March 2013- Skiing and a Spring (Not-So-Much) Break

March started off with a bang, as we loaded up the BSSB to the brim with warm clothes, food, booze (of course) and Kortni, on our way to Winter Park for Ski Weekend 2013. There have been ski weekends in 2011 and 2012, but this one was shaping up to be EPICbecause of the fact that I intended to actually ski. Two factors made this a dicey situation, the first being that I hadn’t skied in over 10 years. The second was that I was never really a good skier to begin with…..so the odds of this going well were slim. But, Jackson and Reese were going to try skiing for the very first time, John is an excellent skier, and I was NOT going to be left out.

Joining us for the festivities were the Lowen and Coleman families, so the entertainment level was high. More than a few beverages were consumed, inappropriate jokes and comments were made (you’ve all met Ralph), and much fun was had. Skiing was……well, let’s just say I am not going to be the next Lindsay Vaughn. I foresee many hours in the lodge drinking wine, waiting for the kids and John to swish, swish, swish down the mountain. Plus, Ralph made fun of my coat. In all fairness, it was circa 2000, but still….he looked like a kiwi.

The big kiddos had fun but were exhausted at the end of ski school. We’re talking bone tired. Their daddy thought this was an appropriate time to teach them the valuable lesson of carrying their own ski equipment for the half-mile back to the car. There were tears of exhaustion and begging for naps, which only lasted until we actually got back to the condo, then all bets were off and they were W-I-R-E-D.

How cute are they? According to Ralph, I did not look that good.

I think it’s also worth noting that Reese had her very first “hot time in the hot tub” (for you Jodi:-). Let’s just all fast-forward 18 years and take bets on whether this will be the last picture of it’s kind.
Jackson Coleman is one lucky fellow….

So, after our ski trip, the next item on the agenda of the Busiest Family in America was Spring Break. Ugggghhhhh…..I just sighed from sheer exhaustion merely thinking of it. Because we had already taken a vacation (remember Hawaii?), our plans included no travel outside of a 50-mile radius from our home. But, that’s not to say that my little people were going to be content with sleeping in, sitting on the couch watching old episodes of Army Wives, and eating takeout for all meals (doesn’t that sound like pure heaven?). Nope. They wanted to be entertained…ALL.THE.TIME.

Being the ambitious Mama that I am, I stocked up on Sauvignon Blanc, and created an agenda for the week. Wait….it wasn’t a week. The Poudre School District stretches out the agony by also giving the children the previous Friday off. Apparently, the teachers need an extra day to gear up for their upcoming vacation. So, Friday I had a training session at the gym with Terrible Tim, which I promised to follow up with a trip to Chippers Lanes bowling alley. Note to self: stupid idea….lift weights, do pushups, go bowling. Jackson and Reese both used 9 lb. balls, mine was 6 lb. Maybe I can use that as an excuse for the following….

Monday we went to Color Me Mine for a little pottery painting, to Little Monkey Bizness for some bounce house time, and to get haircuts. (Grandpa, don’t look at Jackson’s pottery, because it’s your birthday present).

Tuesday’s weather was a little cooler, which was a perfect day to head to the zoo in Denver. The animals were great and all, but clearly our favorite part was the ice cream.

Wednesday was a humdinger. We conned Grandpa into taking us to Fort Fun, which is right up his alley. There were bumper cars, slides, go karts, and miniature golf. Note the look on Jackson’s face in the go kart picture….I think he felt that Grandpa was taking the turns a little too conservatively. Clearly, Grandpa drives like a Grandma.

Thursday was a throwback to my childhood, complete with the 80’s music and décor. Yup, we went to Rollerland. The clientele is just as I remembered….in fact I think some of the people have been there since 1984 and still think pegged jeans and neon are in. Or maybe they’ve just wandered over from next door at The Hunt Club. For those of you that aren’t familiar with Fort Collins, the Hunt Club is a strip bar. Yes, directly next door to the roller rink, where Jackson said he wants to have this year’s birthday party. That will certainly make it easier to excite Daddy and likely all of his friends(yes, pun intended).

Roller skating is not easy. Reese gave it a whirl for 20 or 30 seconds before declaring that she’d rather have a snack. Jackson, being the good sport that he is, held onto the wall and made it around at least twice. We played some arcade games, some laser tag, and several rounds of “watch your sister”. I am pretty sure several of the aforementioned clientele were trying to steal my baby to sell on the black market. Next time we go roller skating, I am packing heat.

Wow….what could we possibly do on Friday that would top the roller skating experience?!? How about swimming at an indoor splash park with 100 4th graders in a pool that had no less than 2 billion parts per million of chlorine added to the water? The four of us sat on one small beach towel until I threatened the big kids with their life….”I DID NOT COME HERE TO SIT ON THIS BEACH TOWEL. GO HAVE FUN, DAMN IT!” Once we got warmed up, we had a great time swimming and following the lazy river around and around and around.

So, the weekend came along FINALLY and what I feared would happen actually transpired. The kids awoke bright and early on Saturday morning and inquired about our plans for the day. Boy, they sure were disappointed when I told them we would be staying home, eating cold sandwiches, and tackling the mountain of neglected laundry. A little bellyaching forced me to send them to their playroom with instructions to find something to do. A full 30 minutes later, I went to inspect the situation….and here’s what I saw:

Made me smile:-)