"Hell" has officially frozen over...

I swore I would never, ever go skiing in my life after a snowboarding trip in 1989. There was just nothing that could possibly make it fun for me--I hate snow (being IN snow, not looking at it--I LOVE looking at it), I hate exercising in the cold, I hate being cold, I hate spending money on sports equipment, I have zero kinetic intelligence--it's an equation for disaster. HOWEVER--my ever-optimistic husband was determined that we find a winter sport to enjoy as a family (besides sledding with Uncle Davey's snowmobile, which hardly counts as a sport and which I avoid by being the official hot cocoa chef). Hubs began collecting gear for the family this fall at ski swaps, etc. (including these incredibly effective vintage thermoses [?]), and buying the Lexus was the final piece of the puzzle. Today, against all odds and opposition, he took us cross-country skiing!
We drove out to Mill Creek this morning at 10:30 am. Here are Addie and Heidi warming up on their skis at the trailhead.
The sun was even out for a while!

We zipped James in a duffel bag and Rich pulled him on his homemade harness sled (it's called a "ski pulk"). We will probably get him skis in the next year or two.
Me-n-hubs, ready to roll!
(I smiled for the pictures because I was still trying to muster enthusiasm)

Heidi, Addie and Me entering the trail.

Rich pulling James on the trail

(it's a "commercial dog sled trail", so you can probably spot lots of poo in these trail pix)

Heidi, Addie and Me stopping for some cocoa and cup-o-noodles trailside after my big wipe-out.

(my left foot turns out from the hip at a pretty big angle, so holding it straight in the cold got to be incredibly tricky, especially once I got a good stride going. I would inevitably start turning out to my natural stride, and then my skis would cross or I'd twist my ankle and fall--but only three times!)

Me and my punkins in the snow.

James wanted to ride on Heidi's skis...

He kept shouting, "Go, Heidi!"Addie really wanted to pull the sled, so here are me , Ad , and James on the sled. James kept shouting, "Ho-ho-ho! Go, Rudolph!"

Cute little Addie pulling James--she did so great: skiing, getting up, putting her gear on and off--she's a natural (clearly not MY genes).

Heidi took a turn pulling James when she got tired of falling on her skis.

Ahh, back at the car!

Oh, yeah--this is the new car. We haven't named it yet, but we love it.

Here is Mill Creek, which our trail followed.

We had to stop at the ranch on the way home to move our tent trailer out of the boat house, so I hopped out of the car to snap a pic myself and the awesome snowy mountains...I failed.

All in all, a pretty fun trip. We learned a lot, and I will go again on a sunny, 30+-degree day. But it will definitely be more fun when James and Heidi are more self-sufficient (and I am in better shape). THANKS for making us try something new, Hubs! I love you, even more than Arizona!

***

In closing, here is my pet triceratops helping me make dinner the other day. He loves celery: