Tag: family fun

Denver’s Best Pumpkin Patches and Corn Mazes

As the leaves start to turn and the air becomes crisp, families in Denver eagerly anticipate one of fall’s most beloved traditions: visiting pumpkin patches and getting lost in corn mazes. These seasonal attractions offer a perfect blend of outdoor adventure, festive fun, and family bonding. Whether you’re searching for the perfect pumpkin to carve or looking to challenge yourself in a sprawling corn maze, Denver and its surrounding areas have plenty to offer. Here’s a guide to the best pumpkin patches and corn mazes in the Denver area.

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Creating a Family Fall Bucket List in Denver

As the air turns crisp and the leaves begin to change, Denver transforms into a playground of autumnal delights, offering families endless opportunities to bond and create lasting memories. Fall in Denver is a magical time, with everything from vibrant foliage and cozy activities to festive events that capture the spirit of the season.

To help you make the most of this beautiful time of year, here’s a guide to creating a family fall bucket list in Denver.

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Making Spring Cleaning a Family Tradition

Spring Cleaning is more than just cleaning your house for Spring. It’s having a day set aside for everyone in the family to pitch in and help out. Everyone pitching in can help make cleaning enjoyable and stress-free, so I decided to give a few tips that can help you get started organizing and teaching your family the importance of pitching in to do spring cleaning.

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Denver Parks to Visit Before Winter Hits

As summer starts to fade into fall, many of us in Colorado are already thinking about battening down the hatches to stay warm and cozy this winter. Part of that is trying to enjoy the natural beauty of the region before it gets too cold to venture outside. Another big part is enjoying the outdoors before we have to deal with a few months of cabin fever.

Here, then, is a rundown of the top parks in Denver for you and your family to check out before the winter hits:

 

  1. Alamo Placita Park — This park is maintained by the team at the Denver Parks and Recreation bureau and their hard work shows clearly in the beautifully landscaped terrain. If you can make it before October, you will enjoy beautiful gardens that are regularly cared for and will be a great location for a picnic or just a stroll amongst the flowers.

 

  1. Barnum Park — This park is named for former Denver resident and world-famous circus owner Phineas T. Barnum. Although Barnum originally planned to keep some of his circus animals here during winter months, that plan never worked out and the property is now a public park with a hilltop view of the Denver skyline. You can also enjoy spending time walking through trails, along the reservoir, or playing with your pooch at the park’s designated dog area.

 

  1. Confluence Park — The word “confluence” means the place where two bodies of water come together and that’s exactly what happens at this intersection of the South Platte River with Cherry Creek. You can enjoy a baseball or soccer game, walk with your dog, or bike around the creek. While the weather still holds up, this is also a great place to rent a kayak for a day on the water.

 

  1. Sloan’s Lake Park — While this is a really great choice for outdoor activities in the summer, you can still enjoy the park in the fall. This is one of those great places to get in the car, roll down the windows (or put the top down) and go for a leisurely drive around the lake to enjoy the view of the area.

 

  1. Denver Botanic Gardens — Here’s another great choice if you want someplace with beautiful flowers and other foliage. It’s not just great for a picnic or a stroll, but also boasts a bistro that provides takeout. Although entrance to the park is limited thanks to COVID-19, you can still get access by reserving a ticket to this natural beauty.

 

Denver is known for its beautiful outdoor vistas throughout the year. But those of us who are locals know that it may not be practical to venture out too much in the wintertime. With that said, these are the best locations to check out before the snow falls.

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Whether you’re buying, selling, refinancing, or building your dream home, I’m here to help you explore the many financing options available. Ensuring that you make the right choice for you and your family is my ultimate goal. I am committed to providing my customers with mortgage services that exceed their expectations. Find out more by visiting my website.

Exploring Denver’s Trails While Leaving No Trace

Many of us intentionally moved to the Denver, Colorado, area because of the natural beauty that is so readily available. But, if we aren’t careful, this beauty may not be here much longer.

With so many people heading outdoors after being cooped up because of COVID-19, the increased traffic is starting to take its toll on Denver’s hiking trails and natural parks. We don’t blame people for wanting to get out and enjoy the beauty of nature. But there are some things that people need to remember to protect those trails.

Keep these in mind when enjoying Denver’s natural parks and hiking trails:

  1. Stay on the Path — The trails have been created to provide you with a safe path to follow through the landscape. If you decide to walk off the trail, you will be destroying plants and animal habitats. The easy way to leave no trace is to stay on the trail. If you come across mud or a large puddle in the path, walk through it. Even stepping around can cause the path to widen over time and destroy a small portion of the natural habitat.

 

  1. Don’t Bother the Animals — One of the best parts of exploring these trails is the chance to see wildlife. Now, we know most people aren’t crazy enough to try to bother a wild bear, mountain lion, or rattlesnake. But we are talking about the “cute” animals that are out there. This is not a petting zoo. If you see baby animals, know that they haven’t been abandoned by their mothers. The full-grown ones are nearby, and if you bother the babies, they may either defend them or they will abandon them. Just look and take pictures.

 

  1. And, Don’t Mess with the Plants — Yes, there is some gorgeous foliage in these areas. But leave them alone so that others can enjoy them. You may come across some beautiful mountain flowers. Hold back on your instinct to pick them. Let them grow naturally and, if you have to have a physical memento, take a picture.

 

  1. Pack It In, Pack It Out — If you bring something on the trail with you, make sure you take it back out when you are done. This means everything from food wrappers and bottles to food scraps. Yes, fruit rinds and banana peels are biodegradable. But you should take these with you as well. Also, if you see any trash along the trail, be considerate and pick it up.

