Broadmoor pool
On social media, I recently asked if I was the only person who has our summer pretty much planned out. I was only kinda kidding. Though April is really busy for us, I generally try to limit the kids to one activity at a time during the school year. But when summer rolls around, that is our time to play and travel! Most of our friends do the opposite: over-schedule their kids during the year and give them the summer off to do nothing. Whatever works for you!
I’ll be juggling travels with work and believe me, all of this takes a tremendous amount of blood, sweat and tears on my part because there is a lot of promotional backing, planning and writing that goes into every trip and campaign. But I’m so darn grateful for the opportunities.
I won’t be sleeping a lot but it’s highly overrated anyway. And I’m trying to ignore the fact that Denver’s searing temperatures + an overheated upstairs keep me up all night anyway. Here’s what we have going down:
The Broadmoor. For the third year in a row, we’re going to this 5-star resort in Colorado Springs for Hadley’s birthday. I feel so fortunate to write for their magazine and the perks that come with it. Pool-side cabana and gourmet brunch buffet, anyone? Insider tip: The Broadmoor acquired the popular Seven Falls and will be launching an amazing Soaring Adventure in July.
Avid4Adventure. This is, hands down, the best outdoor summer camp for kids in the Denver-area. My kids are going on their third year with Avid4 Adventure and are thrilled to spend a week climbing, biking, kayking and hiking. P.S. I’m giving away a free week of camp at Mile High Mamas so be sure to enter if you’re local!
Camp Chief Ouray (CCO). Great things come in threes and this is Hadley’s third year going to Camp Chief Ouray, Colorado’s longest-running overnight camp on 5,100 glorious acres in the rocky mountains. Its traditions and outdoor activities have seeped into Hadley’s DNA and she cannot wait for a week of overnight camp (read: no parents) and horseback riding every day.
Twilight Camp. While Hadley is at CCO, Bode will be attending his Cub Scout day camp for a week of buddy bonding and good old-fashioned boy fun. I am required to volunteer and I suspect I’ll be on boy overload by week’s end.
YMCA of the Rockies. We’ll be picking Hadley up from CCO and will be spending the night at Snow Mountain Ranch (located on property) where we’ll finally be able to try their summer tubing hill that opened last year. The next day, we’ll stop to play in Grand Lake, drive into Rocky Mountain National Park and over Trail Ridge Road, the highest paved roads in any U.S. National Park that crests at 12,183 feet. We’ll play and overnight at YMCA of the Rockies Estes Park Center.
Summer hiking group. We’re hoping to fit in at least a few hikes with our friends to enjoy Colorado’s mountains! In all our spare time, of course.
Swim lessons. We hope to spend a couple of weeks doing daily swim lessons with our besties. This is a tradition that is going on four years and is like a pool party every day!
Fish Creek’s mud pits
Oh Canada. The details are sketchy as to when the kids and I will drive to the Motherland in July but a few things are certain: We’ll party at the Calgary Stampede again, get mucked up in the mud pits at Fish Creek Provincial Park and play with family. Jamie will fly into Calgary and we’ll spend a couple of nights in Canmore with friends and play in Banff National Park. We’ll then drive into B.C. and spend a week with my family on the lake in Vernon before Jamie flies home.
Utah. From B.C., the kiddos and I will make our pilgrimage to Utah, stopping in Idaho to visit friends. Hadley and I will enjoy a few days with Jamie’s family in Salt Lake City before driving home. Bode will stay an extra week for some Grandma TLC before his second ever solo flight back to Denver. Score: We snagged a crazy-cheap ticket during Frontier’s Spring Sale.
Kids Adventure Race. My kids are both obsessed with American Ninja Warrior and this race (offered between August 5-9 in Vail, Colo.) will be an awesome way to expose them to adventure racing. They’ve teamed up with friends and will be ziplining, hiking, biking, mud-pitting, slip ‘n sliding, tubing and more.
Mudderella. I’d be jealous of the kids’ adventure race if I wasn’t doing one of my own on August 22. I’m dropping the kids off at school and going on a girl’s weekend to Aspen/Snowmass with awesome friends (who’s in?!) Our condo is booked, now I just have to get off my butt and start training for Mudderella.
Me thinks the mud pits in Canada will be a great place to start.
Here’s to summer!!!!!
I'm a Canadian-born mom of two, former Denver Post columnist, family travel writer, editor of MileHighMamas.com and 9News contributor. Expert on all things Utah, Denver, family and travel. Lover of laughter and life. Happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin. 