Scenes from Summer 2022
/Welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed their summer, making memories and more with loved ones.
I was blessed with memorable moments with many a loved one since pressing pause on Grandma’s Briefs for the season.
Read Morefor grandmothers and others
Grandma's Briefs is for grandmothers and others. Bits on the good, bad, humorous and heartwarming of being a baby boomer, grandparent, parent to adult children, wife and writer. Features include lifestyle articles, reviews, recipes, grandma profiles, and more.
Welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed their summer, making memories and more with loved ones.
I was blessed with memorable moments with many a loved one since pressing pause on Grandma’s Briefs for the season.
Read MoreMy desert-dwelling grandsons and their parents visited my house last week—for forty-four hours. The family had taken a road trip to Vail for a wedding, and Jim and I were fortunate they fit in a stop at our place on their way back home.
I was thrilled to host them and was determined to squish as much into the visit as possible, unsure of when I'd see Brayden, Camden, and Declan (as well as Megan and Preston, too) again.
As all three boys have birthdays in June…
Read MoreMy youngest grandson, Declan, enjoyed the family visit to Disneyland in February so, so much.
Now the nearly four-year-old wants to go again.
Like, really wants to go again.
Right now!
Read MoreMy husband and I celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary over Father's Day weekend. Because 35 years together seemed quite a milestone, especially considering I was a week shy of 18 when we wed and he was just 21 — plus marital, financial, and medical BS throughout the entire year of 2016 that threatened us surviving to the milestone — we wanted to mark the occasion in some extra special way.
So for months we considered this and that, here and there, seeking sites and such we'd never experienced before. Then reality set in. Limited finances and limited paid time off for Jim — who started a new job not long ago — limited our options. Being residents of Colorado, though, a state folks come from around the world to see, there were plenty of touristy things nearby to choose from.
None felt right, none felt celebratory and special enough.
We soon found ourselves on deadline for making a decision and reservations. For some crazy reason, I suggested camping. In the wild. In a tent. Like we used to when our daughters were young. We hadn't gone in and we had never camped just the two of us, sans kids.
The idea of setting up camp for two, spending evenings under the stars, making s'mores for us — and sharing a marshmallow or two with Mickey (our dog) who we'd bring along, too — immediately felt right. Felt fun.
It was settled. I sought a site, made reservations. We pulled camping gear from the garage rafters, all stored since camping adventures with our kids. We added to the pile to pack in the car assorted leisurely pursuits. Games to play, the telescope for stargazing, binoculars for Big Horn Sheep searching, Jim's guitar for him to play, a couple books for me to read. We were stoked!
So my husband and I marked our milestone wedding anniversary by camping. And we hated it. Worst. Time. Ever...
Last week when middle daughter Megan and I discussed the fun my husband, Brianna, Patrick, James and I had at Water World in Denver the day before — courtesy free passes from the park to experience "unlimited fun in the sun" — desert-dwelling Megan told me how much she loves Water World. Her pronouncement was based on our (limited) family visits to the massive water park near downtown Denver when she was a kid and visits she made with friends as a teen.
"Preston loves it, too," she said. Which surprised me. Because Preston never lived near Denver and Water World as Megan did growing up. He grew up in another state, in fact.
"Oh, yeah," Megan said. "Preston and his family used to go to Water World all the time when he was a kid. They loved it."
The Water World love from out-of-staters confirmed for me that Water World is indeed a must-see Denver attraction not only for folks who live in Colorado but for visitors from afar, as well.
And how could the massive outdoor play area — a Denver icon since 1979 — not be...
A wet and wild weekend designed for grandparents and grandkids? I recently experienced exactly that — without my grandkids.
The story: I was invited to the grand opening celebration of Great Wolf Lodge Colorado Springs and encouraged to bring along my grandsons and husband. But my grandsons couldn't make the 800+ mile trip to spend the weekend with me. My stepgrandson — my only local grandkiddo — couldn't come either. My husband did get to attend with me, though. And even without our favorite boys in tow, our free weekend adventure left no question that the expansive indoor water park resort offers a great, nay, grand getaway destination for grandparents and grandchildren.
Great Wolf Lodge Colorado Springs — the fourteenth location of the family-friendly indoor water park resort — has all the first-class entertainment and accomodation amenities of its sister spots across the U.S., plus a few goodies only guests of the brand-new resort on the north end of Colorado Springs get to enjoy.
The incredible view of Pikes Peak to the west is a perfect example of what sets the Colorado Springs location apart from other Great Wolf Lodge locations. This early morning shot was taken from the balcony of my room for the weekend:
Breathtaking, right?
The majority of what my husband and I experienced at Great Wolf Lodge Colorado Springs, though, was similar to signature features, fun, food and such found...
I have lived in Colorado Springs, Colorado, more than thirty-five years. In all those years, I've driven to Denver — a smidgen over an hour or so to the north — a kazillion times. (Seriously... I've kept count.)
On every one of those kazillion trips up Interstate 25, I drove past a directional sign just south of Denver proper noting the exit for RidgeGate Parkway. That exit, No. 125, leads within minutes to the town of Parker, becomes, in fact, Parker's Mainstreet (yes, one word).
In 35 years, never did I take that exit. Never did I visit Parker. Never did I consider Parker a destination or go out of my way to get up close and personal with a place that seemed little more to me than a suburb of Denver.
Sheesh... What a dummy I've been. I recently had reason to visit Parker, to drive down Mainstreet and personally partake of the surprisingly charming community's festive happenings, tasty culinary offerings and more. All courtesy the Town of Parker, which had invited my...
Grandma's Briefs is for grandmothers and others. Bits on life's second act and the empty nest: the good, bad, humorous and heartwarming of being a baby boomer, grandparent, parent to adult children, wife and writer. Features include lifestyle articles, movie reviews, recipes, product reviews, auto test drives, grandma profiles, and more.
Thank you for visiting Grandma's Briefs, where I share my snippets, er, briefs on the good, bad, humorous, and heartwarming of being a grandmother, baby boomer, parent to adult children, wife, and writer. Learn more about me here. And email me any time at lisa@grandmasbriefs.com.
Jim (aka PawDad) and Lisa (me)
Brianna (oldest daughter) and hubby Patrick with Benjamin, Robert, and James
Megan (middle daughter) with hubby Preston and Declan, Camden, and Brayden
Andrea (youngest daughter) with me at a recent concert
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