Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Silver Star Mountain

On Thursday night (or really early Friday morning) the five of us arrived home from the trip that my parents took us (and my sibs/families) on.  My parents have been so generous with their kids/grandkids - they amaze me in this regard.  My parents are people who, when my Dad was still working, saved money incredibly well (hence the lack of restaurant meals during my upbringing :)!), paid their debts; and they now spend some of those savings on us.  A few years ago, when all three of us 'kids' (me and my two siblings) had had a particularly hard year, our parents took us all on a vacation at the end of that year...and they have replicated that a few times since. Each time they've rented a big house somewhere so that all fifteen of us can stay together rather than separately in private hotel rooms.  It's really been amazing.

The kids loved going to Silver Star, near Kelowna, British Columbia.  They ended up taking six consecutive mornings of downhill ski lessons, in addition to which Geoff took them skiing on several afternoons.  So they got a lot of ski time in and, for new skiers, they did really well.  Even my little Lizzie, who usually doesn't have a huge level of stamina for anything requiring physical exertion :), did great and she was raring to go any time someone mentioned the possibility of skiing.

The instructors said that both boys (and Lizzie, in her young child classes) did extremely well, and progressed rapidly.  They also said that Seth showed promise of being "brilliant" and that they could already see him being a pro someday.  This is seriously so not surprising - that pint-sized kid is incredibly naturally talented when it comes to athletics!  After their fifth day of lessons, when Geoff took Seth skiing on his own for a couple of hours, Geoff's report back was that he could no longer keep up with Seth and that he was utterly convinced that Seth could be a pro racer some day; not only did he demonstrate his usual utter lack of fear and his strong competitive urge, but Geoff said these things were combined with incredible, natural judgment about speed and turns, etc.  Seth really is something to watch when doing something ultra athletic, and we get that feedback all the time from people who work with him.

The fact that the kids all love downhill was a bit of a dream-come-true for Geoff.  He loves skiing and, though he doesn't get to do it often, it's one of those things (kinda like teaching a kid how to ride a bike) that he's always envisioned wanting to do with his kids.  At the moment, though it's still early days, it appears that he has not one, not two, but three kids who love skiing.  He was a happy man.

The vacation was a little more challenging for me - I had a bad headache throughout a good chunk of our vacation and wasn't feeling well.  We haven't been sick a lot around here over the past eighteen months, and the kids managed to avoid whatever it is that's been going around, but I got nailed with something of it.  But I did get a chance to rest a little, and to relax, and that was great.  I also loved visiting with my older nephews, whom I don't get to see nearly as often as I'd like, and I had a chance for a couple of late-night conversations with one of them...man, I love those guys.

I thought I'd share a few highlights of this trip in photos.

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On route to Silver Star, we all stopped at a Tim Horton's for a bite of lunch.  Here is wee Lizzie sitting with my brother (in red) and her three big (as in well over 6 feet) cousins.  She looked adorable sitting there with them and ate up their attentions.

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The house we stayed in was a horrid shade of mint green on the exterior (I'm not sure why the owners would do this given that every other house in the area was painted a vibrant or earthy tone), but it was perfect for the fifteen of us on the inside.  There was easy access to trails behind the house and it was only a three minute drive to the kids' skiing lessons and to the chair lifts.

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The roof was full of icicles...every kid's heaven to pull off and suck on!

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The views from the all windows of the house were outstanding and in some lights the sun reflected pinkish off of the trees.  It looked a little ethereal out there:  Above the clouds; the trees laden with heavy snow; and mountains in the distance.  The weather was perfect:  Just below freezing - enough for the snow to stay but not so cold that the outside couldn't be enjoyed.




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We spent a lot of time together: eating; visiting; crafting (the kids!); etc.







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The younger kids loved playing Uno and Blokus...

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Naps were had by all adults.  Here are my sister and brother-in-law.

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I couldn't tell you how many cups of green tea I drank, with a chunk or two of fresh ginger thrown in (my sister's awesome concoction). 

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Just for fun...

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My Dad and Mom.

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My Dad with his oldest grandkid.

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My sister, with her daughter and mine.

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My brother with Seth...

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...and with Lizzie (they seem to have a mutual adoration thing going on!)

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The younger cousins loved tackling (and sitting on) their big cousins!


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Like-age cousins...and beloved friends. 

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Lizzie's hair looks awesome free but the ski helmets were hard on it...so mid way through our vacation, I spent a couple of hours putting twists in her hair.  I thought they turned out pretty well...I'm getting better!  They were so much easier to maintain than the free hair.

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The skiers made good use of the hot tub on the back deck.  Here's Geoff with Lizzie...and with all three kids and my niece.


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A picture of the five of us...

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...and one of Geoff and me.

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And then, of course, there was the skiing.

Every morning the kids got their gear on...

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...and we headed a few minutes down the mountain to the ski village, where the classes were, as well as access to the chair lifts.

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Here's Geoff with the three kids, heading off for their very first lesson.

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Geoff.

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Matthew (left) and Seth.
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And Lizzie.  Her boots and skis were so tiny!

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The five youngest cousins after their first lesson.
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The instructors started by teaching the kids in Lizzie's class the 'pizza wedge' stopping method and then helping them down the bunny hill over and over again.

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It didn't take long for Lizzie to insist that she could go down the hill by herself!  And darn it, she did it...without falling!  Can you see her here, hands on her knees, coasting down the hill?   On day 4 of her lessons, the instructors even had her going up a chair lift and down an actual mountain trail!!  Unbelievable!!

