In no particular order I will throw down a few of my favorite restaurants around Denver. I’m no food critic or a food snob. Well, maybe a food snob.
We all look for fun things to do with our wives , family and friends so why not support the economy and go out to eat. I remember 10 years ago when you wanted to go out to eat you better get an early start or have a reservation or forget about getting a seat. Restaurants were packed to the roof every night. Remember the boom time of the early 2000’s? I do.
Best Restaurant period end of story – Fruition. Yum, just typing the name made me hungry. Try it or miss out on one of life’s great pleasures. You will not get in this place (usually) without a reservation. Not a place for kids. Date night or bring one other couple with you. It’s excellent and a fun place to eat and talk.
ChoLon – 1555 Blake Street #101 Denver, CO 80202 - Very addictive dumplings. Don’t try to share these with your wife unless you both want to go home mad. Whoever eats the last one leaves the other person pissed. I’ve never been here for dinner just lunch and it’s always crowded.
Colt & Gray – 1553 Platte Street #120 Denver, CO 80202 – Cool place with cool people and excellent food. Good date night with the wife or girl friend.
Mizuna – 225 East 7th Avenue Denver, CO 80203 –I’ve been here twice and never disappointed. It’s just great food with awesome service. Both times we visited Mizuna we had a blast and left with a very happy belly.
We are going to be trying two other great restaurants in Denver soon. Our next outing will be
Linger 2030 W. 30th Ave which we have reservations for. This place must be great since we could not get a reservation for almost a month out. I can’t wait. I have friends that eat here regularly (probably why we couldn’t get a reservation) and they all say this is the place to be. We’ll see.
ll Posta – 2011 East 17th Avenue, Denver - This is another restaurant in Denver that has raving fans. We have a reservation here in a few weeks so I’m excited to see what they have to offer.
Anyway that’s my quick list with all the places that come to mind right now so they must be my favorites. If’ you were looking for fun things to do and wanted a list of good restaurants then here it is. Go try some and let me know what you think.
This is for all the flatlanders out there that wonder what life in Colorado is like. The Colorado lifestyle is awesome.
You can see images like this daily and actually get out and play in areas like this with your friends and family. Come on out!
The snow is falling, the ski slopes are ready for you and outdoor activity is what we do here in Colorado. By my own admission I'm not a great photographer but it sure is fun straping on some snowshoes and looking for good photo spots like these.
Hess Road to I-25 in Parker Opening January 24, 2012.
Finally! The day has come that Hess Road or “Stress Road” as Parker residents call it will open to traffic. After a few months delay yes it will really happen.
The planned opening is January 24th around 11AM. There will be a ceremony to mark the event with we have all been waiting for.
Hess Road in Parker, Colorado will now take you directly from Parker over to I-25 and connect up with the Castle Pines Exit off I-25. This will save many of us a lot of time going forward and should break up a lot of the morning and evening traffic on Lincoln Ave. We all can already tell a huge difference in traffic with the recent opening of Mainstreet to I-25. That alone has made a huge difference.
Parker has been in need of easy cost effective meeting rooms for years and now we have it right in the middle of town. This is a huge benefit to business in the Parker area. No more driving to the DTC for meetings. No more cramming everyone in your office conference room meant to hold only 15 people. No more standing for an hour listening to the meeting because there is no place to sit.
If you are looking for a meeting room or class room or a great place to host a business or even a social gathering then the Parker PACE Center should not be overlooked. I was over there last week with friends looking for a place to host and event for around 400 people and was shocked at how reasonable the place is and especially how reasonable the prices are.
My real estate office, RE/MAX Alliance Parker, regularly holds our office meetings there. It’s super convenient and they allow food.
Parker Arts, Culture & Events Center
Rooms that hold around 40-50 people.
A 536 seat theater.
Outdoor patio for parties.
Large technology room.
Outdoor 250 seat amphitheater.
Full list of caterers to lavish your guests with food.
Reasonable prices.
Super easy access. Head East off I-25 and Ridgegate Parkway and you will run into The PACE Center in Parker. No turns.
Earlier this week I saw on the local NEWS that Colorado is hanging around 73% of our normal snowpack. Looks like Alaska is getting all the snow for now and Seattle is getting hit as I write this.
The Rocky Mountain snowpack is vital to Western US States for their water supply. Just ask Nevada and California since they get a lot of their water from Colorado snow runoff. If we don’t have snow we will likely have a drought this summer. Farmers were on the NEWS last night talking about the possibility of changing up their normal summer crops if we don’t get more snow soon. Pretty scary stuff. Yep it also means higher food prices. Even if the rest of the country is getting plenty of water for crops they will find a way or reason to jack up food prices if there is a drought. You just know they will.
