Merry Xmas from "Ver, Whis, and the Del"! Part I

Max and I met a very chatty and charming Brit on the ski lift, at Vernon, as we made our way to the tippy top! We talked a lot about skiing and it soon became apparent to me just how "British" he really was. So many of his words were shortened, like "Whis" for Whistler, and "Bikkies for Biscuits (when he asked if Max left Santa a treat). The more I noticed it, the more he seem to be doing it! This made me smile. So I thank this friendly ski instructor for the inspiration behind this entry. (By the way, "Del" is referring to Riondel, where our cabin is located. :)

Onwards....

Being away for Christmas is something I have always considered. The last time I was away right on the holiday, was when I was living over in the United Kingdom. Ahhh, fond memories... However, I was solo then too.  Hmmm.

On one hand it seemed fabulous and exciting to be away with just our little family! On the other, would we miss being around family, not having our own tree, and would packing along gifts be too much???

In the end we opted for "giving it a go"! On December 21st, we left our home, dark and early, with Vernon, B.C. as our destination. En route, we would also stop at Whistler, and the cabin! Why not!?

Leaving our place; B.C. bound!

One thing that I did not think about was tranporting "Santa's" gifts for the kids. In the end, we put them in garage bags in the back, which were soon questioned by the kids! Quick thinking Chris said, "Oh! That is just stuff for the cabin". We did have plans to stop by our cabin in the Kootenays so that worked. :) That seemed to squelch any more questions.

The kids travel well too, as long as there is plenty of snacks, books, games and if they are really good, we will pop in a movie if it gets to be too long. We are also HUGE fans of Stuart McLean! So, we all enjoy listening to recordings of his stories as well, to pass the time away. Our favorite Christmas stories are "Dave cooks the Turkey, and "Morley's Christmas Concert". However, they are all very funny and worth a listen.

 Finally, after about 6 hours from our place to Vernon, we arrived at our first home away from home, at "The Outback". Our first day was spent skiing at Silver Star.

Santa was even there!!!

Our lift passes included the tube park once the hill was closed!

It was a hit!

Can I go again!?

Ahhh, nothing like a good soak after a hard day on the slopes.

Our second day was checking out "The Outback". We had been there in summer of 2011, so it was neat to see it in the winter. The water was brutally cold, as one would think. :)

Amyah already working the "embarrassed by her family" look! LOL

The kids and Chris see an opportunity for some rock climbing!

Silver Star was a crazy little place with everything from buildings that looked like they were from Disney Land, to great runs off of only a couple chairs to a course set up for kids to race mini snowmobiles!!! We hope to return someday and get in more skiing!