After more than two years, I am still amazed by how much sand Todd brings home in his shoes. I would not be surprised if he brings home a quarter cup of sand each day. That's a lot of sand! It used to end up in little piles in my house. Occasionally it still does, though time and again I have reminded my boys that they must take their shoes off outside.
At least I know he is playing and having a good time at recess.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Fast! Go, Joe!
In the moments before I fall asleep I often pester Brett with some of the most random thoughts. A few nights ago, after getting up to put medicated chest rub on my coughing son I came back and asked Brett:
Me: Do you know what I love? . . . Fast Orange (which I sometimes refer to as "Agent Orange"). It is so great for cleaning hands. It worked great getting that slimy lotion off. Do you think the average Joe knows about Fast Orange?
Brett: I don't know.
Me: When did you discover Fast Orange?
Brett: Like when I was 14.
Me: I mean, it's great for washing your hands after gardening, and getting greasy things off . . .
Brett: Well, that's what it's marketed for. But Fast Orange isn't the only stuff out there.
By now I have started drifting back to sleep and am already in a car with my driver. Suddenly the driver hears someone call out, "Go, Joe!" He quickly opens the car door and rolls out in a very James-Bond-like maneuver.
Brett: GoJo.
Me: Huh?
Brett: GoJo. That's another big name.
Me: Weird.
Half-asleep or not, I love Fast Orange and am thankful to my husband for introducing it to me.
Me: Do you know what I love? . . . Fast Orange (which I sometimes refer to as "Agent Orange"). It is so great for cleaning hands. It worked great getting that slimy lotion off. Do you think the average Joe knows about Fast Orange?
Brett: I don't know.
Me: When did you discover Fast Orange?
Brett: Like when I was 14.
Me: I mean, it's great for washing your hands after gardening, and getting greasy things off . . .
Brett: Well, that's what it's marketed for. But Fast Orange isn't the only stuff out there.
By now I have started drifting back to sleep and am already in a car with my driver. Suddenly the driver hears someone call out, "Go, Joe!" He quickly opens the car door and rolls out in a very James-Bond-like maneuver.
Brett: GoJo.
Me: Huh?
Brett: GoJo. That's another big name.
Me: Weird.
Half-asleep or not, I love Fast Orange and am thankful to my husband for introducing it to me.
Windy Church Bells
A couple of months ago Brett completed one of his just-for-fun projects--a big wind chime. It may not look like much, but it really does have a deep, beautiful (and loud) sound. Shortly after Brett hung it up Donna and I were talking in the backyard. She stopped and asked, "Are those the church bells I hear?" I was happy to introduce her to the source of the sound, and have often since thought that they do sound like church bells.
We had a fairly windy winter and early spring, and even with the doors closed you could often hear the chimes ringing. I am a little sorry that now that the weather has warmed up and we have been able to keep the doors open all day, the wind has died down a bit and I hear the chimes less often. Not only do I hope for a little wind to keep the temperature in check, but I hope to continue hearing the music.
Thank you Brett for this surprise project which I have enjoyed more than I thought I would.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Snowshoe 2010
It's the moment you've all been waiting for--the report on our ski trip in February...
I am happy to report that we had no car troubles, no injuries, no pneumonia, and we made it safely through the blizzard on our drive home.
In addition to that, we had a great time!
Winter landscapes are so beautiful.
We skied for five days, and each day was a different skiing experience. Rainy and cool, Foggy and cool, clear and cold, and freezing cold blizzards. (Those are two cold noses on the right!)
Our best day of skiing was on Wednesday. At the beginning of the week I was still "warming up" and gaining confidence. It was foggy and sprinkling rain, and the snow wasn't the best. On Wednesday the conditions were really good. I was able to go back and conquer the black diamond that had gotten the best of me the day before (meaning I fell without injury--but still, I hate falls of any kind. I find it humiliating.)
[It may not look it, but this was a relatively steep black diamond I was so proud of skiing successfully.]
Although Brett pushed me to try some of the more difficult slopes, I still loved skiing some of the slower green slopes. Snowshoe has two trails that start at opposite ends of the mountain top and cross half-way down the mountain, ending at opposite ends at the bottom, essentially making an "x" as you look at the trail map. They are a little more narrow, and are often not too crowded. I find it so peaceful going down those trails when there are few skiers around.
Brett finds them boring, so we would often split up and meet at the bottom to go up one of the chair lifts together.
It worked out quite well that way. Sometimes we would ski a slope together, sometimes we would split up, but it was always nice being able to chat together on the lifts, enjoying each other's company.
