Snow!

Friday morning we woke up and decided to eat at The Plaza Cafe, surprised we were actually hungry after such a great meal! We walked up to The Plaza with CK giving Olivia a "piggy" (piggy back ride) and Uncle Steve giving one to Sofia! I'm not sure how he did it since she weighs nearly 60 lbs. and it's an uphill walk! We enjoyed a great breakfast at The Plaza Cafe and watched as Santa arrived by firetruck! The girls waved and then had a chance to talk with Santa after breakfast. His firetruck stopped on one side of the Plaza and Santa was there to talk with anyone who wanted to talk. After visiting for awhile, the girls ran around and played in the Plaza.

Our plan was to watch the tree lighting that evening and we wanted to drive up into the mountains to see how much snow is left. Both girls were so excited to see and play in snow. We loaded into the massive Suburban CK rented and drove up into the mountains. Sofia started to feel a bit queasy but we made it to the walking path in time that she was fine. Olivia fell asleep just as we left the casita and was able to get maybe a 30-minute nap while we drove. She was a bit out of sorts when we woke her up but we had no other way to get her jacket, hat and gloves on. There was snow in the shadows as we drove up the mountain and the walking path was covered with some depth in the shady areas. Sofia LOVED it. She kept up with CK and Uncle Steve and played in the snow or climbed up the bank of the mountain to explore fresh snow, look for unique rocks and check out the trees. Meanwhile, Olivia wanted me to carry her and refused to wear her jacket, hat or gloves! I don't know how she wasn't freezing but she never complained about being cold. Olivia enjoyed the snow, but not nearly as much as Sofia did. They played in the snow a little together but mainly Olivia wanted me to hold her or wanted a "piggy." Sofia made a quick snow angel, which she said was too cold to make another one. We also explored a series of hut-like structures that someone has gone to a lot of work to build. There were several along the ridge we walked on and it wasn't clear why they were made. It actually started to feel pretty warm up on the mountain by the time we were done walking around and exploring.

As we returned to the car, there was a tiny snowman someone made and I really wanted to get a picture of both girls with it, but Olivia was completely done by that point. We loaded up and headed back to the casitas. I'm pretty sure Sofia would have stayed on the mountain exploring and playing in the snow for hours more, but we wanted to get back to watch the tree-lighting.

Olivia gets a "piggy" from CK

Sofia gets a ride from Uncle Steve - I'm sure his knees loved it.

Watching Santa arrive on the firetruck

Visiting with Santa

Sofia in the snow

Sofia and Aunt Shirl walking and talking

The gang

Olivia finally plays in the snow

Aunt and Uncle

The beautiful aspens

Olivia and me

Sofia our little billy goat

The tiny snowman