Cherokee Ranch and Castle

I live in Castle Rock which is about 30 minutes south of downtown Denver, we love it! Being able wake up and see the mountains including Pikes Peak everyday and not just when you can catch a glimpse in the city.... it's great! Many people don't know that Castle Rock actually has a Castle! Finally, we were able to go take the History tour and it did NOT disappoint! This place is incredible!

Literally 4 miles from my house sits this Castle which started as a homestead in the 1800s. This place is 3,400 acres of Castle, cattle, land, animals and beauty!
 What is amazing is that here in Castle Rock, Co is a castle that houses some of the most amazing art work I have ever seen. The family that owned this place were all Art History majors and lovers and every piece on every wall throughout this place is original works or art worth millions upon millions.

 This is the great room,  even the chandelier is original from Europe and dates back to the 1700s but has since replaced the candles with electricity.

 The Castle sits atop Castle Rock so in the background you can see my city in the valley of the foothills.

 I don't remember exactly who this painting is but several of the painting are originals of the likes of Queen Anne that once hung in her Castle. It's unreal. This place also houses a library that is closed to the public for air control but it houses 1st editions of Shakespeare, Poe and the list goes on and on.

 Whats even more unreal is that a whole family grew up here until it was turned into a museum in 1996.

 Ok this was one of my favorites, each piece is actual battle-used armor/weapons including the armor suit. They date back to the 1500s, can you imagine where these have been?

 The drive up the castle is filled with animals including these wild Turkeys. We had the best morning and in fact they do Holiday Teas in the great room, so Mom and I booked a Tea for next Friday when my Oma is here!

If you want to check out the website to learn more click HERE

Snow Day!!

The Snow Day that Mom and I had gave us over 16 inches of snow at my house and it was an absolute Winter Wonderland. And being from Oklahoma this is a rare occurrence I wanted Mom to enjoy! Trust me, she didn't want to get all bundled up and go play in the snow but after I forced her too.... she loved it! It's funny how 30 minutes in snow, with dogs, with the camera while the snow is still falling.... it can be the best of times!

 Ralph is our Snow Puppy..... he LOVES it. Right before we all went out he cries at the door because he wants to play in the snow so bad! And that toy lasted about 5 minutes.... it is still currently buried somewhere in a snow drift in the yard!

 And let me tell ya...... is this not a framer? I mean really....

 Look how beautiful my backyard looks! I love it!

 Ralph was literally having the time of his life.

 With all the snow on it the trees in our backyard look like the perfect Christmas tree! Picture perfect I would say!

 Abler..... HATES the snow, about as much as he hates the sweater I put on him but boy does he look adorable!

We had a great day, I wish Matt was at home to play in the snow with us too! We are suppose to get 8 inches over Thanksgiving and the day after so maybe I will force my In-Laws into having a romp in the snow while they are here too!

Family Visit Part 1!

Labor Day weekend is always something I look forward to since we moved away from Oklahoma because it means my family is coming to see ME!!!!!! YAY! We had a great 3 days with everyone and of course I filled it with good fun and great food!!!

And the animals are always excited to see everyone too..... Oscar loves his Auntie Marissa!

 This is a great picture of my Mom and Sister huh? And that yellow door isn't too shabby either! haha!

 Friday we did a little Guys and Girls day and the guys spent the day on the Golf Course, Matt is really excited that Marissa's fiance Ryan loves playing golf as much as he does!

And while the guys golfed the girls shopped..............

 My Dad's Birthday is always the weekend before Labor Day so we always have a belated celebration when they are here and this year instead of going out we broke in my new dining room! We also gave Dad his new Birthday presents.... a new tradition of a Broncos weekend! Matt and I are taking Mom and Dad to the Broncos vs Chiefs game in November and we all can't wait!

 We were so exhausted each day we had movie night at home every night and the dogs loved dessert time..... this is what happens when you are the last person to finish........

 We took a little detour one day to the Broncos Training Facility at Dove Valley which was fun and who knew.... it is so close to my house!

 And keeping with the sports themed weekend we went to take in an afternoon Rockies game!

 It was perfect weather to cheer on the home team followed by dinner out in Denver!

Stay tuned tomorrow for our Day Trip to Colorado Springs with the family!!!!!!!

Home Tour #2

I Hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day weekend.... we did!! My family was here and we had the best time, so stay tuned this week for a post or two about our weekend!! BUT right now I am gonna give you a little more home tour!!

Starting at my entryway table.... since I took this picture I have added some pumpkins and Fall flare! But of course! I love that in all the boxes I found our HUGE Pottery Barn vase that I filled with Matt's old baseballs, it looks great but it is also a great little piece of him! 

The globe is something I made.... or should I say my Mom painted it black then when my Sister-in-law Jordan came to visit she has great handwriting so she wrote our wedding verse on it (Ruth 1:6) and now when everyone visits I have them sign it like a guest book with silver sharpie.... and OH NO! I think we had too much fun this weekend to remember to have my family sign it.... DUH!!!

 We have a mudroom now which is fun and will come in handy this winter I am sure of, it's also great to keep all the dogs things!

The formal dining room is my PRIDE AND JOY....... and everyone thought I was crazy painting one wall chalkboard but I love it! I just wish my EAT marquee sign that lights up pictured better!

The rug I got from Pottery Barn Teen actually and I LOVE it, it really makes the room come together and the Mustard curtains were on sale at West Elm!

Below is an OLD ladder shelf from Target from our first home and I repurposed it into a "Bar Ladder" of sorts or a buffet and I am happy how it turned out. 

 The Chandelier is also West Elm and I did the whole room around the 3 Vintage prints on the wall... what can I say... I like color!

 Here is our kitchen ALL white just like I like! ha! It is completely open to the living room which makes cooking much more enjoyable... watching TV or chatting with guests while I cook!

 I LOVE the windows.... they look over to the hillside and sometimes while I am cooking I can watch deer on the hill! Since this picture I have changed up a few things but I will take a picture soon and post them!

 This is the cute space behind my stove which is perfect for fresh flowers and this cute vintage Oklahoma plate I found! And pie of course!!!!!!!

Here is our living room.... colorful, relaxed and lived in is what I wanted! And the dog prints are absolutely the focal pieces on the wall!!!

 This is the opposite wall where I have created a cute little seating area by the window in the living room!

 And that is Matt's new purchase our BIG TV which I LOVE too and we can't wait for winter to use our modern fireplace! I also added the large Pottery Barn leather chair to match the sectional we already had.... now we have more space so we needed another seating area!
Over all I love the living room.... it really is ME!

 This is my view at night from my favorite part of the couch!

Our basement level is a walkout so it really isn't a basement at all and it walks about onto our patio and into our yard. Our yard came with a garden but it was full of weeds..... Matt and the Dogs took care of it for me! 

 This is our basement for now....... it is roughly an additional 900 sq feet already run for plumbing and the works.... the plan is a 5 year plan. And it will have a 5th bedroom, full bath, Wet bar and movie/rec room one day!!! We need to start saving now! haha!

Well guys... later this week I will give you the Master bedroom tour.... hope you enjoyed it!