I have been anxious to get busy sharing camping stories, and I had originally told myself I wouldn’t write about our second trip to Four Lakes this year. Besides, it wasn’t something we really wanted to do this weekend anyway. We had purchased two sets of groupons (one groupon, one living social) to ski months before, when there was an extra discount on it since it has sold out in the past. The kids had a blast there last year, and we had even gone three times. There was no way we were going to let that groupon get wasted as the winter season comes to a close, but this time, our thoughts were somewhere else…

With all the extra gear, we didn’t really fit in the loaner car we have had for 2 weeks while they continue to look for the problem with our brand new Suburban.

Who would have known the last two weekends would be in the 60s already? It was too warm to ski.

The tow rope was soaked, so our hands would be freezing all day.

There was slush all over the hill.

We had been skiing in some really great places in the last month, so Four Lakes didn’t sound exciting.

Chuck was still not feeling well, after a full week of being sick.

In fact, all of us were wiped out, so all we really wanted to do was hang out at home and play in the yard.

But as all us parents know, sometimes you have to put on a smiley face and spread your enthusiasm to the kids to pull them over to the happy side.   Actually, spring skiing reminds me of one of my favorite and most pivotal days of all time, so it wasn’t difficult for me.

Almost twenty years ago, I was in college and interning in Colorado. I was snowboarding in the slush at A-Basin on the 4th of July and loving it. As I was getting on the chairlift that day, another person jumped in front of the chair behind me and sent it flailing. I attempted to move out of the way and let that chair pass, but the guy I was going up with grabbed on to my hand and I found myself hanging from the chair as it lifted higher into the air. It was that moment that I was rescued by one of the people I admire most in this world. Tommy came to my rescue as I fell from the lift, and we spent the rest of the day talking about what we really wanted out of life. I ended up snowboarding and learning to windsurf with Tommy in that same day, creating an all time high. What could have been a disastrous day proved to change the course of my life, as I questioned the current path I was taking as I finished my college career in engineering. How lucky was I to fall off the chairlift that day?

Every time we have gone skiing, a lesson has been learned. How great is it that something we love to do is teaching our kids such important life skills?

We arrived to a hill with barely anyone there, so there was no line to go up the tow rope, and open runs going down.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and the warm temps allowed us to stay warm, despite our wet hands.

We were with good friends, so we were excited to spend some time with them.

The slushy snow was different to ski on, but it was actually really fun!

It didn’t take long for the smiles to spread to all of our faces. In fact, at the end of the day, we could not drag them off those slopes!

It is all a matter of perspective… sometimes, you just have to look at the bright side and choose to be happy. We are in a phase of life where every minute counts. We put our effort into trying not to waste any time – we learn something new every day. It’s so much more fun that way. Better yet, our kids learned that firsthand too this weekend. We were all so glad we went!

We are always in such a hurry to zip out west at the beginning of summer, we have found it difficult to get up to Marquette in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to visit my sister and her family. Besides, she puts a great effort into coming down to Chi-town to visit all of us pretty often.  It is beautiful there, and we especially love camping at the city park during the fall color change. The children’s museum is like no other too!

  It’s been a couple years since our last visit.

Thanks to her prompting and a long weekend break from school, we landed there for two nights last weekend! My sister takes pride in living in a ‘tiny house’ with her sweet family, so we are unable to stay with her, but managed to snag a great deal on hotwire (plus an additional discount with our discover card) at the Holiday Inn. We don’t stay in hotels very often (we make quite a ruckus when we do and our kids have to sleep in strange places to fit),

but we have found that even with AAA, the hotels cost almost twice as much as hotwire typically. The catch with hotwire is… you don’t get to see which hotel it is until after you book it, but we have always been able to do a little research given the amenities and narrow it down to one or two. I get a kick out of booking with hotwire – we enjoy trying to figure out which one it is, and like the surprise when we find out where we will be staying. Our whole family enjoyed soaking up almost 4 hours of swim time in the giant pool over the two days, and had probably the best brunch we have ever had with the Valentine’s Day kids eat free deal. Sweet!