We were on the slopes when they opened at 9:00 AM and were there when they closed at 4:30 PM, though we always came home for a lunch break. We also went night skiing a few times. We didn't make it the first night, because it was raining and after just one day of skiing we were already exhausted. (Advil was my friend that week!)
Like I said above, our best skiing was on Wednesday. On Thursday a storm started coming in, and the snow was a little more difficult to ski in. I was glad that we were able to get a few hours of skiing in on Friday before we left. It had snowed all night, and was still coming down in the morning. My calves felt bruised from all the skiing we had done. But Friday ended up being so much fun. The snow was so thick that you didn't pick up any speed. You couldn't see your skis as you went down, and often the snow was up to your knees.
I am happy to report that we had no car troubles, no injuries, no pneumonia, and we made it safely through the blizzard on our drive home.
In addition to that, we had a great time!
Winter landscapes are so beautiful.
We skied for five days, and each day was a different skiing experience. Rainy and cool, Foggy and cool, clear and cold, and freezing cold blizzards. (Those are two cold noses on the right!)
Our best day of skiing was on Wednesday. At the beginning of the week I was still "warming up" and gaining confidence. It was foggy and sprinkling rain, and the snow wasn't the best. On Wednesday the conditions were really good. I was able to go back and conquer the black diamond that had gotten the best of me the day before (meaning I fell without injury--but still, I hate falls of any kind. I find it humiliating.)
[It may not look it, but this was a relatively steep black diamond I was so proud of skiing successfully.]
Although Brett pushed me to try some of the more difficult slopes, I still loved skiing some of the slower green slopes. Snowshoe has two trails that start at opposite ends of the mountain top and cross half-way down the mountain, ending at opposite ends at the bottom, essentially making an "x" as you look at the trail map. They are a little more narrow, and are often not too crowded. I find it so peaceful going down those trails when there are few skiers around.
Brett finds them boring, so we would often split up and meet at the bottom to go up one of the chair lifts together.
It worked out quite well that way. Sometimes we would ski a slope together, sometimes we would split up, but it was always nice being able to chat together on the lifts, enjoying each other's company.
We were on the slopes when they opened at 9:00 AM and were there when they closed at 4:30 PM, though we always came home for a lunch break. We also went night skiing a few times. We didn't make it the first night, because it was raining and after just one day of skiing we were already exhausted. (Advil was my friend that week!)
Like I said above, our best skiing was on Wednesday. On Thursday a storm started coming in, and the snow was a little more difficult to ski in. I was glad that we were able to get a few hours of skiing in on Friday before we left. It had snowed all night, and was still coming down in the morning. My calves felt bruised from all the skiing we had done. But Friday ended up being so much fun. The snow was so thick that you didn't pick up any speed. You couldn't see your skis as you went down, and often the snow was up to your knees.
It was the only time when falling wasn't humiliating. Instead, it was outright funny. We would be plowing through, come to a deep patch of snow, stop, and just fall over. [Funny for us, because we didn't attempt to ski the blue or black slopes that day. There were some who did sustain injuries from falls that day, which is never funny.] It was a perfect, easy day to end on.
There had been some snow on our balcony when we arrived, but by Friday morning it was covered.
There had been some snow on our balcony when we arrived, but by Friday morning it was covered.
Although we had a great day skiing on Friday morning, the conditions made us a little nervous on the ride home. A tractor trailer had jack-knifed on the road we were trying to get down on. It caused some delay, but were were able to make it down okay. There were a few times when we slid a bit, and I prayed hard more than once that we would be okay. When we finally made it through the worst of the weather and were safely in North Carolina I was able to offer a sincere prayer of gratitude for our safety. Skiing in the blizzard was fun for us--driving in the snow was not.
We spent many hours driving there and back. As usual, Brett and I were good travel buddies. We both agree that listening to NPR's Car Talk is a great way to pass the time. Click and Clack crack me up. I love their humor. I never thought I would enjoy listening to a public radio program about cars, but it's true. I love it.
We spent many hours driving there and back. As usual, Brett and I were good travel buddies. We both agree that listening to NPR's Car Talk is a great way to pass the time. Click and Clack crack me up. I love their humor. I never thought I would enjoy listening to a public radio program about cars, but it's true. I love it.
I had hoped to spend a little time browsing the shops in the mountaintop village, but when we weren't skiing we were resting and warming up in the condo. So, instead of bringing home souvenirs for the boys (or anyone else), we filled our cooler up with snow and had a snowball fight with the boys in the driveway at home. So fun!
