Be All There: Top Ten

Showing posts with label Top Ten. Show all posts

Monday, April 8, 2013

Aspen - Part 2, we got to ski!

Top Ten Continued: #6-10...
(Here is #1-5)

6. Ski day. We didn't plan to ski as it seemed like too much to pull off with three small children. However, once we were there we realized we would be CRAZY not to do it. It was A LOT of work, but we made it happen. Sam did half a day ski school (and loved it!), Abby went to childcare at the base of the mountain and even got an hour on skis (they said she did great!), and Hannah was well taken care of in the super nice nursery. Chris and I got to ski/board together for 3 hours and it was, in a word, heavenly. No crowds, decent snow, warm weather. Skiing is my most favorite activity and it was so nice to feel totally free and totally alive. It was one of the best dates we have had in a long time and it brought us back in time to the years in CO (before kids) when we used to hit the slopes regularly.

Look at this amazingness...

7. The condo time. We scored with this place. There was a pool and hot tub, a mountain view, and a shuttle around town when our legs were weary. We enjoyed movies, ipad time, dance parties, eating, and lounging. It is amazing what fun you can create with kitchen toys and the contents of Mom's diaper bag. Contrary to what I envisioned, I didn't read one page of the book I brought, but really, what was I even thinking bringing a book? Did I forget the kids were coming too? We had a great time in our little home away from home.

8. The adventure of it. Do not be deceived by all these pictures of smiling happy children and a smiling happy Mama. There was plenty of this too...

...and not just by the baby. This trip was a wild and crazy and sometimes challenging adventure. It is A LOT of work to do anything with three kids and this trip required A LOT of energy. I don't know why, but I imagined that our kids would magically be self-sufficient on this trip and that there would be a cook and a maid. Apparently we didn't get that vacation package. I still had to make food, clean up, dress and clean children a million times, and as an added adventure there was the getting on and off buses with three kids, a large stroller, and an average of three bags. It wasn't a vacation, it was an adventure. But I needed an adventure, and I feel super empowered that we did it.

9. Abby's birthday. Our girl turned 3 on the last day of our trip. We did a little makeshift birthday party for her in the morning and took a gondola ride as a birthday outing. We also were in airports, on a plane, and stuck in LA traffic for much of her birthday. Hopefully she forgets about those parts.

10. The gondola ride. I pretended that this gondola ride to the top of Aspen mountain for hot chocolate was for Abby's birthday, but really it was for me. The ride up and down, and view from the top were definitely one of the highlights of the trip for me.

Thank you for an amazing 5 days, Aspen.
We will never forget this trip and I am already hoping and dreaming that we can do it again someday.

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Aspen - Part 1, a circus side show

What do you get when you combine Paid Family Leave + Spring Break + years of unused frequent flyer miles? We got 5 days in Aspen, Colorado.

When Chris got approved for 5 weeks of family leave "to bond with our new baby" (who was 6 months old by the time the paper work was filed and approved), we decided that most of those weeks would be used at home in the context of normal life to recalibrate as a family. We desperately needed some recalibrating.

We also decided we would be crazy not to use at least one of those weeks to get away as a family. After all, there is nothing as "bonding" as traveling with small children. When we started talking about where we should go Chris kept throwing out Ireland. Ireland? Really honey? I'm still not exactly sure where that came from. Perhaps his recent obsession with Mumford & Sons? Wait, they are from England. Anyway...I laughed him off and then one night he suggested Aspen. Compared to Ireland, Aspen suddenly didn't sound so extravagant. When we realized we had enough miles for all of us to fly FOR FREE direct from LAX to Aspen it was a done deal.

Let me tell you, it was a riot traveling on that very small plane with the fancy LA to Aspen crowd. As a dear friend put it so well, "you could be a circus side show and yet you are in Aspen." Yep, that pretty much sums up our whole trip...a circus side show in Aspen. Hey, CARPE DIEM we always say.

There are so many pictures and so much I could say about this family adventure, but in keeping with past posts I will limit myself to our Top Ten. Here is #1-5.

1. Just Aspen. "I'm talkin' about a place where the beer flows like wine. Where beautiful women instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano. I'm talkin' about a little place called Aspen." Name that movie! And if you can name it I'm sure we are already friends.

