Our spontaneous trip to Colorado

We booked tickets to Denver on a whim one evening a couple of weeks ago. It was one of those "do now, think later" moments — and because we were traveling with a 1-year-old, there was a lot to think about later: Where will he sleep? How many diapers should we bring? What about a car seat? How will we entertain him on the plane? 

​I also went into this trip knowing that vacation is just parenting in a different location. We'd still have to deal with the tantrums, the wrangling, the bedtime routine, etc. We were up for the challenges, though, because adventuring with our son meant more than the frustrations.

My biggest worry was that Tucker wouldn't behave well on the plane, but he actually did great! He either slept or played with the bag of toys I packed ("toys" is a loose term — they were mostly random items from the kitchen, which occupy him the longest). 

We were supposed to arrive in Denver late Wednesday night, but because of a flight cancellation, we didn't get in until Thursday mid-morning. We were running on about three hours of sleep (Tucker included, yikes!), but we made the most of our day by exploring downtown Denver with our host and one of my college besties, Erica.

Feeling a little more refreshed on Friday, we ventured into Boulder for Pearl Street and Boulder Mountain Park, then checked out Red Rocks. 

Saturday was pretty rainy, so we spent the day at an indoor art fair, eating doughnuts and checking out a local brewery. By 11 p.m., we were back at the airport for our flight back! 

​Recap: 

• Thursday | Walked around downtown Denver and RiNo District 
• ​Friday | Pearl Street in Boulder (we loved this because it reminded us of the Downtown Mall in Charlottesville), Boulder Mountain Park (breathtaking overlooks that made me jealous of all the local photographers who have this as an everyday location) and Red Rocks Amphitheater (unfortunately, there were only high school graduations going on here last weekend, so we would love to go back and actually see a concert!)
• Saturday | Jackalope Indie Artisan Fair in Denver (bought this gorgeous print from artist Noelle Phares), Voodoo Doughnut and Our Mutual Friends Brewing Company

On Pearl Street in Boulder. The pedestrian walkways, shops and restaurants reminded us of the downtown mall in Charlottesville.

At Boulder Mountain Park — look at those snowy Rockies way in the back!

View from the trailhead. 

At Red Rocks.

iPhone Photos: 

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Laura Richards is a natural-light family and newborn photographer in Roanoke, Virginia. See more of my work here.