We were wishing we could have made it up there Friday night for the start of the 200 mile dog sled race in downtown Marquette, but we couldn’t make the 8 hour drive until Saturday. I was able to participate in my dear friend Kim’s (bakingforblessing.com) bake and share on Friday, bringing the yummy heart-shaped vanilla bean donuts to my sister’s family. Lucy was ecstatic when she opened the box of pink treats. (L also happens to have the sweetest blue eyes ever).

We were even able to see some of the teams come back in on Sunday near the lakefront. They looked so tired, but what an accomplishment!  We even saw two bald eagles by Superior.

Even with the seven of us and my mom, we were able to fit in the skis and snowboards for a little snow fun, thanks to the front bench seat in the new suburban. We had never been to Marquette Mountain, and it was a treat to leave the girls and Gav (who was under the weather this weekend) back with their cousins for Valentine Date Night skiing with the two older boys.

We snagged the greatest deal! After 4pm, skiing costs $29, with kids under 10 skiing free with an adult ticket, and under 6 free no matter what. Because it was ‘date night,’ our own tickets were buy one get one free, and they let both boys ski free too. Score! Ethan and Braden had never snowboarded on such a big mountain, so they worked hard to improve the skills! The boys can’t wait to explore more of the mountain another time (Due to the cold temps, Ethan looked like a ninja, and Braden got snow-bombed by a snow maker).

  My sister’s husband has a large family, and as luck had it, they had already planned a get-together and rented out a cabin and the tubing hill in Ishpeming. It was a blast to see M’s family and jump in on the fun, even with the frigid northern temps! They even had a lift to get back up, which the kids appreciated after repeatedly hiking up the mountain in Colorado a couple weeks ago.

We were surprised so much time has passed since we have seen the ‘D’ family, but are hoping to see M’s family (as well as my sister’s) again sooner than later!  Hoping you will have us back… even after spreading our winter germs your way 😉

One of my favorite ways to pass the cold early months each year is to plan out our summer trip. It’s amazing to me how things have changed, and that we know what the year’s trip will look like so many months prior… who will go with us, what we will do, when we will leave and come home, where we will go, and so on. I go back and forth between wishing we could succumb to the thrill and change plans along the way and happily daydreaming about the concrete details, knowing without a doubt, it will be another great summer. I equate it to one year when we decided the winter had been too harsh and took a last minute trip to Fort Wilderness at Disney World, all planned within a couple weeks. The next year, we planned along the 180 day prior guideline, plotting out dining reservations, making t-shirts, and researching fast passes. Both were a complete blast. Despite all the certainty of all those details, there is surely a great deal of unknown to keep the excitement and adventure living on!

Years ago, we took off for the summer without a care in the world or thought about where we may end up. We threw our tent in the car and went wherever the wind blew us. In fact, we drove all the way to Alaska for a whole summer without one night of reservations. We thought we might spend weeks exploring Denali National Park, but upon being dropped off by bus and spending a night backpacking along the Teklanika River with grizzlies and wolves walking near us, and another backpacking in the bush near the end of the road at Kantishna, we decided the Kenai Peninsula was more our style. It was easy to redirect with just the two of us, our small RAV4, and REI Taj tent. Campgrounds rarely filled, and it was easy enough to get a site without planning it out way in advance.

These days, things are a bit more complicated. Camping has become so much more popular! With our 5 kids, Suburban, and 27 foot camper, we are limited in our options. We still want to go to all the remote national parks we have always gone to, but need one of the bigger sites in those parks. We chose our camper carefully so that we could still travel where we like, but in a little more luxury. Our new camper fridge will finally accommodate a gallon of milk, and there is actually a freezer!

This summer, we will have electric for 25 nights and 27 without. There were summers we hesitated to be without electric for even a night, but after a couple years of doing it this way, it doesn’t faze us anymore. Even better, we don’t have to rely on wifi any longer for a second master’s program! We are learning about solar panels and how to use our new camper and vehicle. It’s scary and exciting at the same time. Reservations were booked before Christmas, early New Years Day, and others were booked on whatever the designated opening day, often 6 months prior to your arrival day. Even though we booked these so early, we had to get creative with some of our locations. This was a big frustration last year for me – even though I booked in February, I had to check religiously on a daily basis to snatch up cancellations in the places we wanted to be most in California. In the end, some of that was rearranged anyway when our engine blew in the Mohave Desert.

