We were really excited to get an invitation from Aunt Kim to go stay at her wonderful mountain getaway. She and Jack bought a place at Sugar Mountain awhile back, and we had been waiting to find the perfect time to go.
We finally decided to go the last weekend in February so we could take the girls skiing for the first time. Did it end up being the perfect weekend to ski in the NC mtns? Most definitely not! It was actually the worst ski conditions I have ever seen (warm and wet with little to no snow), but that did not stop us from having a fabulous mountain weekend. Things work out the way they are supposed to because the terrible conditions gave Collins a little more freedom and space to figure the skiing thing out...and she LOVED it!
I had never been to Sugar Mountain before and was so happy to explore a new place...
Kim and Jack's place is quite cozy and charming...
The girls immediately loved it...
and then had to go exploring.
Little man was not far behind...
A fire, chili, and board games are all I really need in a mountain house...we got all that and a Mimi! Mom was so sweet to come help us take care of Luke so we could teach the girls to ski.
Chugga, chugga, choo choo is the newest game they play...Luke loves it when his sisters get him involved!
We woke up to rain the next day...ugh, the forecast was right- darn it.
We made the most of it and returned to the sight of our last gem-mining success...
and struck gold! Gem mining might be Addie's most favorite activity in the world. :)
They did not care that we were the only people there, that it was raining, and that they were not skiing...
because they found crystals!
Finally, we made it to the slopes and the conditions were pretty shocking. There were only two runs open on the whole mountain and about 10 total people skiing.
Collins had no idea that this is not what normally happens, she was happy to whiz down the mountain for the first time. And she was pretty darn good! Brian (her teacher) was thrilled. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Addie tried skiing too and immediately announced that it was "Great and a piece of cake". Then about five minutes later declared, "it was terrible and she never wanted to do it again." :)
So I took Addie back to Mimi at the cabin, and the three of us skied a little more.
The day ended with hot chocolate of course...
And how lucky were we to find this gem of a movie on the TV when we got home? Addie was mesmerized by "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers"!
Our last day at Sugar came with a little sunshine...I thought we were just going to pack up and head back to Raleigh, but Collins begged us to take her skiing another day. So of course Brian could not say no to that.
They bought a half-day pass, and I took the littles exploring...
Turns out you can easily find a pathway right out to the slopes! Pretty cool.
Luke was impressed by the chair lift...
especially when it brought by Dad and Collins!
What a neat trip! Traveling is not easy with kids, but it is so worth it. We showed them so many new things that weekend thanks to the generosity of Kim and Jack. Thank you guys so much! We will always have special memories of their first skiing adventure at Sugar Mountain.