I’m writing about this for selfish personal reasons more than anything…I want an 18 inch powder day of skiing. Just like everyone else on the Front Range. We are all house bound for the lack of snow in the hills and the usual winter activities we all enjoy are limited without DEEP snow. I went snowshoeing last week with the kids and up at 10,000 feet elevation and there was less snow there than here at my home in Parker, Colorado. Sad.
When will it be our turn? Who knows but if the storm currently sitting over Seattle moves this way if could help us a lot. If not then I guess we will all be looking forward to the huge Spring snows to get out and enjoy deep powder in Colorado.
Westcliffe, Colorado horse property with BIG mountain views.
View From 102 Myrts Run in Westcliffe
The above photo was taken from the upper level deck of 102 Myrts Run in Westcliffe. This could be your view every day of your life.
This is an amazing piece of property sitting on 7.55 acres with huge direct mountain views of the Sangre de Cristo mountains. Anyone considering looking for a ranchette property in the mountains of Colorado should certainly give this home a look. This property is completely setup and ready to go for a horse lover. Fenced and cross fenced with loafing shed and the extras. The well permit allows for 2 horses. Be prepared to fall in love.
Westcliffe is considered the Switzerland of Colorado and most people that visit Westcliffe instantly fall in love. The small town life and friendly atmosphere provide a great place to get away from big city life.
If you would like a full MLS sheet of this property with all it;s wonderful details please call Steven Beam directly at 303-941-4663 and I will get you copies of all the information needed to make this property your new mountain getaway.
Think about it. If you have a million dollars in your retirement accounts and start drawing from your savings when you retire eventually you will run out of money. (If you live long enough.) You need income in retirement.
Many people are looking to rental properties to help get that income. Rental properties pay you forever or at least as long as you own them. So drawing down all of your retirement money is probably less likely if you have additional income.
I have clients right now making $8,000 to $10,000 a month just from rental income.
Yes the stock market is taking a dump again. It’s sad when you think about it. As a person working hard for retirement the stock market just isn’t turning out to be a viable option for most of us. I know for sure I cannot afford to lose thousands of dollars every 5-10 years in the hopes that in 3-5 years the market will gain it back to where I was two days ago.
Lose Money or Own Property?
In the past two days I’ve received 4 calls from what I consider to be sophisticated business people who are also previous clients of mine. All of them were seeking a better alternative to the stock market and Social Security for their retirement needs.
“Many potential property investors are seeking a steady return that they can count on.”
Last month I sold this property (BELOW) to an investor that already has the property rented. The current income is bringing a return of over 15% on his money. He had the property rented two weeks after closing. The bank that foreclosed the property repainted the interior, added some new appliances and replaced all the carpet. All my investor did was a little landscaping and have the exterior of the house repainted.
Parker Colorado Investment Property
With the foreclosures and banks not lending money to people with foreclosures on their record it has turned the rental market into a hot investment opportunity. All of these people moving out of homes need a place to live and many scoff at the idea of moving back into an apartment. They want homes to live in. Rental rates in Parker and the Denver Metro are as high as I have ever seen them. I know it won’t last forever but it certainly is a great way to make some money now and for the future.
Buy property within your IRA. Much easier to do than you may think.
Foreclosures offer a great way to buy properties at a discount.
Short Sale homes take longer to close but the deals are worth it.
There are many great loans available to investors with a little cash and good credit.
For more information about investment opportunities Call Us 303-941-4663.
Beginning this past fall, PCK expanded to include early childhood by providing preschool and junior kindergarten. The most successful educational systems in the world teach a common body of knowledge in the early grades.They do this because as both research and common sense demonstrate, all of us learn new knowledge by building on what we already know. It is important to begin building foundations of knowledge at an early age because that is when children are most receptive. Parker Core Knowledge is known for excellent test scores (even our middle school students are receiving 100% on their CSAP exams!) and this excellent education begins at the preschool level.
Our mission at PCK Preschool & Junior Kindergarten is simple: preparing students for Kindergarten! An explicit set of skills provides the stepping-stones children need to achieve developmental goals. Early childhood state standards are presented at the goal level through our curriculum. This level of specificity allows teachers to more accurately identify the abilities of individual children and develop experiences and activities that will meet each child’s needs. Each day is filled with exciting discoveries and growth as we lay our student’s early learning foundation.
Great news for future Kindergarteners at PCK~ The PCK Operating Council recently approved the following change to the waiting list policy: All students enrolled in the PCK Junior Kindergarten, who because of their Waiting List position, are unable to secure placement in the PCK Kindergarten program for the next school year will be invited to participate in a lottery drawing to fill the equivalent of one Kindergarten class at PCK. Be sure to check out ckcs.net for details and our online registration!”
