Dear Abigail,
Well, we made our annual ski trip to Snowshoe, West Virginia, but this year we changed things up a bit, a little bit (a LOT bit) to do with the newest addition to our family and to Ellie's family! In the past, Aunt Steph, Uncle Jaybee and Ellie would ride with us, but this year, with the new additions, we just didn't have room, so we had to take separate cars. Another contributing factor to the separate cars was the fact that Mimi and Pic-pic went with us this year!!! Again, we had to change things up because, while Nona is pretty awesome at being a Nona, she just couldn't handle 2 three year old and 2 newborns! So, we asked Mimi to tag along and help us out with you kiddos, and, well, Pic-pic loves to ski (or at least when he was younger, hee hee!) so he tagged along, too!
So Saturday afternoon/night, we got all packed including the car and headed out early Sunday morning. This were tight, but bearable, with you and Mimi in the back row and Mommy and Kate in the second row and of course the boys in the front. You weren't too interested in watching movies, however, Mimi's eyes were glued to the little tv/dvd player she brought. She was watching the entire Twilight series for the first time!! So, we headed East on I-40, passed through Knoxville (Go Vols!) and stopped in Bristol for lunch. We caught up with Ellie's crew so we all headed to Ruby Tuesdays for lunch. At 12:00. On Sunday. For a table of 200, or close to that. Big mistake. It took forever. And, during this time, it started snowing, a lot. Finally we got back on the road ( after replacing a windshield wiper that just decided to fly off in the middle of traveling down the interstate) and we could tell the snow was going to be an issue. Roads were getting bad, and we were going rather slow, just to be safe and eventually we started going slow because of traffic. Then, worse, we came to a stop on the interstate. FOR SIX HOURS. Yeah, that's right. The same spot, for 6 hours, with you, Kate, Mimi, Pic-pic Mommy and Daddy all in our Honda Pilot. Again, six hours. Also, it was snowing pretty much the entire time. That just means there is no getting out of the car and stretching, or at least not for very long. At first, I will admit, I thought nothing of it. So we were stopped. We'd just chill, be going in an hour, and I'll see those mountains in no time. Daddy had a different vision. He felt confident we were staying the night on the interstate, or, well, at least at a hotel at the very next possible exit with hotels. Time went on and we continued to sit in the car. Thankfully your mommy is super prepared (for the most part...) and we had plenty of food and activities. I did not, however, have a potty because, well, I just couldn't imagine a scenario where you'd need a potty. You have been potty trained for over a year now, no accidents ever, you'll potty where ever, so if you need to go, well, we'd go. Well, that is, unless there are 6 inches of snow on the ground and it's continuing to snow and it's freezing and there are trucks lined up for miles behind us and all around us. That's when you need a potty. The first time you mentioned you needed to potty I pushed it aside and entertained you with something else, again, thinking we'd be moving in no time at all. Sooner rather than later, you requested the potty again, so I sucked it up, put my snow boots on (see, I was prepared by having mine and Daddy's snow boots handy), put all our jackets on and set out to potty. Of course I was trying to carry you because I did NOT have your snow boots handy. Again, didn't foresee a situation where you'd need them. I thought if it were snowing up at the top of the mountain when we got out, I'd just carry you. Didn't think you'd have to pee in 6 inches of snow...
Yes, your Mimi took pictures of you trying to potty. But you didn't. It was a little too chilly on that behind of yours so you decided to hold it. And you also decided to run off in the snow in the median and fall. Awesome. In no time at all you were swinging from the front to the back to the middle seats - literally.
This was right when we first stopped...
And you gave Kate lots of hugs, no doubt... 
And you gave Kate lots of hugs, no doubt... 
