Our ski trip this year was fabulous, despite there being hardly any snow, and quite the scare our first night there. We made some great memories anyway! We went to McCall, which is a place we go fairly often. Normally we ski at Brundage Resort, but, due to lack of snow, it was closed. Luckily, a nearby resort--Tamarack--was open (they have snow-making equipment) and we were able to hit the slopes anyway! Unfortunately, the first night we arrived, Jackson was climbing up the bunkbed ladder with an arm full of toys and slipped, fell, and cracked his head open on a nearby shelf. A couple hours were spent in the ER in McCall, and Jackson ended up having to get 3 stitches. It was horrible. The poor kid was in so much pain and so scared! The doctor said he was find to ski and sled, though, as long as it didn't bother him, so the crazy little trooper had his lesson the very next day and continued on with the trip as though nothing had happened! He is one tough dude. I thought about taking a picture of his horrific gash, but every time I thought too much about it or looked at it, I nearly fainted. But, in spite of all that, the trip went on and we had an amazing time. Here are some highlights from our fabulous vacation:
Family:
We normally share our ski trips with lots of family and this year was no different. This year, though, my Grandma Jones came! It was so great having her join us, and I know she had an amazing time. We are hoping to make it an annual trip for her from now on. She had a great time shopping (got her Christmas shopping completed fairly stress-free there!), creating a mosaic (beautiful!), helping the kids with projects (more complicated than she bargained for I think), watching us ski (yep, she was a lodge bunny;-)), and even sledding (she said she didn't want to be a party pooper since everyone else was sledding!).
Aunt Teresa and Emma were also there and, of course, Emma and Jackson are the best of friends! Cousins are blessings for sure! They had so much fun swimming together (at the hot springs and in the bathtub, with suits on, of course), skiing (inseparable, even on the chair lift), doing projects together, sledding (jumps and races!), and playing.
We were so blessed to vacation with my parents as well! It's always fun for us, as well as our kids, to share these kinds of memories with them!
Aunt Teresa and Emma (such blessings!)
The PlaceWe had lots of sun and lots of beautiful views!
Tamarack (looking out onto Lake Cascade)
Backyard of the home we stayed in (golf course and sledding hill right behind these woods!)
The unfinished Tamarack resort (it will be a gorgeous mountain village if it ever gets completed!)
Gold Fork Hot Springs
One word for this place: AMAZING! On a previous trip, my parents discovered this amazing hot springs off the beaten path. To get there, you wind up a mountain road and it is a hidden treasure for sure! Unfortunately, I have no pictures because we went there at night and it was much too dark to capture anything--there is no electricity up there, but the pools and paths are lit by tiki torches, giving it a fabulous atmosphere. The sides of the pools are formed by natural boulders and a couple of the pools have sand bottoms (great for the kids and great for the feet!). This place is definitely on my list of places to return (and I'm wondering why we haven't been there all the other times we've frequented McCall!).
SKIING!
The skiing, of course, was awesome (but when you love skiing/snowboarding like we do, it doesn't take much to make us happy!). This was also Jackson's first year having a private lesson (he was too young at Targhee, so we just skied with him). He did so amazingly well, and we were ridiculously proud of him. After a one-hour private lesson, Jackson could ski completely independently, turning, stopping, speeding up, and slowing down. The little trooper skied all afternoon, for hours, and just kept asking to go again and again. Let me just say, the hefty price for private lessons is definitely worth every penny! On the chairlift ride up one time, he even requested that his birthday be a ski birthday (so instead of the normal Hop 2 It birthday party, or even "Pin the Tail on the Donkey", we are already entering the world of ski days for celebration!).
Goggle Face
Jackson and his instructor (who was awesome!)
A Fox Hunt
Jackson has been very into the story "Peter and the Wolf" lately (my mom has an old copy she reads him a lot). Before we left, he was "helping" Nana wrap presents and confiscated a wrapping paper tube to create a pop gun (with a string and a cork). Then, while he was at my parents' house helping them pack, he loaded up the pop gun and told Nana he was going on a wolf hunt up at the ski cabin. My mom, being the amazingly fun and creative person she is, set up a whole fox hunt (fox because she tried to buy stuffed wolves and could only find foxes in McCall) for when we got to McCall. Emma was excited to help, so she and my mom went to the woods behind the house and hid a couple of stuffed foxes for the kids and Jackson had to go hunt them. Too cute!
Lilly with her fox
Looking a little lost as she is supposed to be hunting for her fox!
Jackson, spotting his fox
On the hunt with the pop gun
Good Times and Great Memories
She looks so bored! She never cracked a smile, but threw fits if we stopped sending her down!
Cousins!
Projects!
This girl looooooved the stairs!
2 sets of bunkbeds + some blankets= awesome fort!
Lilly loves mega blocks!