There’s an old saying amongst hikers: “Take nothing but memories. Leave nothing but footprints.” If you want to help keep our natural hiking trails lasting for years to come in the Denver area, it is imperative that you follow these rules to maintain the beauty of the area.

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Whether you’re buying, selling, refinancing, or building your dream home, I’m here to help you explore the many financing options available. Ensuring that you make the right choice for you and your family is my ultimate goal. I am committed to providing my customers with mortgage services that exceed their expectations. Find out more by visiting my website.
Curbside Celebrations for Those in Denver

Curbside Celebrations for Those in Denver

While everyone is in lockdown thanks to the current pandemic, it is important to remember that major life events are still going on. And it goes without saying that you should still spend the time to celebrate these events.

Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, or some other milestone, COVID-19 shouldn’t completely take away your ability to celebrate. It just means that you need to change HOW you celebrate the event.

Here are a few ideas for curbside (or online) celebrations for those of you in Denver:

  1. Let them eat cake — There are lots of different bakeries in Denver that are having to adjust the way they do business. Some of these bakeries are offering curbside pick-up for their cakes while others are doing home deliveries. Regardless of which method you use, these bakeries have unique creations that will pick up any celebration. Some of our favorites include:

 

  • Mermaids Bakery – This local bakery has a lot of creative creations, but our absolute favorite is their cake made to look like the hottest commodity during the pandemic—a roll of toilet paper. This may sound bizarre, but the artistry is incredible and makes for a unique cake. Of course, they also have traditional birthday cakes as well.

 

  • El Antojo Denver – Another unique cake shop offering curbside pickup is Cakes El Antojo. This one has also made some great lockdown themed birthday cakes including one that is made to look like a case of Clorox wipes.

 

  1. Schedule a parade (or have an online party) — Another popular activity that you can do to help celebrate birthdays and special events is a curbside party. Simply have people load into their cars with signs and balloons showing their love for the person being celebrated and then drive by their home at a designated time. These “drive-by” parties may not be for everyone, so another alternative is an online party. You can have party boxes and favors delivered to your guests and invite everyone to check in on Zoom for an online gathering to get you out of the lockdown doldrums.

 

  1. Have a drink — Just because you’re on lockdown doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate with adult libations. For such events, you can get alcoholic beverages delivered to your home or schedule them for curbside pickup and take them back to celebrate. Many breweries in the area are not offering to-go options for their specialty beers. Or, you can get a growler of local beer from Craft Alley and have it delivered to your home so you can celebrate with a cold one.

Just because we are on lockdown doesn’t mean that we have to give up on all of the activities that we enjoy. Birthdays and anniversaries only come around once a year, so it’s important to get creative and keep celebrating.

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Whether you’re buying, selling, refinancing, or building your dream home, I’m here to help you explore the many financing options available. Ensuring that you make the right choice for you and your family is my ultimate goal. I am committed to providing my customers with mortgage services that exceed their expectations. Find out more by visiting my website.
Backyard Summer Camp for Kids

Backyard Summer Camp for Kids

Summer is coming and for those of us who have been tucked away in quarantine, it may seem like we’ve already been on one continuous break with the kids. But, now that distance learning is taking a break, there may be fewer activities for you to keep the kids active. But you don’t want to let them become couch potatoes and video game zombies.

Here are ways to recreate the summer camp experience in your own backyard.

These activities are guaranteed to help you keep the kids from being bored and help you maintain your sanity this summer.

  1. Sprinkler Fun — Let’s start with a tried-and-true favorite from everyone’s childhood: playing in the water sprinkler. This is the perfect way to get cool on a hot summer day.

A DIY idea for this is to make your own sprinkler. Get a 2-liter soda bottle (empty) and poke holes in the plastic with a knife or scissors. Then, attach the garden hose to the bottle and affix it with duct tape. Once you crank up the water, it will come shooting out of the holes and your kids can have fun jumping through the stream.

  1. Soda Bottle Rocket — While you’ve got those empty soda bottles, try this little science project. First, tape pencils to the sides of the bottle so that the bottle can be placed opening down without covering the neck of the bottle.

Then, fill the bottle with vinegar, add baking soda, and then quickly cover the bottle opening with a cork. Flip the rocket upside down so it rests on the pencils and wait for the chemical reaction to shoot the rocket into the air.

  1. Make a Shaving Cream Painting — This one may sound bizarre but hold on a minute. It’s actually a great way to get artistic expression and fun sensory play combined. 

Get several cans of shaving cream from your local dollar store. Then, use food coloring to dye the shaving cream into different colors. Set up a tarp in the backyard and let your kids use the colored shaving cream to create pictures from rainbows to sky scenes to whatever their imagination can conjure up.

It’s messy fun, and the tarp can be easily hosed down and reused later if the kids want to try this again.

  1. Tightrope Walking — If you want to help your kids train for a career in the circus (or at least work with their motor skills), do a tightrope play area. If you have two sturdy trees, run two soft ropes between them. It doesn’t have to be high—just a couple of inches.

Then place the second rope high enough for your child to use as a handhold as they walk across the lower rope. If you don’t have a pair of trees, you can also use fence posts or poles in a pinch.

This year, we may still be dealing with a quarantine lockdown in our homes. But that doesn’t mean you can’t let your child explore their backyard and turn it into a home summer camp with these activities.

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Whether you’re buying, selling, refinancing, or building your dream home, I’m here to help you explore the many financing options available. Ensuring that you make the right choice for you and your family is my ultimate goal. I am committed to providing my customers with mortgage services that exceed their expectations. Find out more by visiting my website.
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