February 9, 2015

Mountain Morning


It's a funny thing to be a stay-at-home mother who happens to have a million interests and hobbies. On the one hand, I have all of this freedom in my day to potentially accomplish many of the activities that would be off-limits if I was at an office job. On the other hand, I have these kids, and as anyone with young kids will (hopefully!) attest to, it is very much a full time job.

I do work hard to maintain my varied interests, and to incorporate the children, which I believe benefits them as much as me. We bake and cook and garden and camp, we visit museums and go out to eat, and it's all simultaneously a greater hassle, and a greater joy with those little hands helping. Considering we have never had an actual babysitter and don't have family right in town, I do think James and I have done a pretty good job balancing the activities that make us happy with the little people that we made (and obviously also make us happy!).

Still, there are a bunch of hobbies that are very important to us both and that we haven't found a way to maintain in recent years. Some things are just tough to juggle with small kids, and for us the most notable is skiing/ snowboarding. We are pretty serious about our snow sports over here, with James leading the cheer for all things that require going fast on snow covered surfaces. Before we had kids, we used to talk about how early we'd get them on skis and we even attempted (and actually succeeded) in planning Little Smith's birth so that I didn't have to miss a season being pregnant. He was born at the end of November, and seven weeks later, we were trading off lift tickets and our tiny baby in the lodge. It seemed so easy, but we quickly learned that toddlers are much more demanding than newborns, and while you can put a two year old on skis (and have a ridiculously good time doing it)... it does not really make for a day of actual skiing. One day these babies will both be faster than us, but for now, it's more work than play.

This past weekend, we decided to sign Little Smith up for a day of big boy ski school, he is just now eligible at 4, and we are still beaming with pride at how well he did. My mom kindly agreed to entertain Roo, and James and I got to play in the snow for the first time in a long time. We had so much fun, more than I think either of us even expected. We've made peace with the fact that this phase of our lives will be light on carefree mountain days, but we certainly do appreciate the few we get.

pictures from my iPhone. we have both had issues with phones freezing and shutting off lately. is it just us in the New England arctic?

6 comments:

  1. oh my struggle with the damn freezing iphone! I finally replaced mine (due for an upgrade) and the new one hasn't quit on me yet. I was always out in the woods running trails on ice and my fully charged phone would die. I kept thinking of the days pre iphone when i wouldn't have thought for a moment about not being "connected" while out in the woods but all i could think about was breaking my ankle and freezing to death alone so... LOL.

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    1. Melissa, I forgot to reply here, but inspired by your comment I went ahead and upgraded my phone this weekend. Exciting! Though I wish I could say I would be running snow covered trails, good for you!

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  2. Ah, I MISS THE SNOW!!! We have had none worth mentioning since November. Now, to be sure, I'm more of a showman/snowball than a snowboarding type a gal, but I do love it when it snows. So glad to know someone is getting to enjoy the season!!!

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  3. Lady, it's a good thing you two like snow, because… well, wow. I hope you're not covered in 5 feet by now!

    And I'm willing to bet that those carefree mountain days are right around the corner for you — introducing W and R to skiing early will be a sure thing! Love these pictures and smiling faces. You guys sure know how to make the best of that snow.

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  4. We were like you - I think we've used a babysitter three times in 12 years. And we still managed to do quite a bit with the kids. However that did not include skiing on my part. Not happening. But fortunately my husband is teaching the kids to ski/snowboard. I'm such a wimp. Enjoy your remaining winter days!

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