Covering your pergola or trellis with plants is a decorative way to embellish your outdoor living space with greenery, color and even fragrance. With a pergola, the plants will protect you from the harsh rays of the sun – in time – as well as camouflage any nearby neighbor’s view! While it’s hard to choose from among the plants that grow quickly and thrive in Colorado’s climate, here are a few climbing options for our Zone 5 summers and winters. (Many thanks to the Denver Post for its expert advice below!)
You know that it’s summertime when you smell something delicious roasting on the barbie in the backyard – yours or your neighbor’s. If you haven’t yet, it’s time to fire up those grills with these burger recipes – (Father’s Day is coming up – June 20th!). You’ll find classic and creative versions – from stuffed or seasoned with unexpected spices, to bacon burgers, veggie burgers and mouthwatering burger-bites.
What’s your favorite ice-cold indulgence? Sorbet? Ice cream? Sherbet? We scoured the internet for the best, tastiest, fat-free to fat-full recipes for creamy, dreamy, fruity frozen desserts. You’ll need an ice cream machine for some of these recipes, and you can get one at the Walmart in Lafayette on Hwy 287. But for others, all you need is a little sugar, flavoring and a freezer!
The weather held last Friday and Saturday for the 24th Annual Erie Balloon Festival. It was the first year in several for the festival which has been cancelled in previous years (in 2020 due to COVID and 2018 and 2019 due to rain) and spectators showed up in droves to witness the event.
Pilots arrived shortly after 5:00 a.m. to begin setting up, filling up and launching 32 balloons into the atmosphere over Colliers Hill. Here’s a look, for anyone who missed the spectacle from ground zero!
A Look at What’s Happening at Colliers Hill!
If you haven’t visited the master-planned community of Colliers Hill, it’s not just hot air balloons that are taking off here! With low maintenance paired homes built by KB Home, plus a variety of single family floor plans from Century Communities and Richmond American Homes — life is just better on the Hill! This fast-growing new home community in Northern Colorado has lots of exciting amenities and the beautiful model homesshowcase three top Colorado builders – soon to be four with the addition of Boulder Creek. It’s still a great time to buy – without competition and bidding wars. Priced from the high $300s.
The Erie Chamber’s largest event of 2021 combines the Town Fair in Downtown Erie with the Hot Air Balloon Festival – now in its 24th year. For the first time ever, the hot air balloons will launch from right here in Colliers Hill! You’ll want to wake up early and grab your lawn chairs and blankets to watch 25-30 balloons take to the morning air!
April showers bring May flowers and guess what else happens this month? Cinco de Mayo, baby! This festive, fun, and family-centric holiday on the fifth of May is a great excuse for merrymaking, with delectable Mexican recipes you can make at home with your family, along with some refreshing and tasty margarita makeovers!
Mothers are like glue. Even when you can’t see them, they’re still holding the family together. ~ Susan Gale
It’s true, isn’t it? Moms are the glue that hold our families together and they deserve a special day all about THEM. Mother’s Day this year is on May 9 and that gives us a few weeks to thoughtfully consider what we can do to celebrate motherhood, and the women who help create those beautiful and precious relationships with their children.
Consumer Reports has released another Face-Off – the national reviewers’ picks for the best-of products in blenders, chainsaws, mattresses, fitness apps and hybrid cars! If you’ve been wondering which is the better buy in some or all of these categories, keep reading!
Blender Face-Off: A Clear Winner
It’s smoothie season and if you don’t already have a blender you love, check out this Face-Off between a new pro-style blender from Kalorik and a Vitamix blender. According to Consumer Reports — the objective test and review group that puts all kinds of consumer goods to the test — the $130 Kalorik 200 series Pro doesn’t quite perform as well as the $400 Vitamix 5200. Maybe understandably, given the price differential – but both resemble each other and and offer eight cups of capacity. When Consumer Reports ran a normal series of tests to find out how each blender handled a variety of jobs. The Vitamix outperformed the lesser-priced model.
Both can blend up an icy drink with no problems, but the Vitamix delivered a more even and consistent pureed soup with fewer chunks. The testers found that both crushed ice well, but the Vitamix results were, more even and consistent – almost like a snow cone.
The biggest difference appeared in the durability test of crushing ice 45 times over a series of days. Vitamix, crushed this test, too, while the other blender struggled a bit. And while the Kalorik has a two year-warranty Vitamix has seven years of coverage. For more ratings or to watch the video Face-Off, go to ConsumerReports.org.
Fitness Apps: A Toss Up?
When it comes to fitness, apps have been hugely popular while gyms and workout facilities closed down during the COVID scare. Peloton reported that at the end of last year, digital subscriptions were up 472 percent from 2019. Even as things are opening back up, fitness apps allow you to stream workouts and get “personal” training from ace instructors, any time of the day or night. Apple has rolled out its entry to the fitness category, and if you already owned an Apple watch this one might be a no brainer. Peloton’s subscription is $12.99 per month and Apple’s Fitness+ is $9.99 – but you need the watch. New watch buyers, however, get three months of Fitness+ free, so there is that.
What sets either one apart? As far as workout options, Peloton has the advantage apparently. As far as instructors go, Consumer Reports gives the advantage to Apple, whose instructors seem to have embraced “fitness cred over camera appeal.” Both services motivate users, but when it comes to dashboard navigation and beginner friendliness, CR gives Apple the edge. Peloton, however, comes back with the advantage for creating community and for music – because “the right tune can get you through an energy slump.” For more details, check out the entire Face-Off comparison review.
This Mattress Makes the Cut
Mattresses are a passion purchase for many because they contribute to good sleep, good health and good attitudes! We embrace all three, so whenever we see reviews – especially from the people who don’t have a dog in the fight – we pay attention. The two mattress-in-a-box leaders, Casper and Tuft & Needle, launched product within two years of each other, 2014 and 2012 respectively, and according to CR, the latest Casper is one of the better versions tested.
The Casper costs a bit more at $1139.99 vs. the Tuft and Needle Mint at $985.50, and both rate a 4 out of a 10 on the CR firmness scale (10 being the firmest), meaning they’re on the softer side. (For a firmer mattress check out the ratings here). The Mint out-performs the Casper in stability (excellent vs. very good) but for support, the Casper scores higher. Using human subjects – of both small and large stature – the Casper is fractionally better (both are in the very good range), but the Casper shines for petite side- and back-sleeper support, where it rates excellent.
Coming Home to Colliers Hill
The new homes that dot the master-planned community of Colliers Hillare built by some of Colorado’s top home builders: KB Home, Century Communities and Richmond American Homes. Life is better on the Hill with amazing amenities in this popular, fast-growing area of Northern Colorado! Check out the beautiful model homes showcasing lots of possibilities in ranch and two-story floor plans — from the high $300s.
When working from home became the rage about a year ago, some of these office-in-place essentials were as hard to come by as toilet paper. But now manufacturers are keeping up with demand and even inventing some new and different must-haves for the home office. Take a look at some of our favorites!
