Skiing, zipling and extreme sportin’ at Copper Mountain

February 27, 2013 by

I’ve decided winter is exhausting. Not only do we usually come down with The Plague (Jamie is on week four) but we have a short few months to cram in as much outdoor fun as we can. With Denver’s dismal snow year, it has been that much more mandatory for us to head to the hills.

And yes, I said mandatory. As in HAS TO HAPPEN.

Copper Mountain was our latest destination to host us. A favorite among the locals because it’s an easy 75-mile drive west of Denver up the I-70 corridor, it remained a glaring omission in my must-ski list (though we had a stellar time there in Oct. 2011).

Hadley had a five-day weekend and Bode had three days off so we drove up after church on Sunday, skied as a family on President’s Day and then the boys drove home early Tuesday morning for work and school. That left two glorious days for Haddie and me to play, and one of them was my birthday.

X-Treme Sports

Upon arrival, we did a tour of Woodward at Copper. I’ll admit this 19,400-square-foot year-round ski and snowboard camp half-amazes, half-terrifies me. Nicknamed “The Barn,” Woodward is an all-steps progression program to help ages 8 and older learn aerial tricks and skills in a safe environment that you can translate on the mountain. See those ramps? My kids thought they were the coolest things ever.And I guess they are if you’re inclined to catch more than 1 inch of air on the slopes (which I am not).

The Barn offers drop-in day sessions, summer camps, SuperTramps and will undergo a big makeover this spring and improvements will include a new progressive foam pit designed for development of beginner park skills. The street area will double in size allowing for full access by BMX, mountain bike, skateboards and park skis and snowboards.

As a nervous parent, I was impressed with the capable staff’s emphasis on safety. Helmets are mandatory on the ramps and to even jump into the foam pit, my kids had to fill out some waivers and receive instruction.And Bode is counting down until he’s 8 so he, too play.

Copper Mountain

We’ve traveled to a number of mountain resorts around the country and what my family loved most about 2,465-acre Copper Mountain is that it was so easy. Easy to get to and the 140 trails across three mountains are easy to navigate. In fact, Hadley marveled about how wonderfully contained the base village is. “We don’t even have to get in the car!” she raved. “We can walk to skiing, dinner, tubing, zipling, skating and dinner.”

I didn’t correct her when she said dinner twice. It is, after all, very important.

On President’s Day, the kids went to ski school while Jamie and I hit the slopes. It is one of the few Colorado ski schools that has incorporated the FLAIK global positioning system, which tracks the kids’ on-mountain location, skier stats, and runs skied. Their instructors simply attached the GPS device around their leg and at the end of the day, we went online to see all their logistics. Turned out, they skied a lot harder than Jamie and me but we didn’t tell them that, of course.

Good thing there’s no tracking devices for parents who opt for an extra-long, leisurely lunch by the fire at Copper Station.

At first, I was disgruntled The Schoolhouse is located in the West Village, a shuttle stop away from the Center Village. But after dropping off the kids, Jamie and I rode Union Creek, followed by Timberline Express and that is where we found the best snow conditions that day.By day’s end, we were happy and tired. This was our first major outing since getting sick, which took quite a toll. In fact, sweet Bode fell asleep on the two-minute shuttle ride back to our condo.

How to Get an Alpine Rush

We vacillated on our plans. We had hoped to try out the new Alpine Rush Zip Line in the Center Village and then head over to the East Village for the Tubing Hill but remember the exhaustion thing? We opted to swing by the zip line since it was close to our condo, go back, chill out and then see if the kids were up for tubing. 

The latter didn’t happen but the former did…in a big way.

Poor Bode practically sleepwalked through Center Village and I honestly wasn’t expecting him to even try. But the second he spotted the zip line soaring over skating rink at West Lake, there was no holding him back. (Note: You must be at least 50 pounds and each ride only costs $10),

Jamie got outfitted in his harness and went first, racing across the sky. Hadley freaked out, “That’s too fast,” she wailed. A couple of summers ago, the zip line at Vail’s Adventure Race traumatized her and she’s been gun shy (terrified) ever since.

