Raising Ski Babies

Raising ski babies has been an incredible amount of work but rewarding. Especially when they are grown, can put on their own gear, will ski with us (or not) and everyone is happy. Sophie heads back to university soon, so it was great to do something together today in the mountains.

It was a beautiful day!

Ski Day

With Sophie at UBCO, she has her own season's pass to Big White.  So, it's just the three of us skiing at Silver Star this season.  The mountain opened up in late November this year, which was the earliest we have ever skied. 

Conditions have been great, and today it was a bit chilly at around minus 13, but the snow conditions were perfect.  We stuck to Silver Woods where the crowds were fewer and lift lines short.

A Silver Star mini vacation

 For the second year in a row, we booked a few nights at Silver Star in the Snowbird Lodge.  We love the idea of not having to rush around and drive up in the morning to ski. The freedom of waking up and deciding when we want to go out and start skiing when we want to come in for lunch, and going out after lunch when we are all warm and fed can't be beaten.  Vic and I also purchased new ski poles (very exciting).  Our old poles were over 30 years old.  We do get our money's worth.

Here are a few pics:

A fun ski day!

After a bout of -20 for about 3 days last week, our normal winter temperatures are back so we decided to head up to Silver Star. Sophie had to work at McDonald's, so it was just the three of us today.

The conditions were great.  Christmas Bowl was the most fun in my opinion.  A little bit of wind in the Vance Creek runs, but

nothing too bad.

Skating and Skiing

We seem to be all in as far as winter sports go this year. Between hockey, figure skating and skiing, we have been busy!

Vic and I took Fynn up to Silver Star today.  Being March 3, we are never too sure how much more good ski days are left before the conditions turn to more spring-like.

Today was probably the best day we have had. It was crisp, clear and snow was beautifully groomed.  I think it was ski day #9.  Sophie had dance practice, but she has easily skied about 11 or 12 times as she is picking up extra skiing as a member of the high school ski club.  This video shows Fynn really tearing it up!  He's really come a long way this season. 

When we got home from the mountain today, I headed out to public skating, as I am trying to get as much skating in as possible.  My skates are getting more comfortable, but still not 100%. I had my 8th lesson last Thursday, and I think today was my 4th-time public skating in 2019.

Happy 14th Birthday, Sophie!

This is what happens when you blink.  Sophie is 14 tomorrow.

She invited some friends over Saturday night for a bowling party, pizza and cake.  After a couple of hours of bowling the girls asked if they could come back to our house for a bit longer.  Kate, Abby, Felicia, Cami, and Erica (Hunter was busy). 

Today we went skiing...lots of snow which made it somewhat difficult as the runs weren't really groomed.  I think this was our 6th time up this season which isn't too bad.

Vic and I also were able to squeeze in some time with Guy Greavette of Vikings Weightlifting who is helping us with our form/technique as we try to learn Olympic Weightlifting.  Things are coming along....slowly.  The photo of me is an attempt at a Snatch.  A very difficult move at the best of times.

Fynn also played hockey in Lumby and his team had a nice little win.

#11 for Sophie & ski day #5

Sophie's 11th birthday is on the 5th, but we celebrated it a bit early this weekend with her friends. She had an Instagram-themed birthday.  She invited some of her friends from school to the bowling alley. I am grateful she has such good little friends in her life and nice parents too. If you Google Instagram-themed parties it can be a bit crazy, so we just stuck with themed invitations, a gorgeous cake (thanks to Paula who decorated it for me -- the only thing she asked is that I baked it for her first)  and treat toppers. I think it was absolutely perfect for #11.

In other news, Vic and I went to American Sniper on Friday night - our 3rd consecutive Friday out on a date!  It was a good movie, but such a tragic ending.

We haven't been skiing in a few weeks so I arranged a sitter for the kids for part of today so Vic and I could go up to Silver Star and do a few runs.  The kids were tired, and Fynn had hockey later today so I was okay with them staying at home as he would have been way too cranky with back to back sports.  This was our 5th time up skiing for us this season.  Conditions were not too bad - and always good to find an excuse to use our passes.

Downton Abbey tonight....ready for another week.

Ski Day #4

Vic and I took the day off work, and with our friends Bryan and Patti headed up to Silver Star for ski day #4.  When we went to pick up our skis from the waxing place on the mountain we had a little surprise.  The ski wax people misplaced Vic's skis (they thought they were lost) and he had to use rentals they provided him.  It was a somewhat frustrating way to start the day, but the blue sky and good conditions all made up for it.

Tonight we saw the Initiation Game.  Such a good movie.  Tomorrow is an early morning hockey game for Fynn so we will need to be rested for it.

Ski Day #3 and why we ski with kids

It was about -8 in the parking lot at the mountain today, and colder at the top of the hill and even colder with the windchill.  And let's not forget the fog.  It was a tad challenging, but the snow was good and we had fun.  Fynn had a fever this morning so we phoned our sitter and she was able to sit with him while we took Sophie up.

