First Walk, Then Board

Another Christmas tradition in our family is skiing/snowboarding. Obviously, skiing is something you can do throughout the winter, but these days it seems that we only go at Christmastime. With work and other responsibilities, it's hard to find time to go, but you can usually squeeze in a trip to the hill during your Christmas vacations. Unfortunately, this is the case for a lot of people, and we all end up on the slopes at the same time. As a result, Christmas is the worst time to go out.

Yesterday, I went up to Solitude Mountain Resort with my brother and his two oldest kids. Solitude claims to have the smallest crowds, but the workers said it was still one of the busiest days they've seen so far. My brother, his daughter and his son have all been learning to snowboard this year. His daughter (A-L) has learned quite quickly and has become more skilled than her younger brother (A-S). Instead of waiting around for A-S to work his way down the hill, A-L and I went off and skied the whole afternoon together. Here's a picture on the chairlift:

A-L is only 10 years old (almost 11). I remember the Christmas 10 years ago when we saw her take her first steps. I spent much of that vacation walking her around my grandma's house, with her little hands clinging to my fingers. It's amazing to think that little baby has already grown old enough to be out snowboarding and to actually be pretty good at it. She had some big wipeouts, but she was lots of fun.

Maybe 10 years from now I'll be on the chairlift and fighting the Christmas crowds with my own kid(s). Hopefully, my joints will still work, since I'll be nearly 40.

By then I'll probably enjoy the break I'll get from waiting in line.