So, we made it safe and sound.
So, we made it safe and sound.
Thank you to all those who made this trip possible. I feel blessed that I am able to leave my children (and dog) at home under the loving care of my sister, sister-in-law, and for the most part with my in-laws. I never worried a moment about them, knowing that they were having a great time with their other family members having a vacation of their own.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Getting My Hopes Up
Two years ago around Valentine's Day, Brett and I took our first real kid-free vacation since having kids. We decided to go back to Snowshoe Mountain in West Virginia for a week of skiing.
We had been there once before when I worked at Sandestin, another Intrawest-owned resort. I had received a free two-night/three day ski package in a beautiful one-bedroom condo in the center of their mountain-top village. We had a great time and I couldn't wait to come back.
In 2008 we finally decided the boys were old enough for us to leave them while we returned to Snowshoe for five days of skiing. We decided to make the most of our vacation by going through Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
We went tent camping (!) in the mountains (!!) in February (!!!). I wore my fuzzy blue bathrobe and my headband to bed and remained quite cozy. Brett's sock hat had fallen off during the night leaving his shaved head exposed.
We spent the next day driving through the Blue Ridge Parkway.
By the time that we got to Shenandoah National Park, the little cold that Brett had felt coming on the day before had worsened.
As soon as we got to the Inn at Snowshoe, Brett put himself to bed with pneumonia and stayed there most of the week.
He drugged himself as best he could with DayQuil and managed to hit the slopes a few times.
For the most part, I was left on my own. I still enjoyed myself, but I was lonely without him, and felt sorry that he was feeling so bad.
As we left Snowshoe Brett said, "I never want to see this place again." And I believed him. He had been miserable. It was arguably the worst vacation he had ever had.
We still receive promotional e-mails and brochures from Snowshoe from time to time. With all of the snow on the East Coast that has been in the news lately, Brett recently wondered aloud, "How much snow do you think Snowshoe has gotten this year?" Then he said, "Hey! Do you want to skiing?" I quickly and enthusiastically responded, "YES!" even though I knew he was only joking.
We had been there once before when I worked at Sandestin, another Intrawest-owned resort. I had received a free two-night/three day ski package in a beautiful one-bedroom condo in the center of their mountain-top village. We had a great time and I couldn't wait to come back.
In 2008 we finally decided the boys were old enough for us to leave them while we returned to Snowshoe for five days of skiing. We decided to make the most of our vacation by going through Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
We went tent camping (!) in the mountains (!!) in February (!!!). I wore my fuzzy blue bathrobe and my headband to bed and remained quite cozy. Brett's sock hat had fallen off during the night leaving his shaved head exposed.
We spent the next day driving through the Blue Ridge Parkway.
By the time that we got to Shenandoah National Park, the little cold that Brett had felt coming on the day before had worsened.
As soon as we got to the Inn at Snowshoe, Brett put himself to bed with pneumonia and stayed there most of the week.
He drugged himself as best he could with DayQuil and managed to hit the slopes a few times.
For the most part, I was left on my own. I still enjoyed myself, but I was lonely without him, and felt sorry that he was feeling so bad.
As we left Snowshoe Brett said, "I never want to see this place again." And I believed him. He had been miserable. It was arguably the worst vacation he had ever had.
We still receive promotional e-mails and brochures from Snowshoe from time to time. With all of the snow on the East Coast that has been in the news lately, Brett recently wondered aloud, "How much snow do you think Snowshoe has gotten this year?" Then he said, "Hey! Do you want to skiing?" I quickly and enthusiastically responded, "YES!" even though I knew he was only joking.
The next day Brett started looking at their web site and suggested that I give them a call to find out more about the rates and ski packages. I still didn't think he was serious until he called me the next afternoon (he never calls me!) and asked if I checked the rates yet.
After discussing the rates together I confided in Brett that I was in serious danger of getting my hopes up; I was starting to feel the excitement of a possible ski vacation rising in my chest. He replied, "Don't do that. Don't get your hopes up." Oh, but I have!
When Brett asked me the next day if I had called his parents to see if they could watch the boys, I knew he was completely serious.
Today sealed the deal. We are going skiing again! At Snowshoe! Even though Brett swore that I would never have that special privilege again on account of how miserable he was the last time! We leave in just over one week.
All I can say is, we better have a fabulous time. Otherwise Brett will hold true to his promise of no future ski trips to Snowshoe. And I don't want that to happen. Wish us luck!
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