She had a lesson in the Mountain Explorers group. That is classified as an Advanced Intermediate level.  She is skiing all blue runs, starting bumps and doing trees.  She also did a groomed Black today.  She said she had FUN, which isn't always the case with Sophie after a lesson :)

Skiing with kids is not easy.  It is not inexpensive, there is often grumbling (at least when they are younger there was a fair bit of it), and by the time you get them in their clothing and equipment it often seems more inviting just to sit by the fire with a nice drink.

However, in spite of it all, skiing with kids is worth it. They have become more independent - carrying their own gear, getting down a mountain, picking themselves up.  We are also creating some lasting memories and they are learning a skill that will serve them into their adulthood.

Lists with Friends - top 10 reasons I am okay with the end of our family ski season

As much as I love skiing and we enjoy doing it with the kids, we decided that today would likely be our last trip up to the mountain with the 4 of us.  (Vic and I still may go up on our own mid week if my work schedule allows).

1.  I want my Sundays back. 
2. Even with our prepaid ski lesson vouchers for Fynn, we eventually ran out of lessons so we had to pay the past 2 times.  Nice to not have to do that anymore.
3.  Clothing and gear = mind numbing checklists.  I try to be fastidious about not missing anything, but this season we (Fynn) forgot his ski pants at school one Friday which meant he needed new pants for Sunday (luckily I got a pair for 40% off, and now he has 2 pairs).  Sophie also forgot her gloves one Sunday.
4.  The kids complaining about the cold.  In spite of being dressed quite well, it can never be warm enough it seems when the temps drop below minus 10.
5. I want my Sundays back.  Right, I said that already.  But I do.  I want to lounge around, do chores and generally putter.  I hate doing laundry Sunday night.
6. Lift lines.  We try to avoid really high volume days, but Presidents Day and Alberta Family Day were crazy.
7. Cold toes.  My boots are pretty old and I do need a new pair, but the kids equipment has been a priority, but I really do need boot heaters.
8. Parking lot issues.  When it is really busy, it is hard to get parked, which means a longer trek with the kids. Not to bad arriving, but Fynn is pretty cranky by the end of the day and a big walk back to the car is no fun.
9. Rude snowboarders.  I hope I haven't offended anyone, but it seems to be a bit more prevelant in a certain male demographic.
10.

Blizzardy conditions.  We only had a couple of times where it was kind of hard to see, but I really like to ski (who doesn't) when it is blue skies and sunny (like this pic).

We did have a great season.  10 times skiing for us, plus 1 day at tube town.  Fynn had 8 lessons and seems to have mastered "Racing Raccoons".  He has done some jumps and likes the trees (like Sophie).  All is good and we are very fortunate.  The kids have some great skills which will last them a lifetime.

Ski day #9

We had a nice weekend.  On Saturday, Sophie was a participant in the "Home Alone" course that Okanagan College brought in.  The provides kids with the skills and knowledge to be safe and responsible when home alone for short periods of time.

• Understand responsibilities when being home alone;

• Demonstrate what to do in case of an emergency and how and when to call 911;
• Understand the basics of first aid procedures.
She had to complete an exam and she passed and got a little wallet card.  Very proud of her and it gives us more confidence when she is left home alone after school during the week.

Then on Saturday night we went out for dinner with Vic's brother and his wife for Adam's 50th birthday. 

Today we headed up to Silver Star for our 9th ski day.  Fynn had his 7th lesson (racing raccon) and Sophie skied with us.  A bit windy but all good.

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In other news, Sophie got her braces spacer today.  It has really impacted her speech and right now she is eating mostly soft food or smoothies.  I have heard that in a few days her speech will improve once she gets used to it.  I had a mole that my dermatologist thought should be removed.  It was on my left arm, and a few stitches later it is gone.  I suspect it is nothing to worry about, but as my doctor said "why tempt fate."

Ski day #8

Vic, Fynn and I went up to Silver Star this morning.  Fynn had his 6th lesson this season.  He is now in the Racing Racoons level.  He was lucky as he was the only one in his class, so he had a private lesson.  He and his instructor covered a lot of terrain and managed to make it down to Silver woods as well.  Fynn did a couple of steep blue runs and lots of trails.  He has made big progress this season and his instructor suggested that he is now ready for poles.  He could also be almost ready for Junior Hot Shots which is the level that kids are in when they are getting ready for black runs.

Sophie was at her friends Hunter's last night and they went up to the mountain as well.  Sophie skied for about 5 hours with Hunter and her mom.  She was extremely proud of herself for skiing her first black run as well as doing a "box" in the Rockstar Park.  It's great to see the kids progressing and having fun at the same time.

Tonight Vic and I went to this movie.  It was amazing!

 

the weekend lens

Vic and I had a wonderful time skiing (ski day #7) on Friday.  We managed to ski 9 runs before lunch and we even did a black run (Vic's first). 

