I love the movie Tangled & the part when she finally gets down from the tower is hilarious. "Blondie" goes between running around full of incredible joy and shouting "best day ever!" at her new freedom - or she sits down in hysterical crying moments of guilt she feels betraying her mother....the scenes are both repeated often and they make me laugh, but I do love most when she is shouting at the top of her lungs that it is indeed the best day. Ever.
Although I don't often like to exclaim that something is the best, worst, funnest, most delicious, etc...I do enjoy a best day when it comes along. Today happened to be such a day.
I took the kiddos skiing today to enjoy their first day of Spring Break & to enjoy some new snow that fell yesterday. I'm usually not a fan of snow in April - but living by the mountains has changed me to wanting as much snow for as long as possible! We went skiing a week and a half ago when my sister Celeste's family was here for their Spring Break. We chose the warmest day & put the kids in afternoon lessons & then I helped out on the tow rope with my 3 and her middle 2 - yes, 5 children on a rope tow. Thankfully I'm not inclined to use rope in destructive ways - but the first 30 minutes was torture! Everyone was falling off the rope tow & causing back-ups & then if we were lucky to go down the hill they were either dominoes falling upon one another or they would put their skis together (french fries as they call it) and zoom down the mountain Kamakazi style...I stopped breathing a few times & had never lifted so many children up in my life! Something happened after that first 30 minutes - the kids found their rhythm & whether or not they actually did listen to what I said...either they did take it to heart or they just started to put their skis in a pizza and do wider turns! It was suddenly magical watching these 5 kidlets zooming up the rope tow & staying on 95% of the time now - their form was really improving & there were some real legitimate turns!
We stayed skiing on the rope tow from about 3 until 5pm when the resort shut down & we were finally asked to leave :). I loved all the smiles & the satisfaction that the kids knew they had really practiced what they had learned in lessons & what mom/crazy Aunt Summer would shout to them from wherever we happened to be on that rope tow hill. That part of the mountain even survived - the fence that corrals people into where the line takes you to catch the rope tow had taken a little beating with multiple kids running into it or using it as a pole to swing them up onto the snow "ramp"....but thankfully we never knocked it down. Close but not all the way :)
Although we had to say good-bye to the Sessions the next day & it was much more fun to ski together - my kiddos have begged to go again. When the forecast predicted snow before spring break I knew we had one day's activity set!
We spent the early afternoon on the rope tow & with the first few runs I got excited about how well they were doing! Madeleine was doing more turns & keeping her body held straighter (something her teacher had mentioned specifically to work on). Bryson & Jacob were getting more confident & before long we were going all the way up to the top of the rope tow & not getting off in the middle. The ski school had said when the kids were at that level it was time to hit the chair lift.
Thankfully the rope tow is free & then Alta has a Ski After 3 program where it's only $10 to ski the bottom 3 lifts for the first time you buy the pass - each time after you can refill your card for only $5 a time. What a deal!
We took a short break which involved hot chocolate and a near melt-down from Jacob. An angel of a lady came by & offered us all some chocolate Easter candy she had brought up....all angels should carry chocolate :). As much as I wanted to take the kids up on the Sunnyside lift I thought Jacob might have that break-down on the mountain & I don't walk down mountains....at least with snow on them. They are made to ski on & I crossed my fingers all would work & off we pushed to the ski lift.
And oh what a funny scenario occurred within the first few minutes at that ski lift! It didn't end up involving a melt-down, but by the end I was never so glad to just get to sit down on the chair lift and not have to do anything for the next 5 minutes except just ride and take in the scenery! I am someone that has traveled often & usually it was with my kids and usually alone. I could navigate any part of the airport - taking bags in to check-in & the security gate...nothing phases me when traveling because I've done it so often & I've developed a tough skin to things that could possibly unglue others...and definitely have unglued other young mothers that I have seen through the years. Going through airport security is not my favorite activity in life - but it's manageable. Well, the security line has met it's match in the chair lift line. WOWZA!- that was a comical site trying to get 3 kids through these new gates they have - it's like metal detectors but smaller & they read the bar code on your ski pass so you can supposedly zoom through....supposedly being the key word in our story. First of all, the lift line can be problematic for beginner skiers - people who are still working to keep their balance on 2 long poles that your feet are attached to & then you need to navigate yourself through a ropes course of sorts....some skiers have a hard enough time navigating their way on a huge mountain, a narrow ropes course can be traumatic! I know it was for us....at the time, now it's just funny!