“I’ll go!” Bode boldly volunteered and he was off.The more you weigh, the faster you soar so Bode was considerably slower than Jamie.

“Maybe that wasn’t so bad,” Hadley faltered.

“You’ll go as slow as Bode. Let’s give it a try,” I encouraged her. The staffer soothed her fears and before she knew it, she was flying.In fact, the next day she begged to do it two more times. I’m not sure if she’s cured but her fears were definitely calmed.

Now, I just need to follow her example and tackle the ramps at The Barn the next time we’re at Copper Mountain.

Stay tuned next time for our memorable mom-daughter adventures the next two days!

 

Filed Under: Bode, Colorado, Family, Family travel, Hadley, Humor, Jamie, outdoors, skiing

On being amazing

February 26, 2013 by

We have a lot of transitions going on Chez Johnson. With winter winding down next month, B will be starting back up with his third year of soccer. We’ve finally decided it’s in H’s best interest to hire her a tutor and have subsequently dropped her from the YMCA and swim team to pay for it (so crazy expensive but thanks to my dad for generously offering to chip in every month). Hopefully she’ll be able to try tennis or volleyball in the spring once we get caught back up.

I’ve held fast to the creed I only want my kids in one sport and activity (like music lessons) at a time–both for them and me. We have some friends who are literally running every night from activity to activity and while that’s swell for them, I’m a firm believer kids need a lot of imaginative, creative down time by themselves and to be together as a family; over-scheduling them is not the answer.

We’re busy enough as it is with our many adventures.

We are sharing a tutor with my friend Lori, who has seen great improvements in her daughter’s math. The only day that would work for them is Monday after school at the exact same time H had piano. She hasn’t exactly been enthusiastic about practicing and though it’s a priority for me to keep her in long enough that she is proficient enough to play the hymns at church, I was fine with her temporarily dropping it and letting B take her place.

My Competitive Miss would have none of it. Suddenly, piano became the most important thing in the world to her and so we ultimately switched her to Fridays and let B take her time slot on Monday.

Yesterday was a day of firsts for both of them: H’s first day with her tutor and B’s first day of piano. She was grateful for the extra help and hopefully this will help her regain her confidence.

B (short for Beethoven, not Bode) was stoked. I wasn’t going to have him start lessons until next year but he is always plunking away at the piano and has taught himself to read music and play by ear. At this rate (and intensity) it won’t be long before he’s surpassing H which, as you can imagine, will go over marvelously.

The night before, I asked him “Are you excited for your lesson?”

Referring to his teacher, he humbly said, “She may be amazed.”

 

Filed Under: Bode, Hadley, Humor

How to spend the perfect Denver snow day: In pictures

February 24, 2013 by

It’s no secret I’ve been disgruntled over Denver’s shameful lack of snow. It doesn’t help that my Utah friends have been slammed and have been posting about it on Facebook all winter. But we finally got our fill in Denver today.

I’ve been bedridden with the silly plague since my birthday on Wednesday. Saturday, I developed some kind of funky ear infection that led to vertigo so bad that I could barely walk. This led to a certain unsupervised person becoming a wee bit mischievous by writing “No boys allowed” on her brother’s window,  and then TPing my bedroom.Though Fat Kitty looks pretty guilty, too.

By Sunday, I wasn’t 100 percent better but ready to be DONE with the house. And then Said Storm blew in, church was canceled and we had a glorious snow day. And so we played games, watched movies and baked, starting with popovers.Followed by sweet ‘n spicy shredded pork sandwiches we roasted for seven hours along with steak fries.

Late in the day, the snow finally stopped blowing so we bundled up and went out to play. I found Jamie and the kiddos shoveling our neighbor’s driveway.Every year during our big snow storms, it is our tradition to build a snow fort.I also highly recommend jumping off the swings. Think: soft landing. Snow angels aren’t too bad, either.
Fat Kitty thinks we’re pretty crazy during the best of times. Just think of the looks he was giving us when we went to help another neighbor shovel and the kids played in the snow with their enthusiastic dog. A couple of hours later, I dragged the reluctant kids back inside for white chocolate hot cocoa and Haddie’s homemade peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. It was pretty much the perfect snow day.

