Ski trip

Now that we have so many relatives living in Colorado, we thought it would be worth our while to start learning how to ski. We're not exactly in the middle of the mountains here in Chicago, but Wisconsin does have a few gentle slopes that are perfect for learning.

We took our first trip last weekend to Cascade Mountain near the Wisconsin Dells (added bonus ... indoor water parks!) and had so much fun. Molly did 3 hours of ski school each day and loved it. They had pop music playing by the chair lifts and high school kids teaching the class -- perfect for a 5-year-old. Molly learned how to move around in skis and snowplow down the bunny hill. Everyone in the gear rental room remembered her name when we came through and we ended each day with hot chocolate. I think it was a pretty good intro to skiing all around.

Jason and I also took a class on Saturday. I was not sure how that was going to go at all -- Jason had never been skiing and I hadn't been since high school. But the instructor was really good and both Jason and I were able to get down the green (easy) trails with minimal wipe-outs after the lesson. The second day was even better because with Molly in ski school for 3 hours, Jason and I had the freedom to explore and enjoy the morning together. We ended up discovering a nice leisurely trail near the edge of the mountain that was almost completely empty and very fun to ski down.

Before this trip, I had been kind of intimidated by the whole process, but people were so friendly and laid back and happy to help skiing newbies, I ended up loving the whole experience. Rocky Mountains ... we're coming for you!