Before, During, and After Hitting the Slopes

 On Saturday riding the bus to to Red River Mountain....  Emily, Grace, Annie, Carolyn, Ben, and Ben

 What a glorious Tuesday!  We took the kids to their lesson (on a MUCH less crowded day!!!) and headed off to ski together!  We did a few runs that morning with much instruction on technique from Andy.  Katie's boots were hurting, so the boys and I did a few blue runs - so much fun!  I finally caught on and enjoyed it!  After lunch we did a few of the smaller runs, one that went through a little mine with some training jumps - just exhilarating!  We had a great time, beautiful weather, and strong bodies!  And, yes, everyone could easily spot me in my bright coat!

 Tuesday afternoon, we stayed only on blues (my greatest moment was when Kevin told me I was probably a better skier than his brother - and the moment when he looked down a dark blue *he and Andy both agreed it was probably much closer to a black* and thought, "if Lindsey can go down that, so can I!").  However, I have never felt such an incredible burning in my quads.  Holy Cow.  It was an experience unlike any other.  My body was prepared - I have worked out really hard the previous 3 months getting ready, like 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 hours six times a week in classes or with a trainer, and nothing could have prepared me for the quivering, burning sensation and the blessings of lift rides for relief!  Although, I never could have kept up with the guys if I hadn't worked so hard on getting my turns nice and straight that morning - back to the basics - completely understand why baseball players continue to use a tee!

By the end of Tuesday, I was dead tired.  We picked up the kids, and they wanted to do just one more run down Schoolmarm (a 3+ mile green), which all had done a few times with their classes.  We wanted to see them ski, so off we went...and had the mountain pretty much to ourselves - just exhilarating!

The kids all did fantastic.  Emily just bends her knees and zooms down the mountain.  Ben is cautious but tries to be fast.  Annie has an affinity for skiing - does natural turns and just enjoys being on the mountain.  They all loved the experience and were exhausted.  *Confession - I had a hard time keeping up speedwise with these guys by the end of the run!  Their bodies just keep going and going and going!

 Walking back through Keystone Village - home to pack, empty the fridge and finish off the food!  Thank goodness for wagons!!!!

 Our happy family - minus the little guy!  We saw quite a few people with 2 year olds teaching them to ski with little halters and connecting pieces.  Andy considered doing that with Mitchell, but it didn't look very fun for the adults!

 The Bens - they both were quite well-behaved as the both responded to hearing their name from any adult...

 Sad to see our vacation end, but much too quickly Wednesday morning came, and we were off to the airport!  We tend to travel light.  ;)  We did check one bag; the rest were carry-ons that fantastic agents let us gate check!

 We stopped for brunch on our way back to meet with Andy's mom, Nonni - her camera has the pictures with all of us!  Thanks to Addy for being a fantastic photographer!  We loved the Wednesday free pie at Village Inn!

 And waiting patiently for our airplane...we got to walk Addy to her gate and then hang out by ours.  Sad story, I took Ben and Mitchell exploring, not realizing we were so close to boarding time, but we made it!!!

 As excited as we all were to see our beds, no one wanted to get up Thursday morning and go to school.  The kids have asked repeatedly if we can go back to Colorado...although I have to remind them that their friends also went home - no more playmates to live with!  It was hard to come back and work in my kitchen alone; I still miss having Addy and Katie to chat with while we do all the necessary food-prep...until next time!!!

Keystone, Colorado - daily life

 It was time.  After Andy and I took a graduation trip last May, we decided the kids needed something too...  He found a steal of a deal on plane tickets direct from Cleveland to Denver and suggested a ski trip.  I said yes - IF my friend would come and meet us.  Enter 5 months later, at a condo a few hundred yards from the slopes to find our families...4 adults, 1 teenage babysitter, and 9 children ranging in ages from 10 years - 8 months.  Above - Andy reading to William and Mitchell - the two boys who got left behind for most activities, but they became great buddies!

