Colorado Discoveries 45: Denver Comic Con

25. August 2015 · Comments Off on Colorado Discoveries 45: Denver Comic Con · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
The Colorado Convention Center is Denver is famous for the giant blue bear peering inside.

The Colorado Convention Center is Denver is famous for the giant blue bear peering inside.

My family had the chance to attend Denver Comic Con* this past Memorial Day weekend with family press passes I obtained through my association with GeekMom, a $150 value. This fact that the organization offered complimentary admission to our entire family is a testament to what a family-friendly experience this particular Comic Con is trying to maintain: children’s admission was only $5 per day and $10 for the entire event.

Accompanying the press passes were interview opportunities with the celebrities and comic book artists. Interviews are not my strong suit but I did my best.

Because DCC provided complimentary admission, I made sure the timely writing about the event was posted to GeekMom first back in June, but I figured I’d summarize all the posts here and then share the full photo album. More »

Colorado Discoveries 35: The U.S. Mint in Denver

24. July 2014 · 5 comments · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , ,
The Denver Mint is an interesting place to visit, but the security requirements are pretty stringent.

The Denver Mint is an interesting place to visit, but the security requirements are pretty stringent. No photography inside the facility, so I took a couple photos outside.

My sons have always been interested in money. Not only saving money, but also how money is manufactured and distributed. I have memories of looking at U.S. paper money and seeing the Federal Reserve Seal. The letter ties in with a location, with “A” being Boston, Massachusetts in the northeast and “L” signifying San Francisco in the west. When I was a kid, most of the dollars circulating in my part of the country had an “E” for Richmond, Virginia.

We enjoyed the trip to the American Numismatic Museum in May where we learned all about the history of money and coin collecting.

Getting to the U.S. Mint in Denver is much more difficult. Not only is it farther away, but the word on the street was that we needed 90 day advance reservations. So not long after moving here in June 2013 I hopped online at the U.S. Mint’s website to try to get a reservation. It always seemed to be filled on the days that our family was available to visit. I got on the website in October to try to get reservations for the holidays, but the mint was closed to tours during the holidays. More »

Colorado Discoveries 30: History Colorado Center

05. March 2014 · 3 comments · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,
DSC_0549

This beautiful new facility opened in Spring 2012. It’s not completely full, there’s plenty of room to populate with more exhibits.

I’ve been remiss. 2 1/2 weeks since my last post. Things have been getting progressively busier in the Vollmer house as our boys have started their baseball practice with their new baseball program: Academy Little League.

The boys were out of school on Valentine’s Day, so we took the day and cashed in on part of the Christmas gift from my dear sister’s family: tickets to the History Colorado Center in downtown Denver. As I’ve written for the GeekMom blog, I love state history museums, and I’ve dragged our sons to the history museum for every state we’ve lived in since they were born. More »

Colorado Discoveries 27: Denver Downtown Aquarium

14. January 2014 · Comments Off on Colorado Discoveries 27: Denver Downtown Aquarium · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , ,
I'd never been to an aquarium with REAL LIVE MERMAIDS before; those little girls were mesmerized!

I’d never been to an aquarium with REAL LIVE MERMAIDS before; those little girls were mesmerized!

During the kids’ winter break we took a day trip up to Denver for a little sightseeing. First, we stopped at the Downtown Aquarium.

I will say up front that if you find it a little strange that there’s an aquarium over 1000 miles from the nearest major body of water, you aren’t alone. My friend and I were certainly curious about what kind of aquatic life we might find. More »

Colorado Discoveries 25: Denver Botanic Gardens

03. January 2014 · Comments Off on Colorado Discoveries 25: Denver Botanic Gardens · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,
I have so many beautiful flower pictures to include, I had to make up collages!

I have so many beautiful flower pictures to include, I had to make up collages!

During my inlaws’ visit to Colorado, we took a day and went up to Golden and Denver. While Dave, his Dad and Jacob visited Caboose Hobbies in Denver, Dave’s Mom, Timmy and I headed over to the Denver Botanic Gardens which was only a couple miles away.

Being that it’s wintertime, only a fraction of the garden is really worth seeing this time of year. But the areas that are open are very beautiful. The Tropical Conservatory, Orangery, Cactus house, and greenhouses were open. We were able to see everything in about two hours, which was just enough time for the men at Caboose Hobbies. More »

Colorado Discoveries 23: Denver Chriskindl Market

22. December 2013 · Comments Off on Colorado Discoveries 23: Denver Chriskindl Market · Categories: Uncategorized · Tags: , , , , , ,
The Denver Christkindl Market is an annual tradition.

The Denver Christkindl Market is an annual tradition.

I feel sort of guilty posting about this event when today is the last day for the season. However, hopefully folks will Google this event in future years and can read about our family’s experience.

The Denver Christkindl Market is an annual holiday tradition in downtown Denver, put on by the German American Chamber of Commerce of Colorado. It’s conveniently located on the 16th Street Mall at Skyline Park, not far from the 16th & Stout Streets commuter rail station. There are many other things to do in the vicinity, such as visiting the Tattered Cover bookstore or going ice skating at the Southwest Rink at Skyline Park. More »