You found the "Hold On" handles and literally hung from there. Because it wasn't really bothering anyone, and because it was burning some stored up energy, we let you. We tried to watch more movies. You and Mimi did a huge sticker collage and we just waited and waited. Uncle Jaybee walked back to us several times (they were a couple hundred yards in front of us) and finally I suggested maybe he take you with him and Ellie could entertain you (and vice versa). So he did!!! But 30 minutes I was up at the car picking you up! Time passed a little more, we called the sheriff's department, learned that the tow truck that was trying one of the 2 trucks out of the ditch got stuck itself so we were waiting on a tow truck to get the tow truck out, and we continued to munch on the snacks we brought. Finally the inevitable came. You had to go and not just pee pee. So, I tried by myself at first but it was clear that you and your shoes were going to need a bath if I let you go potty like that, so Daddy got out and helped us, and well, you succeeded. Yep, you went, well, let's just say #3 (YES, 3#!) in 6 inches of snow on the side of the interstate in the dark as it continued to snow... I'm not sure I need to say anything else. FINALLY at 10ish the road opened up and thankfully we booked a hotel room hours before at the next exit up.
We made it to the hotel and because your Daddy likes to be clean he insisted he get his bag from up top (we put the majority of our bags on a thing on the roof of the car). Again, another lesson learned - always ALWAYS have a spare bag with toiletries and a change of clothes close by, for all of us... Oh and the last lesson was to always pack enough diapers for a snowstorm. I packed enough to get us to Walmart, which was supposed to happen that afternoon. Thankfully Aunt Steph had one I could borrow. AND, while we were unpacking, the keys were left in the ignition therefore causing the battery to die at the hotel, at 10:30 at night, after 6 hours on the interstate. Daddy wasn't happy. At all. BUT finally we all settled down. Well, even that didn't go very well. You couldn't make your mind up who's room you wanted to be in, mine or Mimi's. If you were in mine, lights were out and we were in bed, but you told me and Mimi you weren't tired. So Mimi said she'd stay up with you, but it wasn't what she was thinking! You were wired, no doubt. FINALLY you came back to my room and I basically held you down, I mean hugged you until you fell asleep. What a day. What a day.
The next morning seemed to be brighter and the roads were plowed, so we headed up to the mountain. Of course, we had to stop at the Walmart, but we did NOT stop for lunch other than passing through somewhere! What's so funny is, there was no snow on the roads at all on the way up the mountain! All that, and no new snow to ski on. Boo!!
BUT, we did make it AND Mommy was even able to go night skiing with Pic-pic. Mommy was going crazy knowing there was perfectly decent snow out there to be skiing on and I couldn't!!
And, you and Mimi were able to venture out and check out the scenery. You found your own 'mountain'... Of snow that is...
You had a blast climbing your mountain and sliding down, face first! You showed Mimi around the little village and snapped a few photos while you were at it!
The next morning we were all eager to get our feet into some skis, including you!
Of course, we had to get you your own helmet...
You and Ellie got geared up and were ready to learn to ski!
And, again this year, Aunt Mel was nice enough to teach you!! Mommy and Aunt Steph were super excited about you and Ellie learning so you can hit the slopes with us! 
Everyone was there to watch and Mommy got you pumped up and ready to go...
And off you went!
And, of course, you got to ride the magic carpet!! 
I'm pretty sure that's what kept you going! You ski down a bit and even sit down and say you were done, but then I'd say "You want to ride the magic carpet" and you'd say "YES!"
Look at you and Ellie, y'all look so cool, like you've been doing this for years...
But someone (Nona, here!) was there to help you up!
And then, right when I thought you were done, you saw the actual ski lift and begged to go on it. I had to explain to you that in order to get on the lift, you had to ski down to the lift, so you said "Ok, let's go!" or something like that! We had to wait for Aunt Mel because Mommy wasn't about to go down with you by herself, much less get on that lift. But, soon enough, you were skiing down your first green!
Eventually you rode it again and this time I was willing to try it out with you!!! You are so happy!
We were all so impressed with both you and Ellie. You guys did the pizza wedge so good and could stop and go all by yourselves. Occasionally a little bit of laziness would creep into you and you'd have to take a break...
But we all do that! Before long, you little sister and little cousin will be learning from y'all!!
