The annual Schnell family snow-cation! It’s a favorite. I initially made resos at a hotel in dreamy Winthrop, but as the date drew closer and Isaac’s patience for being strapped into his carseat drew shorter, we changed course and opted to stick a little closer to home with a long weekend in Suncadia. Shane and Juliette took the ski-bus on Friday morning to Snoqualmie to get their downhill fix while Isaac and I followed with the car later in the afternoon to scoop them up on our way to the resort.
We checked into our room with our piles and piles of stuff (snow-tripping with two kids is no joke!) and then took a short walk to dinner. Since Shane and I had lugged all of our bags into the lodge, Juliette offered to lug the baby to the restaurant.
Cozy vibes…
And the glowing-est ice skating rink! This place is a madhouse during opening hours, but when it’s closed, it’s the perfect place to perch by the fire for a quick warm-up.
We all slept well Friday night, but sweet Jesus, baby boy was up early on Saturday. I took him down to the lobby at 6:00 am to burn off some steam while Shane and Juliette grabbed some extra Z’s. Thank goodness for hallways to roam in and fireplaces to sit by. A staff person walked by as I was chasing down Isaac and said, “You know there’s fresh coffee by the front desk, right?” I about hugged her. To the front desk, Isaac!
We headed back up the room around 7:30, having covered what felt like every square inch of the ground floor, and the kids caught up on some business while I prepped breakfast in our small kitchenette.
Cinnamon rolls were devoured and Isaac was climbing the walls again by 8:00, so we jetted back out to hit the sledding hill. It was misty and quiet out there, because who eats breakfast and gets dressed and leaves their room by 8:00 on a winter vacation? We do, friends. WE DO.
He makes me awfully tired, but dang, he’s awfully cute in his puffy gray snowsuit.
Isaac didn’t love the fast runs down the hill, but a nice gentle tow by big sister was definitely his jam.
Faster, Daddy, faster!
Biggest trooper award goes to the guy who forgot his snow boots but still dragged his kids up an icy hill several times over.
Funny how watching your dad haul you around poops you out, huh, Jules?
We walked back to the lodge after awhile to grab some hot chocolate and a late morning nap. All in a morning’s work…
We snoozed, ate some lunch, and then piled into the car to check out the Nordic trails at Salmon le Sac.
It was pretty icy out there, but a good time was had by all.
I sure do love skiing with this girl.
High five, Buddy! You nailed it.
We lazed around in the afternoon and grabbed a second nap (myself included), then drove into Roslyn for dinner. More cozy vibes!
And a very long wait for our food, but the kids were good sports about it.
…and to all a good night.
Sunday! Rise and shine! At least this time I knew right where to head for the free coffee.
Juliette woke up as Isaac and I were putting on our shoes and begged to come along on our obnoxiously early hallway shenanigans. Knock yourself out, Girlie.
…and more early sledding! We discovered that this hill is packed by 10am, so I guess there are some advantages to not sleeping in. Some.
“You’re not going to send me down the hill by myself, are you?!”
You’re safe with me, Kiddo.
The skiing and sledding were fun, but the kiddos seemed to especially love the leisurely strolls around the grounds of the lodge, stopping to make a quick snowball or see how deep they could burrow their footprints.
Pure joy, I tell you.
Juliette requested a little break from Brother and we let her fire up the iPad and put on the headphones, but Isaac kept wandering over and putting one hand gently on her leg while waving with his other arm and exclaiming, “HI!”. She couldn’t resist.
Napped and happy.
To lunch! We drove back into Roslyn to check out the Mexican food scene there. Again, the food took awhile, so Isaac and I wandered while Shane and Juliette ate their weight in tortilla chips.
The salted caramel chocolate from the corner candy store got an enthusiastic thumbs-up from Juliette; I gave my latte from Basecamp Coffee a solid 4 stars out of 5.
We gave up on the idea of more skiing due to the crusty snow and instead opted to romp around a nearby playground.
Juliette stock-piled ammo for a family snowball fight…
But Shane had her laughing so hard with his antics that she had a hard time nailing him.
Afternoon lazing…
And an evening walk through the twinkly woods.
Monday was check-out day, but we were in no great hurry to hit the road, so we spent the morning at the lodge, sipping coffee and reading in cozy chairs by big windows. Isaac seemed sleepy, so I tucked him into the Ergo while I walked the halls. It’s not too often anymore that this boy naps on the move, but sometimes it works. And it’s so sweet when it does.
He’s up! I let him borrow my Kindle so he could be just like Big Sis.
We piled our stuff back into the car and said goodbye our cozy-though-confined room. One last stop before booking it to Seattle, though…
Three cheers for Juliette!
And a lot of laughing at Shane, who took that last little sled jump none-too-gracefully…
We maxed out our mileage on our trusty red sled and then headed to the playground for swing-time and sculpture-carving.
He has the best hat hair.
Whew! That was…exhausting. But packed with good memories.
