It started when the girls were about 4 and 5 . . . in Denver . . . I had this brilliant idea! Life wasn't so crazy back then . . . or maybe it was, and I just don't remember it that way. But I was a stay-at-home mom, so I spent 24/7 with them . . . our schedule was pretty busy. Your mom was in kindergarten for most of the day . . . your Auntie E was in preschool 3 days a week . . . I spent a lot of time planning and organizing events for all the other stay-at-home moms on top of keeping our household in order, maintaining the yard, painting and decorating the house . . . volunteering in the girls' classrooms.
People think stay-at-home moms have a lot of time on their hands . . . truth is . . . since I didn't work outside the home, I did have extra time . . . I just filled it with other things.
Our first adventures were to see as much as possible in the Denver area . . . that city has a LOT of stuff for kids their age to do.
- The Museum of Natural History was a serious favorite . . . filled with SO. MUCH. STUFF.
- The Firefighter's Museum allowed kids to dress as firefighters . . . climb on trucks . . . slide down poles
- The Zoo was huge . . . not too stifling for the animals . . . like so many other zoos I'd been to . . . monkeys were a particular preference . . . especially after Jack arrived since they thought he looked a little like the baby orangutans with his sticky up hair
- The Museum of Art had an amazing kids adventure program . . . backpacks filled with puzzles and information that led them through the exhibits . . . introducing them to art
- The Denver Children's Museum was filled with fun, interactive exhibits
- Coor's Field . . . where the Colorado Rockies played . . . was a fun destination . . .their dad caught two fouled balls in one game!
- The Denver Public Library was HUGE . . . they offered readings and fun adventures for kids
- The Tattered Cover was the coolest book store . . . with all sort of nooks and crannies that had beanbags and pillows into which the kids could sink and look at books . . . they didn't care how long you stayed!
- The U.S. Mint located in Denver was open to the public . . . it was so cool to see where and how money is made
- The Park Meadows Mall was an adventure in itself . . . the food court looked like a gigantic log cabin with the most beautiful fireplace . . . at Christmas is was purely magical
- Root Beer craft breweries abound . . . non-alcoholic mind you . . . for the littles
And that list doesn't even begin to knock out what we did in Denver . . . not to mention the places we went to hike and picnic! Just writing this makes me wish we all lived out there!! You'd love it . . . wide open spaces . . . sunshine all the time (they claim 330 days of it) . . . perfect snow for sledding and skiing . . . national and state parks . . . the coolest wildlife (well, except for grizzly bears that want to eat you . . . but cool in their own right) . . . perfect camping weather.
But our Saturday Adventures started there. Every Saturday we did something as a family . . . from something as simple as getting ice cream to something that lasted the entire day . . . or even the weekend! We continued this tradition long after the girls graduated high school . . . when we could work them in . . . occasionally still doing something every now and again.
Your mom says she's going to continue the tradition with you . . . I hope she does . . . it's not so much the actual adventure . . . it's all about the time you spend together. You won't really appreciate that part while you're little, but once you realize the value of it, you'll understand the importance of it.
I'll highlight some of ours in future posts . . . as I remember to track down pictures.
Here's to many, many Saturday Adventures . . . maybe I'll even get to join you occasionally!
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