Sledding!!

I love sledding, but not just any old sleds will do. No, once you have unleashed the speed that is snow tubes, you will never revert back to toboggans, discs, sleighs and the like. My family has always gone sledding in the meadows at Mt. Rose. And we have always used speed demons otherwise known as tubes. Everyone on the hill has always been envious of our sleds as they are incomparable in both distance and speed. It has been a family tradition as long as I can remember. One year, when the slope was particularly icy, my dad flew into the air and landed on his head resulting in a trip to the emergency room with fear of a broken neck. Did this stop us? No! The following year we made our way back up that mountain and went sledding again. Even my mom went sledding with us.... until one day, we went sledding at our normal spot, and my mom decided to take a thrilling run into some trees winding up with a broken arm. This was the last chapter in a long book of family sledding. This year... seven years later... tradition returned. Only this time, there were more Andersens than Freys, and certainly no mom to speak of. Still, we went to our normal spot and it was a blast. People always conjecture about which sleds will go the fastest. They always think that one or the other is going to outrun the tubes, but I know. And I will always know that you cannot mess with the snow tubes. They are fast and furious! This year, we were the first to arrive at our location. As a result, we had to trail blaze in snow up to our thighs... all the way up the mountain. In addition to that, each adult had to carry tubes/sleds/children. I got to carry Xiana all the way up... I know she only weighs 20 lbs, but this was no small feat. Once up, I was somewhat afraid to head down this mountain with my fragile baby in my arms. So, after a trial run, I had Brian take her down. She. Loved. It. What can I say? I have been attempting to train her to be a thrill seeker her whole life. I can't imagine how enjoyable it would have been to be her, or the other kids. They got to sled down on the laps of an adult, and then be carried back up to the top of the hill. It was hard work. It got easier as others arrived on the hills and we were able to start packing down a trail. But the first few times up were really hard. By the time you got to the top, you had to take a rest just to be ready to head back down to the bottom. And yet, it was absolutely worth it. As we cascaded, glided, tumbled, sashayed, slid, and soared down the mountain, I knew that every ounce of work it was to get back to the top was a fair trade for the excitement of the ride. Then I got to thinking. Isn't that what life is all about. We work really hard for extended periods of time so that we can have moments of sheer joy, excitement, and fun. And in the end, it's always worth it. Nobody ever said, "man, I wish I hadn't worked so hard to be able to enjoy that." On the contrary, we prioritize and figure out ways that we can achieve our goals. And most goals, at least goals worth having, don't often come cheap. We have to put our blood, sweat, and tears into the fruition of our dreams. And then.... bliss. So it turns out, life is very much like sledding. We work hard, climb to the top, carry those who aren't quite strong enough to carry themselves until a later date when they will be, and then we enjoy the fruits of our labors....
First time at the top...
at the bottom...
back to the top... (taking a little break)
And at the bottom... (climbing up with a tube in one hand and a child in the other... pretty typical of the day)
back at the top...
time for a little snack break
the boys raced... Mark smoked them!
racing to the bottom
The kids were wiped out before the adults which is really hard to believe considering all the work we were doing.
Every time we got to the bottom of the hill Xiana would say, "let's slide one more time."
I told them to say cheese. They were both a little preoccupied with eating the snow. Rowan was even dipping his crackers in it.
The warning on this sled says, "single rider weight capacity 120 lbs"
But we didn't die.

I wish I could have captured my dad's face. It was priceless. When you hit the bumps, the kids go flying out of your arms and it's really challenging to hold on to the tube while you wrestle them back to your laps. Scary, but fun!
Just relaxing
Last run of the day...
We hiked back to the cars where we had hot chocolate waiting for us. I love this day. I love sledding. Life is beautiful isn't it?