Below - our incredible view.  It was just delightful - each moment in the condo and my cares and worries just melted away!  Carcassone was the game of the trip, especially for those ages 8-10!

 These three little girls were just cute as could be!  This big huge jet tub got a lot of usage each night - and bubbles do multiply!  Annie, Carolyn, and Emily  Friday was a ski day for my family while Addy and I did the grocery shopping and got the kitchen organized for the next 180+ meals to be eaten - while Katie and her fam drove 11+ hours.  Saturday was a ski day - lessons for the big kids and the moms (horrific experience for Katie and I, but we had plenty to laugh about!), free time for the dads...until Kevin was called to take Grace home because she had thrown up.  :(

Sunday we went to church 30 minutes away and happened to show up just a little bit early - we went from memory instead of checking our schedule - although being a little early for church never hurt anyone!  Our kiddos doubled their Primary, Addy was one of a handful of youth, and Katie and I were 2 of the 9 women in Relief Society - yet it was a fabulous fabulous meeting, and I would love to be in that congregation!  Home for lunch and games... We did Family Home Evening while we were there - these guys loved the singing part best!  Anyone guess the song?

 The lesson was....I can't remember the morale of the story, BUT Addy pulled out her directing skills and had all the 'big' kids perform Cinderella - it was so fantastic!  I wish I had recorded it but was thrilled to get a few pictures!  This was the funniest part - I couldn't believe how well Annie and William danced at The Ball!

 The Actors and Actresses with their Director!  Loved their costumes and the wardrobe changes for those who had more than one part!  Mitchell and William realllllly wanted to be in costumes after the kids were done and dressed up in robes, although those pictures all turned out rather blurry...  A little dessert and off to bed!

 Monday we had a lazy morning with Katie's incredible chocolate chip pancakes!  The girls got to play a dance game on the Wii - and we capture little Savannah watching all the action!

 Not my favorite afternoon (until Addy and Katie saved the day...and my attitude!!!) - BUT we went sledding at Breckenridge.  Grace and Ben (they had a blast playing games and doing art)

 We stopped on our way 'home' from the airport to buy four of these innertubes that Andy found on Craigslist.  Suffice it to say, they took forever to blow up.  We all decided they had a few more negatives than positives, although the colors are beautiful!  They were very safe for Mitchell and William and protected them from the wind!

 They are also VERY heavy to drag back up the hill - especially with cute little bodies in them.  The kids had a great time (although the boys quickly gave up and returned to the car to play DS - I cut them slack though because they did play for 90 minutes in the snow while tubes were being inflated!).  Emily just kept trudging up the hill over and over.  Annie and Carolyn made snowmen, forts, and angels.

 Addy was so excited to sled...then the tubes didn't really work.  So, she found an old broken saucer and decided to try it.  AWESOME!  That things flew!  So, she and Grace went over and over again.  Once I tried it (in the banana position), I was hooked!  It was the greatest ab workout I have ever had - because if you put your feet down, you would tilt and flip over - very high cost for not staying balanced on the broken sled.  Funniest part - it would crack and a piece would fall off every couple of runs.  Katie got a cold Savannah fed and to sleep so she could have a few runs too - just delightful!!!

We were lucky enough to go out for a date on Monday night!  We went into Keystone and ate at an Italian restaurant, complete with absolutely divine dessert!  Then we walked around the village and froze almost to death while we waited for the shuttle (not realizing how incredibly close to home we actually were!).  Fantastic night out - so fun to be 'off-duty' and laugh and laugh and laugh!!!  Best part - we came home to nine sleeping children and one smiling babysitter! 

Our plan was to play games each night...however, this really only happened a few times.  We all had a touch of altitude sickness, complete with awesome headaches, probably a bit of dehydration to go with that, and horrible nights of sleep.  We were all exhausted and off to bed by 1030 or 11 each night!