This blog is dedicated to Andy, whose love for family always makes things possible, and to Alex, Sydney, and Reese, who make everything worth it. Merry Christmas from Georgetown, Colorado

I’m writing this from our beautiful, cozy, extremely well-loved townhome in the mountains. It dawned on me this weekend that we have been making memories in this place for 15 amazing years. Admittedly, we have had a lot less family time here, in recent years, but oh, the memories we have. 

Fifteen years ago when we decided to bite the bullet and buy this place in Georgetown, Colorado, the girls were 8,13 and 15. It feels like a lifetime ago and like yesterday at the same time.  

We closed the week before Thanksgiving 2009 and I remember we scrambled to move in and put all of our “new” Craiglist furniture and essentials in place so we could host Thanksgiving. Yes, I fully admit to taking all 3 of my kids out of school days early to help with this project and I would do it over and over again. We had so much fun settling in and putting bunk beds together…twice, because we had zero directions and two sets of bunk beds all thrown in a pile on the floor, but we did it.  That first night, we slept on mattresses on the floor and laughed until the wee hours of the morning, exhausted and exhilarated by this new adventure. 

Our first mountain Thanksgiving was so much fun that we vowed to do it every year, and we did for seven years straight.

The first Christmas, however, met some resistance because changing up tradition is hard, but you know what has been harder? Not having our Christmases out here. 

We celebrated Christmas in the mountains for ten years before things began to change and in-laws and schedules needed to be accommodated. We had a tree, stockings, decorations galore and we even decorated outside.  

Thanksgiving through the New Year became the most cherished time in the mountains.  We built new traditions that involved cozy, snowy nights waiting for the town tree lighting, watching Sydney sing at the local restaurants, playing games, baking cookies, watching movies, Christmas Eve tea, candlelight services at church, ringing the bell, ice skating on the lake, hot cocoa, lots of skiing and many sleepovers with friends.  It became our hub for the holidays and it was pure magic. 

While Thanksgiving and Christmas hold some of our dearest memories, the rest of the year boasts its own kind of magic. For those of us lucky enough to have grown up in a small town, we know the joy of celebrations that bring out the whole town.  Our girls didn’t understand small town life until we bought our place.  This is where they learned first-hand the joy of people greeting them by name when they entered a store, getting a table because you are a local versus the tourist who is just passing through and getting to decorate a float for the 4th of July parade.  Georgetown hosts so many amazing, small-town gatherings and after the Christmas Market, 4th of July is a close second in my book.

There is a parade each year followed by a picnic in the park where they roast the meat underground (It’s reminiscent of the Ox-Roast for those of you from our small town) and we all gather at the same time to get our plates filled with roast beef, corn on the cob, baked beans, garlic bread and sit on our blankets around the park listening to a brass band of locals play their ode to America.  

After lunch, we all walk a few blocks into town for team games like the bucket brigade which honors the early firefighters and residents who kept Georgetown safe during those early mining days.  Fun fact, Georgetown is one of the only mining towns in Colorado that never burned to the ground.  

In our 15 years, I don’t think Andy and I have missed a 4th of July.  We love to spend the week out here enjoying the weather, kayaking and hiking.  In fact, you can find us out here on any given weekend, enjoying the scenery.

This place is not just our home away from home.  It’s part of us, and when we haven’t been here for a while, we feel it calling us back.

In recent years this special place has been the home of two engagement parties. That’s how important this place is to all of us.  In fact, one daughter was engaged just up the road at the Loveland Ski Area which also holds a piece of our hearts.

As I sit here reminiscing about the holidays, and raising our kids here during some very pivotal times, I am so very grateful.  This place centered our family and brought us even closer together.  Yes, we had to eat PBJ sandwiches for a long time to be able to afford a place in the mountains, but it was so worth it.

A few years ago when the kids were home they wanted to pack lunches for skiing the night before and we said let’s just buy lunch at the resort. They about fell off their chairs because they had NEVER been allowed to buy lunch on a ski day in their whole lives. 

Times have changed, and our time together in the mountains has as well, but the memories we made will stay with us forever.

This year, I am decorating for the first time in many years out here and it’s brought some tears remembering all the love these walls have seen. I believe that one day we will all be back out here again, maybe with a new generation of skiers, skaters and snow bunnies.  

Until then, I will continue to cherish what once was and dream of all the snowy, cozy days yet to come.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to family and friends far and near. If this hasn’t been your year, we hope and pray that 2025 brings you happiness, health and cheer. 

Thank you for continuing to share in our stories year after year and we will see you in a few weeks to regale you with more that we hold dear.  Love, Lowi & G