And it’s about time Denver figured out it was winter.

Filed Under: Bode, Colorado, Hadley

One Romantic Evening–Celebrating 10 Years

February 18, 2013 by

Ten years. Our first major milestone since getting married and it seemed worthy of celebration.  At first, we decided upon a trip and I’ve long been obsessed with Nepal. But since we don’t have $10,000+ to drop (though this REI trip is still at the TOP of my bucket list), we decided we’d go to Mexico when my childhood BBF Allison announced she was getting married next month. But then we subscribed to every fare alert out there and realized we just couldn’t afford it right now (sob) and so here we are in Denver.

I had grand plans leading up to our anniversary that included a 10-day countdown with notes and presents. I did something similar our first Christmas together but then everyone got sick (including myself late last week) so survival became the new celebration standard.

Oh, how the great have fallen.

But it was still memorable. Jamie’s sister Lisa generously took the kids so we had a full night and Jamie plotted to take us to the Briarwood Inn restaurant, where he originally popped the question. The second time, that is. Though I said “yes” the first time, a girl dreams of her engagement and getting proposed via email just ain’t it.

I’d been battling a cold for a couple of days and an hour before we were supposed to leave, I–fresh from a shower and still in my bathrobe–took one look at our warzone-of-a-house (three weeks of illness will do that) and started cleaning. And cleaning. I figured Jamie could just take the kids over to Lisa’s at 4:45 p.m. and I could leisurely get ready–after all, our reservation wasn’t until 6:15 p.m. Ten minute before he was supposed to leave, Jamie came upstairs and freaked out. “Why are you not ready? We have to leave! You are coming with me to drop off the kids so get dressed and put on your make-up, NOW!”

I knew something was up so begrudgingly went to get ready. A few minutes later, I heard him call, “We have to go!” I raced downstairs, flew out the door and there was my white chariot!
My sweet husband had recreated our engagement night to the fullest, even renting a limo that he had scored for $60 via Living Social.

The kids were out. Of. Their. Gourd. I was so excited he had the foresight in his planning to have the limo take them to their sleepover at Aunt Lisa’s, grab her and even loop around the block. He left no stone unturned and had brought Sparkling Apple-Pomegranate Martinelli’s and put together a CD of our favorite songs including our wedding song, Sting’s “When We Danced.” “No wonder Daddy was so bossy trying to make you get ready!” Hadley mused as she stretched herself out in her seat, settling into a life she thinks she was born to live. Bode was darling. “This is 1X better than the WiiU!” he exclaimed.

We’re still working on multiplication but I gave him the benefit of the doubt that he meant at least 2X better.

“If I sold cookie dough, I would have ridden in this!” he continued. I didn’t pursue this one, either. It’s a sore subject in our house that I refuse to sucker our friends into buying the school’s sub-par cookie dough and instead write them a check. A check not big enough for the grand prize of riding in a limo.

As the kids bounced around from seat-to-seat, Jamie and I cuddled up, reflecting upon this beautifully imperfect life we’ve been fortunate to build and how much it has changed in 10 years. After dropping off the kids, Jamie had mapped out a long detour that stretched along the foothills that were on pink fire that evening. I marveled that these landscapes had been so foreign to me during that first limo ride and now I knew every trail and climb. Quite simply, they are home.

Upon arriving at the Briarwood Inn, I noticed Jamie’s car in the lot–a kindly gentleman from our ward had helped him drop it off earlier (sneaky, sneaky). The Briarwood Inn is old-school elegance and one of Colorado’s finest dining traditions nestled against Clear Creek in Golden. We ate, lo did we eat. Beef Wellington. Extensive appetizer and dessert trays. We talked about our future hopes and dreams, past happenings, opened each other’s cards (I had mustered up a Top 10 List for him) and the whole evening was pretty darn memorable.

