Colorado Livin’

Spring Break in Denver 2016–Over 50 Activities Featured!

The countdown is on for Spring Break 2016! If you’re staying in Denver, no need to dismay as we have updated last year’s popular Spring Break guide. Whether you want to hunker down indoors, get outside or explore something new, we have you covered with these fabulous Spring Break offerings, categorized by geographic area.  CENTRAL DENVER Denver Museum of Nature & Science–The big news at Denver’s favorite natural history and science museum is the new Chocolate: The Exhibition. Be sure to explore the Museum’s south side that added 126,000 square feet and five levels of discovery to the Museum last year, providing even more space to engage, delight, and spark your imagination.  Botanic Gardens  – These top-ranked U.S. botanical ...

10 Colorado Dude Ranch Getaways for Spring Break or Early Summer

I know, Dude Ranches can be even more expensive than a ski trip, but not if you are booking correctly. There’s no penny pinching at the ranches, usually sitters, activities and food are all included. However, if you pick the right time or are looking for a specific activity, here’s great deals and information on what ranches are open in Colorado, when to book, and what you’re going to get. You don’t have to stay seven nights at any ranch, horseback riding might not be available, but off-season doesn’t mean it’s not worth the trip. Ask for children’s rates, boutique pricing or even their bed & breakfast rates. All ranches offer different items, types of cuisine, lodging and activity from snow-shoeing to sleigh rides to cooking classes. Inquire for best rates and personal interests with ...

Colorado Garden & Home Show Offers Winter Escape with Family Fun and 10,000 Blooming Flowers

The 57th annual Colorado Garden & Home Show, held Feb. 13 – 21, 2016 at the Colorado Convention Center, is a fantastic show for anyone looking for the latest in home design, landscaping and décor. The show also offers families a chance to escape the winter and enjoy more than 10,000 blooming flowers; 11 inspiring landscaped gardens with rich colors, fragrances and textures; and a 5,500-square foot entry garden. Plus, kids under 12 may enter for free! The 2016 entry garden, which celebrates a different theme each year and is always a main attraction, will feature the Colorado outdoors through a collaboration with the Colorado Outward Bound School. The Outward Bound-themed garden will feature tents, kayaks and a climbing net that children ages five and under will be allowed to ...

Eldora Mountain Resort: Braving the Elements

Not all ski days are created equally and sometimes–no matter how great the resort–the weather just doesn’t cooperate. Thus describes last Saturday on the mountain. My husband was on a winter campout with the Scouts while my kids and I opted for the more sane option: skiing Eldora Mountain Resort.  Or so we thought.  Eldora is a true local’s mountain. You won’t see fur collars or high-speed lifts here. Eldora is for the purists, where brown-bag lunches reign and the RTD “N”  route conveniently delivers oodles of skiers from downtown Boulder 21 miles up the canyon to the base, avoiding the I-70 gridlock. With just 680 skiable acres, this resort is about quality, not quantity as upslope snow storms provide sensational snow, backed ...

Denver Deal: Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month is January 2016

I grew up in Steamboat. And yes, we had skiing as our gym class in elementary school. After I had my kiddos I had not gone skiing in a long time mostly due to cost and I wasn’t sure if my kids would love it. Then when my son got his free pass in 5th Grade (back then there was not the Vail Epic School Kids offering it to Kindergartners) – he challenged me to learn snowboarding. The first time was not pretty (I could not figure out how to stop the stupid thing and was toted to the bottom of the ski area strapped to a sled provided by the lovely mountain staff). After that, I did get a lesson (on a cheap deal in January since it is Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month) and the rest is sort of family history. I love snowboarding. I can’t wait to go every year! It is great fun wit...

Denver Free Days January through June 2016

As we round the first of the year – put some of these great and free attractions on your list of must-dos in 2016!  Always be sure to check their website to confirm dates and times. January Friday, Jan 1 – First Hikes free admission at several Colorado State Parks Saturday, Jan 2 – Denver Art Museum (P.S. It is free every day all year for kids 18 and under).  Tuesday, Jan 5 – Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield Tuesday, Jan 5 – Target First Tuesdays, Children’s Museum of Denver 4-8 p.m. Friday, Jan 8 – Denver Zoo Saturday, Jan 9 – Denver Zoo Monday, Jan 18 – Denver Botanic Gardens Monday, Jan 18 – National Parks Thursday, Jan 21 – Denver Zoo Monday, Jan 25 – Denver Museum of Nature and Science Sunday, Jan 31 ...

