mathmom's blog

Today at ski school, when asked his name, Luke responded "Luke Skywalker !" He often gives alternate names when asked---once one of his Sunday School teachers approached me and said, "His name is Luke, right? Because he keeps saying his name is Colin, but his sister insists he's Luke." I knew that Luke and ski school would get along when they wrote "Luke Skywalker " on his nametag and offered him a light saber. "I already have one," he responded. He did in fact have fun skiing, riding the magic carpet, turning (in one direction, not the other) and charming the counselors. Amanda moved from the magic carpet in the morning to the blues in the afternoon. And Ella might or might not have gone down a black slope ("It says 'experts only', so I must be an expert!") but it's hard to tell whether it was today or last year. Tomorrow ski school again, so that I can work on writing a syllabus!

Michael had long been threatening to buy a ski helmet for me. He had a helmet, we made Eleanor wear a helmet, it would make sense for me to have one too. I resisted: it's more equipment to lug around, it's expensive, it's uncomfortable, it looks dorky, it couldn't be really necessary or more people would have one... On this most recent trip, Michael succeeded in convincing me to buy a black helmet with purple details--very comfortable, soft and fuzzy on the inside, a nice fit. The best things about it, I thought, were that it held my goggles on tight and I didn't have to wear a hat. On my first run of my second day skiing, I went down the easier of the two blue choices (the harder route was very steep, with snow being made and blowing hard right up the hill). There was fresh "snow" on the hill I chose too, a bit thick and slipperier than the groomed parts. I skied carefully down. Suddenly I heard a "Whoa whoa whoa!" and saw a blur behind me a...

As I wrote before, we sent Amanda to ski school for the first time this year. After the initial allergy reaction day, we managed to send her for 3 more days. Even after the first day, as she was recovering from being sick, she told me how she got into ski boots and went sliding across the snow on one ski. She moved up to the next group the next day, and actually got on the "magic carpet" (a people mover that takes little skiers up the hill). I saw her skiing on the second full day of lessons. She scooted herself over to the bottom of the magic carpet. It's hard work moving on skis on the flat, but she went inch by inch, until she got to the bottom. I think that an instructor lifted her onto the carpet (it helps that she's so small). Then she rode up to the top, managed to get off, and tried to ski back into the line of about 12 kids at the top of the hill. She veered off into the fence, but turned and used the "snowplow" to stop short of the fence. T...

Eleanor really really wanted to use poles while skiing. Ski instructors don't give them to kids (or anyone just learning, for that matter) because it distracts them from learning and can be dangerous. Worn out by her repeated entreaties, Michael said that if she did “linked turns” with good speed control all the way down the hill without his reminding her, she could use poles. The first trip down he had to remind her a few times, but after that, she worked very hard and remembered all the way down. Of course, using the poles was a distraction, and there were new things to learn about how to use poles safely. But it kept being a great motivator for skiing well, and she kept skiing well all the time she used the poles. She's at least as good a skier as I am, and she definitely has more confidence. I'll see if I can get Michael to write a “guest blog post” about Eleanor skiing. Michael says: It's amazing how quickly Eleanor learned when she was motivated. When we st...

I think I am becoming a southerner. We arrived at the ski house at about 7 pm, and it had been below freezing all day, so the house was cold. Not freezing, but very very cold. We turned on the floor heat, which makes the house toasty, but it takes a long time to warm up. All night my feet were so cold that even Michael couldn't warm them up. I was afraid we would have to leave because I was such a wimp about being cold. Of course, in the morning the house was up to 65 degrees. The whole story reminded me of when Laura Ingalls spent the first blizzard of the Long Winter in the claim shanty. It was very cold, but somehow in the middle of the night it got warmer. She realized why in the morning when she had to be shoveled out of her bed. The house eventually got up to 70 degrees, a bit warm if you are dressed for skiing. Then the wind picked up. Radiant floor heat is very very comfortable, but it does not heat the air very fast -- when we woke up this morning, the house was ...