While skiing was the main event, you did have fun doing other things. You went swimming with Ellie and Uncle Jaybee and apparently decided you could swim and just jumped in. Unfortunately you cannot swim and Uncle Jaybee had to jump in after you. You also went to Big Top and played games and bounced in the bouncy house and did that jumpy trampoline thingy where you are strapped in! I wasn't there to see or take pictures (sorry, skiing took priority...) but I heard you all had a blast. And you spent lots of time with Mimi and Pic-pic and your baby in the condo...
I think for the most part you behaved fairly well, however, one day I came in from skiing and I'm pretty sure Mimi had lost a lot of hair and was ready to throw you over the balcony. You apparently were OUT OF CONTROL and she, yes, MIMI, had to hold the door to keep you in the bedroom so you'd sit in time out! Now all I know is that you MUST have been bad, like real bad, for Mimi to implement punishment, much less hold the door to enforce it! Thankfully that was just one afternoon, and by the time I got home you were back to normal, or enough to be considered normal!
I think for the most part you behaved fairly well, however, one day I came in from skiing and I'm pretty sure Mimi had lost a lot of hair and was ready to throw you over the balcony. You apparently were OUT OF CONTROL and she, yes, MIMI, had to hold the door to keep you in the bedroom so you'd sit in time out! Now all I know is that you MUST have been bad, like real bad, for Mimi to implement punishment, much less hold the door to enforce it! Thankfully that was just one afternoon, and by the time I got home you were back to normal, or enough to be considered normal! We also got to visit Nona and Papa, as they made dinner for us and Aunt Carol was there and was super excited to see you and meet your little sister! And of course, you got to play with Ellie!
You also discovered Hot Chocolate while we were in Snowshoe. Yes, I was purposely holding you back from it, just waiting for the right moment, and Snowshoe felt right :) You LOVED it, but goodness you could not remember what it was called. You'd say "Mimi, I want that, what's that stuff called that we like?" every single time. We'd try to make you remember, but you never could! You still can't! We have to say 'Hhhhhhooo' and by the "t" you've figured it out!
You also discovered Hot Chocolate while we were in Snowshoe. Yes, I was purposely holding you back from it, just waiting for the right moment, and Snowshoe felt right :) You LOVED it, but goodness you could not remember what it was called. You'd say "Mimi, I want that, what's that stuff called that we like?" every single time. We'd try to make you remember, but you never could! You still can't! We have to say 'Hhhhhhooo' and by the "t" you've figured it out! One morning, we woke up and your mountain was gone, just not there, gone! Thankfully we got a good mountain play time in the day before!
The last night we were there, we headed to the local restaurant for a delicious dinner. When we walked in, you saw some kiddos with sticks and marshmallows on the end. From that point on, that's all you talked about, so... we had s'mores!!! You had so much fun making everybody their own s'more and of course loved eating the chocolate!!! It was a great ending to our fun ski vacation! Unfortunately that night it was SUPER cold and SUPER windy and it made us all nervous about the car ride home. While it did take us a lot longer and it did scare us pretty bad going down the mountain, we did not have any issues and made the 10 hour drive peacefully. Well, as peaceful as a 10 hour drive can be :)
The last night we were there, we headed to the local restaurant for a delicious dinner. When we walked in, you saw some kiddos with sticks and marshmallows on the end. From that point on, that's all you talked about, so... we had s'mores!!! You had so much fun making everybody their own s'more and of course loved eating the chocolate!!! It was a great ending to our fun ski vacation! Unfortunately that night it was SUPER cold and SUPER windy and it made us all nervous about the car ride home. While it did take us a lot longer and it did scare us pretty bad going down the mountain, we did not have any issues and made the 10 hour drive peacefully. Well, as peaceful as a 10 hour drive can be :) I was so happy you and Ellie loved skiing, or at least really liked it, or at least really liked the lift! A fun, fun, fun trip! I'm already looking forward to next year! Love you powder monkey!
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