Oct. 31:  Beaver Creek will host Halloween Trick or Treat­ing and free  ice skating from 3PM  to 6 p.m.

Nov. 25:  The annual Cookie Competition takes place on Beaver Creek’s opening day  @ 2 p.m.

Nov. 27:  Tree Lighting and Ginger­bread Competition.

Nov. 27 & 28:  Warren Miller’s Dynasty, 3 showings @ The Vilar Center

Dec. 4 – 6:  Birds of Prey World Cup

Dec. 29:  BB King @ The Vilar Center

Jan. 15 & 16:  STOMP @ The Vilar Center

Jan. 23:  The Talons Challenge:  Ski all 13 runs on Birds of Prey, Grouse Mountain, and Larkspur Bowl.  Après Party at Red Tail.

Jan. 28 – 30:  12th annual Beaver Creek  Master Chef Classic: Includes  Master Chef Challenge competition  Friday night  and the Grand Tasting on Saturday night.

March 16 & 17:  Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater @ The Vilar Center

April 1 – 4:  Vail Film Festival

April 4:  Easter Eggstravaganza: Easter Bunny and Easter Egg Hunt @ Creekside Park

Heating bills this winter are expected to be the lowest in 5 years, down 8% from last year. The biggest savings will be for those using propane and natural gas, which accounts for about half of all US houses. Electric heat will see some savings as well, though not as substantial.

There are a few low cost improvements you can make to your home to help boost the value.  The first is to create space by opening rooms up. This can be as simple as moving furniture around to create more flow thru a room, to a more complicated solution of  knocking down a wall. Another good idea is to add light to space, or in some cases change the type of lighting. Some smaller rooms will feel more inviting with a softer light, while others will appear larger by adding higher watt energy efficient bulbs or introducing natural light with a sky light or more windows. Cleaning existing windows may help to lighten up a room as well. Replacing old appliances with newer, more energy efficient ones can give you a leg up on resale value and save you money on energy bills in the meantime. Other green, more efficient replacements such as air conditioning and heating systems can help even more. Replacing flooring is a great way to boost value and update the look of your home. There are some great deals to be had these days and manufactured hardwood flooring is an excellent choice. It is stronger and more durable than natural wood flooring, so it is a great investment for years to come. Replacement of any outdated features such as wallpaper and fixtures can be a great low cost way to give your home a new, more modern look as well. Even cleaning up older rusted or tarnished fixtures can help. And don’t forget the exterior. Curb appeal is not to be underestimated. Cleaning up and painting the exterior is always a good idea to keep up the value of your home. Replacing landscaping can make your home look more appealing as well, and finding shrubs and trees native to your are can help keep down maintenance costs, and you may even be able to find landscaping to keep away certain pests who may try to eat shrubs and flowers. Keep some of these ideas in mind whether you are looking to put your home on the market in the near future, or are just trying to keep up the value and appeal of your home.

The Vail Town Council voted Tuesday to approve the building of a new fire station in West Vail. The Vail Fire Chief Mark Miller has been stressing the need for a new station for quite some time now. A federal grant will be used to pay for three new Vail firefighters to be hired the first of the year. The town will use cash reserves to pay for the structure, saving the town millions over financing the project.  The proposal still needs the details hammered out. The original proposal has a $5.6 million price tag, but the council is hoping to knock 20% off the cost.

For those of you who have your equipment out and are can’t wait to make some turns, Loveland opened today with the earliest first day of skiing ever. They have three runs open and the cold temperatures have them blowing snow at a rate that will have more terrain open soon. There is also more snow in the forecast for tomorrow and over the weekend. It looks like the middle of winter on the runs already. Time to get tuned up and hit the slopes. THINK SNOW!