2025: A Year in Review

A very, merry happy New Year to all you lovelies 😉

It’s that time again. An introduction. A blank slate. A chance to start over, continue being amazing, set new goals, or aim to keep the old ones. AND …. it’s reflect-on-the-past-year time, too. 2025 was a good travel year, for us, with lots of love, laughs, cuddles, and adventure. Here’s what we got up to.

January

In January, Chris and I booked it to Florida for a quick 48-hours so he could run his 10th marathon. We hadn’t been away from the girls overnight in about two years, so it was really quite fun to take that time <3

HOT TUB TIME!
Chris ran his marathon in three hours and eight seconds. LEGEND.
I was quite proud, to say the least<3

February

In mid-February, Steph, Rosalie and Robert flew out for President’s Weekend to celebrate Valentine’s Day and Rosalie’s 6th birthday. We had such a blast!

We saw Lyle the Crocodile!
We checked out the Bubble Planet Immersive Experience in Denver!
We went swimming at the Apex Center!
Lotte, Steph & Ro got their ears pierced!
We went to the Science Museum!
Lotte sang the National Anthem at a CU basketball game with her school choir!

March

In March we headed off to Taos, New Mexico, for spring break! It was a new state for the girls, and we had such a blast.

New Mexico!
New Mexico!
We stayed in the most beautiful spot!
Spring skiing is the best!
Pottery at the Imagine Children’s Museum was an unexpected delight.
Such a gorgeous trip <3

April

I posted an ode to winter at the end of April, with highlights including lots of Lotte choir singing at fun events, art exhibits, author events (both mine and other authors!), plays, fancy tea services, tons of skiing .. and lots more!

The Maurice Sendak exhibit at the Denver Art Museum!
Lotte singing at a Rockies game!
The Wiz at the Buell Theater in Denver!
Easter tea at The Brown Palace in Denver was delicious!
Lotte performed with her choir for a festival and we got to hang at Elitch Gardens!

June & July

You guys. June and July were epic. We met up with all three grandparents for a month in Europe that did. not. disappoint. There was the press trip at an insane resort in Portugal. All the culture and food in Barcelona. Italy. (More specifically the Dolomites and Venice. Enough said.) Driving from the Dolomites to Paris, with a stop at the city where I was born. Paris and the French countryside. The shocking adorableness of Brugges. The out-of-this-world salty attitude of Amsterdam. And the gorgeous, glorious greenery of Ireland. It was the trip of a lifetime, to say the least.

Madeira Island, Portugal
Madeira Island, Portugal
Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona, Spain
Venice, Italy
Venice, Italy
Dolomites, Italy
Dolomites, Italy
Nuremberg, Germany
Nuremberg, Germany
Reims, France
Reims, France
Paris, France
Paris, France
Disneyland Paris
Disneyland Paris
Brugge
Brugge
Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Ireland
Ireland

As if that weren’t enough, when Lotte and Grace had their horse camp canceled last-minute, I booked a quick trip back East for the week before Lotte’s birthday! Grace was meant to come, too, but after a month in Europe, girl needed some R&R at home, which was totally fine. She’ll catch NY next time round!

Solo NY trip with my girl <3
We had a lot of good food and drinks AND a lot of time to chat, which was so much fun and so different from how it usually is. My brother-in-law was a doll and watched the twins a bunch, and Lotte & Ro entertain themselves, which left my sis and myself to our own devices on several occasions. I do not take those times for granted.
Lake swims!
Fun at the fairground!

August

I wrote a farewell to the Summer of 2025 covering the final few weeks of our break before we were back-to-school. It included a birthday, camp, a visit from our NY loves and one final out-of-town trip.

Phew. What a summer it was!

Just a couple’a cuties at the Denver Zoo.
The Frisco Bay Marina always hits.
Rainbows in the mountains? Can’t beat that.
You also can’t beat a National Park. This one — Rocky Mountain National Park — is near and dear to our hearts.

September

September started with a bang when we celebrated Labor Day in our own Colorado backyard. Sunshine. Hikes. Moose. Bear. Glaciers. Lakes.

Oh, Colorado. You beautiful beast, you.

Gem Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park
Gem Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park

November

In November we hopped on the earliest flight possible to high-tail it to New York for the Thanksgiving holiday! We saw Wicked, had tea at the American Girl Doll store, drank hot cocoa in an igloo in Bryant Park, hung out with Bluey, deep fried a turkey … and so much more <3

Core memories, ya’ll.
Hot cocoa and cocktails in a cozy igloo by the Bryant Park ice skating rink? YES PLEASE.
Nothing beats it.