Late the next morning, we picked up the kids, Jamie’s brother Chris and Lisa and went to brunch at Tag Burger Bar, a newish, hip burger joint. Oozing with originality and gourmand fixings. I opted for the One Night in Bangkok burger with green papaya slaw, crushed peanuts, mint and lime Sriracha aioli while Jamie loved the Blind in Texas with chile-rubbed crispy onions, aged cheddar, chipotle BBQ. And then we ordered the five different kinds of French fries: Old School Russets, Sweet Potato (yum), Finger Lickin’ with Cheez Whiz and pico de gallo and then our two favorites: Duck Fat Fries with Tag sauce and their Truffle Aioli and Parmesan Fries.

When we arrived home, we went into a romance- and duck-fat-induced coma and called it good. Definitely good enough to hold us for another 10 years….

Filed Under: Bode, Colorado, Foodie, Hadley, Humor, Jamie

Smooth operator (and virtual baker)

February 10, 2013 by

We have a ban on cartoons, video games and most electronics on Sundays as we try to spend time together as a family.

At one point, Bode snuggled up to me, grabbed my iPhone and started playing with the Cake Pop Maker app.

“I don’t know, Bode. Does that count as a video game?”

“Hmmmm….no. I’d call it a ‘fun activity.'”

Filed Under: Bode, Humor

The sick and afflicted

February 8, 2013 by

This picture about summarizes the week we’ve had with sickies that resulted in a canceled trip to Steamboat Springs this weekend.

Though it should be duly noted I am the Last Woman Standing and have yet to get sick. If you know anything about me, you know how miraculous this is.

On Tuesday night, I was up with hysterical Bode from midnight-5:30 a.m. as he screamed out in pain from an ear infection. We went to the doctor who prescribed antibiotics and we spent most of Wednesday passed out catching up on sleep. When I woke up from my nap, I found the poor little guy asleep on the floor outside of my bedroom–he thought my door was locked and couldn’t quite make it to his bed.

Then, this picture of Hadley yesterday with Fat Kitty.

I assure you we have beds in our family. And have been using them a lot this week.

Filed Under: Bode, Hadley

Our Wii U Par-tay all the time!

February 2, 2013 by

The big news around our house is we got a Wii U for Christmas and my kids have been local celebrities because of it.  So when Nintendo offered to throw a party in its honor, we were game.

Pun intended.

We’ve had a great time becoming acquainted with our new Wii U GamePad controller and the kids love the fun new games, camera, microphone and the LCD touch screen. I like that the console is Wi-Fi-enabled and supports HD content, Netflix, Hulu+, Amazon Instant Video, etc. Jamie loves the Nintendo TVii where you can input your favorite movies and TV shows and then build a custom TV guide around your preferences. The Wii U GamePad acts as a big, easy-to-read touch screen remote control.

But enough of the logistics and onto the party! Nintendo told us we could invite 20 friends. At first I was stressed we wouldn’t have enough people but turned out we had way too many (there is no middle ground in my world). Nintendo sent two fun and informative “ambassadors” Lauren and Amy to get the party started.

My friend Kristen told me her kids had been counting down for the big event all week. A huge spread of food from Qdoba Mexican Grill + unlimited access to the Wii U? Those kids thought they’d gone to heaven but without the death part.

Of course, being me, there were a few hiccups. We had not yet installed Nintendo Land (which has 12 mini games in a virtual theme park) because Bode has been too busy playing all-things Mario and Kirby. So our lovely ambassadors had to take the time to download the software. And then, right as we were ready to play, the Wii U GamePad died because Bode had forgotten to recharge it, which caused me to joke, “Worst. Wii U. Party. Ever?”

Fortunately, Jamie came to the rescue, plugged it in and our party was finally underway. With so many kids, I figured some would filter in and out but I was wrong. They all sat by, patiently waiting their turn as they went head-to-head in Mario Chase, Animal Cross: Sweet Days and Luigi’s Ghost Mansion (there was a lot of screaming in that one). The kids played asymmetrically: one player had the GamePad and faced off against everyone else with Wii Remotes, a fun new feature. I appreciated that they were playing with each other and not against one another.But I didn’t bother to point that out for fear they’d be anti-kumbaya.

