This week, we are doing a Staycation. Our youngest is about to go into kindergarten so this might very well be my last summer being a stay-at-home mom. I am determined to squeeze in as many adventures as possible with these littles before they aren’t little any more. So, a few months ago I booked a Wednesday to Monday stay at Chatfield State Park which is about 4 miles from our house. This way we can pretend we are on a great adventure but Corey can still go to work every day and we can still do a few local, urban things if we want.
Day 1:
Check in time is 1 pm so we took our time getting packed up and pulling out of the neighborhood. Packing for this kind of a trip can be deceiving because you have the luxury of being able to come home at any time to pick up forgotten items. It is also hard to plan your itinerary because the point is to be flexible. My suggestion is to pack as though you won’t be coming home so you don’t burst the bubble of magic as often or at all if possible. Plan for all possible local scenarios that you want to happen.
As soon as we were able to get set up, our friends arrived with pizza and a motor boat! This is another added attraction to the Staycation…local friends can join in the fun! We were able to dine at the campsite before heading to the marina. We didn’t hit the water until about 7 PM but we still had a bit of sunlight to burn. The kids had a blast tubing and we were able to soak up a beautiful sunset.
Day 2:
Corey was up early for work so the boys and I hit the Gravel Pond early, prepared with our paddle board, double innertube, sunshade and favorite dog. We got there at about 8:30 AM and I’m glad we were not there any later. We got a parking spot close enough to the water’s edge that we could easily unload, set up camp for the day and then still inflate using our truck pump all within about 20 feet.
**Helpful tip**
If you have struggled getting your pooch on your paddle board, lay down a sacrificial towel that you don’t mind getting dirty or wet. Most dogs don’t like the feel of the slippery board and this will also help protect your board from those sharp nails. If they see and feel the familiar towel texture, they will feel much more comfortable about climbing aboard.
After we had our fill of sand and sun, we came back to the camper for showers and a little rest time. Looking at the weather forecast, I saw a little afternoon thunderstorm rolling in so we decided to head to the movie theater for the afternoon! We don’t often do this with the kids so it was an extra special treat.
By the time Dad was able to meet us back at the campsite, we were ready to make tacos! A great day was had by all…but what on earth are we going to do tomorrow?!?
Day 3:
This turned out to be parental lesson day. Mommy was getting a bit burnt out from doing everything myself. So, I told the boys that we could do whatever they wanted, if they made it happen. They had to come up with the plan, pack everything that we needed and get us all out the door. Well, the plan to go to the lake again was finally settled on at about 9 AM. It then took the next 2 hours to get everything ready and packed into the truck. It was a truly painful process but I was trying to be patient and take the time to teach them all of the parts of getting ready for an excursion like this. After driving over to the Gravel Pond with a double innertube and paddle board strapped to the back of the truck, then getting parked which took another 5 minutes, we get out of the truck and discover that they left the dog’s leash on the ground next to where the truck had been parked. This is when a little bit of my soul died.
We ended up going back to the camper and chilling out until Mommy could get her emotions under control. Sometimes, we just need to take a break and recalibrate. Thankfully, after some pretty crazy and unexpected weather rolled through, we were able to make a delicious dinner for Daddy after he arrived from work and then head out to the lake for a sunset adventure. The boys couldn’t agree on paddle boarding or fishing so we decided to divide and conquer so everyone was happy. The lake was super calm after the crazy weather of the afternoon and the clouds made a beautiful sunset for us to enjoy out on the water.
Day 4:
Ugh. I think if we do this Staycation thing again next year, we will probably limit it to Monday through Friday. The droves of people coming to the lake on the weekend just made it miserable! We pulled into the Gravel Pond parking lot at 8:20 AM and grabbed the LAST parking spot! Of course, it was nowhere near a beach area so we couldn’t set up for the day. We ended up just going out on the water for a little bit and then heading back to the camper. Corey was still wanting some water time with the boys so he took them to the pool at our gym and I was in dire need of some alone time so I went home for a nice long shower and some ME time. This is why the Staycation idea is so great! We all met back at the camper in the afternoon for one of those glorious air-conditioned camper naps and then went for a family bike ride after dinner. Its really nice when your expectations aren’t set in stone and you can be super flexible on what you end up doing because it’s not like you drove really far to get here and you won’t be able to come back!
Day 5:
We woke up with nothing planned but we ended up having so much to do that we didn’t even stop at home today! We started the day by going out to breakfast; something we used to do as a family quite a bit but haven’t done in a while. We went to a diner that we had never been to before so it was keeping with the Staycation vibe. Then we decided to head up to Golden, CO for a festival we had heard about. It turned out to be way smaller than we had expected so we just walked around town with our dog who always gets more attention than anyone. We actually ran into our neighbors on Main Street; another fun thing that can happen on a Staycation.
Day 6:
The great thing about camping close to home is that it doesn’t take you long to get back at the end of your Staycation! We were home by about 10 AM and had plenty of time to get everything cleaned up before Corey had to get back to work the next day. It was a great trip and definitely felt like a bit of a break from the daily grind even though we stayed local.