Little snow in New England means a 7.5 hour trek to Canada to ski. We were nervous - our longest car ride yet. And it went so well! The kids did fantastically.
We stopped in Burlington, Vermont for lunch at one of our favorite pizza places (they have one in New Hampshire too). Yum! After some running around, filling our tummies and some delicious coffee, we were ready to enter Canada.
Day one meant getting skis and exploring the darling Europeanesqe village. We enjoyed lunch at Creperie Catherine.
Gabriel's boots were too big but he deemed them perfect. Maddie was thrilled with her fast orange boots.
We were so proud of Gabriel. He really gave it a go. Three days of the Mother Nature Club!
Maddie and Theo were in ski camp. Four days with the same instructor (Alex and JS). Maddie had a race which she did great in. And then there was a big party at the end of the week for the kids.
The village was beautiful, French was spoken and you really felt a million miles away from "real" life. Nathan and I skied together for three days. Our favorite place for lunch was called the Refuge. It was tucked half way down the mountain and it was a trapper's hut. They had two hot soups and not much else. You sat family style. It was such a throw back and very charming.
After two days of skiing, Gabriel needed a Mommy day. We didn't leave the cabin and he deemed it the best day!
He decided to go back for one more day of skiing and earned himself a Beavertail, a speciality of the region - fried dough with maple butter on it.
We strolled through the village. He was happily swinging his arms with his red mittens flying.
The village mascot - TouTou. Who we met on our second Mommy/Gabriel day which included croissants and then a fun morning at the water park.
Last night marshmallows, yum!
The drive home - it was quite the storm through Canada and most of Vermont. Very harrowing driving. We got stuck between three plows at different times (which was a good thing though slow). The wind and the snow made almost whiteout conditions. We stopped in Burlington for a much needed break, this time at Das Bierhaus.
It was an amazing week. We arrived home physically tired but mentally refreshed (Nathan's words)!
Some video viewing for your pleasure:
Skiing moguls
Maddie's race
Dance party
Gabriel explaining how to stop while on skis (sorry about the orientation...and the ending)