Following Nintendo Land, our ambassadors switched us over to Sing Party, a karaoke bash on steroids where we chose two teams, took team photos with the GamePad, chose our songs out of their collection, passed off the microphone every few verses to our teammates and a winner was chosen in the end.

The cool guys ran for cover by my gosh, it was hilarious to watch the girls dancing, screaming and laughing as they sang to fan-favorites like “Call me, maybe.”It’s like we have tweens or something.

The party was a raging success and at the end, our ambassadors gathered us around for a little quiz with prizes. I thought they would hand out stickers or less-inspired swag but they actually awarded our guests with real games and a Yoshi. The grand prize was won by my friend Tina’s daughter Rowan: a Nintendo Sing Party game, complete with the microphone. We had laughed at her as she sang her favorite song, Bieber’s “Baby.” When she won, she clutched it like it was her most prized possession and wouldn’t let anyone hold it. “Do you think she’ll want to sleep with it?” I joked with my friend, Tina. “She already said she was,” she divulged.

It looks like Tina will be buying a Wii U really soon.

Thanks to Nintendo for the fun party!

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Humor Tagged With:

YMCA of the Rockies: The Nordic Redemption

January 31, 2013 by

Now, when I entitled this blog post “Nordic Redemption,” I didn’t mean this.
But rather, this.
The back story: As a Canadian, I grew up cross-country skiing the golf course across the street from my house. Jamie is an avid alpine (downhill) skier so I figured his transition to Nordic would be a snap. It turned out to be a different kind of snap when he fell over going 0.0005 mile per hour and claimed a concussion.

That was ten years ago and I figured it was time he got back on the horse again. I signed our family up for a group lesson at YMCA of the Rockies’ Snow Mountain Ranch’s world-class Nordic Center, which offers more than 100 km of trails—from beginner loops to advanced ski trails. The kids are both becoming good skiers so I figured they were ready to add another style of skiing to their repertoire. Though I get a passing grade in cross-country skiing, I’m not an expert and would like to take up more advanced techniques, like skate skiing or mastering backcountry climbing skins.

Or not running into your friend Aimee when she’s trying to take your picture, which was my memorable wipe-out that day.

Our husband-wife instructors were excellent but the conditions were not. The snow was hard-packed so it was baptism by icy fire when they opted to start our lesson by taking us down a short, moderate slope while demonstrating the hallowed snow plow. Crash after crash occurred but the only one who took it to heart was Bode, whose confidence was shattered early-on.

“It’s OK,” I consoled him as I wiped away his crocodile tears. “You’re the youngest one in the group and you’re doing great.”

And he really was. When we moved to the beginner practice track, he started to regain his mojo as we all learned to stride, kick, push and glide like “neanderthals.”

I somehow didn’t think neanderthals were all that graceful prior to our outing.

The tepid skiers in the group stuck to the practice track and Jamie offered to stay behind with Bode while a handful of more courageous folks ventured out and followed a trail alongside Pole Creek. Hadley started mastering the smooth cadence and I was thrilled to see at least one member of our family take to Nordic skiing.

“So, when do you want to do it again with Mommy?” I queried, salivating over Snow Mountain’s bright winter sky, frosty trees, long mountain views and fast tracks.

“Maybe in, like, a couple of years,” she replied.

Though Jamie had a much more positive experience, he still wasn’t sold. “It was OK but I like downhill skiing more. Besides, it’s a different breed of people out here.”

“What do you mean?”

“There are no, ‘hey dudes’ or ‘let’s hit some bumps.’ These people are more like the marathon-running crowd.”

That’s his nice way of saying, “NO WAY” and I’m on my own. I’ll take it.

======

Don’t miss parts I and III of our adventures.

