as a human being. I hope that you can relate to some of these life lessons. They're things that I wish I would have realized a lot sooner, but I'm glad I've learned now and I hope I never ever forget. 

 Have a great weekend, friends! 

23 Things i've learned about life

1. You don't have to have it together. 

2. How many friends you have is far less important than the quality and depth of your friendships. 

3. Stand up for what you believe in. 

4. Be kind to everyone you meet because they matter. End of story. 

5. The cabbage soup diet is unhealthy and totally not worth the emotional turmoil it causes. 

6. Don't be afraid to try new things. I have had multiple experiences where I definitely did not want to branch outside of my comfort zone, but the results of doing so were great! 

7. Meeting people is awkward. It's not just you. 

8. Target and coffee cure all. 

9. I am my own worst enemy/critic. 

10. It's easier (and so much better!) to just be me than to try to be someone else. 

11. Comparison is the thief of joy. 

12. Love with no strings attached. 

13. You will never make everyone happy. 

14. There is no arrival in life. It's a journey, embrace it. 

15. Working hard pays off. 

16. Don't limit your dreams to practicality. I went to school to be a nurse, a very practical job, but am finding myself feeling fulfilled living this creative entrepreneur (and sometimes seemingly impractical) life. Do what makes you happy. 

17. Don't judge others too harshly. They're struggling right there with you. 

18. Go against the grain. 

19. Fake it 'til you make it.

20. Always be willing to teach. 

21. Traveling is worth every dime. 

22. Wear whatever the heck you want. 

23. Never settle.