With our new vehicle and camper, we hope that this year will be the first in 4 years without troubles, although we have come to expect it, and are pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. We go by the motto, “Expect the best, but plan for the worst.” Thankfully, we haven’t seen the worst and have had enough time each summer to adjust when troubles come our way. Whatever comes our way, the entire Hoffpack looks forward to the day our 2016 summer adventure begins!

Skiing with 5 kids 10 years old and under is just like comedian Jim Gaffigan’s analogy, “Imagine you’re drowning, then someone hands you a baby.” I am not the most patient person, so I try to use it as a self-improvement and learning experience, but it sure is hard to enjoy something you love when half of your offspring haven’t learned to appreciate it yet!

The first time we went skiing in Colorado (last year), it was a last minute, surprise trip. The older two boys had been skiing on a small hill before, but the younger three had never done it. In fact, I am a snowboarder, and had only gone skiing once myself. However, teaching two three year olds and a five year old required I abandon my allegiance and put on the skis. Lucky for us, the M family had enough equipment for all of us, so no rentals were required. In addition, kids under 6 ski for free, and adult lift tickets at Granby Ranch are $35 with a 4 pack, or only $20 if you know you will be staying on the bunny hill for the day.

Both Chuck and I harnessed our twin daughters to us and practiced on the magic carpet, first-timer Gavin included.

From the beginning, the girls did not adjust easily to the stiff boots and awkward skis.

However, Gav was a natural, quickly progressing to the “bunny hill,” which was bigger than most Midwest ski hills.

His tenacious, cheerful, never give up demeanor netted him a full day on the slopes, pretty much self-taught with our hands occupied elsewhere.   Gav said, “Mom and Dad gave me a few tips, and I just watched people and even learned how to do tricks. I tried my best. Skiing is so fun!” Eek – parents of the year right there.

Lucky for us, the M family has the whole process down to a science, with boots worn to the mountain, and skis dropped off at the lift by sled.

To top it off, their big kids are pretty self-sufficient, with all trails leading down to the same lift and radios in their pocket to stay in touch. Even though the big boys are also snowboarders at heart, E and B are able to take off on skis up the mountain and hang with the M family kids.

  This year was a bit easier than last year for us, as we managed to take the girls and Gav all the way to the top and ski green all the way down… and what a workout with the girls in tow!

We love all the little caves, tunnels, jumps, and side paths at Granby Ranch.

Formerly Sol Vista, this is a great place for families, and is a much more affordable Rockies ski destination for us than its neighbors Winter Park, Breckenridge, Vail, etc. I am pretty sure a full weekend in the Colorado mountains (including flights) with the resourceful M family is a cheaper option for us than a trip up to Wisconsin. A full run with the girls took a long time since we were slowing them down to a speed they could manage, but when one of them folded, the other was quick to follow, full twin sympathy in effect. Because of that, we even managed a couple “girl-free” runs with the boys while Julie kept the girls occupied inside by the fire.

This is a great spot to take a lunch break and still be able to see your other skiers out the window.

We were so thankful for those moments to just breathe and replenish our patience.

On one run, we noted and appreciated what a rare opportunity it was that both Chuck and I could give Gav our full attention.

While part of me longs for the day I can pull out my board and ride easily, knowing all my kids are right there with me having a blast, and without having to worry about someone losing interest half way down the mountain, I’m happy that they are learning the ropes now. I truly believe the experiences our kids have now are forming the character traits we hope they will use as the building blocks for their future. Fortunately and unfortunately, those days are nearer than I know. Once again, I find myself again wishing I could freeze time. For now, I will take solace in the fact that these are the best moments of our lives, and I will always look back on them with complete joy!

For a family who prides ourselves on being pretty independent, the last 3 years, we have been rescued in one way or another by the M family. When our popup camper crashed down on our first night out in Nebraska, they were more than happy to take us in for the night while our cable was repaired. The following year, our van had transmission problems once again in Nebraska, and they not only offered to tow us to Denver if we ran into trouble, but took us in again, this time for several days, as we waited for parts to arrive at Honda. There is nothing like being stranded in Colorado with friends who like to play hard, and have all the toys to do it 😉

This year, we arrived with only our backpacks,

ready to visit and play with some of our favorite people, fully realizing that the forcasted storm may cause travel over Berthoud Pass to be difficult with predicted prime avalanche conditions.

