Skiing at Boyne

Once again we got on the first chairlift at an impressive 10am, which was super shocking considering we had to drive farther and check out of our room. Today's forecast was for a high of 32 but it certainly didn't feel like it! There was quite a bit of the mountain that wasn't open yet. Zachary really wanted to go to one of the large terrain parks and also see the half pipe. Unfortunately both of those had not been shaped yet because of the lack of snow and we ended up being on a part of the mountain we really had no right being on! The only way down was via a black diamond run and that certainly wasn't any fun. The kids were crying the whole way down because they were frustrated (rightfully so). I didn't think they were ever going to get down!! But eventually we did get to the bottom and we took a well desired break to enjoy some hot chocolate.
The rest of the day got better as we stayed on the green and blue runs. We stayed until 4pm! We had a good ride home since the roads were dry an clear.
Now our next big event will be our Harry Potter night happening on New Years Eve. We finished reading the first Harry Potter book on the car ride home, so we will be watching the movie that night. It will also be the first time the kids are staying up with us to ring in the new year. We have seen that they certainly have the ability to
do so (as evidenced by their sleepovers) so it should be a fun evening!!

Ski day at Nubs Nob

After a hearty breakfast (yummy spiced waffles!!) we headed over to Nubs Nob. Kudos to my family for getting on the first chairlift at 10am and even getting a front row parking spot!! The snow on the slopes was nothing too exciting, but given that there was NO snow outside of the mountain, it was actually an impressive detail. The kids did a great job of remembering how to ski again. Our biggest challenge of the day was the cold temperatures. It was only 18 degrees when we finished skiing. Luckily I think I was the only complainer about it - I was happily surprised that the kids hardly said anything about it.
For dinner we went to the Mitchell Street Pub which had a long line. The wait time seemed longer, but it was really only a half hour. Hooray for iPhones to keep us entertained.

Ski trip up North

With Christmas over, and the scraps of the last wrapping paper shreds picked up, it was now time to turn our thoughts to the other awesome event in December... the annual ski trip!
We headed up North despite there being hardly any snow on the ground. When we got there, we were bummed to learn that the Tubing area wasn't even open yet. We stayed in our favorite hotel in Petoskey. The one with the beautifully decorated lobby, super comfy beds, and those yummy waffles in the morning.