Ski bunnies

I could show you these two videos of Elijah and Caitlyn trying out skis for the first time and spin a nice yarn about how amazing the day was...

Look how happy they are as they learn this fun sport!

Okay, that's not how things really went down.  Despite spending many formative years down the road from this ski slope, I have no clue how to ski. My previous attempt to learn as an adult was disastrous and almost fatal. Seriously! I could have flown off the mountain had I not held tightly to a friend who skied me down the slope like a child.

But I was willing to have a good attitude and give it a go. We also brought my niece who has never skied. After about 2 minutes on his skis and one trip down the bunny slope, Elijah was screaming and freaking out. After one trip down the bunny slope and still no clue how to stop on those things, I gallantly offered to hang with the toddler while Dad taught the girls to ski.

They really got the hang of it and were able ride the lift to tackle the main hill. None of them fell on the way down. Elijah and I tackled walking around in snow boots and spending Daddy's money at the snack bar.

My husband's idea of showing me mercy after this trip is to make me promise to give him another chance to help me learn to ski. Oh the joys of marriage. Hey, third time's the charm, right?

You can see other pics from the day by clicking here.

But snow seemed like a good idea...

For our two week Chistmas trip I had checked the weather forecast up until the time we drove back from Ohio. I'm not sure if they even had a forecast available past that, but I should have at least consulted the Farmer's Almanac. So when the snow hit Canton we had winter coats but no snow bibs, gloves, or boots. Of course the kids are not going to miss a chance to play in the snow, especially since we live in an area that rarely gets any.

Caitlyn is cut from the same cloth as her mom, and the idea of playing in the snow was much better than the reality of it - especially without good snow gear. Being the good sport that I am, I made snowballs for her to throw at me so her hands wouldn't freeze. But I made her hold off on trying a snow angel until she was ready to go in. I knew that would send her inside in a screaming fit to her sympathetic grandmama.

Elijah loved the snow and had to be carried in kicking and screaming. He may have his dad's temperament for cold weather, but he was helped greatly by the fact that he never actually touched the snow. Apparently his consignment sale shoes are pretty watertight!

But seriously, doesn't playing in the snow always look much more fun when other people are doing it?

Elijah tried his best to entertain my Dad while he recovered from a hip replacement:

You can see more snow pics by clicking here.