Skiing

Took the kids skiing today. Kate had a little weekend cold, and we weren't sure yesterday if we'd take her, but she seemed fine this morning so we tumbled into the car and went. We'd scheduled lessons for both, with Kate in a beginner one and Jack, who'd had the beginner lesson two years ago, one step up.

Besides Kate's cold, we considered bailing because it was really cold, and windy, and we had this worry that they'd both be freezing and have a miserable experience. But again, we shrugged it off and went anyway.

And good thing we did. Both of them completed their 3-hour lessons -- with a brief break for hot chocolate and snack -- with flying colors. Jack seemed to fall a ton the first hour, but I didn't see him fall at all in the last hour. Kate, by the end, was doing some slow zombie walking and some flopping, but she kept getting up, kept doing the next run, kept smiling.

It was cold, but it was sunny. They were tired, but they kept doing it. At the end, when I brought Kate back to the lodge to return her rentals, she could barely stand. But she did. And we got her back into her boots, and then Jack showed up, windburned and red-cheeked and exhausted, but fine. (Said he wanted to ski more, in fact.)

I didn't ski a lot as a kid. I remember having lessons a couple of times. I don't know if I didn't like it, didn't want to push myself, didn't want to get pushed, whatever. But I wish, now, I'd skied more, and I'm glad, now, to see Jack and Kate doing it, and enjoying it. In a few days, we're planning to go again.

We went to a diner and ate burgers and fries, cruised home, spent the afternoon relaxing. Kate went to bed singing about having a great time skiing. Jack figures he's knows how to ski now and doesn't need another lesson, which is the way he is; already knows all there is to know, until of course he finds out he doesn't.

Anyway, I was proud of them today. I don't care if they become big skiers. But it's cool to think they might be.