New Year's Eve snow sports

Today was a great end of the year.  We got almost a foot of new snow.  The xcountry ski trails were so different from yesterday, very soft and much slower.  I figured out why they say you "kick and glide" because the softer snow let me push forward much more.  It was a super workout.  Then in the late afternoon, I was able to get in several sled runs with Ellie in our backyard.  The snow was total powder but got faster each time down the hill.  What a great way to wrap up the year.  

Cross-country skiing first time out!

This morning I went cross country skiing at the groomed trail area in town.  My main thought about this was "There ain't no edge!"  My new beginner-intermediate skis are the kind for going along in the track in the snow, not the skating kind.  Luckily there were perfect tracks in the snow.  I wonder if their groomer machine makes those somehow, after raking the wider trail overall.  Turns out these modern skis are slick.  I pictured laboring along the trail so my automatic sliding along at unstoppable speed was totally unexpected.  How do you stop?  I have no idea.  My gut instinct was to snow plow, where you point the tips of your skis like a triangle and angle the edges to slow down in the snow.  To do this I had to hop out of the groomed tracks.  But "there ain't no edge" on the skis, so snow plowing is nowhere near as effective as with downhill skis.  I'm not sure why.  I guess they don't want anything slowing them down.  Maybe the conditions of the day had something to do with it also.  If the snow was powder, the tracks would be slower (I think).  At least I did not fall, even on the bigger dips of the one or two intermediate trails I accidentally tried out.  Can't wait to go again!  What a great workout.

Indoor Swimming

Today we went to the indoor pool at an old time resort area a little ways north.  It's a lot of work dressing all three of us in a locker room with no place to put a baby; but it's worth it for the 30 minutes in the water.  Ellie is enjoying the benefit of her new height since growing so much lately.  She can walk in the 3 foot zone now.  This is raising her confidence to the point she thinks she can swim.  Technically, she cannot swim and is still very fearful of water getting in her face.  She wears a floatie around her body, which keeps her afloat so she can practice moving in the water.  Most of the time she still grips onto me for additional support.  Julia is calm and happy in the water, eager to splash.  As for me it isn't really a swimming experience but I enjoy getting the girls into the pool.  I wouldn't go to an indoor pool if it weren't for them so it's a good reason to wade.  Other moms sat half asleep on lawn chairs near the side of the pool.  I know they are exhausted but I think they should get in!  

Outside

Ellie is really getting the hang of sledding now that she has built her confidence.  It is a great break from being indoors to go out to the backyard and enjoy adventurous sledding.  Conditions were good today due to the inches of new snowfall overnight.

Christmas 2007

Christmas morning was fairly mellow this year.  It was just us at home with a relatively small pile of gifts to open.  The kids had their go at it before breakfast.  All gifts were enjoyed!  The rest of the day was a regular day with the exception of several nice phone calls to and from family members around the country.

What's going on around here as 2007 comes to an end?  Snow!  I thought someday I might have a pool in my backyard but it turns out having your own sledding hill is nice too.  It's good exercise climbing the hill.  Going down is totally out of control and sometimes ends with a wipeout.  It's a simple thrill to enjoy the outdoors, especially in winter.  Staying warm in the snowy scenery gives me a feeling that I've mastered living.  Even Ellie is into the act now that we got her warmer, tighter mittens.  We've been testing various sled designs but the fastest are the inflatable variety.