December

Less than one week after getting home from our New York Thanksgiving, we were back on a plane! This time, it was to Knoxville, for the AAU Youth Track & Field Championships, which Lotte ran with her team, the Colorado Coyotes. We were so stinkin’ proud of her, I could cry. Oh and also … how cute is Knoxville?!

Santa at the Sunsphere!
SO PROUD OF LOTTE!
Ice skating for the win!

Then we spent Christmas in Hawaii with Chris’ parents, and it was SO FRIGGIN’ WONDERFUL!

And that was our near in a nutshell, friends! We had pretty amazing travel experiences and I never stop being grateful for all of it for even just one second.

I hope you all had a wonderful year … and cheers to an even better new one!

2024: A Year in Review

Hello, 2025!

Happy New Year’s Eve, friends! With the near arrival of a new year comes my favorite part of keeping up with this blog: Reminiscing about our adventures from the previous year.

It was a good one, friends. A real good one. Here’s what we got up to 😉

January

Ringing in the New Year in Iceland!

I love this blurry photo of the five of us, chillin’ in a hot tub in Iceland the morning before flying back to the states. Rounding out our European holiday adventure (and here!) with a last day in Iceland on Jan. 1, 2024 was the perfect way to start the new year. The rest of January was spent heading to the mountains each Sunday for the girls’ ski lessons (we made an entire weekend out of it here and here!) and reliving my reporter days with a travel event in downtown Denver.

These girls ROCKED their ski lessons this year! Lotte was even riding lifts by herself by the end. (Insert Mom’s terrified face here!)
Drinking booze back at the lodge was a big hit for Mom & Dad during lessons 😉
Snow tubing in Frisco was so much fun!
I loved heading to the Convention Center in downtown Denver for the travel expo. It made me feel like I was young again, traipsing around NYC to report on events for my editors at various mags.

February

The absolute joy of a cousin’s get-together <3

In February I snuck away to New York with the two big girls for a surprise 5th birthday treat for my niece, Rosalie. We all had the best time. The girls got to run wild, stay up late and eat an insane amount of treats. I got to see my little baby twin niece and nephew who are growing up way too quickly, and my sister and I even snuck away one night for dinner/drinks on our own. Amazing.

The best <3
We love a good surprise in this family!
Someone wasn’t very happy to be leaving …

March

March was a super fun month that included a Fort Collins staycation with one of our faves and … drum roll please … OUR NATIONAL PARKS DRIVE FROM ARVADA TO THE GRAND CANYON!

We love ya, Auntie Moe!
These girls are super lucky to have you in their lives <3

I blogged about our Grand Canyon road trip adventures from Arvada to Moab here, from Arches National Park to Monument Valley here, from Monument Valley to the Grand Canyon here & from the Grand Canyon to Bryce Canyon —and then on home! — right here.

Delicate Arch trail!
Mexican Hat
Mexican Hat
Forrest Gump Point
Forrest Gump Point
Monument Valley!
The Grand Canyon!
Horseshoe Bend was a stunning, last-minute addition to the trip!
Bryce Canyon, in all her glory.
And Capitol Reef National Park, which turned out to also be such a fun surprise addition!

April

My birthday month arrived so quickly! We started the month off with a bang, heading to Steamboat Springs for a press trip that was truly a delight.

Such gorgeous snow!
Lotte & Grace had the best time skiing the fun runs on the mountain! Emilia … not so much 😉 We have faith that she will get there!

At the end of April, Chris took Lotte and Grace on his first-ever solo trip with them! They headed back to New York to visit LEGOLAND! Too much fun was had by all.

I’ll never get over this amazing photo 😉
I’m so glad they got this special time!
Those are some tired but happy kiddos!

May

I was so lucky to snag the opportunity to grab a girlfriends’ getaway weekend in Breckenridge with some of my neighbors. These ladies are simply the best.

The Breckenridge Troll!

June

Feeding kangaroos in Sydney!

June was such a special month for us, as we headed Down Under for the entire month. We started out in Sydney, headed to Canberra, flew to Melbourne, checked out Airlie Beach and Hamilton Island, met friends in Brisbane and then were back in Sydney for a few days before heading home. We even had a couple hours layover in Vancouver on the way home.

