“Adulting” has taken over. I don’t like to run as much as I used to, a lot more caution is taken when making day-to-day decisions, and I hate to admit that I spend way more time working than I do playing. Spending a few days in Vail, Colorado with my daughter and her friend helped me to realize how much I miss playing and need to learn how to be a kid again.
A few sunny summer days in Vail helped me to connect with my inner child and taught me how to Summer Like a Kid. Now I hesitate to go back to adulthood! Here is what I learned along the way.
Kids Don’t Drive
Upon arrival, we parked the truck, pulled out the bikes, locked it up and hid the keys until the day we headed back home. No car was needed because kids don’t drive - they ride! When you use a vehicle, you are focusing more on getting from one place to the next. On a bike you are able to use your senses to take in the mountain views, breathe in the clean fresh air and hear the crackling brooks that Vail is famous for. So, for the entire trip we took advantage of our own power, hopped on our bikes and rode throughout Vail Village, on trails, to sightsee, to meals and to shop.
Kids Play Hard
Our Vail visit was planned around the Kids Adventure Games - the coolest kids race on the planet where kids experience the thrill of adventure racing. Prior to the race we took in a pre-race clinic which gave us the opportunity to tour Vail Village. At each stop along the way experts spent time teaching the girls tips and skills to help them succeed in their upcoming race. It was a fun and engaging way to teach teamwork, problem solving, and sportsmanship skills and about environmental awareness. All important skills for the race, but valuable lifelong lessons that help us all to be better people (me included).
On race day, the girls competed while I lived vicariously through their adventures and watched through the lense of my camera. They started off with an epic ride on Gondola One (No other kid’s race can brag that they include a multi million dollar gondola as a feature to the race!) continued with mountain biking and hiking on Vail Mountain, water treks and tubing in Gore Creek, rock climbing in Vail Village, ziplines, rappelling, mud pits, cargo nets and tons more, ending with the big finale - the giant slip-n-slide just before crossing the finish line. This race is just one example of how Vail provides a summer-long calendar full of events geared to entertain and engage guests of all ages.
Kids Don’t Count Calories
The “Mom” in me tried to make an appearance when the kids asked if we could get chocolate before dinner. The kid in me fought hard. In the end we compromised with caramel apples from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Apples are healthy, right? For meals, Kids like to eat “kid food” so we chose restaurants suitable for families but pleasing to adults. Luckily for us Vail is filled with family friendly options. Our restaurant selections this trip included pizza on two nights (Vendetta’s and Pazzo’s Pizza) and Mexican (La Cantina) on one night. Since calories don't count for kids, I didn't let myself feel guilty eating the scrumptious brownie and milk surprise left for us in our condo after we returned from a full day of fun.
Kids Sleep Like a Baby
You can’t play all day without finding time for a good night’s sleep, and to sleep well you'll need a cozy bed. We found ours in a one bedroom condo at Manor Vail Lodge. The kids got to be kids in their Murphy Bed-Bunk Beds and I got to sleep like a baby in my own master suite. Everything was included in our mountain getaway, with a fully-equipped kitchen, two spa-like bathrooms and a cozy living area with a fireplace. The back door opened up to a spectacular view of a covered bridge over Gore Creek and we were just steps away from the bike path that lead us all throughout Vail. This was the perfect place for children like us to to escape.
Now that I am back to the reality of my true age, I am filled with colorful memories of our vacation to Vail all because I let my inner child take the lead. Take a bit of advice from an over-worked mom like me and schedule a visit to Vail in the summertime. Let yourself be a kid again, even if it is just for a few days.
The author was a invited to tour Summertime in Vail and Kids Adventure Games as a guest of Vail. Even though accommodations, race registration and compensation was included, all opinions and suggestions are her own.