This is a super special place for us. We celebrated our anniversary in Aspen every Fall for years when we lived in Colorado. On some of our anniversary trips we even brought our dog, our new baby, Chris' parents, or friends (nothing says romantic anniversary getaway like babies, friends, and in-laws). Aspen is one of those magical places on the planet for us. It is a small town in BIG mountains with an isolated, European feel. We had never been there when there was snow (Nov-April) and decided it would be great to take our family for some cold weather fun and change of scenery. We found a good end-of-ski-season deal on a condo at VRBO.com and our goal was just TO BE there. No agenda. No plans. Right here...

2. Just the five of us. As I alluded to in #1 we aren't very good at getting away by ourselves. With one exception in 11 years we have never taken a trip or used a vacation day that didn't involve being with friends or family. We wouldn't change anything about how we do things, but we are also realizing that as our family grows it is important for us to get away just the five of us. We so enjoyed the down time together.

3. The weather. There was plenty of snow on the mountain, but the temps in town were mild and the Colorado sun shone brightly. It was perfect. We needed coats, but not boots. Some people around town were in shorts and sandals. There was even a dusting of snow one night that resulted in all the trees being freshly covered in the morning. MAN I miss that!

4. Wandering. Aspen is a small enough town that you don't need a car. We enjoyed simply wandering around with the kids. When we wanted to wander further out of town there were great FREE buses to the other fun areas nearby.

5. Ice skating. Samantha is on a big ice skating kick lately. We knew we needed to make this happen for her, so we did. She did amazing. Abby even got to get on the ice in a cool sled they let us use. We had the whole rink to ourselves.

To be continued...

Monday, April 30, 2012

Disneyland Family Vacation 2012

Our annual "summer" vacation has come and gone. But the memories of this one will absolutely last forever. We had an unforgettable 4 days together at Disneyland-California Adventure last week. All 13 of us (plus two on the way!) had a blast. It went better than I could have ever imagined!

Here is the top 10...

#1 THANK YOU, once again, to my Mom and Dad/Mormor and Papa for your really fun idea and generosity in making this trip happen. The looks on their faces as they enjoyed Disney with their grandkids said it all. Here is just one example...

#2 The Grand Californian Hotel. Wow. As if the really short walk to both parks wasn't enough, this amazing oasis provided us with afternoon naps, pool time, breakfast with Disney characters, and much much more. Bunk beds in the rooms, pack 'n play cribs that fit in the closet, chocolates on our pillows, and a special TV channel where a different Disney princess read my girls a bed time story every night...this place was a ~~parents~~ child's dream come true.

#3 Permissive parenting. Cotton candy before dinner? Sure. Chocolates before bed? Why not. Ridiculous Princess Mouse ears? Of course. Staying up past 9pm every night? Absolutely. It is really nice to have every excuse to just say YES to your kids every once in awhile :)

#4 The weather. Want to know the absolute best time to go to Disneyland? I'll tell you...the week after Spring Breaks are over, on days when they predict rain, but no rain comes...and you get to WALK ON almost all the rides. We are officially ruined for all future visits to Disneyland.

#5 Soarin' Over California ride at California Adventure. This was my FAVORITE ride. And pregnant moms could do this ride - so I did it twice in a row. Imagine feeling like you are flying over Napa, Morro Bay, Lake Tahoe, Malibu, San Diego and more. I can't believe I was ever hesitant to move to this amazingly beautiful state. This ride was a highlight for me!

#6 World of Color show at California Adventure. This show is unbelievable. Unlike anything I have ever seen. Thankfully it more than made up for the one hour of keeping our crazy 2 year-old contained in the viewing area before the show started (at 8:30pm).

#7 The Ariel ride at California Adventure. Singing every Little Mermaid song with my daughters as we spun through Ariel's world in a clam shell was this Little Mermaid loving Mama's dream!

#8 Girl-Boy experience. The fun thing about having all boy cousins is that we got to experience both sides of Disneyland. From fairies and princesses to fighting Darth Vader...love it!

#9 The happiness factor. Disneyland really is like another world. Our faces hurt from smiling. The following 23 seconds (captured right as California Adventure opened) pretty much sum up the week.

#10 The cousins. Oh my word these kids had fun together. Here were a few of our attempts to get a group shot of these darling munchkins.

Almost got all 5 of them in there.