Hi friends! Sorry things have been a little slow on the blog this week. We spent last week skiing in Utah and are spending this week vacationing in Kauai. I know. Two weeks of vacation.. one right after the other. One in the snow and one in the sunny tropics. Kind of funny how it worked out that way this year (best with our schedules), but you won’t hear me complain! I had one day in-between that we were home last Friday. My husband had to fly to San Francisco for meetings for the day. I spent the day washing snow suits and packing swim suits. :) Here are a few pics of our ski trip from last week (all quick pics I snapped with my phone). We left my 5 year old at my parents for a few days and just took the girls. I think we’ll take him with us next year, but at this point he would rather stay and be spoiled by two sets of grandparents than come skiing with us. :) My husband and I love to ski (a lot of our first dates were on the slopes!) and this little yearly ski trip with our girls has become a tradition since we first took them two years ago. The four of us look forward to it so much!
The last two years we put the girls in half day ski school each morning, but this year they were with us the whole time. They did great and are becoming such good little skiers. It’s so fun to watch them and see their different personalities come out on the slopes.
Ad is my cautious one. She takes her time to get the movement right. Really listens and pays attention and implements everything we teach her.
El is my little dare devil and just heads straight down at the speed of light and it’s all we can do to keep up with her. It makes my parents laugh because she is so much like me. I have always had a need for speed! I ski too fast and drive too fast and talk too fast.
My sweet husband deals with the brunt of all three. #sorryaboutthespeedingticketsbabe #andthenonstoptalking
Of course a huge part of the fun for us on this trip is just being in snow! We all want what we can’t have, right? Even if just for a week.
What is this strange white stuff? ;)
After skiing for a few days we decided to try tubing for the first time. OH MY WORD! Too much fun! Have you all done this!? It’s a must. I seriously laughed so hard.. I can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard!
Riding to the top of the mountain!
Ready to roll!
You get flying so fast.. even if you’re dragging your feet to slow down you fly!
If you’re going too fast you bump into the pads and they knock you back down. You’re supposed to try to slow yourself down before the red pads. That never really happened for me. :)
After a full day of skiing/tubing we would head to the hot tub. Then dinner out followed by a movie together in the hotel room before bed. That’s our ski trip tradition! And we’re sticking to it. :)
I think it’s so important to prioritize family vacations. My husband and I decided we would always do this when we got married. We promised to always plan several trips a year and make them happen regardless of how hard it was to get away. There is nothing like removing yourself from the craziness and busyness of every day life and just enjoying time together with your kids. My favorite trips from my childhood weren’t expensive. My parents would take us to a small town 45 minutes away for a night. We would eat out (usually pizza) and watch movies in the hotel room and then swim the next day. So simple, but we have the best memories from those weekend getaways that my brother and sister and I all laugh and talk about all the time. Just mixing it up from the every day and spending time together is special. It’s not always easy.. especially traveling with little kids. It’s work, isn’t it!? From the packing, to entertaining kids during the plane/car rides, to non stop care while you are there (always harder in a different environment), to playing catch up with school, work and life when you get back. Sometimes after traveling with kids you come home feeling like you need a vacation to recover from your vacation. :) But while all of that work is going on, you are making memories. Fun family moments that bring you all closer together and make all of the work completely worth it.
A picture from today I shared on Instagram/Facebook. Up early to get the crew fed, dressed and ready to go. Two kids fought during the car ride there, brief tears from one daughter when her helmet didn’t fit/look right, it rained on and off during the day. But we won’t remember all of that. We’ll remember how much fun we had off roading in the jungles of Kauai. Begging dad to drive faster and faster, laughing at mom swinging from a rope over a river (just like Indiana Jones except screaming the whole time), swimming in a waterfall, and making jokes about muddy puddles and Peppa Pig (a family favorite).
So like I said, I’m sorry about the slow blogging this week! I have a lot of fun things I’m excited to share! As soon as I finish making a few more memories with my husband and my three favorite little people.
