Tahoe Wrap-Up

We took our annual ski break to Tahoe this year. One of Ed's brothers joined with his family, which meant there were COUSINS to ski with. That was fantastic. Amazingly, Helen kept up with the big kids which at first was causing me great stress as I saw her cruise down hills that I would've thought much too difficult for her, but after I got used to the sight it was pretty fun to watch! At one point, Helen followed others onto a black diamond trail through the trees, and thank goodness she realized she was in over her head and had the good sense to pop her skis off and slide about 10 feet on her bottom. She quickly turned almost-tears into laughter. When we got to a point we could exit the trees, I told Helen I'd ski with her on the main path and she was happy to follow. She told me she had always been curious about what a black diamond was and she was hoping she would get to try one. I'm not sure when she'll try another, but if she decides to, she could make it safely down just about any black diamond out our way. The mountains are just much smaller out here.

It has not been a good snow year at Tahoe, which meant that the mountains we visited were not fully open. It wasn't a big issue since they're so big, and plenty of trails were available. But we still hope we get luckier with fresh snow in the future! We seem to often miss the big snows when we head west. At one point, it was so warm Helen was skiing in a t-shirt!

We were also joined for the first half of our trip by a former au pair which was a huge highlight. She has skied with us twice before, gone skiing one day with friends, and she can totally keep up on the trails. It's pretty impressive, and made the day a lot of fun since everyone could ski together.

We spent a day in Reno, sorting a rental car debacle out and winning stuffed animals at Circus Circus casino. Before the kids had spent they're allotted spending money at the casino, I had to call a stop to it - we wouldn't have had room to take everything home. Plus, I have to deal when the stuffed animals at home, and we just got rid of about 100 of the things last year!!

Travel home at the end of vacation was not pretty due to a storm on the east coast. I am so grateful that Connor and Helen are very good at keeping their sh*t together when we travel. It made a difficult situation bearable, and we ultimately made it back to DC about 12 hours later than expected. It was some very tough travel, lots of negotiating, and the shortest hotel stay of their lives (in lieu of sleeping on a cot in the airport, which I just could not stomach).

Great to see Grandpa Dick on the slopes for another year!

Elaine

Ski Vacation - Part 1

We've been in Steamboat Springs, Colorado since Saturday - and the mountain and town are just about as I remember them from several years ago. We left our own home to a contractor who has done loads of work for us since the time we moved in, and look forward to having two remodeled bathrooms when we return. Or at least having close to two bathrooms. The vanity for one bathroom never arrived (ack!) and the other bathroom apparently crumbled into a bajillion pieces when work on the ceiling began. Not surprising - but causing slight delays in completion, possibly.

When last we left Steamboat, Connor was four years old, delighting in crushing the competition on a little race course with cones set up for ski school. His trick? Slow and steady - let the other kids fall down. This year? Connor was in the older age group for ski school, and skiied so hard on Wednesday that he fell asleep before dinner - and didn't wake until 7:00 the next morning. His teacher was not surprised when we ran into him on the mountain the following day.

I was hoping to snag video of Helen racing on the same little race course that Connor raced on, but she adapted so well to skiing that she quickly got promoted two levels of lessons and is now skiing down a trail that is 3 miles long. Repeatedly! She also learned the two rules of riding the chairlift: no jumping off; no falling asleep.

Connor and Helen started the week insisting that they not be forced to go to ski school, and after one day, were delighted to go back two more days. Just as I remember from last time, these ski instructors rock. We ran into both of the kids at different times on the mountain, and every time the instructor was full of enthusiasm, joking with the kids, and making sure they were having a blast - while also working on some pretty tough ski skills. Well done, all around!

After three days of lessons, my plan was to ski with Connor for the day, while Ed and his dad skied together. But Helen was so excited to show us her favorite run, and she knows how exhausted she is at the end of the day, that she ended up skiing with us today as well rather than going to a lesson. For most of the day, Ed and I each took one child which worked out well. Connor likes to show-off on the blue trails, and Helen can't handle them yet - though her teacher took her on a few yesterday.

My little speed racer.

I figure I have two to three more years of being a better skier than Connor. Wish me luck that I don't break any knees trying to keep up with him!

Elaine

Stonyfield Smoothies on the Moo-ve Ski Trip

Armed with a lunch box full of snacks and the brand new YoKids Smoothies, we set out Saturday morning for Liberty Mountain. The trip is about 90 minutes by car, and the hope is always that the kids will sleep, but that doesn't often happen. To save time, we've mastered the art of the car breakfast. Tradition dictates that we stop at the Pizza Hut on the way home, but that trip was eliminated on Saturday because Helen had a birthday party to attend in the afternoon.

Connor gets car sick when he reads on the road and Helen is chronically asking for "just one more story" in the car, which can be exhausting for the storyteller. (Why can't they just learn to knit like I do?) This trip, Stonyfield gifted me with a box of cards "52 Fun Things to do in the Car" which Helen was exceedingly excited about testing. As it turns out, the cards we read were more suited to Connor, but the games did kill a good half of the trip to the mountain, which was a blessing. Because that story about Helen when she was a baby? It's getting old. At least for me.

