In the Mountains

We spent part of last week up at my folks' timeshare in the mountains. The beautiful scenery and cooler temperatures were rejuvenating. The kids look forward to the tradition and I know they will have fond memories of the time we spend there.

It ended up being almost dark by the time we got up there on the first day, so I took a quick photo of the sunset, helped the younger kids get settled in bed (yeah, right), and then Pen and I joined my mom in playing her favorite game.

The next morning, Rophone and I took Big and Edith on a lovely hike while Pen, Ginger, and Bud explored the resort. I think that those of us who went on the hike chose the better of the two activities. It was great to have Rophone along-- normally it's just me and the kids on hikes while he's at work.

We tried to fit as much as we could into the next few days-- a family shuffleboard tournament, swimming, walking the shops, more games, the park, more swimming...

I love this photo of Edith and how her head barely peeks over the edge of the table. And the stylin' sunglasses, of course. She was totally into the competition.

We managed to fit in swimming right after lunch each day, just beating the afternoon thunderstorms.

Edith is a total ace when it comes to game-playing, by the way. She won all but one game of Uno. Teaming with a competitive grandmother doesn't hurt, either.

The girls are old enough that many times they kind of took off to do their own thing. There's a big enough age gap between Ginger and Bud that it's kind of like having two separate families. 

Rophone ended up having to go to work for the second day of our vacation (a total bummer), but I managed to have some fun with the kids anyway. I walked with the younger kids to the park in the morning and then swam with all the kids after lunch. 

On the last morning before we left, we finally did what Edith had been dying to do since she first saw it-- the alpine slide. The very first morning we were there Edith said "I want to ride that.." (pointing at the chair lift) "..so that I can do that." (pointing at the alpine slide). She repeated herself every time she looked that direction. 

Needless to say, she was super excited when the time finally arrived. 

I thought that she might get nervous at some point or change her mind, but no. Edith was excited and determined while we waited in line, while we were on the chair lift, while we waited in line again... and then she giggled gleefully the whole way down. The whole way down FAST. She rode with Rophone and he's no lightweight. 

Excited:

And determined:

See?

I was proud of Bud, too, who made the decision to ride by himself for the first time this year. No nervousness on his part, either. He was just excited for the new experience. 

Pen, of course, had a blast on the alpine slide, Ginger made the decision to ride the chair lift all of the way around for her ride of choice (sounds heavenly and relaxing), and Big asked Grandma if she would play miniature golf with him. Everyone got to do exactly what they wanted. Perfect.

(and can I just say that having to hold my sled while I shot photos really messed with my framing...)

Bud rocked it, but his lightweight frame kept him from going quite as fast as he might have liked. He's hoping to put on a few pounds so he can go faster the next time. My mom and Big finished golfing just before I got to the course, but at least I managed to capture a picture in front of the course. 

And it looks like Ginger's ride on the chair lift really was relaxing.

The whole family had a grand time, Mom! Thanks for hosting us!