Let It Snow...

I'm always saying that I want to be more spontaneous. That I want to live more in the moment.

That I want to take advantage of all the life has to offer me and my kids.

So, when Jaclyne texted me asking if I wanted to take the babies to see snow

last weekend, the thought that it would be a lot of work or the scariness that driving in the

snowy mountains brings, or even the thought of freezing my butt off didn't even deter me.

"Yes", I answered without a thought. "Of course, I would go."

Which meant I had exactly one day to acquire snowsuits and

all that goes with them for all three kids.

Packing up the kids for an adventure like this is never a small feat for me. 

I inherited the over-packing gene from my momma, who I might add,

probably carries the entire house including the kitchen sink in her purse. 

You need anything? Go find my mom.

Well, I am the same way.

3 sets of outfits, shoes, hair accessories, pajamas, covers, snacks,

toys to keep them busy in the car, laptop, DVDs for the LOOONG night in the hotel room...

the list is never-ending! And that's only for ONE night!

In all the seeking of snow clothes frenzy, I forgot to look for boots and gloves and all that fun stuff for myself!

The kids were really excited, to say the least.

They rarely get the chance to see snow, much less, play in it.

The drive up the mountain was breathtaking. The snow glistened and sparkled in the bright sunlight.

It almost looked fake. Every tree we saw was adorned with icicles and snow.

As far as you could see it was speckled white. Really beautiful.

And the sky was the best shade of blue I've ever seen. Although it was 32 degrees outside, the sun was

shining so brightly and so strongly that it was burning my arm through the car window.

There was about 5 inches of snow on top all the roofs of all cars coming down from the mountain.

The kids loved seeing this. They squealed when big chunks would fall off as they drove. 

The roads had been plowed but we did slip and slide a few times (SO SCARY!)

Thank god there were some guys who helped us get our chains on properly.
(for $25! Whatever happened to being a kind human being and good Samaritan??)

Icicles on the resort

There was a little slope as we walked to the village that looked perfect for sledding.

The view was not so shabby.

I knew Charlie would love sledding and tubing. I even think he would love snowboarding and skiing.

But my girly little Kate? I wasn't sure. She surprised the hell out of me with her bravery.

I really shouldn't have been surprised though. She's a spitfire, my girl.

The girliness only came out in her when she was too lazy to carry her sled or her tube back

up the slope to give someone else a turn. Typical. She's like me...lol.

Charlie would wipe out but always come up with a huge smile.

He thought it was so cool, playing in the snow.

Believe me when I tell you that every little pile of snow we passed,

wherever we went, was not left untouched by Charlie and Kate.

They took FULL advantage of this commodity that they didn't have at home.

I had to keep reminding Jackie of that when she would get frustrated that they were

stopping yet AGAIN to pick up or kick a pile of snow.

Fighting with Kate to take a photo with me...

After a tantrum, a threat and a guilt trip...I got one.

If you knew me when I was 15-17... hell, if you were a teen in the 90's you all probably

owned a pair of Doc Marten's just like me. It was all I wore for like, a year straight  accompanied by

a flannel that was my crush's wrapped around my waist, all grunge-like. True My So-Called Life style.

I loved those things.

Teche really got her money's worth out of that gift she gave me.

For some reason, I never could get rid of them. They've been in my closet for 16 years now.

Laugh, go ahead. I felt silly putting them on too.

But when I couldn't find any snow boots to wear, i was rifling through my shoe collection

and came across these. And, I'll be damned if they didn't keep my feet perfectly warm and dry.

We turned in early because there isn't much nightlife in the mountains.

Like, everything literally shuts down by 7pm and you're basically on your own.

Thank goodness our hotel had a magician booked for a 7pm show in the lobby.

It took a bit of covincing to get the kids to come out of the room but we got them to leave.

They love hotel rooms. Kate especially.

J got them some hot chocolates with whipped cream and they settled in to

see what Justin the magician had to offer them. We had no trouble with K & C.

But little firecracker, Ella? She streaked across the stage a few times when she wriggled

herself loose from J's grasp. It was hilarious. That little girl has no fear in her.

The show was quite good. It engaged the kids and kept them on their toes.

They were at the perfect age for it and Justin is really good at what he does.

The kids were beat from a day of hiking up and down hills and not having had a single nap.

We thought they would go to bed right away, so after a hot shower for each and a little bit

of room service we shut down the lights and put on a movie for them.

Ella gave a bit of resistance but was the first to knock out.

Charlie and Kate would not go to sleep!

That night felt like the LONGEST. NIGHT. EVER.

Every time I woke up, I thought at least an hour or 2 had gone by since my last wake up...

but nope. 30 minutes. 45 minutes. It was never ending.

I dont know why I slept so badly...but 10am came too quickly for this tired momma.

Then there was TUBING! The highlight of their weekend.

Kate LOOOVED tubing. She went up and down for the whole hour!

Charlie went from the bunny slopes to the advanced one and spent the rest of the time there.

My trusty old Docs braving the snow...

I wasn't really feeling the tubes. I just wanted to get my cold self back into the car and warm up.

It was an extremely fun trip and I'm glad that we got to go.

Only thing missing was Eric. He had to work so couldn't make the trip...

although we begged and begged him to come.

He's an old pro when it comes to driving in the snow since he's from Canada...

He would've LOVED to see the kids in the snow. I guess we'll have to go back soon!!