:)
Oh my gosh, that looks like so much fun! So understandable your lack of blogging. You are too busy living your life which is exactly as it should be. It really looks like the weather (at least at the times you took pictures) was perfect in the snow. How fun! Thanks for sharing! See you when you get back. :)
Thanks Jeanne! :) xo
I hate skiing, but you’re pictures make it look fun! ;) I love the idea of prioritizing vacations. I don’t do that and I need to… well actually this year I guess I am. :) We work so hard. We need to be able to enjoy life. Have fun in Hawaii!
Thanks Jen! :) xo
It looks like you had a lot of fun!
Ooh you make me so excited about our upcoming winter and glad that we decided to get season passes again!
That and the fact it is 34C (93f) in our little town today, and we just aren’t used to that sort of heat any more! Our old town is over 105f today, but since we moved near the mountains we’ve gotten used to something a bit cooler! I’m counting down to the cooler weather. The leaves are already changing. It is giving me hope!
It is so true what you say about personalities coming out. Our three children are very interesting. Our daughter is very cautious on the snow, as she has her RAD ballet exams right in the middle of the ski season, so is fearful of getting an injury and missing out. Our youngest is a daredevil and goes straight down the slope, but that doesn’t surprise me, knowing him. It is our middle child who surprises me most. He is usually very cautious, but on the snow he is just like his little brother! The number of times I’ve had a fall trying to keep up with them…
The weekend before last we woke up on my husband’s birthday and were unsure how to spend the day. On the spur of the moment we decided to throw some camping gear in the car and go down to the coast for a night. It was a bit of an effort, especially as he started working away from home the following Monday, but it was lovely to spend that time in the sun, swimming and relaxing.
I love that you had a spur of the moment camping trip Jamie! How fun. I bet your kids loved it. :) Thanks for your sweet comment! xo
Erin,
We’re like you guys. My husband works really hard and we plan several trips a year. My kids are 16 and 13 and we only have another year before my daughter goes to college. We won’t be able to take vacations as a family of 4 during spring break anymore since they won’t have the same break. We’ve always believed in getting away and spending time as a family. Time goes by really quickly and before you know it your kids will be as old as mine. I loved seeing your ski pics. Can’t wait to see your weeks from the next trip.
Jenn
Thank you Jenn! I know.. they grow up so fast! El turned 12 in January and it hit me that we only have 6 more years with her at home. That will FLY. We will both be planning weddings before we turn around. Yikes! So glad you all prioritize getting away too. I think it’s so important and I know all of our kids will have fond memories of these trips. Good luck with college prep! I might need some survival tips in a few years from you. :) xo
you know we took our kids to Disneyland this month and I was so so excited for it. We are very tight financially and so it took us a good 6-9 months to save for this trip. We did Disney for three days and the beach for two and do you know what my kids loved the most? The beach! I think sometimes we think our trips have to be exotic and expensive but kids love digging in the sand, camping, swimming in the hotel pool etc. It’s the time together they love not necessarily the expensive stuff. It taught me a lot.
I couldn’t agree more Ali! We take our kids to Maui and Kauai and expensive places and at the end of the trip my kids’ favorite part will be something like “the slide at the swimming pool” or “eating hotdogs at Hard Rock Cafe” which we could have found just about anywhere. Ha! Kids just love the idea of getting away, sleeping in a hotel, and being with parents who aren’t stressed and busy. It’s the best gift we can give them. :) Thanks for your comment! Loved it. xo
Enjoy your vacation! We all deserve time with our loved ones :)
I agree Robyn! Thank you! xo
Please post detailed info of your trip to Kauai, we are planning a trip there as well and would love to hear where you stayed and played! I bet you had so much fun!! This is a big deal for us, long ride all the way from Florida! Thanks Erin!!
Thanks Lisa! I will try to get going on my Kauai/Maui posts! So exciting you are planning a trip there! You will absolutely LOVE it! xo
I’ve always wanted to try tubing and we have no reason not to. I ski but my husb doesn’t. Instead we did some snow shoeing together the last 2 winters. Tubing can be another one we can do together. We also try to spread out our vacations throughout the year so “I” have something to look forward to in the middle of all the busyness of life. Mostly, I enjoy going to warmer/beachy places since we live in a 4 season area of the country.
Thanks for sharing about your fun vacation!
I love having something to look forward to too Debbie! It’s so nice to take a break from the everyday. We’ll have to try snow shoeing! Sounds fun. :) xo