What. an. epic. time.

Cutest cousins on the beach!
The Vivid light show was on while we were there, and it was so beautiful!
Such a special place to be.
The gang is all here for Auntie Kate’s wedding party <3
Canberra, Australia
Canberra, Australia
Visiting the Australian War Memorial
Questacon was so much fun!
An initial Melbourne fam meet-up at Queen Victoria Market.
Melbourne street art!
The Great Ocean Road was so wonderful. All the beaches were gorgeous, but the 12 Apostles were particularly delightful.
Dinner with my Melbourne family was such a highlight <3
We even checked out the fairy penguin parade on Phillip Island!
Airlie Beach, Australia
Airlie Beach, Australia
Beach Baby in the Whitsundays. No biggie 😉
Ready to snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef!
Gorgeous, gorgeous Whitehaven beach.
Hamilton Island was a dream!
We swam with sharks and sting rays!
Then it was onto Brisbane!
Where we had a lot of fun <3
We even got to meet up with my bestie from 2nd grade — and her mom! — when we flew back to Sydney before heading home. So. Amazing!
Cheers to an amazing, amazing trip <3

July & August

We made the most of the rest of our summer after returning from Australia, that’s for sure 😉

We racked up the activities after getting back from Australia — concerts, camps, visitors and lots of swimming topped the list — and before we knew it, we had a 3rd & 1st grader, and little Emilia starting 1/2-day preschool!

We saw Billy Joel and my life was made!
The kids loaded up on fun camps, including this one at a horse farm where they got in lots of riding.
My sister and niece came to visit!
So did Grandpa and Mojo <3
Some of our NYC friends came to visit for a week, too, and the kiddos went to Muddy Buddies camp together, which was adorable!
We swam a bunch, too <3

September

Hello, Hamilton!

In September I took a trip back to New York to see Hamilton with my sister for her birthday, and we went to Mexico as a family on a press trip. It was one for the books.

Taking in the sights the first night I was there.
Spending time alone with my sister was definitely one of the best parts of the trip.
One of my many NYC happy places — Bryant Park.

In mid-September, we took a long-weekend trip to Punta De Mita in Mexico, and I was delightful!

Just a couple of gals, lovin’ Mexico!
Gorgeous beach.
Delicious food.
Fun features. ‘Nuff said!

October

We very much made the most of fall in Colorado this year. We went to the mountains a couple of weekends, visited Great Sand Dunes National Park and really just Halloween’d out. It was a delight.

Frisco fall.
Right in our own back yard <3
St. Mary’s Glacier
Great Sand Dunes National Park was gorgeous.
Great Sand Dunes National Park
Great Sand Dunes National Park
Zapata Falls, CO
Zapata Falls, CO

November

Such a fun start to the holiday season!

In November we headed out on our last trip of the year — back to New York to spend Thanksgiving with our friends and family. We had so much fun! We spent time in the city (including seeing the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in person and checking out the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens Lightscape with friends), and upstate, with stops on the Polar Express (oh hey there, Santa!), seeing Wicked the movie and having a lovely holiday. We hope your holiday season was bright, as well!

Brooklyn Botanic Garden Lightscape with our crew.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade!
Upstate with cousins!
More family love!
All. The. Family. Love!!!!

And that’s a wrap on the year, friends! It was a jolly lovely one, filled with so much friends and family … and travel!

Until 2025 … BIS BALD!

The Year 2013: A Review

Hi friends,

Well it’s that time of year again — the one where everyone takes a couple minutes to take stock of how the past 12 months have gone? This year has been a particularly important one for myself and Chris. It was our first year of married life. It was a year spent celebrating our marriage around the world with family and friends. It was a year that we made some pretty big decisions about our future (not yet shared here!), and one that had a lot of amazing traveling in it …

Continue reading “The Year 2013: A Review”

The Year 2012: A Review

Hey friends,

So I thought I’d start a new yearly tradition here at Weary Wanderer wherein I share my travels from the year before, along with some of my favorite photo memories from the place. January always makes people reminisce over the past year, and as I gathered together the photos I wanted to share from 2012, I realized how truly blessed I am to have been able to travel to the places I’ve been, and to have the people in my life that I do.

So without further ado…here’s to 2012–quite the year for travel!

Continue reading “The Year 2012: A Review”