Worse yet, a storm would arrive in Denver the day we were to fly home. Sometimes, we seriously wonder if we bring trouble. The first day there, the water went out in their mountain home, so we poured buckets of water from the neighbors into the backup toilet tanks, and filled containers for drinking and hand washing. Did the well go out, or maybe the pump broke? Only the M family could be relaxed enough to sleep on it, wake up, and plan for a weekend of fun while trouble shooting what may end up being a really big problem for months on end until a new well could be drilled.

While we watched a big bull moose wander along the ridge above their home,

and the kids entertained themselves with a car stuck in the driveway of a neighbor’s rental property,

the guys handily figured out the issue was a severed wire and subsequently blown fuse. Only Rick could go from an unresolved problem like that to pulling out a fleet of snowmobiles for 8 kids to play with.

Despite the fact that I am not the biggest snowmobile fan, my kids think they are the ideal form of snow play.

Chuck even had his turn with Rick one early morning.

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The boys loved hearing the tales of dad’s adventure.

In the meantime, Julie managed to pull together breakfast, lunch, and dinner so that cooking time didn’t interfere with mountain fun.

Last year, they happily agreed for us to come for a last minute visit when we found a similar deal, already knowing they would be entertaining for 30 that weekend.

Seriously, they are the coolest.

As we headed to SMR while Rick finished the pump repairs, we received the first warning that our flight may be cancelled or delayed.

We could either head back to Denver quickly, in hopes of getting out the next day, or take our chances and hope for the best. Knowing we didn’t want to leave without some good mountain fun, we decided as a group to take our chances and enjoy our much anticipated time with our friends.

After a day at Snow Mountain, and another full day of skiing, we spent our last morning in the high country snowshoeing.

While this is one of my favorite snow activities, the kids didn’t agree so much on a colder morning.

It was a stark difference to the year before, when everybody had a blast.

Chuck pulled the girls all the way up the mountain in the sled,

only to discover they all wanted nothing more than returning to the M family’s mountain palace.

Sometimes, I wish for a kid free hour or two to enjoy the peaceful quiet of the snowy mountains, but I love introducing them to what we love and I enjoy spending time with all of them. Plus, I do believe the outdoor challenges build character for them, and much-needed patience for me.

Even though our Monday night flight was cancelled

and rescheduled for early Tuesday morning, we were in a hurry to get over the pass and back to Denver before roads closed. Fortunately, they were not terrible, and we made it back to their Denver home in a couple hours without any trouble.

The snow continued to fall throughout the day, and conditions worsened throughout the night. We were concerned our new flight would get cancelled too, and knowing the only other flight of the day was full, we thought we may get stuck in Denver for a few days. It seemed that our 7am plane would never fly, but upon our 4am wakeup, our flight said ‘on-time.’ Roads were closed past Denver all the way to Kansas and schools were closed, but aside from a very early and long drive for Rick,

and lots of de-icing on the runway, we made it out without any hitches!

Call it fate or an unwillingness to leave a place we love more than anywhere, but time and again, we find ourselves stranded or voluntarily extending our stay. What family could have the patience for seven surprise visitors over and over?! We were reintroduced to the M family the first time we came back to Colorado with 5 kids in tow. Rick invited us over for dinner, and thankfully his adventurous wife agreed.

From the day we met Julie and the kids, they embraced us with open arms, making an instant connection that we are thankful for daily.  They have seen us at our best, and unfortunately, also our worst.

We laugh and play together so well, and count down the days until we are reunited this summer.  Thank you M family!

As I have shared before, one of our favorite places is Snow Mountain Ranch YMCA Camp, between Winter Park and Granby, Colorado. It is one of two YMCA of the Rockies locations, providing endless mountain fun for families. On our winter trip to Colorado this past weekend, we were fortunate enough to be able to visit SMR for a day.

You have not experienced sledding until you have gone tubing at Snow Mountain Ranch. After this weekend, I fear that my children have been spoiled for life. Never have I experienced such a smooth, yet ridiculously fast ride.  Check out the video below!

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Unlike the summer tubing hill there, the winter hill does not have a conveyer belt back up, so it can be quite the workout, especially if you choose to pull your smallest ones back up in the tubes like me.

