Bonjour Mont Tremblant

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.

Fire building every night in our cabin. Theo really mastered the art. Nothing like a roaring fire after a nice winter day!

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)

I Heart My Boys

Please keep in mind that these photos were taken during Maddie's birthday party.

Special Person

Mrs. Hocherman hosted a writer's reading today. The children read their writing on a special person or object in their life. Maddie read about me...very touching and sweet. It was incredible.

Great View

We arrived at skating/hockey and Gabriel makes a beeline to the top row to watch the action and finish his snack!

Build a Ginger

Maddie and I had a special date after school today. She chose to go to Build A Bear (her first time) and enjoy frozen yogurt. We were so surprised to walk into the store and she her friend Ashley and sister Hillary! They were there to build a special friend to help Hillary in Kindergarten (she'd been having a tough time). We had a lovely time building a cat named Ginger and choosing a very posh outfit for her. It was nice to have some Maddie time.

Happy Half

Someone was very proud to celebrate his 3 1/2 year birthday at school. And the best gift - he has gone 5 preschool days with a happy send off. It's much better for everyone!

Pancake Breakfast

We headed out to Verrill Farm to enjoy the pancake breakfast. The weather here has been so warm that we were sweltering in their very bright greenhouse. Maddie was such a tremendous help, saving our spot, bringing the boys juice, offering to refill my coffee. It was a lovely morning.