Immediately after we all recovered from the flu (in December), we took a family vacation, with my parents and siblings, to the mountains in North Carolina. We delayed our trip by a day to take O to the doctor, but other than his double ear infection, we were all flu-free and healthy. FINALLY!
 |
| Rest Stop |
 |
| Watching a DVD: Star Wars |
We arrived in the early afternoon and, with the threat of some ice/snow, we decided to stay in the nice cozy cabin and entertain the kids with some Wii dancing, singing, boardgames, and movies.
 |
| Baby O LOVED the microphone |
 |
| Wii Glee! |
 |
| My mom "dancing" |
 |
| Curious George Board Game |
 |
| Star Wars Guess Who? Game |
Overnight we had a little bit of snow, so the next day we were able to get out and let the kids do a little sledding. When I was out with our camera, the only hill we found was the wheel chair ramp. L did get to sled down a real hill with my dad later, but I didn't capture any photos of it. So here's the wheel chair ramp sledding:
 |
| Wheel Chair Ramp Sledding |
 |
| Ready to Sled! |
 |
| O, still suffering from a double ear infection |
 |
| My two "big kids" |
 |
| Wee... |
 |
| Snow Angels! |
 |
| This was my attempt at getting a picture of all three kids. |
When most of the snow had melted, we were able to take the kids down to the indoor swimming pool. They had a really small kids pool with this raining mushroom that E absolutely loved.
 |
| Baby O, the observer |
 |
| The Swimmers, observing baby O |
With holiday rates at all of the ski resorts, we spent the first few days in the cozy cabin.
But, when the cabin was no longer entertaining, we ventured out and took the big kids ice skating. E had tried it one time several weeks ago, but she had a much better experience with the ice skater trainer.
 |
| She LOVED ice skating! |
 |
| L is too fast for the camera |
 |
| Maybe next year, Baby O |
One benefit to being in the Eastern time zone during New Years is the ability to stay up to midnight and not feel like you're really staying up that late. This year, we even let the big kids stay up to welcome the new year.
 |
| My husband and I |
 |
| Yep, this is my mom |
 |
| My girl and I |
 |
| Happy New Year: My brother and his wife |
 |
| Happy New Year Horns |
 |
| "I'm asleep!" |
 |
| ME! |
 |
| Party Time! |
 |
| Llama Llama with a Party Hat |
Then, after 4 days of waiting, it was finally ski time! We debated taking E, but in the end decided she was not quite ready. So I stayed in our cabin one day with O and E, and my husband stayed home the next day. My brother David has been skiing since he was about 4 years old, so because he's the best skier in our group, he held the ski trainer and taught L to ski.
 |
| Trying on ski gear |
 |
| On his way! |
 |
| My brother (John), and dad |
 |
| My brother David and my little skier |
 |
| David was so great with L |
 |
| Love the Lucky Bums Ski Trainer!! |
 |
| My Husband |
 |
| My boy! |
 |
| My turn to ski with L! |
 |
| The Gang! |
 |
| My brother David and L |
 |
| Being Silly |
 |
| I love this boy! |
On his last ski day, we took away the two straps of the ski trainer and attached a single strap to his back. Then he was able to steer and control himself entirely on his own and the strap was just a back-up in case he started going too fast. He did great!
It was really great to spend time with my parents and brothers, as well as spending time with my kids outside of our every day routine.
 |
| Chick-Fil-A |
 |
| O, getting his daily baby massage (for eczema) |
 |
| L, teaching my mom about Angry Birds |
 |
| Playing Angry Birds |
 |
| My mom playing Angry Birds |
 |
| Me and Baby O! |
 |
| Game Time! |
 |
| Yum! |
 |
| THE GANG! Love this group! |
