Lovin' Life in the Valley

I woke several times during the night. At one point I woke with reflux, no doubt a byproduct of those extra hot wings. But I remembered to try the rollover on the left side trick. That worked like a charm. Like the day before, I slipped off to the bathroom to brush my teeth and change into my running clothes sometime between 7-730am.

I enjoyed a quick cup of coffee in the lobby before heading off on my run. It was a gorgeous clear morning, the sun just beginning to creep up over the eastern hills. The runs looked awesome completely groomed and ready for another day of skiing. I ran the same trail into town and by the EBC and Balloons then back. There were a few icy patches on the sidewalk but all in all a very clean surface.

Back in the room shortly after 8am, Mindy once again had a pot of coffee on and was up and in the shower. Our plan was similar to the day before. We would ski for a while then head to one of the lodges for a meal. I woofed down a banana and a cheese stick in the room. Bottom line, we were on our way up Mardi Gras by 930am.

We joked about not taking Holiday Run. Can’t recall in what order, but we skied for 2.5 hours before taking a break. Much like the day before, we were all over the park, including back on the Eagle lift runs. I even talked Mindy into skiing the trees. She did well. This time we took our break in Yodeler. It wasn’t quite noon so the women working the bar told me I’d have to wait before she could pour a beer. OK. We went downstairs after food. By the time were back up with our trays it was after 12noon. I bought a EBC Pale Ale for me and a Cabernet for Mindy.

I was hungry and woofed down a cheese burger and fries. I also ate half of a giant chocolate chip cookie. Mindy insisted we head up Tannenbaum and get a few family pictures. And unlike most other times, she wanted to be the photographer so I could be in the pictures. You’d think we were pulling the kids teeth, especially Jacob. He was a pill to say the least.

He made an awfully disparaging remark to his mother when she asked that he move into the frame. Frankly, I couldn’t believe my ears. I opted not to say anything, fairly certain Mindy didn’t hear it. I planned to talk to him about it later. I’m quite sure that had I said something to her about it then she might’ve clocked him. He was trying that hard to get on her nerves.

After a few more runs the kids were fussing about whatever runs we took them on. I suggested that we simply unleash the kids to go ski some on their own. That way we could have fun and so could they. As it was, no one was enjoying the company. Mindy agreed and so did the kids. Mindy and I skied Moonshadow with its new terrain features, which include the old roller but with a twisting turning trail that includes high banking turns. Awesome! We skied in tentatively, having never skied it before, but enjoyed the heck out of it. At some point I shared with Mindy the comment Jacob made when she was taking photos. Said she didn’t hear it exactly, but knew he said something not so nice. Wanted to know why I didn’t deal with it on the spot then asked for my help dealing with it moving forward. I shared that I didn’t want to deal with it while angry. Instead, think about the best approach to bring about change. She agreed. Promised I would handle it while alone with Jacob later. If I’ve learned anything about his nature, he responds far better when I talk to him one on one and give him the space to make the right choice on his own.

By coincidence, we ended up in line with the kids after about an hour skiing by ourselves. They were in far better spirits an eager to share the runs they had made. Jacob asked about the Buckeye game. Wanted to know who won. I eventually shared that the Buckeyes won, but only after teasing him about the score a little. They decided to stick with us again, so we skied Champagne, Edelweiss and Yodeler. All were superfast and fun! Convinced them to try Moonshadow with us, but Jacob was pooh-poohing all the way there. I think Mindy and I knew what was going to happen. Essentially he was bent on it not being fun, and for him, and Bella who was watching his every response, it wasn’t.

Back to Edelweiss where were all skied fast. At the bottom it’s very difficult to get back in line and on the lift due to no room. Apparently some older guy gave Bella an earful about ditching and being rude as she tried to hurry into line with the rest of us. She was flustered and damn near fell off the lift. It was all I could do to snatch her up to safety. But once she was safely in the seat she bit my head off by telling me not to touch her. Yikes! What? I grabbed her leg and curtly shared that I was only trying to save her from imminent peril. At the top of the lift, the kids skied away from the two of us again.  I suggested we just let them. Mindy concurred. Told them to meet us at the condo near 430pm.

Mindy and I enjoyed the rest of our afternoon of skiing. We did Falcon again, this time both of us taking a spill, me near the bottom after waiting for Mindy to collect herself after falling near the top. We talked about the kids quite a bit. Mindy was worried about Jacob taking good care of Bella while they’re off alone. I assured her that when they’re alone he does in fact take good care of her. It’s only in front of us that he picks on her almost incessantly. They’re getting to the age where they need a little space. What kids wants to hang with their parents all day long, especially Jacob? It’s live and learn, balancing the right amount of family time and alone time. Of course nothing justifies the rude comments Jacob’s likes to toss out like darts towards Mindy.

