Belleview Park (north side of Belleview, east of Santa Fe) is almost always packed full of families! Kids play in the creek that winds through the park, and there is a playground, a train, and a petting zoo. We go here to ride the train semi-regularly. Oliver currently loves trains. I guess we'll have to go to the railroad museum sometime soon, huh?
Jo was thrilled to play in the creek! Truly, to Jo, there is nothing better than standing in water, throwing rocks. She spent over an hour in the creek.
Jo was thrilled to play in the creek! Truly, to Jo, there is nothing better than standing in water, throwing rocks. She spent over an hour in the creek.
Oliver wasn't interested in the creek this time. He told us he was too big for the creek and just wanted to ride the train.
Oliver was so excited to ride the train! Tickets now cost $1.75 each, but Jo rides free (because she's under 2 years).
We made it back to the petting zoo for the first time this year! It also costs $1.75/person. It was kind of a dud, to be honest. Jo was afraid to pet any of the animals. Oliver checked them out for about 5-10 minutes and then wanted to go. Oh, well!
Summer Bucket List 2013:
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* Play in the "creek" at the Children's Mordecai Gardens at the Denver Botanic Gardens.
* Watch our first parade.
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* Take the kids for a swim.
* Have a real outdoor picnic on the grass with a picnic basket.
* Watch a sunrise.
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* Pick and eat vegetables out of the garden we're growing at Grandma Judy's house.
* Eat cherry tomatoes right off the vine at Aunt Bonnie & Uncle George's house.
* Throw water balloons.
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* Look at stars in the sky.
* Visit Andrew at work for lunch.
* Take the train downtown to visit Grandpa Larry for lunch.
* Go to the Fireman's Museum.
* Use sidewalk chalk.
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Andrew took Oliver to the shore to toss rocks into the creek. Oliver loved watching them splash.
Oliver & Andrew playing in the creek:
...and then they ran back to me!
We stopped at some bathrooms at the park, and I made Oliver sit by the flowers for a photo:
Oliver decided he didn't want to walk to the car. He'd rather be carried.
After the train ride, we went to the petting zoo. It was the same price as the train, and I thought it was OK. By that time, a bunch of day camps had arrived, and there were dozens of older kids playing with the animals. It was also getting hot. Oliver liked to see the goats and said, "Goat," and he really liked to see the cow. He said, "Moo!" to the cow. He wasn't interested in petting or touching the animals, though. He got rocks in his shoes and didn't want to put his shoes back on after I removed them. So, I was stuck carrying him around the petting zoo (no strollers). I decided it was time to leave the little zoo, so we got in line. There's a line to leave because they want everyone to wash their hands afterwards. It makes sense, but standing behind 20 kids from day camp just to leave meant we stood in the sun for 15 minutes. Oliver was angry that I was holding him; I was frustrated from the heat. I just wanted out.
Finally, finally, we made our way out. I lost the other moms from MOMS Club and decided they must be down at the creek. There's a creek that runs through the large park. Some areas are very shallow and perfect for older babies and young toddlers. Other areas are deeper, and those areas have a lot of older kids jumping and splashing. It's nice that there are separate areas so everyone has a good place to play. Unfortunately, it was too hot and too late in the day for us to play down at the creek. We left, but I have every intention of taking him back another morning, maybe around 9am to avoid the big crowds and the hot sun. As we left, I noticed there were about a dozen cars circling the parking lots, trying to find spots to park. Yeah, 11am is definitely not a good time to go! It was busy, busy. I even think 10am was a late start time, but the train and zoo don't open until then.