Kids Ski Too

I was up good and early eager to get a big jump on our ski day. It was 545am. Perhaps it was the Vikings ugly loss or my missing fleece, either way, I wasn't sleeping that well so I figured I might as well get the day started. I prepped coffee, exercised, then leashed up Ykraps before heading out into the chilly predawn air. It was about 25 degrees and snowing, albeit only lightly. There was about a half inch of new stuff on the driveway and walks. Back inside I poured some coffee then took to the computer to catch up on some blogging. I worked on my blog until 730am. I headed out for a run shortly after I heard the kids up and stirring. I had to pay Rocky a visit in Jacob's room. They were playing PS2 hockey and Rocky was hollering like it was noon. He was loud! I headed out for my run while Mindy remained in bed. We had already agreed not to rush getting to Mad River for the 1030am ski class. I ran just three miles knowing we'd be getting one heck of a workout on the slopes later. That worked out well. I was back home by 830am. Mindy was busy making the kids breakfast and us some eggs. She said I had enough time to shower before the eggs would be ready. Cool! I must've returned downstairs showered and ready for breakfast around 900am. We finished breakfast around 930am and then started readying the kids for our ski day. Mindy did a good job making sure all three had adequate clothing for a day in the cold and snow. While she addressed the kids, I packed a lunch for everyone and loaded it in a small cooler. After taking inventory of our gear, we were ready to go by 1040am. It was a fast drive to Mad River, this my third trip up in five days. Mindy paid for everyone's skiing. She & I lift tickets, the three kids lessons, rentals, and lift tickets. Final bill was something like $270. Yikes! We decided to leave our gear in the car and focus our attention on getting the kids outfitted first. That was a wise plan. It must've taken a good half hour to get them in boots, skis, and helmets. They looked good. After the kids were outfitted, Mindy took them to the foot of the bunny hill while I fetched my gear. She did the same once I returned. We had nearly an hour and a half yet to burn before the kids' lesson began. I helped the kids up to the surface (belt) lift and soon had each of them cruising down the bunny hill by the time Mindy returned in full gear. I worked up one hell of a sweat helping them scootch the last few feet up a slight incline to the surface lift after each run. That's one of the hardest things to teach a new skier - walking up a slight incline with skis on. Aside from our three kids, I must've helped three or four more somewhere in the learning process. Some of the kids looked as old as about 14. Most of them were struggling to get their skis back on after a fall. And in almost every case, the culprit was snow stuck to the bottom of their boots not allowing it to click into the binding. I learned that the hard way years past. It was hard work but also rewarding helping the kids learn to ski. Mindy worked closest with Jacob who was struggling more than Rocky & Bella. I likened him to Bambi on ice. Mindy laughed and agreed. Bella was doing great but had forgotten how to turn and stop - skills she learned during her lesson last February. Finally 115pm arrived. It was time to drop the kids at Adventure Camp. They encourage the parents to go ski while entrusting the kids to them. They simply asked that we return at 330pm to fetch our kids. They didn't have to ask Mindy & I twice. We were eager to do some skiing of our own. We headed quickly over to the Four Star Express lift. We skied for two solid hours getting in countless runs on their varying terrain. While on a run, we caught a glimpse of Bella, who was easily spotable in her pink snow suit and orange ski helmet. She appeared to be up the mountain with an instructor. Looked to us like she had ridden a lift and was skiing some green runs. We were excited for her. Of course we didn't let her see us. No sign of the two boys. We figured they were with another instructor. Mindy took a hard tumble on one of their more difficult runs. I saw her head bounce off the packed snow. It made a fairly loud thud. Good thing she had her helmet on. She skied on. As 315pm neared we skied over to the beginner area to meet up with the kids. We caught up with Rocky and Jacob right away. Both were rosy cheeked and grinning ear to ear. Both professed being hungry and tired. They'd been at it for 3.5 hours. Their instructor was a young kid, who seemed to have a few screws loose. He went on about how neither of the two would listen too well, and thus didn't learn much other than how to go straight down the hill, which isn't good or safe. They wouldn't snow plow or turn, which you have to do before they'll consider taking you up on the small lift. Quietly, and off to the side, he shared that he told them that people die out here skiing like that. Bella, he explained, was still up on the mountain with another instructor. He was tickled at how well she was doing. She skied up a few minutes later. And just like the boys, she professed being cold, hungry, and sore. We understood. I went to the Honda for our packed lunch and met the clan in the lodge a few minutes later. We must've spent a good hour eating, relaxing and getting warm. Mindy was eager to get the kids back out on the slopes. I was hopeful but wasn't convinced they'd want to having witnessed how tired they looked before lunch. But, sure enough, they wanted to try a lift. Mindy was convinced that we needed to head over to the Momentum chair lift to get to the newer green