For President's Day weekend we stayed at Sunriver with the Billingsley crew and had a BLAST!! We used to make this trip every year but for some reason we missed the last couple of years. I don't know what we were thinking because we love this mountain and always have such a great time there. It's a great family friendly resort with plenty of easy runs for the kids. 
But what we found this year was that the kids have gotten so good at skiing that they don't really need the easy runs anymore. Some of us parents even had a hard time keeping up with our kids.
All weekend long we were amazed and pleasantly surprised at how much easier it is getting to take our kids skiing. It used to be an all day struggle trying to keep their mittens on their hands, their hats on their heads, their jackets zipped up, their skis un-crossed and smiles on their faces. Just as soon as we would accomplish that they would have to go to the bathroom. So we would trek to the lodge in our ski boots, strip them down, take them potty, try not to drop mittens in the toilet, put a fake smile on our faces and go outside to start all over again. We would take one run on the bunny hill, holding them up all the way down until our thigh muscles literally caught on fire (It's true! I have the burn holes in my ski pants to prove it!) then they would be hungry. So off to the lodge we would go again.
But what we found this year was that the kids have gotten so good at skiing that they don't really need the easy runs anymore. Some of us parents even had a hard time keeping up with our kids.
All weekend long we were amazed and pleasantly surprised at how much easier it is getting to take our kids skiing. It used to be an all day struggle trying to keep their mittens on their hands, their hats on their heads, their jackets zipped up, their skis un-crossed and smiles on their faces. Just as soon as we would accomplish that they would have to go to the bathroom. So we would trek to the lodge in our ski boots, strip them down, take them potty, try not to drop mittens in the toilet, put a fake smile on our faces and go outside to start all over again. We would take one run on the bunny hill, holding them up all the way down until our thigh muscles literally caught on fire (It's true! I have the burn holes in my ski pants to prove it!) then they would be hungry. So off to the lodge we would go again.
I know that this doesn't make skiing sound fun. But when you're teaching your kids to ski it's a different kind of fun. If you understand that your hard work will someday pay off, you will do it happily because when your whole family can hop on the ski lift and ski together it is all worth it. Words can't describe how much fun it is. Have you ever had an experience that you wish you could just bottle up and save? Where you're thinking, "I should record this so I can live it over and over." But you're having too much fun to get your camera out, plus a camera just can't do it justice anyways.
On our third day of skiing Jantzen (the youngest in our crew) was doing really well on skis and we felt like she was ready to branch out a little and try some runs other than Marshmallow and Dilly Dally Alley. If you don't know what those runs are like, let's just let the names speak for themselves. They are beginner runs and mom and dad were getting a little bored with them. So everyone headed out together to take a few runs on the other side of the mountain. Over there we found sunshine and beautiful views but no crowds. We were in heaven! It was so fun to ski with everyone together and listen to the kids' "Woo hoo" and "Woop woop" as they skied down.
Later that day Keaton took me to the summit (pictured below) and proceeded to "own me" all the way down. It's awesome to see him skiing so well, but it's a tough pill to swallow when I can't keep up with him. I still remember when he was three and Chris and I put him on tiny little skis and would push him back and forth between us while he put his hands on his knees.
On our third day of skiing Jantzen (the youngest in our crew) was doing really well on skis and we felt like she was ready to branch out a little and try some runs other than Marshmallow and Dilly Dally Alley. If you don't know what those runs are like, let's just let the names speak for themselves. They are beginner runs and mom and dad were getting a little bored with them. So everyone headed out together to take a few runs on the other side of the mountain. Over there we found sunshine and beautiful views but no crowds. We were in heaven! It was so fun to ski with everyone together and listen to the kids' "Woo hoo" and "Woop woop" as they skied down.
Later that day Keaton took me to the summit (pictured below) and proceeded to "own me" all the way down. It's awesome to see him skiing so well, but it's a tough pill to swallow when I can't keep up with him. I still remember when he was three and Chris and I put him on tiny little skis and would push him back and forth between us while he put his hands on his knees.