We were lucky enough to be joined by my friend Ellen so when we met for our 10:00 snack break, I foisted a smoothie on her daughter Esther. I knew Ellen would approve because the Smoothies are made with real organic fruits and veggie puree (don't tell Connor about this last bit!), they're not too big, and they're a nice alternative to most snacks you can grab and consume.

Three happy consumers!

So there you have it - three happy kids, drinking three nutritious smoothies from Stonyfield, with enough energy to tackle the mountain for the full four hours of fun. Esther actually made it all day, but after our four hour pass expired, we hit the road.

It was a very cold day - but we were ready! Well, after we bought hand warmers, we were ready. Note to self - next time it's cold, we're starting with the hand warmers right away!

Connor loves tearing down the mountain. And I love my new camera lens. Tough conditions, but I'm getting the hang of it!

Thanks, Stonyfield! We had a great day. And if anyone is at my house in the next couple of weeks, hit me up for a Stonyfield yogurt smoothie!

Elaine

Disclosure: As noted in the post, I received free yogurt smoothies from Stonyfield, the deck of cards, and discounted lift tickets. All opinions are my children's, and they don't give a hoot about anything except taste.

Back from Utah

We're back from a week skiing in Utah. We had a handful of new flakes to ski on, but nothing that could be measured. No matter - all three resorts we went to had their hills in great condition (Park City, Deer Valley, and Canyons). The only think we'd do differently is not plan on a whole day of skiing for Connor at the Canyons. There is only one small area of green trails there, and so Connor went over, and over, and over them during his lesson. He complained of being bored - and for good reason. Although we would've taken him on several blue trails, his instructor didn't - which Connor blamed on the person he was paired with "not skiing in control" enough of the time. We thought the ski schools at Park City and Deer Valley were a lot better, with Park City being the favored one.

Helen took lessons at Park City and Deer Valley, and on Friday, she impressed us with her turns, ability to avoid objects in her path, and her ability to come to a complete stop.

You might wonder, why is Helen wearing that ridiculous balloon taped to her helmet? Or, you might know Helen, in which case you hardly notice it. On my way to drop Helen off at ski school at Deer Valley, we passed through a craft room. Someone was blowing up a balloon, and Helen asked if she could have one, too. The guy told her he'd come tape it to her helmet - and he did, and she loved it! And she was a little sad about having to take it off for the airplane ride home! It was sort of nice for us, because she was easy to spot on the mountain. When I went to pick her up, every person in the ski school area knew her, and she had fallen in love with them all.

Helen, Grandpa Dick, Ed, me, Connor - with poles!

I have no idea what Helen is paying attention to at this point, but she did manage to stop before running over my dad as he snapped this photo.

Cutest gal on the mountain!

Elaine

Skiing Rite of Passage - Poles!

There is a long held trust between children, parents, and ski teachers. Children ask parents for ski poles, parents respond "not until your teacher says it's OK". And for their part, teachers are supposed to steadfastly deny those boogers until it is impossible to refuse them any longer.

Apparently Connor's ski instructor on Monday did not get the memo that he was the one holding the line on the ski poles.

And thus, Connor is now the proud owner of ski poles. Let's hope he hurts neither himself nor others with them!

Elaine

P.S. About a week ago, Helen was skiing down the bunny hill and asked for poles. Ed handed her one and she threw it right back at his feet and said with disgust "that's not even skiing with poles". Ed and I are still laughing about it.

Things I Learned From Helen Recently

At times, Helen has the attention span of a squirrel. Which might, in all honesty, have a very great attention span (they do survive, after all). But to the casual observer, they appear a bit...scattered. I've heard of a squirrel's practice of stocking up nuts under each and every flower, tree, and bush in my yard (but never that giant patch of weeds) as a sort of insurance policy. Insurance against forgetting where they hid the prior nuts. Because the task of remembering that their stockpile lies beneath the wavy grass is just too much, I guess.

And all this? Well, it is Helen.

On Saturday, we went skiing. You see, even though we could have been walking around downtown Arlington in shorts, we went skiing. Back in November, we purchased an Advantage card which gives us a discount on lift tickets at several nearby mountains. It seemed like a sure investment given that it snowed in October! Not so, as it turns out. But because I am from the family I am from - and cannot possibly understand "sunk costs"- we're going to use that card enough to make it worthwhile, no matter what. Even if it's 55 at the mountain.

SNOW! In October!

After a few initial runs, it made sense to split forces. At one point, I found myself skiing with Helen, down a green trail. No, she does not ski, as a matter of fact. But the mere fact that Ed and I think she ought to confine herself to the bunny trail and the magic carpet offends her. So, I decided it was less painful to let her ride the chair lift (which she insists on calling a gondola because clearly, she is a dreamer) and take her down the green trail than listen to all of her grievances about being confined to the magic carpet. Nerves of steel, I do not have.

