The Wall Family: Ski trip

Leaving for Colorado at 1:30 in the morning on December 27th sounded like a good plan. We decided doing the drive in one day would be easier, thanks to our long drive to the beach this summer. It would have been a much better plan had the children been in on it. As it turned out, they didn't go back to sleep until 4:30/5:00 in the morning, and we had to stop for gas around 6 so the morning backfired on us a little. The rest of the day was smooth sailing until we stopped for lunch and noticed the car was making awful noises. It turned into a 3 hour detour to the Honda dealership. Thankfully they were very kind, helpful, and fast, and got us back on the road in time to get to Breckenridge before dark.

Our first full day there was spent playing in the snow, adjusting to the altitude, and getting to know everyone else in the house. We were invited by good friends of ours in Houston, and they also invited their neighbors and a family from their church. Since we had never met these other two families it took a little bit of time to get used to each other. House totals: 9 kids, 9 adults.

The next day we enrolled the girls in ski school. We had some hesitancy putting Anabelle in because she tends to be very shy in new and unfamiliar situations, but she was in a class with Sarabeth and another little girl from the house so we decided to at least try it for a day. It turned out to be the best choice we could have made! I've never seen enjoy an activity more. She came out of her shell in a way I never would have expected, and the joy on her face when we picked her up made the whole trip worth it. Sarabeth enjoyed it just as much and picked it up very quickly. We had Sarabeth start in the 3-year-old class (even though she's 4) so she could be with the other two girls. Her instructor suggested the next day we put her with her age group because she was learning so fast. The second day was as successful as the first even with the girls in different classes. Sarabeth was going down the bunny hill completely unassisted and could stop and go on command. Anabelle was balancing better by the end of day 2 and could make it about halfway down the hill by herself. If nothing else, I'm glad we gave them the opportunity to try something totally new. And who knows, maybe next time we go we'll all be skiing together down the mountain!

The next 3 days were bitterly cold. Highs of 4* and lower, lows in the -20's with wind chills in the -30's. Unbelievably cold. We didn't venture out of the house except once on Friday and again Sunday morning when we left to go home. Luckily by that time we knew the other people in the house well and the kids were happy to play together inside all day long. Well, I say "we" didn't venture out...Josh took a little side trip. He left at 5am Saturday morning to fly to LA for the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The trip of his life! He got to cheer TCU on to a Rose Bowl victory, something few people ever imagined. Definitely one to check off his bucket list. It was a whirlwind trip, though. He flew back to Denver at 6 the next morning where we picked him up to drive back to TX. Thankfully the drive home went pretty well even with a stop overnight in Amarillo.

We were exhausted and glad to be home, but had a blast. The highlight of the trip for me was definitely seeing the girls' faces each day as we picked them up from ski school. There's just no way to fake joy like that!