I haven’t had many chances to exercise recently, so I was happy to do it. Boy, is it a blast though! All of our kids were smiling ear to ear-

we were having so much fun there, we spent most of our day racing up and riding down, so we never found time to partake in other winter activities during the day, but we will be back again another time!

Most of the winter activities at Snow Mountain are done at Camp Ouray, which is on SMR property, but closed during the summer to SMR visitors due to residential campers. Winter activities include a Nordic Center to sit and eat lunch, ice skating, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing (they have rentals if you don’t have your own).

We always manage to find time to roller skate while there, so after the tubing hill wore us out, we raced over to the Kiva to practice our skills (the Kiva also has indoor rock climbing and archery during the winter for $5/person). The skates are free to use, or you are able to bring in your own rollerblades or skates if you prefer. The first couple times we tried skating, it was difficult with 5 kids to teach, but all of them have surprised us and love roller skating as much as any other SMR activity.

Snow Mountain is famous for their popular free s’mores schedule. When we saw they were doing s’mores down at the craft center, you can bet we made sure to made it down to the campfire for a tasty afternoon treat.

As daylight came to an end, the snow continued to come down, so we headed over to the Buckboard Grill for some free tea

and a little cartoon downtime while I picked up some of the kids’ favorite fuzzy little creatures from our favorite little gift shop right there next to the front desk.

What a great way to spend our first full day in the mountains!

Last year, we were fortunate enough to stumble upon a $80 roundtrip airfare to Denver on theflightdeal.com and had the time of our lives visiting our dear friends, the M family!

This year, I went looking for a similar deal and found one on Frontier for $81 rt, after taxes and fees were added to the $15 fares.

There was one catch – flying on Frontier means you have to pay $40 for a carry-on each way, which would be as much as one of our round trip tickets. Of course, we would not do that! So… we were limited to bringing just a ‘personal item,’ and a backpack qualifies. I was up for the challenge, and excited to travel with less, so we unloaded our school backpacks and reloaded them with our Colorado essentials.

A few friends were baffled as to how we would achieve that with snow gear and all, so I took a few pictures of what we deemed important for 4 days in the mountains (or 5 when your flight ends up getting cancelled)!

Due to lack of available space, we knew everybody would have to wear their boots and snow pants on the plane.

We packed an extra pair of shoes, which ended up unused, but I was happy to have them in case of emergency. As far as clothes, layering was key. We have these fabulous waterproof/breathable coats from Lands’ End with a zip in fleece to accommodate different weather conditions that I was able to get 50% off the clearance prices on and make great travelling coats.

In addition, each of us had another heavy layer packed away for extra warmth when needed. You never really know what kind of conditions you might have in Colorado. Last year, we landed in Denver when it was in the 70s, and this year, it was in the 60s.

In the mountains, it was in the 40s and 50s last year, yet it was in the 10s and 20s this time. Everybody had a couple t-shirts, long sleeve tees, 3 pairs of pants, pajamas, hats, gloves, underwear, socks, and water bottles in their own backpack.

Additionally, one pack had a few snacks for the airport, including pizza muffins (courtesy of my friend Cassie), granola bars, and gum and suckers for the plane.

Another had deodorant and toothbrushes, and one had all our ski goggles.

Mine had our charging devices and cameras, and Chuck’s had our GoPro and swim suits.

We had enough space to pack a few books, DSs for a little plane entertainment, coloring books, fuzzy friends, and the much needed cozy blankets.

We are always fortunate to visit these amazing friends, who pick us up at the airport in their extra vehicle, already loaded with car seats and boosters for our crew,

and enough skis, helmets, snowshoes, and skis to support our big family in addition to their own. Everybody needs friends like the M family with a fun winter getaway destination 😉

It made for such easy packing since we didn’t have much space, and ironically, we probably didn’t use half of what we brought! Honestly, when you are going through security with 7 backpacks, 5 kids, coats, and snow pants, it feels as if you packed a ridiculous amount and we found ourselves wishing we had even less.

After this trip, I hope we can travel this way more often.

It was refreshing not to have a bunch of junk to lug around and worry about, and easy to load up our small packs in the car for our adventures each day. We are looking forward to sharing some of the winter fun we had while we were in Colorado.