Here are the latest market reports for Parker, Colorado neighborhoods. I;m working on these daily so check back often. This is a quick easy way to see what is going on in the real estate market in your neighborhood.
I;ve been posting these reports for over 5 years so it;s interesing to check older posts and see what the stats looked like in 2007 versus 2011.
In the winter when the snow is on the ground in town there isn’t a lot kids can do for fun. The roads are covered with ice and snow so biking and other normal activities are out of the question. Sure you can load them up and head to bowling, movies or other indoor activities but that gets expensive and it doesn’t qualify as “outdoor activity.” It will amaze you what you learn about yourself, your kids and family in general when you get into nature. Unplug and go have some fun. I guarantee you your kids will be tired and learn something new every time you go out in the forest in the wintertime. Summer is not the only time of year to get out and hike.
Here is what we do to have active fun and save money.
We pack sandwiches and snacks and head to the mountains. We pack our snow shoes and warm clothes and we are off.
Costs:
Sandwiches for 4 people made at home = $5.00
Snacks for 4 people + $5.00
Bottled water from my tap = $0.00
Gas up and back $20.00
What to bring:
Snowshoes – Small investment but they last for years and can be sold later. Or you can rent them fromREI. The last time we rented them it was about $4.00 for the day.
Warm clothes – Typical snow day clothes. Mitten, boots, hats and thick socks. Goggles if it is snowing.
Thermos with hot chocolate for after or during the walk.
Poles only for bigger kids and adults.
Blow up sled for smaller kids. Your day will last longer if you have a place for small kids to ride.
Hand held GPS if you plan on going for hours.
We generally go snowshoeing when it nice and sunny but occasionally we’ll hit the trail in a snowstorm. I highly recommend a GPS or compass. I’ve seen tracks disappear in heavy snowfall in a matter of an hour. Be mindful of the time and your surroundings. Always know where you are and where you need to go. The vast majority of trails around here will have fresh traffic on them so finding your way out is generally not an issue.
About the blow up sled. I bought a $5.00 blow up sled (pictured top right my daughter sitting in it.) with an upright back on it for my 3 year old daughter wot ride in. I attached about 20 feet of rope to it and made one large loop. I put he her on the sled, take the large loop over my head and secure it around my waist. It is amazing how easy it is to pull her on this sled. She weighs around 35 pounds and I can barely feel her behind me.
Having fun snowshoeing.
Great places to snowshoe with kids.
1. Kenosha Pass. Take 285 which is Hampden Road South out of Denver to the top of Kenosha Pass. I believe the ride is about an hour depending on where in the Denver Metro you live.
We generally take a left off 285 into the parking area and drive back to the main parking area near the bathrooms and picnic tables. Easy parking and easy access to the trails from here plus the added bonus of bathrooms.
2. Ski Cooper. That is Cooper not Copper. Drive up to Ski Cooper and park across the street from the main entrance. There is a relatively flat hike that starts from the parking lot and winds down into a meadow around some beaver ponds and then back into and through the forest.
Kenosha has picnic tables and bathrooms so that is nice but we generally find a nice sunny warm location and plop down for a nice picnic and enjoy the day. As I said before. It is amazing what you can learn about yourself, your family and especially your children when you unplug and get back to the basics. Sitting down and watching the forest as the winds blow and observing small animals as they scurry around makes a great way to picnic.
Tips for snowshoeing with kids.
Picnic Colorado Style
Keep them warm. I’ve snowshoed with my 3 year old daughter in negative 14 degree weather in Steamboat Springs and since she was dress properly she actually fell asleep in her little sled.
Up at Kenosha Pass the forest service sometimes has piles of wood that is just laying around on the ground. My son and I have used these piles of wood many times to build small cabins or a lean to that he can play in. It is also an easy way to give a kid a lesson on back country survival and they won’t even know they are learning while playing. Isn’t that the easiest way to teach?
If you are lucky enough to snowshoe during a blizzard take advantage of it. We will make our picnic under a large evergreen. Pick any spruce that has good cover and pine bowes that you can easily squeeze under. Sit and have lunch under the tree. This is also a good survival lesson but have them sit quietly and listen. It will baffle you to hear just how loud a snow storm really is. You can hear the flakes hitting the trees and ground.
Try to let your kids figure out what type of animal left the tracks that they will see in the forest. “Name that track” is a fun game to play in the forest.
So, just because it’s cold don’t think you have to do indoor activities. Get your kids and family out of the house and enjoy some snowshoeing. Call me if you need more details info or directions. I know many other great spots to go as well and I’m happy to share. Steven Beam 303-941-4663
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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