Keeping Up with the Kids: a BC Long Weekend

 An amazing weekend of non-stop winter sports!

This has been the very best long winter weekend ever: skating on Friday and Sunday night, skiing all day Saturday and Monday. It has been my kind of dream winter weekend…

Skiing in the mountains and skating at nights downtown (on the out door rink at the harbor front) creates winters that are very entertaining. Who knew I’d not want to leave for a tropical vacation until after ski/skate season? Weekends on the ice and slopes are too much fun to give up…just yet.

The pics  are from day skiing at SilverStar this weekend, a perfect winter wonderland of family fun. I hope you enjoy a peak at my kind of perfect weekend.

I like to challenge myself. It gives me a focus. I guess I have a very goal oriented personality. I have personal mantras that I live by. One of them is to continually educate and challenge myself so that I never stop growing stronger: physically, mentally, spiritually, intellectually.

Finally, I have achieved one of my physical goals! I have been working hard, trying to get my skating skills to a level where I can play rec hockey and  this weekend I am there! It feels great to accomplish one of my sport goals. So many days I felt no improvement in my skills–but I stuck at it, skating and more skating, trying new skill exercises and suddenly…I got it. Everything came together in my brain and body and I can skate how I want to skate.

A Saturday night at Silverstar is like Disneyland: lights, stars, deep, dark forests, snow and ice! First we ski on the few runs open (artificially lighting), then we take off our skis for a little skating on the huge outdoor pond (in the forest) and a finally, we put on our snow boots for a few tube slides(super fast–you get air). Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever had more fun on a Saturday night.

Of course, day skiing is amazing bacause all the runs are open and sometimes the sun decides to shine! However, as I can attest to,  even the night skiing is fantastic.

I’m always working, in some subtle way, towards one of my life goals. If I’m ever stuck (like I was for awhile in skating), I Iook to my own children (and nieces and nephews) for inspiration. My niece Nem is a double Black Diamond skiier at the tender age of ten. She has inspired me to work, really work, on my skiing so that I might be a black diamond skiier with in the next few seasons.

I used to think double black but no–I have decided that I hate cliffs, no desire to fly down them.

I follow my children on mountain journies I wouldn’t take alone.

This weekend I braved narrow,  hair-pin turns with a cliff drop along the edge. Did I mention I hate cliffs?  I also (unexpectantly) followed my kids into the Peanut Trail. The Peanut Trail–a narrow trail through trees with close-set, deep gullies and hills–set so tight that one must ski up-down, up-down super fast. The gullies are so narrow, it appears as though one’s skis cannot possible go up and down without getting stuck or snapping in half (either that or my legs!). The Peanut Trail gives adult knees a real beating and my hamstrings felt it too…

*imagine a giraffe trying to run across a 1/2 km long cattle gate. That is how my mind perceived the Peanut Trail. I did it, no broken bones. But I am in no hurry to try it again.

It was Pip’s first time off the magic carpet slopes. She’s a very eager and brave little skier. It’s her speed that sometimes worries her momma! She has no fear! I constantly coach: big wide turns, time to turn. She insisted on trying a little jump with Tabs and I. I had her attempt it at such a slow clip she slid back down and her skis got stuck in the pit at the base. That took some time and effort to get her out of! Tabs is a wonderful big sis and ski instructor. She helped me take Pip down her very first big hill runs and help her on and off the chair lift. Couldn’t have done it without my Tabs! xx

Mist after a particularly long and steep section of the run.

 It’s amazing how you teach your kids to ski and suddenly they’re better than you are and they become the teachers! I love following Mist down the hills as she’s super fast and has great technique (but she’s so fast I can hardly keep up with her).

Modern life is super busy for nearly every one. Now that my children are active and in school, our life changes again. When you’re in the baby/toddler stage, you accept that you will have very little time to pursue leisure goals. And once your kids are older and in many many extracurricular lessons, parents still have little time to pursue leisure goal.

My limited free time has made me really determined to pursue only what I truly love. What has emmerged is that all I do in my free time is outdoor sports. I am never happier and mindful (in the moment) than when I am outside–my body in motion and enjoying nature. So, this is my life: I work and then play outside–no time for much else. Except dance, I always make time for dance.

We ski all morning and head to the village lunch room for a picnic lunch break. If we divide up and ski seperately, we always make sure to meet back at the lunch room at a set time. Peter skis too but no pics of him because we never ski together–we take turns skiing with Pip.

Below is a cute pic of Pip and my nephew Kyran, both attempting to make matching goofy faces during the picnic.