YMCA of the Rockies: My Colorado Love Affair

YMCA of the Rockies: Reliving and Reinventing the Glory Days

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Family travel, Hadley, Jamie, outdoors, skiing, travel

Martin Luther Day Weekend: In Pictures

January 23, 2013 by

As much as I love to travel, there is nothing like exploring your own backyard, particularly when you live in an amazing place like Denver. On Saturday, we met up with my friend Amie and her kids who are the same age as H and B.  We played to our heart’s content, starting at our local skate park.At one point, I heard Hadley screaming for me. I raced over to find she had slid down into a deep bowl and she couldn’t get out. Soon, all the kids followed suit. “I’ll go help them,” my friend Amie heroically volunteered. I hesitated. I love Amie but I had serious doubts about her capabilities. Eventually, everyone but her emerged victorious. Her hand-on-face says it all.I debated dropping into the bowl to assist but figured I’d be more help from above and eventually, an 11-year-old boy and I pulled her to safety. How often does that happen?

We then hopped on our bikes and raced along the Ralston Creek trail. Remember these pictures from the summer?It looks a wee bit different in the winter.There was a nearby playground but the kids preferred to climb trails, build dams, throw rocks and scale creeks.

I must be doing something right.

In other big weekend news, Bode lost his first tooth–his bottom right–while watching a movie on Friday night.

The Tooth Fairy got her act together and dyed his glass of water blue to match her dress, as opposed to H’s urine sample.

And Hadley hit a milestone of her own: she got her ears pierced.

Rest assured, major details forthcoming on this feat that has been three years in the making.

On Martin Luther King Day, the kids lazed around all morning while I worked from bed (praise laptops), we met Jamie’s client at Beau Jo’s pizza for lunch (the best mountain pies EVER) and we explored 127-acre Belmar Park. I’ve been a bit remiss lately how fast they’re growing up and that their playground days will soon be behind them but I had an epiphany at Belmar Park. Soccer. Basketball. Swim team. Though I think it’s important for kids to learn skills and gain self-confidence, there is an expiration date on so many of them. I was repeatedly athlete of the year for team sports and I loved them all but what I am most grateful for is my parents taught me to love the outdoors and solo sports like biking, hiking, running, skating, exploring, snowshoeing, climbing and skiing. Those last beyond the confines of graduation.

And will amount to a lifetime of truly living and knowing how to play.

Filed Under: biking, Bode, Colorado, Hadley, hiking, outdoors

Keystone Resort: “I Spy” a Dropped Pole, My Happy Place and a Yeti

January 21, 2013 by

Just 90 minutes from Denver, Keystone is renowned as the largest resort in Summit County with 3,148 acres of bowls, bumps, glades and groomers. Three years ago, I learned to “ski like a girl” at Keystone Resort’s Betty Fest ski clinic.

Girl’s weekend in boas

A couple of weekend ago, my family was invited for a media preview at Keystone.

Skating Keystone Lake

My, what a difference a few years make.

I have wanted to revisit Keystone since they instituted Kidtopia, an entire winter festival dedicated to kids that runs November 22 through March 24. Our itinerary included tubing at Adventure Point at the summit of Dercum Mountain, riding in a sleigh at Riperoo’s Village Park Parade, the Kidtopia Fireworks and skating at the new 7,200-square-foot outdoor Dercum Square Ice Rink.

But then it got cold. Really cold. Or, as my kids call it, “Canadian cold.” For uninitiated Americans, this means run-for-cover-kind-of-cold. And unfortunately, that is what we did so many of these items remain on our bucket list.

Though needing to return to Keystone again? Not a bad prospect.

Keystone Lake

Our kick-off event was at Keystone Lake. Their five-acre lake is touted as the largest Zamboni-maintained outdoor skating rink in North America and is my happy place. When we arrived at Lakeside Village, we marveled at the ice sculptures that dotted the grounds.

But remember that arctic blast? Families were hunkered down at the activity center, playing arcade games and socializing as they drank hot chocolate and cookies. After about a half-hour, I queried, “So, is anyone going skating?”

