Wanted: A neighborhood for the kids at Stepping Stone

A few years ago, Jessica and Brent realized their East Parker home wasn’t quite as kid-friendly as they’d envisioned. A huge house on a half-acre seemed like a smart choice for their three boys. But it was on a corner lot on a hill next to a busy street—dangerous for bike riding. The home was older, so all the original owners’ kids were high-school age, so no playmates for the little ones. The pool was always crowded, the big yard was a headache to maintain, and driving the kids across town to lacrosse games was a hassle.

 

Enter Stepping Stone™ – a brand new community by Shea Homes® right in Parker.

They had spent two years deciding where to go, looking everywhere from Aurora and on down to Castle Rock. “But when we saw Shea’s SPACES Discovery Collection 5000 series, everything fell into place,” says Jessica. “It was the perfect floor plan with the office and five bedrooms we needed. We’ve built four homes, and we knew Shea was a great builder, both from the engineering side and in terms of the community plan. There’s just so much that we love about the neighborhood.”

 

As in, it helped solve their prior concerns, like no place to play and ride bikes. They now live by a big park (Stepping Stone has four), where Jessica can actually watch them playing from her house. Stepping Stone is the kind of place where she feels comfortable letting them walk down to the pool. And playmates are plentiful. Although residents come in all ages, Jessica notes, many families have kids around her children’s ages, 2-1/2, 5-1/2, and 12. “There are kids in the neighborhood they know from school,” says Jessica. “We absolutely see the kids playing outside more now. They can just jump on their bikes and go.” Another bonus: their more reasonably sized yard means more family time, as does the ready access to I-25, which gets them to lacrosse games faster. Not to mention shopping, dining, and Brent’s office, which is now 10 minutes away. Jessica works from home in skin care.
 

Community events have also led to a sense of belonging. They attended the Cookies with Santa event and the Pumpkin Patch, which the kids found “super fun,” as did the grownups. “They’re a great way to see your neighbors, especially during winter. In summer, we see each other constantly. Half the time, we’ll all bring our dinner outside and eat together on the front porch or on folding chairs in the driveway. We love all our neighbors—they’re really like extended family.”

Not bad for a family that has only lived in Stepping Stone since last May. “There hasn’t been a single day where we’ve regretted a thing about moving here,” says Jessica. And no doubt, the boys would agree.

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