Mindy and I bagged it as the fun lifts (Yodeler, Eagle) closed at 4pm. Rather than ride Mardi Gras and Cindy’s till 430pm, we headed back to the room. We looked around for the kids and didn’t see them anywhere. Actually, we expected to find them waiting on the bench by ski check since both talked about being tired much earlier. Much to our surprise, no kids. We spent about a half hour in the room before we headed out in our comfy clothes where we could see Mardi Gras and Cindy’s. All the lifts were about to close. Sure enough, they were some of the last batch of skier to come down the mountain – Northwind, one of their favorite runs.

We waited on the ski check bench. Back in the room Mindy, Bella and I prepared for the hot tub. Jacob didn’t want to go this time. He was more interested in the NCAA tournament. I understood that. This time we figured out that the farther hot tub was much warmer than the other. We got in it. There we met a guy and his two boys from Cleveland. We also met a mom and daughter from West Virginia. This girl was really beautiful and seemingly had all the tools (pretty, smart, and determined). Wants to go into law.
The two teenage boys were speechless.  Learned she’s a competitive skier. Been all over, including our own Mad River Mt.for competitions. She also spent time at Wendell’ski camp in Oregon.

After an hour of hot tub and sauna we headed back to our room. While Mindy took a shower, I took the opportunity to talk to both kids about the way they acted towards their mom earlier – with a lack of gratitude and disrespect. Bella tried pinning it all on Jacob, but soon confessed to her part. I only suggested to Jacob that he owed his mother a hart felt apology fort the disparaging comments he made on Tannenbaum. He knew which one I meant, but told me he didn’t have a heartfelt apology. I only added that he needs to be a positive role model for Bella and how it was obvious he was influencing her negatively with his earlier actions. I could tell that I was getting through. Again, I wasn’t forcing an apology. Instead, merely suggesting it a wise idea.

Later, while I was brushing up, Mindy shared that Jacob apologized for his behavior. I was pleased to learn that and I know how much it meant to Mindy. Bella, of course, apologized too. It’s not an excuse, but she’s at an age where she follows Jacob’s lead. We headed to John Harvard’s for dinner.

We were seated at a corner table, one we sat at over Xmas with brother Glenn Xmas 2010. Bailey was our server. She told us that this was her first day. Yikes! She was very pleasant but also slow and forgetful. We ordered drinks then calamari as an appetizer. We appreciate Bailey’s honesty, telling us she forgot this but would make it up to us.

Finally came around for our food order. Mindy and I ordered one of their specials – the filet mignon. We didn’t even ask the price, though perhaps we should’ve. Bella ordered the grilled cheese from the kids menu. Jacob ordered a quesadilla. We saw that other customers were given bread with dipping sauce. When I ordered a 2nd beer, Mindy asked for some of the yummy bread for our table too.

We became a little disenfranchised when others who came in as much as 2030 minutes after us were already served their dinners. By then we had gotten two apologies from Bailey and then one from the restaurant manager. We politely dismissed their offer for some sort of compensation, he suggesting possibly a free desert. When our entrées finally arrived they looked terrific! The filets were large and extra thick served over a bed of smashed potatoes with some lovely Brussels sprouts.

We each ordered our filets medium rare. That as it turned out, was a big mistake. Mindy’s was almost purple in the center. She calmly flagged down Bailey to have her steak cooked a bit more. I opted to stick with mine. It was cooked far more than Mindy’s but even still a bit too raw in the center. The manager brought her steak back once again apologizing profusely and offering some compensation for our trouble – perhaps even a desert. Really? Desert! Come on, dude!

Mindy’s steak was now cut in half but still purple. She couldn’t eat anymore. We’d been there now for about 90 minutes. We simply asked for a box and our check. I was a little surprised to see that the steaks were $35. We agreed that the undercooked steaks weren’t Bailey’s fault. Her problem was that she was new. Didn’t know the ropes. We tipped her well given the circumstances but not the typical Jimindy tip. Meanwhile, I was more than happy to take the filet back to our room thinking it would make a delicious breakfast after microwaving it for a minute or two.

Bella asked if I would take her to the pool after dinner. Mindy said she needed to sleep. Mindy hoped in bed. I headed to the pool with Bella. I took a beer in a plastic cup. Bella swam for about 30 minutes indoors and out. The indoor pool area was too warm and steamy. Twice I had to head outside to get fresh air. Ahh, that felt heavenly.

Back in the room, Mindy was all but asleep. We watched a little TV but quickly fell asleep. Again, lights out before 10pm.