I spent years working in hospitality and events in Denver and Chicago before moving my family back to Colorado in '23, ready for more space and a different pace. But I knew I'd miss always having something happening—a new restaurant opening, a coffee shop around the corner, a place you stumbled into and couldn't wait to tell someone about.
When we moved back to Colorado, I was starting over. I didn't have a go-to coffee order, a date-night restaurant, or any sense of the back roads, farms, and people behind the businesses I was walking into.
Locally Boulder grew out of that desire to feel at home. I started exploring, asking questions, meeting restaurant owners, farmers, and makers who had poured themselves into this community. Somewhere along the way, our new home stopped feeling like the place we'd moved to and started feeling like ours.
Locally Boulder has grown since then into a resource for the community, and it's part of the City Living Network, a collection of women-run city guides across the country. But the reason I love doing it hasn't changed: I get to know this place through the people who make it special, then share what I find.
Fall is when I'm reminded of that most.
The first cool morning after a long summer always makes me want to slow down. I love starting with coffee at Süti & Co. or Pearl Street Coffee, sitting a little longer than I should, never leaving without something from the pastry case. Some days I'll head to NCAR or Anemone Loop to get outside with my family and our Bernedoodle. On a Saturday, you'll likely find me wandering the Boulder County Farmers Market or Lafayette Farmers Market, seeing what's in season and running into people I know. Lunch might mean an Italian sandwich at Blackbelly Market, although I still debate the Cubano and burger every single time.
Some of my favorite fall days are the ones we spend as a family. We'll cut flowers at Balto Farms, go for apple cider donuts at YA YA Farm & Orchard, or take the hayride out to the pumpkin fields at Anderson Farms. My daughter is getting older, and these ordinary traditions won't always look the way they do now. I hope someday she remembers the pumpkins, the flowers, the donuts, and the drives together—small experiences shaping her childhood and the memories that will stay with her.
Some of the best days happen when you just wander. I love popping into Hytte & Co., Cedar & Hyde, or Jones + Co., or taking the country roads toward Hygiene for Café Fritz and Low Rider. Those drives—open space, mountains in the distance, finding a place you didn't know existed—still make me feel lucky we ended up here.
Some of my favorite discoveries happen in the towns nearby. Louisville holds a special place for us—my husband and I got married there in '24, so every drive through downtown brings back a little of that day. Lafayette and Erie have their own charm too, whether it's a new coffee shop or a small shop I stumble into while running errands. Each town has something wonderful worth discovering.
When my husband and I manage a date night, we have our places too: Corrida for the views, Basta for the wood-fired menu, or Cozobi Fonda Fina for a memorable meal—and you can't skip the avocado margarita.
When I started Locally Boulder, I thought I was creating a guide to help people discover where to go. I didn't realize how much it would help me find a sense of belonging here, too.
Maybe that's why I care so much about sharing these places. A coffee shop, a restaurant or a little farm stand down a country road can seem small. But over time, those places become the backdrop to our lives. We celebrate there, bring our kids there, meet friends there. We become regulars, making memories without even realizing it.
That, more than anything, is what Locally Boulder means to me. It's falling in love with where you live—and helping someone else do the same.
@locallyboulder
LocallyBoulder.com