Roadside Christmas

In the true spirit of Christmas, I'm here to report how disappointing Colorado Christmas attractions can be. 

Case in point:

The Holly Acres Christmas Tree Farm in Elizabeth, CO. A supposed wonderful Christmas attraction that happened to be on some dilapidated farm like two feet off the side of a state highway.
You would think that with Colorado being the Christmas tree capital of the world (I just made that up but it's probably true because I'm always making up true things) there would be plenty of delightful places to visit during the Christmas season. Jason was the first to eventually admit he was a bit suspicious of this place based on the website alone. Mostly because he thought it looked like it was designed by a prison inmate that couldn't master underwater basket weaving. But when you are desperate for kid friendly Christmas events, you don't speak your mind. Until afterward.
The admission was free. This was admirable, considering the fact that the very first option for children upon entering was to pay $10 to get a picture of your child sitting on a caged zebra. We quickly bypassed the zebra and moved on to the caged camels. They were free. To look at. This particular specimen seemed a bit snobbish, as though having his picture taken should have been a paying opportunity.

If you were sneaky, you could pet the mange on his backside.

 It was 65 degrees and sunny when we went... not exactly Christmas kind of weather. 

 Right next door to the caged camel was the petting zoo. Also free! Jason let me take Evan in the cage because he didn't want to be petted or get the mange. 

Dawson asked gramma and grandpa for an alpaca for Christmas.  Walmart.com should have those, right? 

Jason got soooo bored during this endeavor that he decided to get a picture of a horse pooping for entertainment. Also free!  Although this particular horse was a speed-pooper and Jason missed the actual moment.  I'm sure you don't mind.

New "Elf on the Shelf" elves for purchase:

 While Jenessa took the girls to wait in line for pony rides, I took the boys for a walk through a statue graveyard display. Evan randomly chose statues and popped a squat.  Also free!

Dawson felt a bit dejected and asked if he could join the fun.

 I'm not sure where he gets his personality. My guess is Abraham Lincoln. I'm pretty sure he's in our bloodline.

 For just $5 your child could wait in line to ride a pony around in a circle 3 times. Talk about Christmas cheer! These little cuties were totally worth the wait. 
Miss Gabi was a pro.

 Mia should be featured on an Equestrian magazine.

 I had to wait in line to use the one port-a-potty but I didn't have to buy tickets for that feature, so that was nice. I just left a free-will offering (Jason wrote this sentence).  No. No one took a picture of me waiting in line for the port-a-potty. 
I suppose our expectations are too high, since we come from Indiana and the outdoor Christmas events they have there for children are pretty lofty. 
Thankfully, our day was redeemed. On the way to the tree farm we passed a state park we had never heard of, Castlewood Canyon.


 Since it was so warm out, we did a lot of hiking

 There's a pavilion that overlooks the canyon. I got a picture of the boys ignoring me.

I imagine the canyon is even prettier in the summer. I have an active imagination.
 

The moral of this story is to avoid roadside Christmas events in Colorado and visit The North Pole instead... or Indiana!