Dang you Keaton anyway! Could you at least PRETEND to not be so good?
Anywhooo...that was our weekend and we've been talking about it ever since. We have vowed to not miss another year and if we do, then we're gonna punish ourselves with...with...with...well, I don't know. But we won't go easy on ourselves and it won't be pretty.
Anywhooo...that was our weekend and we've been talking about it ever since. We have vowed to not miss another year and if we do, then we're gonna punish ourselves with...with...with...well, I don't know. But we won't go easy on ourselves and it won't be pretty.
This is the only picture I took of the convention. I know it doesn't look like a convention...it looks like I took my 5 year old daughter out clubbing! But Scentsy had a party to celebrate their 5th anniversary and all the families were invited. It was called Cirque de Berserque and they had all sorts of performers doing cool stunts and entertaining our kids. Jantzen tried really hard to resist the dance floor, but in the end she gave in and danced her little pants off. 
doesn't.
And Chris had a "guys day" at Mt. Hood Meadows with his brother Spencer and brother-in-law Brian.
Apparently it was a very warm day. But as you can see, my husband kept his jacket on just like his mommy, oops, I mean wifey told him to do. 
It was also a day when Jennifer and I would call every phone number for Mt. Hood trying to get a human being. Why? Because our dear husbands didn't check in with us all day long, that's why! And out of the three phones those guys had up there, none of them seemed to be working. And it's not like them to not check in with us. And it would have been just like them to hike somewhere out of bounds and get hurt dropping off some insane cliff. And...And...And... We were worried! But don't you worry. We had the nice fellas at Mt. Hood check the entire parking lot for their cars, just so we could know if they made it off the mountain. Their cars were gone, so we stopped worrying and started cursing their names. It turns out all of their phone batteries died. They knew they had a problem when that happened. According to reports, when they realized what had happened they said something to the effect of, "Oh man, we're screwed!" Because they knew that they had little wifeys at home that would worry about them, then once the worry was gone the rage would come out. I can't speak for Jennifer, but Chris did the dishes that night when he got home. Bad boy! Bad, bad boy! You're grounded. And did you brush your teeth yet? Make sure you get all the sugar bugs off. Then go clean your room.
The day started out early. I'm talking about 5:00 early. But to a skier, it's worth it. The kids don't even complain. I wake them with a pat on the shoulder and a "Wanna go skiing?" and they bounce out of bed. 
It continued on with an exceptionally long and slippery drive to Mt. Hood. We figured it would be a quiet day at the resort because one of the roads leading there was closed due to a mudslide. But EVERYONE and their dog decided to drive around and use OUR ROAD to get there. (The nerve!) So Portland traffic was found on a beautiful and winding road between Hood River and Mt. Hood.
Next we have a parking spot in a land so far, far away that they put you on buses to take you to the lodge, where you stand in line for 15 minutes so that you can happily give them hundreds of dollars for a ride on their fancy little chairs which are suspended from cables high up in the air.
But then you remember how happy everyone is when they're bundled up in several layers with long skinny things attached to their feet and a funny little square tag attached to their jackets.
And you realize that they have graciously replaced the *!#%^ rope tow with a blessed "Magic Carpet" which is ....
Or maybe not.
Daniel, being the music dude that he is seemed to really enjoy it.
Here's all the exchange students in the area that are here with 
It was a gorgeous day, a balmy 50 degrees.
Which means that we could stay outside for more than two minutes.
It was a LARGE time had by all. 
After the bull riding, everyone starts to get up to leave, thinking that the show is over. But it's not! In my opinion, they saved the best for last...The wild cow milking! I had never seen this before, but what a kick in the pants! First they realease several cows onto the field. They also realease several men onto the field. They are in teams of two- one man on foot and one man on a horse with a lasso. First, the man on the horse catches a cow, then the man on foot tries to milk it. You can see in the picture the two men being dragged across the field by the cow. If you look really close, you can see the trail in the grass of how far they have already been dragged. The funny thing is that that's just a small portion of the round trip they took around the field. One guy was dragged around by his foot when he got it stuck in the rope.