We've been trying to cram as much summer fun family time into these last couple weeks before Paxton is born. Yesterday we did something that has been on my bucket list for a while, although my advice to anyone else would be: should you chose to rent a surrey carriage to ride 2.6 miles, do so before you reach the 38th week of pregnancy.

This is one of Denver's best and oldest gems: Washington Park. 161 acres, 3 lakes, a boat house,  a bath house, a whole rec center, beautifully kept gardens, and a 2.6 mile trail--all that in the heart of our beautiful city. It's the Central Park of Denver. Our outdoors-loving state goes crazy for this place, especially on the weekends when volleyball nets cover the acres and there are so many bicyclists that it looks like the Tour de France has relocated.

I grew up minutes/blocks from this park. I attended school and was baptized across the street, and even now we live less than 10 minutes from this gorgeous place, and Justin works down the street from it. We're lucky to have this in our backyard!

We rented a two-person surrey. They have seats for little ones too, and helmets are included with the rental. Due to the fact that Justin's legs are longer, and I had a baby bump to push against, he probably did 75% of the work, poor guy. I went home with some pretty intense Braxton Hicks, however, so I figure it evened out in the end. I had wanted to do this before Paxton was born, since I wasn't sure how we'd manage it with an infant. In hindsight, I now know he was there all along...in my belly...and I felt it. Baby Pax probably experienced a rough ride too...

On a surrey ride around Wash Park, you have a chance to see all the beauty in this large park. Like the gardens...

The two large lakes are so pretty, plus there's a small pond at one end. Obviously, lots of water fowl. We had to stop a few times to let geese cross. The girls loved it.

Here is a random photo of Violet doing a face plant after she tried to harass a group of pigeons and squirrels. Karma?

See that building between the trees? That's St. Johns Lutheran church. Yep, I was baptized and schooled through age 7 right across the street from this park. These are truly the old stomping grounds of my childhood, so it's a fun nostalgic joy to get to enjoy the park through my kid's eyes now.

I have a lot of memories of this place. I have photos of my 1-year-old diapered butt feeding the geese. My first bee sting was at this park. One time our dog, Ben, picked up a dead goose and an animal activist saw and thought my dad was hunting with his dog in the park and they called the police or something....ANYHOO. Lots of memories here.

When I was little, it was still a popular neighborhood to live, but the homes were all cute bungalows and cottages. These days, if you want to live in Wash Park you will spend at least half a million on your home, many of which have been scraped and rebuilt, the originals have all been renovated. The big homes right across the street from the park? You're looking at at millions. But, they sure are pretty to look at while you're riding around the park!

Coloradans love to get outside and active, this is a fun way to do it if you have a chance. There are several rental options...

In case you're in the area and would like to rent a surrey, bike, or boat, here are the prices:

The pedal boats look fun! I want to come back and try that out, sans kids. Looks a little more relaxing than a 2.6 mile trek around the park.

Still, we had a great time and a lovely day.

Cheers,
Heather