Blank stares.

And then Hadley came to the rescue. “I want to go skating with you, Mommy.”

Blank stare back at her.

You see, we went skating with our friends at Evergreen Lake over Christmas break and she had a complete skating meltdown as she claimed to forget how to skate (never mind she has taken two sessions of lessons).

“Let’s go, then!” I would pretend like it had never happened, which is my parenting strategy in most situations.

The boys opted to stay indoors and I did not push the situation due to the extreme conditions. Only the most hearty Canucks and half-breeds could withstand it.

I was thrilled that the lake had loaner trainers (think: walkers for kids) and Hadley started pushing it around like an old lady. But within a few minutes, her confidence surged and she was gliding all around the lake like a champ, previous tantrum forgotten.

As for me, I repeatedly looped around the lake, relishing the freedom of the frigid air and cursing my parents for never encouraging me to become a speed skater (read: unrealized dreams). When we finally went indoors, I encountered Jamie.

“You look happier.”

“I am.” I had admittedly been a bit moody earlier that evening.

“I told everyone to just let you stay out there for a few hours and you’d be fine.”

He knows me so well.

Keystone’s Mountain

We have had countless ski instructors over the years who have fastidiously worked with my kids. Patiently strapping on their skis. Bending over backwards (literally) trying to help them navigate down the mountain. Instilling a love of the sport when all (our) hope was almost lost. To all of them, I say “THANK YOU!”

And I’m glad it wasn’t me.

Jamie and I are finally benefiting from the fruits of their labors as both kids are finally capable enough for us to ski together.

Our version of a family photo

The previous weekend at Winter Park, Bode skied his first blue (intermediate) run and wanted to keep the momentum going. But shortly after it started, it stopped on the high-speed Montezuma Quad. Jamie took off his glove and joked, “My goal is to not drop it.”

Hadley should have taken the hint because 38 seconds later, she accidentally dropped her pole from three stories in the air. If you’re not a skier, many runs directly until the lift are reserved for extreme terrain. This was the case but there was another complication: Tower 13 (where she dropped it) was a closed, roped-off area. Whoops.

“What are we going to do?” she wailed.
“We’ll figure something out,” I replied. It was about time she went extreme.

She was spared her initiation by fire (or snow) when we were advised to stop at the Snow Patrol building and file a report. It was my first visit, which I deem a good thing because usually they’re hosting injured folks on stretchers. Following the paperwork, they loaned her another pole. But the fun didn’t stop there. Every time we rode past Tower 13 on the lift, we played the very captivating game, “I spy” as we looked for her pole.

We sure know how to party.

Our plan was to check-out the conveyer-belt-serviced tubing and the Kidtopia Snow Fort at the top of Dercum Mountain but by 2 p.m., we were frozen so we only did a token stopover at the Snow Fort for the kids to crawl through the tunnels and climb on the turrets.

Hint: If you’re already an icicle, sitting on a throne of ice won’t help the situation. But it sure was fun and we’ve vowed to return during more agreeable climes.

Der Fondue Chessel

One of my favorite childhood traditions was fondue so I was delighted when I saw Der Fondue Chessel was on the itinerary. But there was a problem. The restaurant is perched atop Keystone’s North Peak Mountain and it was too cold to access at night. And so the resort pulled all the stops and recreated our fondue night out at the fine dining restaurant, Keystone Ranch. There was delicious fondue (duh).A Yeti and White Winter Wizard (duh).And what would a recreation of the Alps be without our very own polka band? At one point, they launched into the “Chicken Dance” and the children raced out to participate. As I snapped shots of them, I did a few token moves when, before I know it, someone grabbed me and started swinging me around. Fortunately, it was just a strange dude and not the Yeti.

Chalk that one up as “things I never thought I’d say in my lifetime.”

But at Keystone, you’ll sure have the time of your life.

=====

Be sure to check-out my other Keystone write-up at Travel Mamas.

 

Filed Under: Bode, Colorado, Family travel, Hadley, Humor, outdoors, skiing, travel
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