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She was very, very proud of her ability to go down the bunny hill by herself!

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Here are Seth and Matthew (in the orange helmets) at the beginning of their first lesson...feeling awkward as they got used to how skis felt on their feet.  But it didn't take long...

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Matthew


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Notice Seth watching his instructor's legs intently...he tried to copy everything exactly...and always had to be the first kid in line...preferably alongside his instructor.  So very Seth!!

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By the second day of lessons, Matthew and Seth 'graduated' to the largest bunny hill...enclosed in this picture by the red fence.  Later on during the same morning, they got onto the chair lift you can see and headed on up with their instructors to go down a real mountain!

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These were a couple of the trails that Geoff took Matthew and Seth on in the afternoons.


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And here comes Seth!

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Seth, goofing around.

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A final few pictures of the kids on their last day of our vacation.  In this first picture the kids are watching a little tv - look how Lizzie is sitting, spread all over her brothers.  This girl is incorrigible...and her brothers take it (usually)! 





6 comments:

  1. Oh Ruth, these pictures are amazing! What a beautiful setting. The twists in Lizzie's hair look fantastic, too. Your mom and dad are also looking great and you got some good pictures of them. You should enter a few of the photos of the view with the pink glow on the trees in some contest.

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  2. Thanks, my friend...but you know you're kinda biased right??!!

    Love u. R

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  3. Wow, what an amazing experience to have had! Skiing needs more young people. Apparently some of the resorts are starting to feel the pinch of the videogaming generation. I guess some figure if they can do wicked tricks by pressing some buttons, there's no need to try outside. I used to work at a ski resport in high school and my favourite part was the little people. Those positive early experiences can help keep them coming back for years. So good for you for getting them out there and learning new ways to enjoy the outdoors and being active!

    Despite my present state of fluffiness (code for too many failed Monday diet starts), I still ski from time-to-time and love it. However, I'm certain I've never been skiing anywhere as lovely as that. I could look at the trees you captured in your great photos forever. So pretty!

    I have yet to take my sister skiing (which is pretty pathetic), but I'm terrified for both of us. She's more young adult size than child size now, so combine that with my aforementioned fluffiness and that's a whole lot of momentum! I think if someone could guarantee me an empty hill and some airbags at the bottom, we'd give it a go. ;) In the interim, I've been positively motivating (bribing) her to participate in winter fun lately. We've managed a fair bit of kicksledding (she gets the sweet end of that activity, I push and she rides) and icefishing so far. Being blind, I'll admit that the icefishing doesn't really seem to make much sense to her. However, it gives her an excuse to sing every song with the word fish in it that she knows! The pictures I took though clearly show that she's getting some of the art of icefishing down. She's plunked herself down in a lawnchair relaxing and rocking the pink fishing rod and tackle box. There isn't a whole lot of activity in her winter activities, but the level of participation is blowing me away.

    Sorry, I think an appropriate comment would have been "nice pics", not my life story. ;)

    Take Care!

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  4. You took your sister ice-fishing????!!! WOw, Janelle. You're an amazing woman! I'm impressed. I'm also impressed that you're a skier and I laughed out loud about your air bag wish and about your self-professed 'flufiness' (never heard that one...I like it!) and about your sister singing every song she knew about fish. Awesome! I could just picture the airbags at the bottom of the mountain and two people plunging towards them, likely screaming!
    I'm perplexed, though...is it possible for someone without sight to ski? How does this work?

    Thanks Janelle. I hope your year has started well. And thanks for your best wishes in another comment, and for your ongoing comments...I always look forward to them. :)

    Hugs,

    R

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  5. Well Ruth, thanks for your kind words, but the amazing one is likely my sister for putting up with all of the things I encourage her to try. We determined years ago that we could modify most things enough to have her participate in everything that the family does. While we definitely have a list of "never ever do again" activities, we have a growing list of "she's still smiling, so we'll keep trying" activities. This summer she mastered fully swimming with no life jacket, water wings, or holding hands! I have to remind myself to breathe if she swims further than an arm's length away! Currently, we're working on ball hockey. Right now it's "hand over hand" ball hockey, but if we can ever get her to tolerate a beeping ball (despises any of them!), she'll have some core skills. If nothing else, she truly believes that she'll be drafted by the NHL, so the confidence boost is great! ;) As for skiing, this is where the majority of the visually impaired population have an edge on our lady who has absolutely no vision, most can distinguish at least some difference between light and dark which makes snow and people on the hill easier to navigate. For everyone else, they typically use one the following options- a type of harness and a trained skier,a pole between two trained guide skiers, or some just have a guide go down the hill slightly in front of them to verbally direct. The American Blind Skiing Foundation has some good pictures.

    And that, Ruth, concludes my speech on activities for people living with vision loss (for today, at least). ;)

    Have a great day! Congratulations on the salad success! That's a pretty big deal.

    If you're ever inclined (no pressure at all!), I could e-mail you a link of the video we took of my sister swimming in Lake Superior for the first time a few years ago. At the time, she had to wear a wetsuit just to go in, so she's not looking anywhere near her best, but the joy exhibited makes up for all of it.

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  6. WOW!!! Amazing pictures! I am so happy that you guys got to have this time!

    Love Lizzie's twists...you have come a long way in the hair department!

    Love the smiles on the kids' faces!

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