Friday, July 10, 2009

Our first visit to Woodland Park

I LOVE MOUNTAINS!!!!! I love the fresh, mountain air. I love the trees and foliage. I love the smell. I love the skyline. I love the weather. I LOVE MOUNTAINS!!!
The Colorado mountains are so green and lush this year!
My mom got camera happy in the car, waiting to depart for Woodland Park. :)
We didn't have any particular destination or plan in mind. We packed a picnic lunch and extra snacks and took off! Once we got to Woodland Park, Elijah kept asking "where is the big park?"...He was thinking about the "Park" part of Woodland PARK. I told him it was not named after an enormous play ground or anything. He was bummed.
We drove around the small town, admiring the trees and some cute houses and yards before finding the city's large ball fields...and a play ground! The kids all LOVE to swing and this was Brighton's first time! He thought it was very fun and funny and giggled a lot. Have and Scarlett took turns pushing him and just thought he was too adorable in a swing! :)
Sebastian and Elijah LOVE to swing. (My mom walking in the background) They were trying to go so high they would flip over the bar. Those of you who watch Mythbusters, however, know that they would've needed a jet pack to actually propel them over...and then they would probably end up shooting off and breaking every bone in their body. Glad there were no jet packs laying around! :)

Sweet Brighton swinging!!
They had some really unique playground equipment. They had the usual play structure with slides and a little climbing wall and monkey bars, then they had this thing that Fiona is on where a kid stands on each side and they bounce...sort a teeter-totter idea. Then the blue thing in the back left was this cool thing where 4 kids each sat on a side and tried to roll a little ball into their "goal". The ball and goals were under plastic. It was pretty cool.
Ultimately, I was a bit disappointed in Woodland Park. I expected more, I guess. I expected it to be either more like Sandpoint, Idaho or more like Manitou Springs....it was neither. After we left this play ground, the kids really wanted to go back to the main park in downtown Woodland Park. It had a small pond, some picnic tables and a wood play ground. There were some seedy locals there, and not enough pretty scenery. But we had our picnic and played a little bit more before heading out. The drive their and back is a very easy one. I expected more of an incline, but it hardly seemed like we were changing elevation at all. On the way home we drove through Manitou Springs so I could show it to my mom. I LOVE this little town! It is so adorable and they have done such a good job of maintaining it's charm and appeal and character. I'm not completely writing off Woodland Park; we will go back to check out the surrounding mountains and kayak in the lakes, but the town itself doesn't hold much appeal for me. It was a fun trip, none the less, and an exciting adventure! :) Pikes Peak looks prettier from Colorado Springs, though!

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