So, I made it home from my first alpine ski touring experience, with only few sore muscles and some nasty shin bruises. It was totally worth it, though. We had a lot of fun and it was absolutely beautiful out there.
The best thing we did was add a day at the front end of our trip and skied a half day at Donner Ranch on Sunday. It was windy and snowing, but the powder was awesome and I got a couple hours one-on-one lesson with Glenn. It's funny how years can go by, with you hardly realizing it. When I actually thought about how long it had been since I had skied, I realized it had been almost 10 years! Yikes. That put me back to the basics of all basics. I needed the lessons, but Glenn is an awesome teacher and by the end of our day, I felt ready to go out. (Too bad my boots weren't ready. I decided to save 50 bucks and not get my boots custom fit. That turned out to be a bad choice.)
We rode the lifts at Sugar Bowl up to the top of Anderson peak, and in crazy wind, headed out of bounds and along the ridge into the backcountry.
This kind of skiing is so much fun. There is a lot of uphill trudging, and some flats, and some downhill. Overall, it's an awesome workout and you're in the most beautiful setting.
We stayed at the Benson Hut, which is kept by the Sierra Club as an emergency shelter, and for private campers for a small fee. It was mostly buried in the snow; we had to enter through the loft window. There is a coleman stove for cooking and a woodburning stove for warmth, a table and six fold-down bunks for sleeping.
The next morning, we ate a little breakfast and put on our boots. My shins screamed with every step. I'm talking 9 out of 10 pain, just walking out of the hut. By the time I got outside, I burst into tears. And I promise you, I am not a wimpy girl! This was at least as bad as my cesarean recovery. So instead of a long day to the next hut, we went back the way we had come, back to Sugar Bowl and down the mountain.
After a good lunch, Edith and I drove back to the girls, while Zach and Glenn went back in to the second hut. They had a great time and came out safely the next day. It was a wonderful trip, and the girls loved staying at Glammie and Guapo's house. I can't wait to do it again. After I get my boots fit, of course!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
Disneyland
OK, so it is a lot of fun to be in Disneyland on your birthday! Not only do you get in free this year (or you get a $69 card if you already have a pass,) but everyone says happy birthday to you, which feels good and makes everyone happy.
The girls were awesome this time! No injuries, no major tantrums, lots of fun. We rode a few rides, walked around and ate, shopped and the girls even napped in their strollers!! Overall, we had a pretty relaxing day. Relaxing in Disneyland?! Yes; having passes really changes the attitude. We know we'll be back in a couple months, so it's not tragic that we forgot to go on Dumbo.
Remember to check out my flickr stream; there are always more pics!
The girls were awesome this time! No injuries, no major tantrums, lots of fun. We rode a few rides, walked around and ate, shopped and the girls even napped in their strollers!! Overall, we had a pretty relaxing day. Relaxing in Disneyland?! Yes; having passes really changes the attitude. We know we'll be back in a couple months, so it's not tragic that we forgot to go on Dumbo.
Remember to check out my flickr stream; there are always more pics!
Lots of Kids
For St Patrick's day, I offered to make dinner at Vickie's house and have a couple people over to celebrate. We ended up with about 20 adults and 5 kids under 3. I cooked all day: Corned Beef and Cabbage, Colcannon (potatoes with garlic and spinach,) Irish Soda Bread, and Glazed Carrots. Vickie made a Cake and our friend Barb brought cookies. The food was good, a good time was had by all, and I am pretty proud of myself for cooking a meal for that many people!
This picture was the result of someone forgetting that our kids are all toddlers. Seriously, has anyone successfully posed 4 two-year-olds and a one-year-old at 8pm and gotten a great photo? If so, I'd love to see it!
This picture was the result of someone forgetting that our kids are all toddlers. Seriously, has anyone successfully posed 4 two-year-olds and a one-year-old at 8pm and gotten a great photo? If so, I'd love to see it!
Swing
Zach made a swing that we brought down to LA. The girls love it, and I love this picture of Victoria.
Our Drive on 5
We just got back from a wonderful trip to LA, to visit family. The drives, both there and back, were pleasant and uneventful, which is the equivalent to miraculous when you have two, 2-year-old girls! The best thing we have purchased for this purpose is the dual-screen DVD player. It's removable and easy to set up, so we only use it when driving to LA. The girls watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Mickey's Reading and Math Fun and Finding Nemo, and they were almost perfect angels.