Jacob was standing in a line, when Madeleine skied into the line and collided with him. When she tried to move around him she ended up pushing him down then fell on top of him. It was a rough start! When they were finally back up on their skis and we were all together (sort of) - the kids were in front of me trying to go thru the gates when the man working asked where the cards were...of course I had all 4 tucked into the pocket which was the most complicated to get into. He was trying to be patient - most people around us were as well....it's times like these I wish we could have personal license plates that would identify we were an out of state people, therefore we don't know the local way of going through the ski gate :). We finally made it through, only to realize that the chair lift was for 3 people & we had 4 - yikes! I quickly thought about putting Madeleine with another party, but people had started to lose their patience and were pushing past us. Thankfully Madeleine & Bryson said they would ride together so I could ride with Jacob....which was a great solution, but it did cause my mama heart to skip a beat. My 2 children on a chair lift alone? Oh please don't let them fight & push each other off that thing! Why do they have height requirements at Disney but not on chair lifts that are dangling dozens of feet in the air?!!! Finally, I decided to let them try....a rather generous offer because if it doesn't work out I'm pretty sure there isn't a next time :/
The beauty of your children growing up - is that suddenly they are ready to do things that you had no idea they were ready for. Those 2 kiddos went onto the chair (well they did miss one but that was my fault for assuming they remembered how to get onto the chair from 2 years ago!) - anyway they pulled the bar down after my mama bear self shouted at them from the next chair back some last minute directions. They were completely fine riding up together....they even did it twice! I still don't know if they talked - but I hope that year by year by being stuck on the same chair lift they'll start to talk and really enjoy the time together - I always loved talking to the person I was riding up with!
We took Sunnyside & kept to the easiest part of the trail possible - which although "easy" it's still a mountain & some hills are rather sizable. I remember being the kids age & looking down some of those same hills & thinking I would fall off the edge of the earth by going over the edge to try & ski down! All 3 did great! Jacob skied between my legs on the really steep parts for the first run, but the second time down he only stayed with me on the first hill & was off on his own skiing next to one of us all the way down.
I got the biggest thrill looking over and having one of my children skiing next to me! It was the best! I don't know why it hit me the way it did - but I wanted to shout out "Look - I am skiing with my children! We are just skiing together on this mountain. Wahooooooo!!!" Perhaps it's because I'm not big into sports. I will go and kick or throw a ball around for fun, but besides tennis which I do love....I was always so afraid I'd get hit in the head with a ball that I just didn't proactively play sports. Skiing is a sport that I have always loved - being on a mountain as close to heaven as I can physically get myself on earth is amazing! I love the rush of zooming down the mountain & that it's something you are in control of and that you can do with as many or few people as you want with you. When we married, Bryson & I realized our skiing loyalties lie in different areas....he likes to ski on water in its liquid state, while I prefer it in the frozen state. We want the kiddos to try both - but for myself as much as I have tried water skiing I just don't feel the same thrill as I do skiing down a mountain. The feeling of being pulled behind a boat versus letting yourself fly down a mountain is apples & oranges - they both use skis but the feel & taste of each is so different!
I wish we had more skiing days left! I wish I had more money to spend on ski rentals & lift ticket prices....skiing is a "gentleman's" sport in that I think those sports are the most expensive! (ex - golf!). I'm looking forward to scouring D.I. and yard sales to find our own skis in the next few months. I look forward to skiing on many early-out Fridays next year to enjoy the Ski After 3 program much more often! I look forward to having Madeleine sign up for the 6th grade ski classes thru the school next year. Basically I look forward to any & all parts of skiing...well, except for the boot fit, I don't think they ever get to the point of feeling "great".
It truly was the best day to spend with the 3 cutest kids who were so ecstatic about their progress & accomplishments today!
We really did have THE BEST DAY EVER!
p.s. The gloves, skis & boots Jacob wore are the same that I and my sisters used! Those gloves are amazing - like many things today they just don't make things like they used to! The skis were harder for him to use - I think we'll use them to decorate with & get the newer skis so he isn't tripping over the tips of those long skis! (they were the right size - the styles have just changed for the better over the years thankfully!)
p.p.s - I wrote this entire post on my iPhone....my finger is now in the running for being as sore as my legs are from today!....but I wanted to keep the goal of writing today :)
Although I don't often like to exclaim that something is the best, worst, funnest, most delicious, etc...I do enjoy a best day when it comes along. Today happened to be such a day.
I took the kiddos skiing today to enjoy their first day of Spring Break & to enjoy some new snow that fell yesterday. I'm usually not a fan of snow in April - but living by the mountains has changed me to wanting as much snow for as long as possible! We went skiing a week and a half ago when my sister Celeste's family was here for their Spring Break. We chose the warmest day & put the kids in afternoon lessons & then I helped out on the tow rope with my 3 and her middle 2 - yes, 5 children on a rope tow. Thankfully I'm not inclined to use rope in destructive ways - but the first 30 minutes was torture! Everyone was falling off the rope tow & causing back-ups & then if we were lucky to go down the hill they were either dominoes falling upon one another or they would put their skis together (french fries as they call it) and zoom down the mountain Kamakazi style...I stopped breathing a few times & had never lifted so many children up in my life! Something happened after that first 30 minutes - the kids found their rhythm & whether or not they actually did listen to what I said...either they did take it to heart or they just started to put their skis in a pizza and do wider turns! It was suddenly magical watching these 5 kidlets zooming up the rope tow & staying on 95% of the time now - their form was really improving & there were some real legitimate turns!