As we were skiing down the green trail, with Helen in the center of a hula-hoop while I steered her from behind, did she bother focusing on the task at hand? No. Because why bother paying attention and trying to ski, when you can instead tell your mother about:

(1) your internal debate about whether you will marry J. or S. or maybe Jo. (Please let Virginia have gay marriage soon, so I don't have to tell Helen she cannot marry Jo if she wants to get married in Virginia.)

(2) your favorite colors and the favorite colors of all your friends

(3) the reasons that you love Miss Angela

(4) why life might be better if you were an only child and could ditch Connor - and assure your mother that you've talked to Connor about it and it is totally OK with him if he's no longer part of the family

(5) how we really need to have a mom-daughter date night, and perhaps it could include getting another American Girl doll, because apparently having twin Bitty Babies is just not cutting it these days and

(5) how you already know how to ski.

After several runs of this, I instituted a new rule - talking is for the chair lift, er, gondola. Focusing on getting downhill is for ski time. We can take a break on the way down if there's something really important to talk about, but we should both be in a stopped position.

When she's paying attention, she's actually pretty good on skis. Unfortunately, most of the time, she appears a bit scattered. But, the practice of telling me all these random tidbits serves as her insurance for getting bored as she heads down the mountain. Because, you know, she already knows how to ski. Just ask her.

Elaine

First Ski Trip of the Year

The day after we arrived in Albany, we headed to a tiny mountain / hill outside of Albany. There were two strips of snow - one near the rope tow, and one on a blue trail that went straight down the center of the mountain. In case it is not obvious, the rope tow is terrible, and with kids, it moves to unbearable, which meant we quickly shifted over to the other trail.

Conditions were not great - but I have to hand it to Connor - after a few runs, he seemed as comfortable as ever on the snow. Afterwards, he told us that it was "so much fun"! Now I'm looking forward to our upcoming ski trip over MLK weekend with friends. Helen was not so certain about the experience, but given the conditions and the fact that she doesn't actually know how to ski and that the hula hoop we were going to use to guide her down the mountain broke, I give her a pass. Hopefully conditions will be better when she's next on skis.

Circus-Circus, Reno

When we were in Tahoe a few weeks ago (you know, before the 6 feet of snow that fell in one week that I am still quite sad about missing), we took a suggestion from a friend mine to ride the train into Reno and then hit Circus-Circus. As anyone who has spent time with my family knows, this represents a true departure from how we normally spend our days.

We learned the train does not go round-trip (without an intervening night in Reno) so my mom, Connor, Helen, and I piled onto the train, while the older men in the group drove cars to Reno. That's because they can actually follow directions and not get lost, unlike me and my mom.

The train trip was fantastic, and one I highly recommend. The views are beautiful, I was able to do quite a bit of knitting, and not being strapped down in car seats makes my children much happier people. Unfortunately, I have no photos  because the train conductor was not keen on me delaying the train to grab my camera from Ed. Sheesh. Did he think Mussolini was his boss?
The kids were thrilled to be at Circus-Circus. We went to the area upstairs that had activities for kids, and they both started accumulating tickets to turn in for disappointing prizes.

Helen tried to throw a dart at a balloon, failed, and won a pink bear anyway ("everyone under 12 a winner!"). She was thrilled.

Connor, however, didn't want a pink bear, so we wandered around for a while playing a few games. Of course, the games are set up to make you lose, which Connor did, and he was starting to get a little sad about this. So we decided to find him an "everyone a winner" game to end his bad streak (and the draining of dollars from my wallet!). He even asked "do you think we could find a game that young children could win?".

Finally, we found a fishing game. The object was to fish a metal object out of a little stream circulating these metal objects quickly around, with a magnet attached to a pole. As the adults stood around explaining to Connor how he wanted to get a red one to get a bigger prize, he cast his rod in expertly and bam - he fished out a red object. Clearly, the adults' advice was completely useless. (I hope he doesn't generalize this finding too broadly).

He won a horse. A horse that I have fixed several times at this point, because naturally, it is of poor quality. Connor sleeps with that horse nightly. Last night, after walking into a doorknob and getting quite a bump on his head,he slept with me. At 3:30 he woke up and asked me where his horse was and when I told him it was up in his bed, he asked me to go get it. I told him it was the middle of the night, he could get it himself. Turns out, he didn't want it that badly.

Now that the kids had proven their worth at the games of skill, we excitedly waited for the circus act. And can I just say, when I went to Circus-Circus in Vegas as a kid, I remember some really fantastic acts. On our day in Reno? We saw two or three acts that took place about once an hour, and that lasted maybe five minutes. I'm left wondering if the passage of time has made my memories exaggerate the circumstances, or if Circus-Circus is just not the happening place it once was.

Regardless, for those three or five minutes, all eyes in our party were transfixed.

Clearly, we are a very easy crowd to please because we were entranced by this jaw-dropping entertainment.

There's a dog in that photo, in case you missed it.

We wrapped our day up with a trip to the buffet and let's just say, the hotel might wish to reconsider its kids eat free policy. As the waiter told me about the pizza, Helen and Connor eyed up the crab legs and clams. They had their fill.

Elaine