Ski field trip

Grant's school had a field trip to the local ski hill today. Mason and I went along, and Mason even got his own lesson. Mason was so excited all day waiting for his 1:15 lessons. The little ones only get 30 min lessons, but he sure picked it up in that time. In the videos below I assume the instructor told him to follow him, as that is what it looks like he is doing.

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He fell down immediately after I stopped filming!

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Track meet 2

Grant had another track meet this week. The teams all tried, but they still haven't won.






This is after his run, that track sure is long for all these little legs!

The View from there

Here are the pictures and videos Grant took from their dog sled. Sure sounds like everyone was having fun.

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Nakiska

On our way home on Monday we took the kids to Nakiska for some snow boarding. Nakiska is where the Canadians train for the Olympics and it was used in the Calgary winter Olympics in 1988. The hills were huge! Even the bunny slopes had a chair lift and were bigger than the places we go in the city. The boys even went up a very long chair lift that took them over 1000 ft higher on the mountain.

The weather was still warm (34 F), but very snowy. In fact, it was the first time we have really seen snowman making snow. Its usually too cold for the snow to stick together. So, while the boys were gone, Mason made a snow man. He had a ton of fun.

Now we are home and enjoying the warmth of the house. Mason is already asking to fishing on grandpa's lake now.

Ice Fishing

On Valentine's day we headed out to do a little ice fishing. Luckily for us the whole weekend was above freezing, so warm for Canadian standards. We headed out at 9 am and didn't leave until 2:30 pm, which was a bit more fishing than I had planned for. The boys all caught a fish, even Mason, and Tyler caught two. Daddy didn't get any, but he sure tried, even while we were all eating what was caught. Nick, our guide, fried it up right there in the middle of the lake. Nick said Mason was the youngest he ever had catch a fish, and none of us even know how he did it. He would put his lure in the water and yanked it back and forth to "jig" it and then say "OH, I think I got one" and then he would reel it in. Well, sure enough one time he did, but since that was about the fifth one he "caught" no one was even paying attention until he said he needed help and Grant helped him reel it in only to find a fish on the end!

The water is so clean and cold, and that must make the trout extra yummy. The ice was about two feet deep and the water about 80 feet, and you fish right off the bottom. Its definitely something worth trying, you know if the weather is nice and warm.

There are a couple of pictures of huge cracks in the ice, this is because the lake freezes and they continue to let water out of the dam. If they didn't let the water out when the spring thaw comes the dam would get washed away along with the towns of Banff, Canmore, and downtown Calgary.

Dog Sledding

We headed out Saturday to truly experience Canada. Our first stop: dog sledding! First you get a lesson on how to drive the sled, then you get to go an a one hour sled ride. I rode, but everyone else got to drive. Even Mason! He did such a good job helping pedal and using the break when needed. The dogs were all so friendly and well trained. They knew exactly what needed to be done and when to do it, even if the drivers didn't. Some friends of ours met us there, and after the dog sledding we all went out for dinner. Everyone had a great time.

Here is the view: Click to play the video.

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Track meet

Grant joined the running club at school, and he had his first track meet on Friday. It was my first indoor track meet. You know, too much snow to run outside. Grant's team was one of the last teams to run, so they did a lot of waiting. Our teams all came in last, but they had a good time. They've just started practicing, so maybe the next one will be better.

And stay tuned after next weekend. You will never guess what we are going to do on Valentines day!

Gymnastics Class

Mason started in gymnastics class last month. He loves going, and asks everyday if its class day. He's moving pretty fast, so the pictures aren't great, but you get the idea.