Bonne Fête Grand-Papa!

This weekend we celebrated my dad's 74th birthday (though he insisted he was 47). He's still the joker of the family, after all these years. We love you, Grand-Papa!

 

Winter Walk at Parrott's Bay

If it were up to me and the girls, I think we'd stay indoors most of the winter. Thank goodness for Steve, who pushes us out of our comfort zone (literally and figuratively) for wintry walks. We often end up enjoying it more than we thought! On a particularly snowy day last weekend, we went to Parrott's Bay, just like we did five years ago.

Throwing snow into water = fun!

Just needed a quick rest...

Getting on this tree-seat was harder than I thought

(source)

Valentine's Day 2024

Valentine's Day is no longer the exciting holiday it used to be now that the kids are older! Emily had a typical high school day. Jessi said a couple of people brought treats to share, so that was nice. Her school also made it "Twin Day", where students could dress up similarly for fun. Since Jessi and her friends didn't make any plans, I decided to be her twin instead.

Cuz I'm a cool mom ;)

All I requested from Steve was a nice homecooked dinner and some chocolate lava cakes for dessert. He delivered!

Happy Valentine's Day from Nathalieland!

Ski Practice

Jessi recently signed up for her school's Ski Trip at Calabogie Peaks. Since her skiing experience is limited to three visits since 2022, we figured it'd be good for her to get more practice before the field trip in March. We took the PA Day opportunity last Friday to head up to Batawa Ski Hill once again. 

It was a whole family outing, with this being just the second time Emily and I try skiing. While we enjoyed our first experience, it was a bit too scary and tiring for us to want to do it again... until last Friday!

Emily and I quickly got the hang of the handheld ski lift and going down the Bambi Hill. She and I happily stayed on this beginner hill for the remainder of our visit. After a few runs, Steve and Jessi felt ready to try the bigger hills for the first time. 

Good luck! Stay safe!

Thumbs up for Bambi

Getting on a real ski lift was part of the learning experience because Jessi's only experience with ski lifts was the terrifying one in Whistler 2022. The good news is that the Batawa Lift was much better. The bad news is that Steve mistakenly thought the "Easy Way" was a beginner route, when in fact it was an intermediate one... 

Steve's experience down the hill was one of feeling like he was going too fast, intentionally falling over to stop/avoid missing a turn, struggling to remove his skis, getting back up, putting them on, and continuing on. This happened twice during the ride down Easy Way/Long John. Poor guy! Fortunately Jessi made it all the way down without mishaps and found it to be quite the thrill. Yay!

What the hell was that?

After a break and a few runs down the relaxing Bambi Hill, Steve and Jessi found the courage to try a big route again -- this time using the T-Bar Lift (not as good as the classic one) and going down Boomerang, a beginner route.

This hill was no different for Steve -- he still felt like he had no control and needed to fall over to stay safe. Jessi made it down, but narrowly escaped missing a turn. It was a bit too scary for her taste! 

Emily and I were content on Bambi, but eventually got bored and tired long before our 4-hour time slot. We sat at the picnic tables and waited for Steve and Jessi's return. Happily for Jessi, the day ended with roasting marshmallows by the Ski Hill fire pits: a PA Day treat!

Contemplating his lack of ability

Given my experience, as well as the time and money spent, I rated my day at 4/10. Emily and Steve were 6/10, with Jessi at 8/10. This might not be the sport for us, save Jessi. Ha! Have fun on your field trip.