On Saturday we did some chores, Fynn had a play date with his cousin Cairo and then we went to a movie on Saturday night.  We saw American Hustle.  Great movie - highly recommend. 

On Sunday we did a few more chores (like cleaning our leather chair/sectional) and Fynn had a birthday party to go to (busy boy this weekend).  We had home-made Shepherd's Pie for dinner - turned out well and nice for a change.

winter: the deepest, darkest season

Vic and I both battle the seaonal blahs/blues - whatever you want to call it. It is a tough season when you don't have light after work (or even after 4pm) for months and months. It is getting a little better as we are on the "good" side of the solstice now, but it is still dark and cold here. Minus 4 degrees celcius as I write this, which I know is nothing compared to our Canadian counterparts in Manitoba where I think it is minus 45 today. Good lord!

We combat our blahs through exercise. Vic runs and swims and I go to my fitness classes.

The other activity we do as a family is ski. Every weekend - we drag ourselves up to Silver Star Mountain. It is lots of exhilirating fun, especially once the kids have their gear on and are settled in. When I ski - especially when the turns are working out, I feel like a kid. It really is fun and takes my cares away.

Sophie finished up her Trail Blazer classes and will move up to Mountain Explorers. She is skiing at the intermediate level now and Fynn will be moving up to Racing Raccoons. He is doing well with blue runs.

wide sweeping runs

We took the kids up to Silver Star today for our 3rd ski day (2nd for the kids).

Fynn continued on in his Jumping Joey's lessons and Sophie in Trail Blazers. At least one more session or two for Fynn and then he can move up to Racing Racoons. He is doing great and Sophie is moving along well too.

I love it when we can just ski some nice wide, sweeping run where you can do big turns.

We met up with our friends Veronica and Mike, and V's son Neil. We had a nice post skiing cup of hot chocolate with them before heading back down the hill.

The Weekend Lens

Just a recap of the last few days:

- Friday, Vic and I took the day off and went to Silver Star for ski day #2 of the season. We had a great time with Bryan and Patti.

- Saturday we had our annual Christmas tradition of seeing a live production. The first year, it was the Nutcracker, last year it was a Christmas Story and this year it was The Lion, The Witch and the wardrobe. The kids did great. So happy to be exposing them to theatre.

- Today we had Sophie's Christmas dance program. She was "Electricity" for her Level 2 Jazz class.

First ski day of the season

We booked the kids in lessons (we have early bird ski pass vouchers for lessons) at Silver Star for this afternoon.

From 1-3:00pm they had basically private lessons. Fynn only had one other little boy in his Jumping Joey's group and Sophie was the only one in her Trail Blazers group. Excellent attention for both of them.

Fynn has moved up from last year when he was an Eager Elephant. With Jumping Joey's, the idea is that: The child can ski confidently on green terrain Fynn is doing just fine and did his first blue run today.

Sophie is at this level: Skiing green runs independently and easy blue runs.

Vic and I did 4 or 5 runs and burned off some work stress in the fresh air. It felt good to get up to the hill before Dec 1.

Ski day #8

Vic and I took a day off work (not a sick day, it was all on the up and up) and went for a ski day at Silver Star.

While it was a little foggy at the top of the mountain, we had a lot of fun. The conditions were good and it was quite mild.

I have really enjoyed skiing this year and was excited to try a few more challenging runs this ski season than in prior years.

Break even ski day

We had a great day skiing! It was our official "break even" day with our ski pass. It was ski day number 7 for Vic and I, number 6 for Sophie, and number 5 for Fynn.

Fynn has moved up into Jumping Joey's in the ski school. He is skiing confidently on Green terrain and has started doing some Blues. He skiied on the Whiskey Jack run today which has some steep parts. He also did the Toilet Trail (real name since there is an outhouse at the head of the trail). It had bumps and some trees, so he was excited since it was his first time skiing something a little different and fun.

We ran into another family from Salmon Arm and Sophie knows their youngest daugther from school. Talia is a good skier and gave Sophie that extra push and led her down some tree trails and also into Telus Park. I took a real tumble (lost a ski and my poles) when I followed Talia and Sophie down a little narrow run that ended in a jump that I was completely unprepared for. I'm fine, but it certainly taught me not to follow young kids.

Great day and loads of fun.

Skiing by the numbers

Our 6th time skiing at Silver Star for Vic and I, 5th time for Sophie and 4th time (all lessons) for Fynn. Sophie took us down the Peanut Trail today for the first time. It is a very popular trail with the kids due to the big bumps through the trees. A little more difficult as an adult, but fun nonetheless.

Fynn is doing well. His instructor said he can advance up to Jumping Joey's next lesson (ability level is for kids who can comfortably ski green runs). Good for Fynn!

We met up with Ray, Doris and their two kids Ella and Ada while we were there. Nice to ski with some Salmon Arm friends.