Contest: See The Colorado Ballet’s Dreamy “The Nutcracker”

Sink yourself into the glow of a dreamy, witty production of “The Nutcracker.” There is no better way to hit the pause button on a frantic holiday season. Year after year, Colorado families have folded “The Nutcracker” into their traditional celebrations. Why? The Colorado Ballet breathes fresh, innovative life into Tchaikovsky’s charming Christmas fantasy. These aren’t your kids on their tippy-toes leaping around your living room to “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.” As fun as that is, The Colorado Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” showcases strong, athletic dancing while remaining lovely, delicate, and enchanting. The choreography is inspired, along with tiny elements of whimsy. A facial expression, a sip from a shimmering champ...

First Look: Grand Reopening of Children’s Museum of Denver

If you can think of a happy adjective, you can use it to describe the Children’s Museum Denver Marsico Campus: It’s engaging, beautiful, whimsical, clever, delightful, yummy, charming, eye-candy, eye-popping, challenging, silly, lovely, splashy, splooshy, amazing, and accessible. That might seem over the top. Nothing could possibly be that much fun, but somehow they did it. It’s almost as if the team of big kids at the museum asked actual kids what they like to do and waved a wand. They kept the familiar classic and beloved features and exhibits, of course. The exhibits they added not only enhance what is there but take the museum to a new level of awesome. It’s a truly top notch must-see destination for all ages to enjoy. Eighteen exhibits are divided into four typ...

Contest: A Really Useful “Day Out With Thomas” Giveaway at the Colorado Railroad Museum

He’s useful. He’s cheeky. He’s friendly. He’s big and blue. He’s in Colorado. If you guess the big blue bear at the convention center, you’re wrong. If you’re thinking of the creepy blue horse at DIA, you’re really, really wrong. Everyone’s favorite little engine from the Island of Sodor has returned to the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden to entertain fans of all ages. A Day Out with Thomas is wildly popular because it’s more than just a train ride. Families can spend hours enjoying the many Thomas and Friends related activities in a festive atmosphere. Kids can pose with Sir Topham Hatt and Thomas for memorable photos. There are several activity tents and live entertainment, including a sing-a-long and magic show. If the day i...

Colorado travel: 5 scenic byways for fall colors

These leafy routes not only get you so close to gorgeous fall foliage that you can smell the trees changing, but they also reveal significant pages in the state’s historic and cultural storybook. Go to Colorado.com for additional details and routes! Top of the Rockies The drive: Bookended by two ski resorts, this sky-high trip takes you from Copper Mountain to Leadville and west to Aspen. With the majority of the byway winding above 9,000 feet, you’ll cross the Continental Divide and follow the Arkansas River past old mining camps, high-country lakes and towering 14,433-foot Mt. Elbert. Mileage: 82 miles Pull over for: Downtown Leadville. The nation’s highest-elevation incorporated city is a National Historic Landmark full of mining museums, antique shops and Victorian-era architecture. St...

Kids Ski Deals So Great They’ll Make You Squeal

Nothing makes me squeal more like a teenager than the two words Snowboarding and Deals. And I will totally go ga-ga when they are in a sentence together! That is why I love Labor Day weekend! The unofficial weekend of ski sales in the Denver area for Colorado ski families.  Vail Epic Ski Kids. Vail Resorts (Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone) are offering a free pass for Colorado Residents in Kindergarten through 5th Grade. The pass allows kids to ski/snowboard four times at each of their resorts. You must go to a Colorado Ski & Golf, Ski and Sport or Boulder Sports in person with your kiddo to fill out paperwork. You also have to bring a recent photo (head shot) of your kids. The program includes a free first-timer lesson and equipment rental on that day.  Fifth a...

Fourth Graders: Get Your Free National Park Pass NOW for “Every Kid in a Park”

Hey fourth graders: Do you want to see America’s natural wonders and historic sites for free? Earlier this year, the “Every Kid in a Park” initiative was announced that all fourth grade students and their families would have free admission to National Parks, national forests, national wildlife refuges and waters for a full year starting in the 2015-2016 school year. That day has come so grab your fourth grader and be sure to sign up now at https://everykidinapark.gov/. Start by clicking Get Your Pass Start Your Adventure Now   Click Start and then choose your adventure. It could be Go On a Nature Walk, Time Travel or Go Swimming. Whatever adventure you choose, follow the prompts until you reach your destination: Simply print your pass and enjoy ...