We stayed skiing on the rope tow from about 3 until 5pm when the resort shut down & we were finally asked to leave :). I loved all the smiles & the satisfaction that the kids knew they had really practiced what they had learned in lessons & what mom/crazy Aunt Summer would shout to them from wherever we happened to be on that rope tow hill. That part of the mountain even survived - the fence that corrals people into where the line takes you to catch the rope tow had taken a little beating with multiple kids running into it or using it as a pole to swing them up onto the snow "ramp"....but thankfully we never knocked it down. Close but not all the way :)
Although we had to say good-bye to the Sessions the next day & it was much more fun to ski together - my kiddos have begged to go again. When the forecast predicted snow before spring break I knew we had one day's activity set!
Thankfully the rope tow is free & then Alta has a Ski After 3 program where it's only $10 to ski the bottom 3 lifts for the first time you buy the pass - each time after you can refill your card for only $5 a time. What a deal!
We took a short break which involved hot chocolate and a near melt-down from Jacob. An angel of a lady came by & offered us all some chocolate Easter candy she had brought up....all angels should carry chocolate :). As much as I wanted to take the kids up on the Sunnyside lift I thought Jacob might have that break-down on the mountain & I don't walk down mountains....at least with snow on them. They are made to ski on & I crossed my fingers all would work & off we pushed to the ski lift.
And oh what a funny scenario occurred within the first few minutes at that ski lift! It didn't end up involving a melt-down, but by the end I was never so glad to just get to sit down on the chair lift and not have to do anything for the next 5 minutes except just ride and take in the scenery! I am someone that has traveled often & usually it was with my kids and usually alone. I could navigate any part of the airport - taking bags in to check-in & the security gate...nothing phases me when traveling because I've done it so often & I've developed a tough skin to things that could possibly unglue others...and definitely have unglued other young mothers that I have seen through the years. Going through airport security is not my favorite activity in life - but it's manageable. Well, the security line has met it's match in the chair lift line. WOWZA!- that was a comical site trying to get 3 kids through these new gates they have - it's like metal detectors but smaller & they read the bar code on your ski pass so you can supposedly zoom through....supposedly being the key word in our story. First of all, the lift line can be problematic for beginner skiers - people who are still working to keep their balance on 2 long poles that your feet are attached to & then you need to navigate yourself through a ropes course of sorts....some skiers have a hard enough time navigating their way on a huge mountain, a narrow ropes course can be traumatic! I know it was for us....at the time, now it's just funny!
Jacob was standing in a line, when Madeleine skied into the line and collided with him. When she tried to move around him she ended up pushing him down then fell on top of him. It was a rough start! When they were finally back up on their skis and we were all together (sort of) - the kids were in front of me trying to go thru the gates when the man working asked where the cards were...of course I had all 4 tucked into the pocket which was the most complicated to get into. He was trying to be patient - most people around us were as well....it's times like these I wish we could have personal license plates that would identify we were an out of state people, therefore we don't know the local way of going through the ski gate :). We finally made it through, only to realize that the chair lift was for 3 people & we had 4 - yikes! I quickly thought about putting Madeleine with another party, but people had started to lose their patience and were pushing past us. Thankfully Madeleine & Bryson said they would ride together so I could ride with Jacob....which was a great solution, but it did cause my mama heart to skip a beat. My 2 children on a chair lift alone? Oh please don't let them fight & push each other off that thing! Why do they have height requirements at Disney but not on chair lifts that are dangling dozens of feet in the air?!!! Finally, I decided to let them try....a rather generous offer because if it doesn't work out I'm pretty sure there isn't a next time :/
I got the biggest thrill looking over and having one of my children skiing next to me! It was the best! I don't know why it hit me the way it did - but I wanted to shout out "Look - I am skiing with my children! We are just skiing together on this mountain. Wahooooooo!!!" Perhaps it's because I'm not big into sports. I will go and kick or throw a ball around for fun, but besides tennis which I do love....I was always so afraid I'd get hit in the head with a ball that I just didn't proactively play sports. Skiing is a sport that I have always loved - being on a mountain as close to heaven as I can physically get myself on earth is amazing! I love the rush of zooming down the mountain & that it's something you are in control of and that you can do with as many or few people as you want with you. When we married, Bryson & I realized our skiing loyalties lie in different areas....he likes to ski on water in its liquid state, while I prefer it in the frozen state. We want the kiddos to try both - but for myself as much as I have tried water skiing I just don't feel the same thrill as I do skiing down a mountain. The feeling of being pulled behind a boat versus letting yourself fly down a mountain is apples & oranges - they both use skis but the feel & taste of each is so different!
It truly was the best day to spend with the 3 cutest kids who were so ecstatic about their progress & accomplishments today!
We really did have THE BEST DAY EVER!
So long until next ski day....we can't wait!!!
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