trails. I wasn't so sure having just reviewed the large map in the lodge. I wanted to go up Sundowner. Mindy won out. Momentum it was. We carried the kids skis as well as our own all the way to the Momentum lift. I was exhausted and started to sweat by the time we got there. I rode the lift with Jacob and Rocky. Mindy rode with Bella. The boys really enjoyed the chair lift. I worried that exiting might be a fiasco, but somehow we managed without incident. Mindy & Bella were waiting patiently. Once at the top we realized that I was right all along. The only way down from Momentum was taking one of two blue runs. Oh boy! All three kids were terrified. I had a strange Déjà vu feeling come over me. What were we thinking? Didn't we do something similar with Bella and Jacob last winter? Well, since we were already up there, it made little since to fret over our predicament. Instead, it was time to figure out a plan for getting down. My plan was to chop the run into tiny bits, where one of us would ski down and serve as a target while the other encouraged and coached, and gathered them if and when they fell. We agreed that I would be the first target. Mindy launched them. Well, it wasn't long before all three kids had fallen and were lying on the ground crying for home. We both did our level best to chop it up even smaller. At one point Rocky came right at me seemingly going 100mph. He hit me so hard that I practically fell over. Looking back it was quite comical. A ranger saw him slam into me and skied up and started dialogue with Mindy. Said that many folks make the same mistake, bringing their kids up this lift in lieu of the Sundowner. This one is closer to the bunny hill, but leads only to blue trails. He offered encouragement then skied on. I decided to scrap the target thing and ski Rocky down between my legs. After all, Bella enjoyed that last winter. Rocky responded almost in kind. He liked that. After one curving blue hill it pretty much turned green the rest of the way. Bella skied to me and then I skied with her between my legs. Both she and Rocky wanted to go back to the bunny hill. Meanwhile, Mindy slowly but surely got Jacob down the hill. Unlike the others, he struggled just to stay on his feet. He wanted to return to the bunny hill too. I was surprised after hearing their cries for home atop the mountain. We obliged. Gathered at the bunny hill, Bella insisted on doing the green trail with her mommy. Against my better judgment Mindy and Bella headed over to the Sundowner lift. I stayed with the two boys on the bunny hill. It wasn't long before Mindy & Bella skied up sharing that Bella wanted me to go up the same lift with her. According to Mindy she did great and wanted to show me her stuff. Bella and I pegged over to the Sundowner. Bella used the j-bar to get most of the way there. She managed that well too. Up the lift she and I went. She seemed to be in charge. I liked the attitude. Once we exited the lift Bella asked me to follow her. I chuckled to myself at her confidence. Keep in mind, it was now totally dark save for the lighted trails. One thing about Bella, her sense of direction is remarkable. She's been that way since I met her back when she had just turned three. And just like she did back then, she guided us down the winding green trail back to the lift's base. She fell once but popped right back up all on her own. She even did her first hockey stop! That, folks, was impressive! We skied back to the bunny hill to find the others. It was time to call it a day. Everyone was in agreement. It was 6pm. We had a fun day. I went for the car while Mindy helped the kids turn in their rental equipment. We were on the road by 615pm. Mindy phoned Jimaken, who was expecting to pick the kids up at our place around 630pm She apologized for running behind but it was worth it to see Bella tearing up the green slopes of Mad River Mt. Bella and Rocky were asleep almost as soon as we hit the highway. They woke as we hit I-270 south in Dublin. As planned, we stopped at Wendy's on Roberts Rd to get food for all the kids. Mindy & I planned to do dinner after dropping Rocky. We went through the drive-thru and were home by 705pm. While the kids ate, I walked Ykraps. Speaking of Ykraps. we noticed that he hasn't been eating his dry food for about the last three or four days. When he tries, he throws it right back up. It looks as if he doesn't even try to chew it. Plus, it sounds like he has a throat obstruction. I told Mindy I think his days are numbered. I'll be taking him to the vet soon if he doesn't start eating. This throat thing has gotten progressively worse over the last couple of months. Jimaken arrived to fetch the kids around 730pm. Mindy showered while I entertained Rocky. I showered after her. We delivered Rocky home around 815pm. We had designs on dining at the Big Fat but we learned via their website that it's closed on Monday's. We went with our old stand-by - Barley's. We arrived there around 840pm. Like always, a few of our peeps were on hand. We slid to the end of the bar and ordered beers. Mindy had a St Nick's while I enjoyed a Centennial IPA. She ordered a Barely burger while I went with my favorite - a Cuban with bacon. Between the skiing, beer, and food, we were both overcome with sleepiness as the evening began to wane. I managed a second beer, a Green Flash West Coast IPA. Because the St Nick's is a double winter warmer, I drove home. I felt fine. We had thoughts of crashing Kenny & Chrissy's house but both of us were toast, too tired for anything but bed. We were in bed before 1030pm. Not much different than a work day. I was up at 540am and to bed by 1030pm. Hmm?