We've gotten in the habit of stopping for picnics in random places. Many times it's the rest stop, but sometimes they just don't pop up at the right time, or like this trip, I never got around to packing lunch-worthy food, so we need to buy takeout. Our picnics this trip were outside a Carl's Jr, where the girls ran around a little patch of grass and ate fish-n-chips, and along the side of a hotel, which had a granite boulder to climb on. Usually once the girls have run around a bit, they are ready to sit for another couple hours.
Oh, on the way home, we stopped at the Ghirardelli outlet in Lathrop (south of Stockton.) They have ice cream sundaes and of course, lots of chocolate. Some ok deals, some great; like the ice cream topping we found for $1 a jar! Worth the stop, even if just for the free samples.
We've gotten in the habit of stopping for picnics in random places. Many times it's the rest stop, but sometimes they just don't pop up at the right time, or like this trip, I never got around to packing lunch-worthy food, so we need to buy takeout. Our picnics this trip were outside a Carl's Jr, where the girls ran around a little patch of grass and ate fish-n-chips, and along the side of a hotel, which had a granite boulder to climb on. Usually once the girls have run around a bit, they are ready to sit for another couple hours.
Oh, on the way home, we stopped at the Ghirardelli outlet in Lathrop (south of Stockton.) They have ice cream sundaes and of course, lots of chocolate. Some ok deals, some great; like the ice cream topping we found for $1 a jar! Worth the stop, even if just for the free samples.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
St. Baldrick's
Zach volunteered to shave his head with St. Baldrick's, an organization that raises money for childhood cancer research. The event took place this afternoon at the Roseville Galleria mall. Zach was on duty, so he had arranged for another firefighter to come in for an hour and cover his position. Well, something came up and this guy didn't show. Zach felt awful, especially since we had some friends and family coming to the mall to watch!
The girls and I helped Zach fulfill his commitment to St. Baldricks by stopping by the station with hair clippers! I got to do the deed of shaving him bald, which was way too much fun. Zach raised almost $150.00 for cancer research, thanks to many of our wonderful family and friends. The Roseville event raised almost $100,000!! Thanks so much!
St Patrick's Day Parade
Zach sent me a text at 8:00 this morning: "Saint paddies day parade blue oaks 9:00." He'd just gotten to work and learned that a: there would be a parade today and b: they would be in it on the fire engine. So, of course, I need to bring the girls! Only problem was, they weren't up yet, not to mention fed and dressed. No problem, I said, see you there!
We made it, and had a great time. I even rounded up Glammie, my sister Erin and her husband Jason and 4-week daughter Audrey. We all even wore our green! There was a band, but the girls loved the horses, donkeys, doggies, and llamas -- oops, they were actually alpacas. (The owner made sure to correct me from the parade)
Of course, their favorite part was Daddy and his fire engine. All day Constance has been saying, "Daddy, rade! Daddy, rade!" (She can't say "p" yet)
Another cute thing about this morning: as we were waiting for the parade to begin, I couldn't help but notice all the names that parents were calling out to their kids. I've never seen so many Katies, Bridgets and Erins in one place!
We made it, and had a great time. I even rounded up Glammie, my sister Erin and her husband Jason and 4-week daughter Audrey. We all even wore our green! There was a band, but the girls loved the horses, donkeys, doggies, and llamas -- oops, they were actually alpacas. (The owner made sure to correct me from the parade)
Of course, their favorite part was Daddy and his fire engine. All day Constance has been saying, "Daddy, rade! Daddy, rade!" (She can't say "p" yet)Another cute thing about this morning: as we were waiting for the parade to begin, I couldn't help but notice all the names that parents were calling out to their kids. I've never seen so many Katies, Bridgets and Erins in one place!
Sacramento Zoo
We took the girls to the zoo a couple weeks back. They loved it, especially the monkeys and the lions. Constance and Victoria were so cute, and they rode in their backpacks the whole time, which made for a great workout for Zach and I! I have always loved the giraffes, since the little one was born when I was a kid, and I am excited that they are getting a new space soon. Zach fell in love with the red pandas and wanted to take one home, but the zoo said no.
Oh, and Victoria got really excited to go see the reptile room (she likes to say, "sssssssnake") but Zach was afraid! Just had to put that out there...
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