We loaded the car with skis, luggage, the dog, dog crate, and the family and headed on the 6+ hour drive to Norway. There wasn't much snow on the ground in Sweden when we left so we weren't sure what to expect, but in the mountains there was plenty of snow!!!
The picture shows a view of the guest cabin next to the main cabin and you can see my father-in-law working on removing the snow between buildings. That big black thing is actually a plow-like shovel that everyone uses in Sweden. It pushes the snow out of the way rather than lifting it like we used to use for snow in CT.
We decided to take the kids out of school a couple of days early and left after school on a Wednesday because Thomas ended up having a trip to China during the entire Sportlov week and he was leaving on the Sunday, so we headed up early so that he would have some skiing days with the kids. We purchased a 5 day ski card for the kids and the plan was for Thomas to take them three days, I was going to take them by myself one day and Thomas' father was going to take them alone one day...
The cool thing about the cabin in the mountains is that you can put on your skis and head over toward the slopes right from the house! It is such a large mountain and there are lots of slopes and lifts and it gets kind of confusing, so I reminded the kids they had to pay attention and learn a little about navigating themselves on the slopes for the day that I was going with them and I was pretty nervous to get lost...(I had only tried skiing once this year and it went fine, but the kids are much more competent and faster than me).
We had one scare on the second day of Thomas and the boys going off to ski from the house. A half hour after they left from the house, Thomas called to ask if I had Alex with me. I thought he was joking at first because they had been gone for so long, but when I realized he was serious I ran outside, down the hill off towards the slopes in a panic! All I could think of was that he had been in an avalanche and we needed to find him fast! As I was running down (with my feet sinking into the deep snow with each step), I ran into Thomas who had been exhausted from walking back uphill in his ski boots. Seeing Thomas meant that we had covered all the ground that they had been on and we hadn't yet found Alex and I worried even more. Finally, we saw Ben coming from where Thomas had been and he was yelling that he found Alex. Apparently Thomas and Ben got far enough ahead of Alex and they rounded a corner of trees and headed downhill. When Alex came up to a small path downhill right before the trees, he thought they went that way. It brought him further down the hill then Thomas and Ben were so while Thomas turned back looking for Alex, Alex was waiting further down the mountain. When all met up and we were able to relax and they had a great day! Alex did have a cell phone with him in Norway, but not on him that day, needless to say, he had one with him the rest of the time!
While the boys were on their ski adventure, I got to go on my own adventure with Kari and Edgar. They enjoy cross country skiing for exercise and they gave me one of Kari's old pairs to try. I had really only tried it once before when the kids were young at a much slower pace, so I was excited to try it again. I definitely knew I didn't like downhill skiing so I thought if I got into cross country skiing, it would be great exercise and a nice way to enjoy the snow while the boys skied. I was pretty confident I could manage it, so we took off on a ?5 or 10K trip. (I can't remember, but it was a least an hour long trek) Let's just say, it definitely takes practice! I think the cross country skis are not as wide so they are much harder to keep your balance on than downhill skis, but I enjoyed the walking/jogging motion with poles in hand, and I did pretty well as long as my skis were in these tracks that are made for the course, however, add a downhill segment to it, and I go out of control with speed and end up falling, not to mention, if I have to pass a slower person (the only slower ones were those with little kids of course) and step out of the tracks I immediately fall over. Kari and Edgar were really good at it, and had to wait for me a few times, but it was so fun. At one point, Kari told me not to worry about falling because no one else was paying attention...I chose to believe that and didn't get too embarrassed and even started getting used to getting right back up and carrying on after each fall...It was really foggy and cold that day and by the time we were done, my hair had frosted over!
We cross country skied one more day together and I did much better, but still fell a bit. This all was leading up to the inevitable...the day I had to take the boys alone to ski...
I think that was such an anxious thing for me because I worried we would get lost or I would get stuck in a place I couldn't ski and the boys wouldn't have fun...but Alex and Ben were great and I think they would say that while they didn't have as much fun with me as they did with Thomas or Edgar, that it was enjoyable for them to lead me that day, and there were no problems! Alex really knew how to get around well and read the map of the slopes so he made sure we stayed on easier courses and didn't end up on black diamond slopes. We made it all around the mountain that day and I probably only embarrassed them once or twice (but they were always below me on the slope pretending not to know me of course)...
The final day they got to ski with Edgar and I was happy to walk to the lodge with Sox and meet for hot chocolate and snacks!
The weather had been pretty mild for the week, even making it over 32 degrees so snow was even melting. It has been such a mild winter, we are so lucky!
The day we left, we loaded up the car with 2 kids, 4 pairs of skis with boots and poles, a dog crate, a dog, winter clothes and gear for a week, and food for the trip...the boys and I drove the 6+ hours back through some unplowed backroads, mountains, and light snow only getting mildly lost before crossing the border back into Sweden where I had cell service again and could use my GPS on my phone, but along the trip back, I was traveling along when my GPS told me to take a left turn...well the road looked like it was coming to a complete end and it looked like railroad tracks were going over a tiny bridge over a river...I looked again at my GPS and it was telling me to go on those tracks...There were gates up as if I had the right away and there were no cars or trains coming so I went, but it was strange to see a shared, narrow, one-way bridge that was also a train track...
It was definitely a week that I was out of my element, but it was thrilling to try some new things and things that I was nervous about (such as downhill skiing as the only grown-up in the group, and driving home through winter conditions)...I think the kids are much more natural at these winter sports and will have a lifetime of enjoyment experiencing all of the things winter has to offer!
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